UFA's Joe Haden Declares

Junior cornerback Joe Haden is the first of many Gators who are contemplating making the jump the NFL to make it official. The Fort Washington, Maryland native announced earlier today that he will enter 2010 NFL Draft.

Haden became the first true freshman cornerback to start the season opener at Florida and has started all 40 games in his stellar career. After a somewhat rocky inagural campaign, Haden has been among the top cornerbacks in the nation and was a finalist for the Thorpe Award this season, which is given to the nation's top defensive back. He was a first team All-SEC performer and first team All-American as a junior.

Haden is a lock first round pick, who some believe could even crack the top five, in addition to being the favorite to be the first cornerback off the board come April. Not only is this Gator a lockdown cover man (4 interceptions, 10 pass break ups this season), he is an all-around defender–he’s very capable versus the run and an excellent blitzer (68 tackles, 3 sacks).

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