Rams Sign 9 UDFAs
The Rams had nine picks in this weekend’s draft, but three of them were seventh-rounders and only one was in the first 100 picks. As such, their undrafted free agent class should have plenty of opportunities to make good impressions. Los Angeles became the latest team to announce their group on Sunday, inking the following nine rookies to deals:
- Landen Akers, WR (Iowa State)
- Alaric Jackson, OT (Iowa)
- Paris Ford, S (Pittsburgh)
- Jovan Grant, S (Merrimack College)
- Jeremiah Haydel, WR (Texas State)
- Jordan Meredith, OL (Western Kentucky)
- Max Roberts, OLB (Boston College)
- George Silvanic, DT (Air Force)
- Troy Warner, S (BYU)
The Rams surprised everybody by drafting three receivers, but that didn’t stop them from signing another two. The fact they signed three safeties would seem to indicate one of those guys has a decent chance of cracking the roster. Warner might have a real shot since Aaron Wilson tweets that he got a $12.5K signing bonus. He’s also the brother of star 49ers linebacker Fred Warner, who the Rams are quite familiar with.
Jackson got a $20K signing bonus, Wilson tweets, and since the Rams also shocked everybody by not drafting an offensive lineman, he could gave a good chance as well. He was a first-team All-Big Ten selection this past year, and started 42 games at left tackle for Iowa. He was a projected sixth-round pick by Lance Zierlein of NFL.com.
Cowboys Sign 13 UDFAs
The Cowboys became the latest team to set their UDFA class on Sunday. Dallas agreed to terms with the following 13 undrafted rookies, via Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link).
- JaQuan Hardy, RB (Tiffin)
- Brenden Knox, RB (Marshall)
- Nick Ralston, FB (Louisiana)
- Brennan Eagles, WR (Texas)
- Osirus Mitchell, WR (Mississippi State)
- Brandon Smith, WR (Iowa)
- T.J. Vasher, WR (Texas Tech)
- Nick Eubanks, TE (Michigan)
- Artayvious Lynn, TE (TCU)
- Braylon Jones, G/C (Houston)
- Austin Faoliu, DT (Oregon)
- Anthony Hines, LB (Texas A&M)
- Tyler Coyle, S (Purdue)
After using eight of their 11 draft picks to address the defense, the Cowboys clearly intended to load up their UDFA class with skill position guys. Of those receivers it would appear Smith has the best chance of cracking the roster, since the Cowboys gave him $132K in guaranteed money, Aaron Wilson tweets. He got $120K in guaranteed salary and a $12K signing bonus.
Smith never put up huge numbers in the Big Ten, and only had 23 catches for 231 yards in seven games last year, but Dallas thinks he has some potential. Hines, the linebacker from Texas A&M, got $55K guaranteed, Wilson tweets. Hines only played in one game in 2018 due to injury, returned with a solid 2019 season when he had 10.5 tackles for loss, and then opted out of the 2020 campaign. He has impressive burst and athletic ability, but has below average instincts and often has poor tackling form, Lance Zierlein of NFL.com writes.
Colts Expect To Extend Darius Leonard, Braden Smith
The Colts are busy with the draft, but when speaking to the media about their picks, owner Jim Irsay also revealed the team’s plans for a couple of their guys currently on the roster.
Irsay said the Colts expect to extend linebacker Darius Leonard, and also offensive tackle Braden Smith ‘if the numbers work,’ Stephen Holder of The Athletic tweets. As Holder notes, Smith’s status beyond this season had previously seemed a bit more up in the air, while it was a foregone conclusion that the team would attempt to lock up Leonard.
Both players are members of Indy’s 2018 draft class, and in fact they were picked back to back at 36th and 37th overall. Each is entering the final year of their respective rookie deals, and are currently set to be free agents after this season. Leonard became an instant star, and has made an All-Pro team in each of his first three campaigns.
He was also the league’s Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2018. He’ll likely be seeking, and get, top of the inside linebacker market money. Smith has started at least 13 games in every season, and has been very solid but not spectacular.
It’ll be interesting to see what kind of contract he’ll be seeking, as he’s never been elite but also is a dependable starter and only just turned 25.
No wonder Irsay cautioned the finances could be an issue with him. Either way, it sounds like something will get done soon to keep Leonard in Indianapolis long-term.
Colts Draft Texas QB Sam Ehlinger At No. 218
Another big name college quarterback is off the board. With pick No. 218 in the sixth-round, the Colts have drafted Texas passer Sam Ehlinger. Indianapolis acquired the pick from the Saints earlier Saturday.
Ehlinger didn’t generate a ton of excitement as a pro prospect, but as the Longhorns’ leader for the past four seasons he became very well known to college football fans. He threw for 2,566 yards, 26 touchdowns and five interceptions this past year, picking up a second-team All-Big 12 nod in the process.
He became the 10th signal-caller drafted in the 2021 draft. He’ll now join a Colts quarterback room that doesn’t have much in it beyond Carson Wentz. Only 2020 UDFA Jalen Morton and 2020 fourth-round pick Jacob Eason are currently on the roster behind Wentz. The Colts have rotated quarterbacks ever since Andrew Luck retired, so it’s not surprising they’re taking developmental flyers.
Browns Trade Up, Draft Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah At No. 52
Cleveland just got one of the highest-rated players left on the board. The Browns traded up with the Panthers to nab the 52nd overall pick, and used it to take Notre Dame linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah.
Owusu-Koramoah was expected by many to be a first-rounder, and it’s pretty shocking that he fell all the way to 52.
Here’s the breakdown of the trade:
Browns Receive
- No. 52
- No. 113
Panthers Receive
- No. 59
- No. 89
Owusu-Koramoah went 19th overall in Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com’s final mock draft. Dane Brugler of The Athletic had him as the 15th-best player overall on his board. He received all kinds of accolades last season, including winning the ACC’s Defensive Player of the Year award.
He was also a unanimous All-American, and won the Butkus Award for the nation’s top linebacker. It’s unclear why he slipped as far as he did, but many people think the Browns got a steal with this pick.
He only played two years at Notre Dame, and won’t turn 22 until November. Cleveland has been steadily adding to their defense all offseason, signing guys like safety John Johnson and defensive end Jadeveon Clowney to big contracts in free agency. Linebacker was one spot they still needed help, and now they’ve got it.
Chargers Draft FSU CB Asante Samuel Jr. At No. 47
The Chargers have added one of the biggest names left on the board with the 47th overall pick. Los Angeles drafted Florida State cornerback Asante Samuel Jr.
Most NFL fans will recognize the name at least because of Samuel’s father, who starred with the Patriots and Eagles a decade-plus ago. The younger Samuel was a legit first-round prospect, and NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah had him going 30th overall in his final mock draft.
Samuel was a first-team All-ACC this past season, and will be an interesting piece for Brandon Staley’s inaugural defense in Los Angeles. Some scouts thought Samuel was a bit undersized, but he’s a playmaker who had three interceptions and two fumble recoveries in only eight games in 2020.
In 2019, he had 14 passes defended in 12 games. The Chargers really needed some cornerback help after letting Casey Hayward go this offseason. Samuel will now join a young secondary that has to be hyped to play for the defensive guru Staley, and it also includes fellow FSU alum Derwin James.
The elder Samuel won two Super Bowls while making three All-Pro teams and four Pro Bowls, so if he can come anywhere close to his father the Chargers will be quite happy.
Giants Trade No. 42 To Dolphins; Dolphins Pick OT Liam Eichenberg
Dave Gettleman just can’t stop trading back. After getting dragged this cycle for seemingly never trading down, the Giants GM has now done it in the first and second-rounds. New York has traded the 42nd overall pick to the Dolphins. Miami used the pick on offensive tackle Liam Eichenberg from Notre Dame.
Here’s the breakdown of the trade:
Dolphins Receive
- No. 42
Giants Receive
- No. 50
- 2022 third-rounder
Not a bad deal for the Giants. They got an extra 2022 first-rounder on Thursday, and now picked up a free third-rounder for moving down eight spots. Gettleman is quieting the critics in a hurry.
Eichenberg is continuing what appears to be the start of a run on offensive linemen, as the Bears just drafted Teven Jenkins moments ago. Miami drafted Austin Jackson in the first-round last year to be their left tackle, and now Eichenberg can potentially slide in as the right tackle.
NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah had Eichenberg going at the end of the first-round, and he had a real chance to go on Day 1. He was first-team All-ACC and a consensus All-American in 2020. He’s got great size, and Miami clearly felt he was going to go in the next few picks if they were willing to give up a third-rounder to move up.
Steelers To Extend Mason Rudolph
We heard earlier today that things were close, and now it’s official. The Steelers and quarterback Mason Rudolph have agreed to terms on an extension, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette tweets.
It’s a one-year extension that will keep Rudolph under contract through 2022. He had been previously set to enter the final year of his rookie deal. A third-round pick out of Oklahoma State in 2018, Rudolph has received plenty of chances to show he can be the guy who takes over for Ben Roethlisberger one day.
He got eight starts in 2019 due to Roethlisberger’s season-ending elbow injury, but was ineffective and benched a couple of times in favor of UDFA Devlin Hodges. He was better in his lone 2020 start in Week 17 when the Steelers rested starters against the Browns, but still hasn’t done much to indicate he can be a franchise quarterback.
Roethlisberger seemed on the verge of being shown the door earlier this offseason, and his future beyond 2021 is up in the air to say the least. Pittsburgh also recently signed Dwayne Haskins as a developmental option. The Steelers likely aren’t planning on Rudolph taking over under center long-term, but this move locks in a quarterback for beyond next season that is at least somewhat competent.
Patriots Discussing Trade-Up Move
The Patriots continue to be an intriguing wild card ahead of tonight’s first-round. While they re-signed Cam Newton this offseason they didn’t give him very much money, and there’s been a lot of speculation they might move up for a passer. 
While there have been a lot of hypotheticals about splashy trades up into the top ten for Justin Fields or Trey Lance, they could be in reality planning something more modest. Accordingly, one GM told Albert Breer of SI.com “that New England might be looking more seriously at a move up outside the top 10, rather than into it.”
The Pats are currently slated to pick 15th, so that would mean moving up only a few spots at most. Meanwhile, Breer reports that New England has spoken with the “Falcons, Lions, Panthers and almost every other team in front of them (with the exception of their division rivals),” about moving up, so they’re doing their due diligence.
Another exec told Breer he believed the team was “trying to play its interest cool for now.” They’ve clearly got a good idea by now about what it’ll take to move up to pretty much every spot in the draft, and Bill Belichick could strike at any time.
At the very least they’re staying active on the phones, and can be considered one of the likeliest teams to make a move this evening. Perhaps if one of Fields or Lance start to slip and get to 11 or so, then Belichick would pull the trigger. We’ll find out shortly…
Saints Pick Up Marcus Davenport’s Fifth-Year Option
The draft is about to kickoff in a few hours, but as you can see with all the Aaron Rodgers drama, the rest of the league isn’t slowing down. The Saints are still taking care of other business, as they’ve exercised the fifth-year option on Marcus Davenport, a source told Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football (Twitter link).
With the changes in the new CBA, it means Davenport’s salary for 2022 is now fully guaranteed. Previously it would’ve been guaranteed for injury only. The UTSA product will now make around $9.55MM in 2022. New Orleans gave up a first-round pick to move up 13 spots in the 2018 draft in order to select Davenport.
He hasn’t lived up to those lofty expectations, but he has shown promise when on the field. He started 13 games in 2019 but was limited to only 11 contests this past year, and started just one of them. He had 4.5 sacks as a rookie, six as a sophomore, and then only 1.5 this past year.
Injuries are a concern, and he only played around 50 percent of the snaps when healthy in 2020. This one was far from a lock, and it’s a strong vote of confidence in a player who’s still only 24. He’s shown flashes of brilliance before, and the Saints are hoping he can fully deliver on that potential over the next two years.