Titans Sign Two Draft Picks, 12 UDFAs
The Titans have signed a pair of rookie linebackers, fifth-round pick D’Andre Walker and sixth-round pick David Long, the club announced today.
Walker projects as an edge rusher at the NFL level, while Long is more likely to play off-ball linebacker. Neither looks to have an easy path to playing time in 2019. The Titans already boast Harold Landry and Cameron Wake on the edge, while Long is blocked by Rashaan Evans, Jayon Brown, and Wesley Woodyard on the inside.
Tennessee also agreed to terms with the following 12 undrafted free agents:
- Alex Barnes, RB (Kansas State)
- Amani Bledsoe, DE (Oklahoma)
- Hamp Cheevers, CB (Boston College)
- Cody Conway, T (Syracuse)
- Jonathan Crawford, S (Indiana)
- A.T. Hall, T (Stanford)
- Braxton Hoyett, DT (Mississippi State)
- Isaiah Mack, DT (Tennessee-Chattanooga)
- Anthony Ratliff-Williams, WR (North Carolina)
- Derick Roberson, LB (Sam Houston St.)
- Taj-Amir Torres, CB (Boston College)
- Isaac Zico, WR (Purdue)
Dolphins Sign Christian Wilkins, Two Other Draft Picks
The Dolphins have signed first-round defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, fifth-round linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel, and sixth-round offensive tackle Isaiah Prince, the club announced today.
Entering a rebuild phase, Miami could have gone in any number of directions with the 13th overall pick. Some observers had the Dolphins pegged as landing spot for a first-round quarterback, but the club passed on Dwayne Haskins in order to land Wilkins. A high-effort player from Clemson’s fearsome defensive line, Wilkins brings excellent character to a Dolphins locker room that’s attempting to modify its culture.
Wilkins should see ample playing time during his rookie campaign, and Prince might, as well. The Dolphins’ offensive line performed like one of the worst units in the league last season, and their right tackle spot is currently manned by Zach Sterup. Prince should a decent chance at beating him put for the starting role.
Third-round guard Michael Deiter is now the only Miami draft pick left unsigned.
Cardinals Sign Kyler Murray, Five Other Draft Picks
The Cardinals have signed first overall selection Kyler Murray, the club announced today. Arizona also signed following draft choices:
- 2-33: Byron Murphy, CB (Washington)
- 3-65: Zach Allen, DE (Boston College)
- 6-174: KeeSean Johnson, WR (Fresno State)
- 7-248: Joshua Miles, T (Morgan State)
- 7-254: Caleb Wilson, TE (UCLA)
Like all first-round picks, Murray has signed a four-year deal with a fifth-year option for the 2023 season. Per Over the Cap, Murray’s contract should be worth $33.159MM in total. He’ll receive a signing bonus of roughly $23.59MM, and carry a cap charge of $6.392MM during his rookie campaign. Murray’s contract contains language that will void the deal if he leaves the NFL to pursue his baseball career, tweets Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. 
Murray, of course, spurned MLB’s Oakland Athletics in order to enter the NFL Draft. The Cardinals have since traded 2018 first-round quarterback Josh Rosen to the Dolphins, and intend to install an Air Raid system under new head coach Kliff Kingsbury. Along with new weapons like rookie wideouts Andy Isabella and Hakeem Butler (neither of whom was signed today), the Cardinals will look to improve an offense that ranked among the league’s worst last year.
While Murray is the headliner, Murphy is a name-brand prospect in his own right. Projected by many observers to become the first cornerback off the board, Murphy ultimately lasted until the first pick of the second round. An excellent zone coverage corner, Murphy will fit in well with new defensive coordinator Vance Joseph‘s zone-heavy scheme.
Bills Sign Cody Ford, Five Other Draft Picks, Eight UDFAs
After signing first-round pick Ed Oliver earlier today, the Bills have signed six more draft picks and eight undrafted free agents.
Draft Picks
- 2-38: Cody Ford, T (Oklahoma)
- 3-74: Devin Singletary, RB (Florida Atlantic)
- 5-147: Vosean Joseph, LB (Florida)
- 6-181: Jaquan Johnson, S (Miami)
- 7-225: Darryl Johnson Jr., DE (North Carolina A&T)
- 7-228: Tommy Sweeney, TE (Boston College)
Ford, whom many teams had earmarked as a Day 1 selection, will give the Bills options along their revamped offensive line. He’s capable of playing either guard or tackle, so Buffalo can deploy the Oklahoma product in any number of ways. Singletary, meanwhile, becomes yet another new running back on the Bills’ roster, joining T.J. Yeldon and Frank Gore. LeSean McCoy, therefore, could potentially either become trade bait or be released.
UDFAs
- Tyrel Dodson, LB (Texas A&M)
- Nick Easley, WR (Iowa)
- Juwan Foggie, LB (Charlotte)
- Blake Hance, OL (Northwestern)
- Tyree Jackson, QB (Buffalo)
- Cam Lewis, CB (Buffalo)
- Chase McLaughlin, K (Illinois)
- David Sills, WR (West Virginia)
Jackson was widely expected to be drafted, but he was instead able to choose his destination and remain close to home. He received $75K guaranteed on his deal with the Bills, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.
Eagles Sign Entire 2019 Draft Class, 10 UDFAs
The Eagles have moved quickly to not only wrap up their entire 2019 draft class, but announce their crop of undrafted free agents.
Draft Class
- 1-22: Andre Dillard, T (Washington State)
- 2-53: Miles Sanders, RB (Penn State)
- 2-57: JJ Arcega-Whiteside, WR (Stanford)
- 4-138: Shareef Miller, DE (Penn State)
- 5-167: Clayton Thorson, QB (Northwestern)
Philadelphia moved up to pick No. 22 to acquire Dillard, sending pick Nos. 25, 127, and 197 to Baltimore in order to get ahead of the Texans, who had their own needs along the offensive line. Many analysts viewed Dillard as the best offensive tackle available in the draft, especially given the number of pass sets he took in Washington State’s pass-happy offense. With the Eagles, he’ll likely act as a swing tackle in 2019 before moving into the starting lineup in 2020 (if Jason Peters ever decides to hang up his cleats).
Sanders and Arcega-Whiteside give quarterback Carson Wentz a few more weapons to play with in 2019. The Eagles acquired running back Jordan Howard from the Bears, but Sanders should also be in the mix for carries. Meanwhile, Arcega-Whiteside will give Philadelphia a big body at the receiver position, and could potentially lead to the Eagles trading former first-round pass-catcher Nelson Agholor.
Undrafted Free Agents
- Joey Alfieri, LB (Stanford)
- Ryan Bates, T (Penn State)
- T.J. Edwards, LB (Wisconsin)
- Nico Evans. RB (Wyoming)
- Nate Herbig, G (Stanford)
- Sua Opeta, G (Weber State)
- Keegan Render, C (Iowa)
- Anthony Rush, DT (UAB)
- DeAndre Thompkins, WR (Penn State)
- Kevin Wilkins, DT (Rutgers)
Among Philadelphia’s UDFAs, Opeta may have the best chance to stick given his contract. The Weber State product received a $55K base salary guarantee and a $25K signing bonus from the Eagles, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle.
Texans Sign Tytus Howard
The Texans have signed offensive lineman Tytus Howard, their first-round draft choice, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Houston has also agreed to terms with second-round cornerback Lonnie Johnson, second-round offensive tackle Max Scharping, and seventh-round fullback Cullen Gillaspi, according to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).
Houston selected Howard with the 23rd overall pick after the Eagles jumped one spot ahead of the Texans to draft fellow offensive tackle Andre Dillard. Howard has his own strengths, but Dillard was widely viewed as the superior prospect after spending his collegiate career at Washington State. Howard, meanwhile, is coming from the FCS’ Alabama State.
The Texans had a dire need for offensive line reinforcements heading into the draft after ranking dead last in sacks allowed, adjusted sack rate, and pressure rate in 2018. But it’s unclear just how soon Howard or Scharping (a Northern Illinois product) will be able to adjust to the NFL game.
After ranking just 19th in pass defense DVOA a season ago, the Texans have spent the offseason addressing their cornerback crew. Free agent additions Bradley Roby and Briean Boddy-Calhoun are in line for playing time alongside holdovers Johnathan Joseph, Aaron Colvin, and Kayvon Webster, and Johnson becomes the latest defensive back added to the mix.
Bears Hire Brad Childress
The Bears have hired longtime NFL coach Brad Childress as a senior offensive assistant, the club announced today.
Childress, 62, was hired by Chicago as an offensive analyst last February, but never actually worked for the team after being tabbed as the Atlanta Legends’ head coach in the Alliance of American Football. One month prior to the Legends’ first game, Childress abruptly stepped down as the franchise’s coach, leading to speculation he was nearing an NFL return.
The Browns were mentioned as a possible landing spot for Childress had they hired Vikings offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanksi as head coach, but the Bears always seemed like the most likely destination. Indeed, reports in early March indicated Childress was likely to re-join Chicago’s staff under Matt Nagy, with whom Childress enjoys a close relationship as a result of the pair’s time in Kansas City.
Childress, who’s served as OC for the Eagles, Browns, and Chiefs, spent five years (2006-10) as the head coach of the Vikings, compiling a record of 39-35.
Panthers Sign Four Undrafted Free Agents
The Panthers are the latest team to announced their 2019 undrafted free agent crop following the conclusion of last weekend’s draft. Carolina has agreed to terms with the following four players:
- Corrion Ballard, S (Utah)
- Elijah Holyfield, RB (Georgia)
- Damion Jeanpiere Jr., WR (Nicholls State)
- Jordan Kunaszyk, LB (California)
As Josh Norris of Rotoworld recently tweeted, the Panthers have been among the active NFL teams in signing Alliance of American Football veterans. Just this week, Carolina inked a pair of ex-AAF tight ends, bringing its total of AAF alums to eight. As such, the club didn’t necessarily have the roster space to add many undrafted collegiate free agents.
Holyfield, the son of heavyweight boxer Evander Holyfield, was viewed as a potential late-round pick, and Lance Zierlein of NFL.com compared him to NFL veteran Mark Ingram. Holyfield will compete with Cameron Artis-Payne, Elijah Hood, Reggie Bonnafon, and rookie fifth-rounder Jordan Scarlett for playing time behind Christian McCaffrey.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/1/19
Today’s draft pick signings:
- The Redskins have signed seventh-round defensive end Jordan Brailford, according to his agents at DEC Management (Twitter link). Brailford, the second-to-last pick of the 2019 draft, should ink a four-year deal worth roughly $2.595MM, per Over the Cap. In his final season at Oklahoma State, Brailford appeared in 13 games and posted 38 tackles (17 for loss) and 10 sacks), but Lance Zierlein of NFL.com says he lacks the size and speed needed to play in space. Brailford will likely compete for backup and special teams duties during his rookie campaign.
Ravens DT Michael Pierce Signs RFA Tender
Ravens defensive tackle Michael Pierce has signed his second-round restricted free agent tender, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Pierce will now earn $3.095MM for the 2019 season.
The deadline has already passed for NFL teams to sign restricted free agents to offer sheets, so Pierce didn’t have the ability to leave Baltimore. A rival club would have had to sacrifice a second-round pick in order to land Pierce, and while he’s an excellent player, the relatively low positional value for run-stuffing defensive tackles made such a scenario unlikely.
Pierce, 26, has appeared in 46 games for the Ravens since going undrafted in the 2016 draft. The 6’0″, 340-pounder played behind stalwart Brandon Williams on Baltimore’s interior defensive line last season, managing four tackles for loss on 389 total snaps. Pro Football Focus graded Pierce as the fifth-best defensive tackle in the league, and also ranked him 11th among interior defenders in run-stop percentage.
With Pierce now under contract, the only restricted free agents yet to sign their tenders are Jets wide receiver Robby Anderson, Rams linebacker Cory Littleton, and Rams cornerback Troy Hill.