HEADLINES

Jer’Zhan Newton

Draft Notes: Newton, Lions, Latu, Bills, Titans, Texans, Jets, Eagles, Broncos, Cardinals, Commanders, Giants, Panthers

April 16th, 2024 at 4:51pm CST by Sam Robinson

Wednesday marks the final day for “30” visits during this year’s cycle. Illinois defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton is on the way back from a January surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his foot. Newton went through a belated pro day in Champaign on Tuesday, per Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz, who noted more than eight teams were in attendance. The Lions are not one of the teams Schultz named, but the Detroit Free Press’ Dave Birkett notes Newton did go through a visit with the defending NFC North champs. A first-team All-American and reigning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, Newton played through his foot injury last season — a 7.5-sack slate. The acclaimed DT, who ranks as the No. 32 overall prospect on Daniel Jeremiah’s NFL.com big board, also recorded 14.5 tackles for loss in 2022.

Here is the latest from the draft scene:

  • Speaking of the Lions, they are also believed to be high on NC State linebacker Payton Wilson, The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman notes (subscription required). Last season’s Bednarik award winner (given to Division I-FBS’ top defender), Wilson ranks 41st on Jeremiah’s big board. In need at linebacker, the Cowboys are also believed to be intrigued by Wilson, though Feldman adds some teams are too concerned about his medical history to consider drafting him. Season-ending knee and shoulder injuries halted Wilson in 2018 and 2021, respectively, but the six-year Wolfpack cog has been healthy over the past two years.
  • The Bills have brought in two likely first-round defenders, hosting edge rusher Laiatu Latu and cornerback Cooper DeJean (via Schultz and NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). Holding the No. 28 overall pick, Buffalo saw a concerning season from Von Miller (zero sacks after a second ACL rehab journey) and did not re-sign Leonard Floyd. The Bills also released Tre’Davious White and have not replaced him. While wide receiver is the buzz position in Buffalo given the exits of longtime performers, the Bills also have some needs to address on defense.
  • A fourth team booked a visit with Alabama tackle JC Latham. The first-round-level tackle will meet with the Jets tonight and Wednesday, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter. One of seven tackles Jeremiah places among his top 25 overall prospects, Latham has already met with the Cardinals, Titans and Bears. The Jets have been linked to an O-line investment, and the prospect of moving down from No. 10 has also come up for Gang Green.
  • Both the Alabama cornerbacks expected to go off the board early in this draft booked more visits before the Wednesday deadline. Terrion Arnold met with the Titans on Monday, Rapoport adds, while Kool-Aid McKinstry visited the Eagles (via the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane). With Darius Slay and James Bradberry set to begin the season north of 31st birthdays, the Eagles have been tied to corners. The Titans acquired L’Jarius Sneed via trade and signed Chidobe Awuzie; this would seemingly take Tennessee out of the early-round CB mix. Though, the team did lose Sean Murphy-Bunting and has seen ex-first-rounder Caleb Farley prove undependable.
  • Although the Texans have taken multiple fliers on former top-10 corners (Jeff Okudah, C.J. Henderson), they may be interested in bolstering their cornerback corps with a higher-upside player. Houston hosted Missouri’s Ennis Rakestraw on Monday, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets. A Texas native, Rakestraw (Jeremiah’s No. 28 overall prospect) allowed just one touchdown on 28 targets last season, per Wilson. The 5-foot-11 defender broke up 11 passes with the Tigers in 2023.
  • This draft features a number of tackles set to go off the board in Round 1, but the second round could produce some investments at the position. The Giants, Jets and Commanders scheduled late visits with Arizona’s Jordan Morgan, ESPN.com’s Jordan Raanan tweets. Jeremiah’s No. 49 overall player, Morgan also visited the Bills, Broncos, Cardinals and Panthers, Wilson adds, noting also the three-year Wildcats starter worked out for the Texans during the pre-draft process. Morgan earned first-team All-Pac-12 recognition last season.

NFL Draft Rumors: Williams, DeJean, Newton

February 24th, 2024 at 5:35pm CST by Ely Allen

This week we got news that USC quarterback Caleb Williams, widely expected to be the No. 1 overall draft selection this April, will reportedly enter the NFL without representation, per Mike Florio of NBC Sports. This isn’t totally unheard of as we’ve seen quite a few NFL players of late accomplish new deals without an agent, but the situation is a little different for a potential top pick.

We’ve seen defenders like Richard Sherman, Bobby Wagner, and, more recently, Roquan Smith sign new contracts while representing themselves. More in the realm of Williams, we recently saw Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson go through both the draft process and his first major extension without an agent.

Jackson was selected 32nd overall, while Williams is expected to be picked much earlier in the night. That means the deal that Williams will negotiate for himself will be worth quite a bit more money than Jackson’s rookie deal was worth. Still, rookie contracts are fairly restricted in how they can be built, so there shouldn’t be a ton of wiggle room in which Williams may mess something up.

Where Florio thinks the lack of representation could hinder Williams is in the leadup to the draft. He suggests that the agents of other quarterbacks or draft prospects hoping to supplant Williams’ top draft positioning will “spend the next two months trying to get teams to take their clients instead of Williams,” a process that can get dirty with negative framing being used to lessen the appeal of Williams. With a lack of representation, Williams would lack an advocate to appeal against the negative things being used against him.

Here are a few other recent rumors concerning the 2024 NFL Draft:

  • Scouts and draft pundits will be disappointed to learn that Iowa cornerback Cooper DeJean will not be participating in the testing at next week’s NFL Scouting Combine, according to Dane Brugler of The Athletic. DeJean is reportedly still working his way back from a leg injury he sustained late in the season. Widely expected to be selected on Day 1 of the draft, he is considered one of the more athletic prospects in the class and likely would have drawn lots of eyes in Indianapolis. Instead, DeJean plans to work out for teams much closer to the draft at the end of April.
  • Brugler reported that another likely first-round pick will not be working out at the Combine. Illinois defensive tackle Johnny Newton will sit out next week as he continues to recover from a January surgery that he underwent in order to repair a partial Jones fracture in his foot. He had been able to play through the injury through the second half of the 2023 season but, obviously, wished to repair the injury before heading to the league. Newton is expected to be cleared in time for an April pro day.

Illinois DL Jer’Zhan Newton To Enter Draft

November 25th, 2023 at 10:09am CST by Ben Levine

One of the top defensive line prospects will indeed be heading to the NFL for the 2024 campaign. Illinois’ defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton told reporters that he intends to declare for the NFL draft.

Per ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg, Newton revealed that he won’t be playing in a bowl game if Illinois lands one of the contests. The Illini can become bowl-eligible by beating Northwestern later today. That means today’s game will likely be Newton’s finale college appearance.

“It’s really important for me, trying to get my teammates one more game to play in,” Newton told reporters. “I know a lot of people don’t have careers after this, a lot of people won’t go to the NFL, so just to have people playing one more game together as a unit, seeing my team play, that would be really big for me.”

Newton put himself on the NFL radar following a strong 2022 campaign. He earned first-team All-Big Ten honors after finishing the season with 62 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, and 5.5 sacks. While his numbers have taken a bit of a dip in 2023, he’s still been productive, compiling 47 stops, 6.5 tackles for loss, and 5.5 sacks. The defensive tackle is a candidate for the Nagurski Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top defensive player.

Newton will surely hear his name called during the first round of the 2024 draft, and there’s a chance he pushes himself into the top-10 conversation. In a recent ESPN roundtable, Newton landed as the No. 8 overall prospect in the draft.