HEADLINES

Kenny Clark

Draft Notes: Collins, Clark, Howard

December 28th, 2015 at 5:26pm CST by Zachary Links

Defensive tackle Maliek Collins announced that he is entering the NFL Draft and foregoing his senior season at Nebraska, as Sam McKewon of the World-Herald writes.

“It’s always been a dream of mine, and I got a good grade back (from the NFL’s draft advisory board),” Collins said when asked why he’s headed to the NFL one year early. “I talked it over with my teammates and I talked it over with Coach (Mike) Riley and it seems like the best decision for me.”

Collins, a team captain in 2015, racked up 29 total tackles with 2.5 sacks this season. Many have projected that Collins will go in the first round of the NFL Draft this season and his grade from the NFL draft advisory board likely supported that forecast.

Here’s the latest NFL Draft news:

  • UCLA Bruins junior defensive tackle Kenny Clark announced on Twitter that he will skip his senior year to declare for the draft. NFL talent evaluators are high on the 6’3″, 310-pound junior and he could wind up being a late first-round pick. Clark recorded a sack and season-high eight solo tackles in UCLA’s bowl loss to Nebraska on Dec. 26. For the season, he had 47 tackles and six sacks.
  • Indiana junior running back Jordan Howard announced that he will forego his senior season and enter the 2016 Draft. A first team All-Big Ten selection, Howard entered the bowl season second in the Big Ten with 134.8 rushing yards per game (9th nationally) and 146.6 all-purpose yards per game (15th). Injuries have been an issue for Howard in the past, but he is considered by some to be one of the five best tailbacks in this year’s class. One has to imagine that his medical exams will play a big factor in where he lands.
  • University of Miami junior cornerback Artie Burns announced that he has elected to forgo his final year of college eligibility and declare for the draft. “After considering all the options, and looking into my future, I feel it is in my best interest to forego my senior year and declare for the NFL Draft,” Burns said in a statement. “I can’t put into words what these past three years have meant to me in my development as a football player but even more importantly as a man.” Burns could wind up as a consensus top five corner in this year’s class depending on what others at his position do.
  • Arizona Wildcats wide receiver Cayleb Jones took to Twitter to announce that he is going pro. The 6’3″ athlete is rated as the No. 23 junior wide receiver prospect by NFLDraftScout.com and he appears to be taking a risk by jumping to the NFL. Jones originally committed to the Texas and played in 10 games as a frosh before transferring to Arizona and sitting out for one year. While at Texas, Jones picked up a felony assault charge that was ultimately reduced to a misdemeanor.
  • The Texas Longhorns announced that junior defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway has decided to go pro. An honorable mention All-Big 12 selection in 2015, Ridgeway played in 36 career games with 18 starts. In that time, he recorded 92 tackles with 9.5 sacks, 18.5 tackles for loss and two fumble recoveries. Ridgeway is rated as the No. 5 nose tackle by WalterFootball.com and his stock could rise if any of the three underclassmen ranked ahead of him opt to stay in school.
  • Washington junior running back Dwayne Washington will forgo his senior season and enter the NFL Draft, as Adam Jude of the Seattle Times writes. Washington did not play in UW’s final four games because of a knee injury, an issue which required minor surgery. The tailback started six games for UW this season and finished as UW’s second-leading rusher with 282 yards. His seven total touchdowns were also second-most on the team. Washington garnered attention in 2014 when he converted from wide receiver to running back, though his frame still looks like that of a receiver.

Extra Points: Falcons, White, Draft

December 2nd, 2015 at 9:51pm CST by Zachary Links

The Falcons held a players-only meeting Monday in hopes of getting back on track for the stretch run, according to team sources who spoke with Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com. Under first-year head coach Dan Quinn, the Falcons have dropped four consecutive games and they find themselves on the outside-looking-in for the final playoff spots in the NFC. Players-only meetings can sometimes indicate that a coach’s hold on the locker room is in jeopardy, but that does not seem to be the case at all for Quinn.

Here’s more from around the NFL:

  • LSU cornerback Tre’Davious White is “entertaining the idea of staying in school,” Rand Getlin of NFL.com tweets. That doesn’t mean White is staying in school, but he’s at least giving it some thought. White could be rated as one of the best defensive backs in this year’s class if he goes pro.
  • UCLA defensive lineman Kenny Clark has indicated to multiple sources that he’s strongly considering entering the NFL Draft, according to Rand Getlin of NFL.com (on Twitter). Getlin adds that NFL talent evaluators are high on the 6’3″, 310-pound junior.
  • South Carolina linebacker Skai Moore is leaning towards entering the 2016 draft, team sources and family members tell Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (on Twitter). Moore led the Gamecocks in tackles all three of his collegiate seasons and finished this year with 111 tackles.
  • Oklahoma State defensive lineman Emmanuel Ogbah has indicated to multiple sources that he’s currently leaning towards entering the draft, Getlin tweets. In fact, Ogbah and his family have already had preliminary meetings with agents (link).