HEADLINES

Wanya Morris

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/16/23

May 16th, 2023 at 6:51pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are the latest 2023 draftees to sign their four-year rookie deals:

Atlanta Falcons

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

New Orleans Saints

The Browns added Tillman to a receiver room that includes Amari Cooper, Donovan Peoples-Jones and trade acquisition Elijah Moore. Peoples-Jones is going into a contract year. Downs joins a Colts team rostering contract-year wideout Michael Pittman Jr. and second-year talent Alec Pierce. The Colts lost Parris Campbell this offseason. Dell will stay in Houston, moving to a Texans team that traded Brandin Cooks to the Cowboys. The Texans did sign Robert Woods and are expected to have 2022 second-round pick John Metchie in uniform after a leukemia diagnosis wiped out his rookie year.

Donovan Smith‘s Chiefs signing looks set to place Morris on the developmental track. Kansas City has now added two free agent tackles — Smith and Jawaan Taylor — who have a combined 12 years of NFL starting experience. The Saints will pair Haener with their higher-profile Fresno State alum, Derek Carr, atop their quarterback depth chart. The team made Haener this draft’s sixth QB selection, at No. 127, and the move began a run on Day 3 QB picks.

Chiefs Acquire No. 92 From Bengals

April 28th, 2023 at 9:44pm CST by Sam Robinson

The past two AFC championship foes are making a third-round trade. The Bengals are sending No. 92 overall to the Chiefs in exchange for Nos. 95 and 217.

This year’s draft hosts selected Oklahoma tackle Wanya Morris. While Morris was not teammates with Sooner-turned-Chief Creed Humphrey, having transferred from Tennessee in 2021, he will join a Chiefs team that features some tackle uncertainty opposite Jawaan Taylor.

Kansas City is planning to move Taylor from his right tackle position, where he started four seasons with the Jaguars and played primarily in college, to left tackle. Taylor’s $20MM-per-year contract reflects that. Morris’ 2022 role would support Kansas City completing its Taylor transition plan. Morris started eight games at right tackle for the Sooners last season.

The Chiefs lost right tackle starter Andrew Wylie in free agency in March; Wylie, who had only played for the Chiefs over the course of his five-year career, is now with the Commanders. The Chiefs did not allocate much funding toward their right tackle spot during Orlando Brown‘s Missouri tenure, and they may not be prepared to do so opposite Taylor. Morris and former third-round pick Lucas Niang, who has dealt with extensive injury trouble, represent the team’s top options here.

Morris, who started seven games at left tackle during his 2020 sophomore season at Tennessee, becomes the second Oklahoma tackle taken in this draft. The Jaguars chose Anton Harrison in Round 1.