How are those rookies doing?

[Trentwannabe]

2 hours ago, Danger said:

I still have incredibly low expectations of Singletary.

So you could say you have Buffa-low expectations?

I'll leave. 

[Daniel]

Post pre season, for the Titans:

Jeffery Simmons is rehabbing fast, which is probably a good sign for his physicality.  Will be eligible to practice by Week 6.

AJ Brown is looking like he'll be a quality possession receiver in short order.  Should play quite a few snaps early on.

Nate Davis was getting some first team reps, but an injury put him back.  Should start serious contention for starting time at RG by midseason.

Amani Hooker has been the most impressive rookie thus far.  He's gotten a lot of starting time in the nickel, and has been dominant when playing against backups.

D'Andre Walker is injured, and did not do anything of note before.

David Long Jr. has gotten some good reviews, but I think he plays way too sloppily to be effective in any role other than depth.

UDFAs that are significant are Khalif Raymond, who made the 53 man.  His biggest contribution could be as a returner, if anything.  Isaiah Mack looked really good in the preseason game against the Pats and forced the team to keep 6 DLs.  Jamil Douglas leapfrogged Corey Levin, and did look like the better player of the two to me.  Could be a decent dept piece.

Overall, looking like a good year of rookies.  But I'm sure no one else is super optimistic about their team's rookies at all.

[animaltested]

All of Seattles 2019 draft picks made the team, and most should contribute in some way.

DE LJ Collier should be back soon from injury. The addition of Clowney, puts Collier is a back role (which is good for development IMO). He can ease back in the rotation. Later in the season, 3rd down groupings could see Collier and Ansah on the edges, with Clowney inside. Really intriguing matchups if everyone can stay healthy.

S Marquis Blair is probably slated as the 4th safety (behind McDougald, Thompson and Hill). Seattle runs a lot of 3 safety sets, so Blair will see the field eventually. He biggest weakness thus far seems to be discipline (Too aggressive, or not lining up correctly), so working into the rotation slowly will be good. All three safeties ahead of him missed time last year, Id expect him to see a lot of the field later in the year.

LB Cody Barton is currently the 4th LB (Behind Wagner, Wright, Kendrick) but will see the field a lot. Seattle will probably cycle through LBs quite a bit, as the defense will be built around LB blitzes to generate pressure.

WR DJ Metcalf should be back soon, but Id imagine they will work him in very slowly. Again, player to watch in the middle=late portion of the season. (Depends on Moores health as well)

LB Ben Kerr-Kirven made the team as the 5th LB. Probably wont see the field too much barring injuries (or Kendrick suspension). Should be a key ST player.

DB Ugo Amadi will should see the field a lot, mostly on ST, but could see snaps in the slot, safety and in punt returns.

WR Gary Jennings made the team after a very disappointing Pre-Season. Id imagine he doesn't suit up on gamedays, and will probably get released on a Saturday, to sneak on the Practice Squad (Swap for TE Hollister)

WR John Ursua made the team, and will probably see a couple of snaps from slot. Could return punts too. Could be another Saturday day cut, sneak to PS once injuries start happening. 

RB Travis Homer is the 4th RB. Made the team for his potential as a 3rd down back, and does play on kick coverage. Will probably be a DND, for any weeks Carson, Penny, Procise all suit up. Which might not be too many, there he has a shot to contribute quite a bit in year one (in snap count, not necessarily touches).

G Phil Haynes and  DL Demarcus Christmas are on the PUP

UDFA DT Bryan Mone beat out vet Earl Mitchell for a spot along the DL. Has 6 weeks (until Reed comes back) to earn that spot for the rest of the season.

UDFA WR Jazz Ferguson and Terry Wright both made the PS. 

 

[Kiltman]

On 8/14/2019 at 2:17 AM, Kiltman said:

Drafted

1 (22) Andre Dillard OT Washington State

• Dillard has looked very good in game 1 and out on the practice field. Showing that pro-ready pass protection he was labeled with during the draft. Plenty to still work on, but most would say he's been promising enough to make you think they found their Jason Peters replacement for the 2020s

2 (53) Miles Sanders RB Penn State

• Haven't gotten to see him much with really no open practices. But apparently he's been on another level from the other RBs we have (not that hard to do). People have pointed to his burst and ability to cut as traits we haven't had here since Shady left. 

2 (57) JJ Arcega-Whiteside WR Stanford

• Not gotten too much of a chance with all the other targets we have, but has shown off his sneaky speed and catching ability. Reporters have liked what they've seen at practice. Seems to be in the Keenan Allen type mold for a receiver. Too early to tell how good he can be though.

4 (138) Shareef Miller DE Penn State 

• Looked like a developmental project, which he is. Will make the roster, but a year or two away from being a ok depth guy.

5 (167) Clayton Thorson QB Northwestern

• Looked like an AAF QB rather than an NFL one, was terrible in game 1 and practice hasn't been any better. He's getting beat out by Cody Kessler if that tells you anything. I'm sure they would like to stash him on IR, but if they lose him...it honestly would seem to be a blessing at this point. Seemed like a waste of a pick in April and has further seemed like that was the case every practice.

 

Undrafted

T.J. Edwards  LB  Wisconsin

• Apparently showed some solid athleticism and depth talent...we suck at LB, so it's not that hard to make the team there.

Ryan Bates OT/OG  Penn State

• Good enough to be traded apparently, any other team he would have made the team. But Eagles are too deep on OLine, glad we got something for him

final update

Drafted

1 (22) Andre Dillard OT Washington State

• Dillard has looked phenomenal all preseason, I wouldn't be shocked to see them do more planned rotations in with Peters than the typically have done.
  Will be a quiet year unless something bad happens above him. But should be good to go next year.

2 (53) Miles Sanders RB Penn State

• only got glimpses of him this preseason, Pederson sat most of the starters throughout. But showed some flashes of what could come. The beat writers rave about how good he's looked in camp. Will have to wait and see for the season.

2 (57) JJ Arcega-Whiteside WR Stanford

• Finally was able to show off what he can do once we signed McCown. Has great body control and hands. The Keenan Allen/Larry Fitzgerald type of athlete, though his top end speed is a bit more limited than Fitz. Production will be tough this year with how crowded the roster is with guys. but he's going to contribute. And a lot of that will be in the redzone.

4 (138) Shareef Miller DE Penn State 

Quote

• Looked like a developmental project, which he is. Will make the roster, but a year or two away from being a ok depth guy.

• pretty much ditto, but showed a little more promise as the preseason went on. Still more of a next year guy really.

 

5 (167) Clayton Thorson QB Northwestern

• Had a bit of a bounce back after an abysmal first showing, but it didnt get too much better, Eagles didnt invite him back to the Practice squad after they cut him..which says a lot.
  Was a bad pick from the start.

Undrafted

T.J. Edwards  LB  Wisconsin

• Had a really good camp and preseason and made the roster. Showed a lot of good instincts

Nate Herbig  IOL Standford

• I'd be lying if I said I paid much attention to him. But the coaches liked what they saw and really liked when he showed he could play center. Which was one of the main reasons he beat out s seasoned vet in Wisnewski for the roster spot.

[whitehops]

Vikings

1st - Garrett Bradbury, C: starting C, based on preseason he won't have a pro bowl rookie season but hopefully he's solid.

2nd - Irv Smith Jr., TE: surprised as a blocker which is huge since he's essentially going to be a starter with rudolph. 

3rd - Alexander Mattison, HB: was better in camp than in preseason but was still okay. he'll back up cook.

4th - Dru Samia, G: seems to have some promise, he's one of the backup guards this year.

5th - Cameron Smith, LB: surprisingly didn't make the 53, he got signed to the practice squad.

6th - Armon Watts, DT: has shown flashes, he has a ton of competition as backup DT (the vikings kept six) and might not be active on game days.

6th - Marcus Epps, S: made the 53 as our fourth safety.

6th - Oli Udoh, OT: a raw, toolsy project who has surprised early. likely won't be active on game days since rashod hill is our swing tackle.

7th - Kris Boyd, CB: made the 53, might get cut once holton hill comes back from suspension?

7th - Dillon Mitchell, WR: disappointed and didn't make the 53 but got signed to the PS.

7th - Olabisi Johnson, WR: really impressed and easily outplayed every WR on the roster besides diggs and thielen. could be the WR3 by week 17.

7th - Austin Cutting, LS: yeah, the vikings drafted a long snapper. donald trump personally helped him avoid his military service so he will be snapping long for us this year.

UDFA - Brandon Dillon, TE: made the roster as the vikings fourth TE. 

UDFA - Khari Blasingame, FB: a super athletic (highest SPARQ score among RBs this year) fullback, a lot of vikings fans wanted to keep him over CJ ham or for the team to keep both. he got cut because he was very likely to pass through waivers (being a fullback), but i like his chances of joining the team sometime this season. for now he's on the practice squad.

2018 UDFA - Hercules Mata'afa, DT: a real underdog story. he went undrafted last season being a 255 pound DT, then tore his ACL in training camp. he came back and played so well this offseason he made the 53 man roster. he'll either be inactive on game days or only go on the field in obvious passing situations, but he should be productive when he plays. 

[Forge]

Finally got a look at bosa in game action, and he was legit. One sack, had another with Armstead, but Armstead was given the full credit. 2 qb hits, tfl. Consistently won  his matchup against the bucs. He absolutely looks like the real deal

[DreamKid]

For the Ravens, both Marquise Brown and Miles Boykin's first career receptions were TDs. Marquise's 2nd career reception went for a TD as well. Great start for the Ravens' 1st and 3rd Round selections. 

 

[11sanchez11]

Dude barely even played and he dominated. 

[Danand]

1 hour ago, 11sanchez11 said:

Dude barely even played and he dominated. 

The coaching staff are still easing him in after his foot injury. While fantasy owners can be excited after this week 1, they will be disappointed when this usage of Brown will continue until he is fully healthy.

[TitanSlim]

So, AJ Brown was known as YAC monster in college and it looks like it may be the same in NFL.  It's something we've desperately been needing for years.

[DawgX]

2 minutes ago, TitanSlim said:

So, AJ Brown was known as YAC monster in college and it looks like it may be the same in NFL.  It's something we've desperately been needing for years.

Yeah, you guys got a good one in Brown. I liked the pick for you guys at the time and he was every bit as advertised yesterday.

[Fullback]

Does anybody have a full list of all UDFA rookies who made the 53-man roster?

I always like to learn about them early in the season before a few of them establish as legit NFL players. Every season there seem to be some UDFA rookies who make an early impact.

Scrolling through all 32 rosters and picking them out is somewhat time-consuming, let alone checking who made an immediate impact on the field.

[sammymvpknight]

On 8/30/2019 at 7:27 AM, sammymvpknight said:

Now that preseason is over:

contenders- 

Erik McCoy (going to be in the league for a long long time. Probably an upgrade to Unger.)

DeOnte Harris (looks like he could be the best returner the Saints have had since Michael Beerman Lewis).

Kaden Ellis (solid special teams contributor and has played great at the LB spot). 

Fringe-

Chauncey Johnson-Gardner (had a great camp but was inconsistent in preseason. Will make the team).

Saquan Hampton (also looked great in camp and was inconsistent in preseason. Will probably make the team.)

Pretenders-

Alize Mack (injured most of the offseason and didnt look like anything special. Really didn’t like the pick. Will likely be IR or practice squad.)

 

 

 

Game 1.

McCoy is still a stud. The Saints OL is downright dominant. There’s not a single weakness and all of them have pro bowl potential. I’d be really surprised if McCoy doesn’t have at least one pro bowl in his future (barring injury).

Shaky game for Harris. He had jitters, no question. He fair caught a punt on the 3, and then ran back a punt that he fair caught. Lol. I still believe in his talent...and to his credit he didn’t drop the ball.

CGJ had a highlight blunder when he ran into the kicker on the XP. But I don’t mind it. You have to try to block the XP in that scenario, it’s just unfortunate that the kicker missed the XP making him look bad. 

[minutemancl]

Deandre Baker got torched, Dexter Lawrence struggled against that Dallas OL, Xman didn't get many snaps, Love didn't get any snaps, and Slayton is hurt. Danny Dimes got his first real action in some meaningless snaps. Ballentine looked good as our kick returner and got some late snaps at CB (he should have started over Baker and garbage Antonio Hamilton).

Overall not a good first game for the rookies, but it wasn't a good game for anyone on our defense.

[Dome]

Erik McCoy has been everything we hoped for.

From early on in camp it was clear he had won the job and did so by a pretty wide margin. I don’t buy into preseason hype anymore, so I ignored people who said he looked every bit as good as Unger. But after his week one performance [PFF #2 center in week 1 is what I saw on Twitter, for what that’s worth] just the eye test says he was probably playing near the same level as Unger, if not better at times.

He’ll have his rookie slumps and mistakes for sure but all signs are good for McCoy

Edited September 12, 2019 by Dome