Category: 2024 NFL draft

Saints among several teams scouting NFL prospects at BYU’s home opener

The Saints were among several teams scouting NFL hopefuls at BYU’s home opener — including Kingsley Suamataia, an early-round prospect at offensive tackle:

We told you to keep an eye on Kingsley Suamataia, didn’t we? The New Orleans Saints were one of several pro teams with scouts at BYU’s home opener with Sam Houston State on Saturday night, per BYU beat reporter and ESPN+ host Jason Shepherd, and Suamataia was by far the top prospect on the field.

He’s someone we highlighted over the summer as the Saints’ type of player. A former highly-prized recruit at Oregon, he transferred back home to finish playing college ball at BYU, and the 20-year-old is already drawing buzz as an early-round prospect in the 2024 NFL draft. He’s also the cousin of Saints linebacker Nephi Sewell (and his brothers Penei and Noah).

Suamataia was one of the nation’s better right tackles last year with the Cougars but has since returned to his high school position at left tackle. He’ll need to play well against top competition on BYU’s schedule to stay on the left side in the pros, but he has all of the athletic tools NFL coaches look for. It’s interesting that the Saints were on hand for his left tackle debut.

But Suamataia wasn’t the only NFL prospect in the game, though he’s the only one drawing first-round pick projections. He has teammates like junior linebacker Ben Bywater (who logged what felt like 30 tackles) with pro aspirations. There are other young guys up and down the depth chart — and some playing for Sam Houston State — who will be auditioning for NFL roster spots next spring. Their process starts here. A couple of nice plays in live action can create a strong first impression, setting up further interest at pro day workouts, and possibly lead to an offer as an undrafted free agent later on down the line. They need every chance they can get.

[lawrence-auto-related count=4]

Saints’ scouts got a good look at Drake Maye in North Carolina-South Carolina

The New Orleans Saints’ scouts got a good look at Drake Maye in UNC-South Carolina. They were one of 19 NFL teams in attendance:

The New Orleans Saints’ college scouting department got a fast start to their 2024 NFL draft prep. And they were one of many pro teams on hand for one of the week’s most anticipated matchups: North Carolina’s rout of their major rival South Carolina.

The Tar Heel Tribune’s R.L. Bynum reports that the Saints were one of 19 NFL teams credentialed for seats in the press box at Bank of America Stadium. UNC quarterback Drake Maye was the marquee prospect, and there’s a good chance he lands in the NFC South next April. With the Arizona Cardinals going all in to tank for the first overall pick (and USC Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams), Maye is a more realistic target for needy division rivals like the Atlanta Falcons or Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

But Maye had an up-and-down night in the Tar Heels’ big win. He completed 24 of 36 passes for a respectable 269 yards but threw as many interceptions as touchdown passes (2). He’ll need to protect the football more effectively to keep pro coaches off his back, even if he has a talented enough roster around him to get away with it at the college level.

He was hardly the only NFL prospect on the field. North Carolina senior linebacker Cedric Gray led his team with 9 tackles (3 solo, 1.5 tackles for loss) and 1.5 sacks, though junior tight end Bryson Nesbit was limited to 3 catches for just 22 receiving yards.

And let’s not forget the other sideline. Gamecocks quarterback Spencer Rattler didn’t turn the ball over while completing 30 of his 39 pass attempts for 353 yards, but he also didn’t take advantage of scoring opportunities. His favorite target was senior wide receiver Xavier Legette, who broke out with the best game of his career — totaling 9 receptions for 178 yards, more than he’s ever had in an entire season. He’s listed at 6-foot-3 and 227 pounds and did a great job using his size to fight for contested catches. He might be someone to keep tabs on as the college football season (and the long march towards the 2024 NFL draft) continues.

[lawrence-auto-related count=4]

2024 NFL draft: USC vs Colorado shaping up to be CFB game of the year for quarterbacks

Caleb Williams vs Shedeur Sanders might be the game of the year.

Going into the 2023 college football season, NFL pundits almost universally had USC quarterback Caleb Williams as the top quarterback and one of the top prospects for the 2024 NFL draft.

A challenger approaches.

On Saturday, Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders made his debut and basically sent the college football world into a tailspin with a 510-yard passing performance over TCU. Sanders spent his first two college seasons at Jackson State and didn’t miss a step.

The knee-jerk reaction to all of this will be about where Sanders ranks in terms of draft stock compared to Williams. And guess what? In less than a month, we will get to see these two quarterbacks square off.

USC travels to Colorado on September 30 and we will get to see these two incredible playmakers square off.

Colorado has three games in between for Sanders to continue to build his case to be a top quarterback in the upcoming draft, should he choose to declare.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

 

Twitter loses its mind after debut of Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders

The Shedeur Sanders bandwagon got filled up fast on Twitter Saturday.

If you didn’t know who Shedeur Sanders was before Saturday, you do now. The Colorado quarterback made his debut against TCU on Saturday and threw for 510 yards and four touchdowns in the upset win over the Horned Frogs. Sanders performance was amazing and as the game unfolded, Twitter was going crazy.

Sanders performance puts him not only on the Heisman Trophy radar but gives everyone another quarterback to look at as the top pick in the 2024 NFL draft. Sanders threw for 510 yards and four touchdowns in a 45-42 win over TCU on the road.

2024 draft scouting first impression: Tennessee QB Joe Milton

Breaking down Tennessee QB Joe Milton from an NFL draft perspective in the Volunteers’ win over Virginia

College football is back with a vengeance over Labor Day weekend. It’s scouting season for the 2024 NFL draft, too.

One of the prospects I focused on in CFB Week 1 was Tennessee quarterback Joe Milton. The man with perhaps the biggest arm in college football and some serious athletic bona fides was in action in the Volunteers’ opener against Virginia.

Milton started out as the No. 10 QB prospect in my initial rankings for the 2024 NFL draft. He’s only played reserve duty in his two years at Tennessee behind 2023 third-rounder Hendon Hooker. Prior to that, Milton spent three seasons at Michigan.

His athletic ability shone through with Milton right away. He’s got almost effortless arm strength. Milton did show good footwork mechanics and a quick enough release. Man is that arm impressive!

Milton’s best throw of the day, a first-quarter laser-guided bomb launched some 65 yards in the air, was dropped by wideout Dont’e Thornton Jr. The line between “drop” and “too hot to handle” was clearly “drop” on that rocket, but there were at least four others from Milton that straddled the line to the other side.

Touch, or lack thereof, remains an issue for Milton. He also overshot open targets twice, both of which would have been easy strikes with better anticipatory touch. Virginia’s coverage was solid in undercutting routes over the middle, but Milton had the opportunity to drop in attempts with better touch and arc. He just couldn’t do it. Staring down his primary target was also an issue.

Milton finished 21-for-30, passing for 201 yards and two TDs. The Michigan transfer did flash well on the ground, rushing for two more touchdowns and showing both strength through contact and above-average acceleration for a QB.

New Orleans Saints scouting Tulane’s home opener vs. South Alabama

The New Orleans Saints are scouting Tulane’s home opener with South Alabama. Which prospects should be hot on their radar?

The New Orleans Saints’ college scouting staff is busy this week, the first full schedule of the 2023 college football season — with plenty of 2024 NFL draft prospects hitting the field. Our own Crissy Froyd is covering Tulane’s home opener at Yulman Stadium against South Alabama, and she reports that several NFL teams have sent scouts to observe the game in person.

Those teams include the Saints, Minnesota Vikings, Indianapolis Colts, and New York Giants in addition to Senior Bowl director Jim Nagy; Tulane standouts Tyjae Spears and Dorian Williams both impressed at the college all-star game earlier this year, and there’s a good chance some more promising players draw attention Saturday night.

So who could be hot on their radar? Five members of the Green Wave made the cut for the preseason Senior Bowl watch list: quarterback Michael Pratt, center Sincere Haynesworth, left tackle Cameron Wire, left guard Prince Pines, and cornerback Jarius Monroe. And five players from South Alabama are on that watchlist, too: quarterback Carter Bradley, wide receiver Caullin Lacy, running back La’Damian Webb, defensive tackle Wy’kevious Thomas, and safety Yam Banks.

[lawrence-auto-related count=4]

Top NFL prospects for Ravens to watch during Week 1 of college football season

We’re looking at the top NFL Draft prospects for the Baltimore #Ravens fans to watch during Week 1 of college football season via @Thacover2NFL

With the college football season set to get underway, the Ravens and 31 other teams will spend their last free Saturday of the year scouting potential 2024 NFL draft picks.

The team has seven picks in next April’s drafft after Baltimore sent their 2024 sixth-round pick to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for a 2023 seventh-round pick that was used to select USC offensive lineman Andrew Vorhees.

With some big-named stars looking to show out in front of NFL scouts, we’re previewing some of the top prospects for the Ravens to watch during Week 1.

UConn G Christian Haynes impresses vs. NC State

UConn RG Christian Haynes had a strong 2023 debut that cements him as one of the top IOL prospects for 2024

The University of Connecticut doesn’t typically produce a lot of NFL draft interest. The Huskies have had just six players drafted since 2015, none in 2023.

That drought will end in 2024. UConn has three players on the preseason Senior Bowl watchlist, with the most prominent being offensive guard Christian Haynes. Based on his performance in the Huskies’ matchup against visiting North Carolina State, Haynes could hear his name called early in the draft.

Haynes, playing right guard, had an outstanding debut. Normally it’s not easy to notice interior linemen unless they mess up, but that’s not the case for Haynes. He leapt off the game film.

With impressive agility and a seek-and-destroy style of play, Haynes was a snowplow in the run game.

Pass protection wasn’t as glorious, but Haynes fared well against the Wolfpack. In a quick once-over of the game, I had him getting beat twice in pass protection, one of which resulted in a sack. His game reminds me some of Larry Warford back at Kentucky. Warford was the No. 65 overall pick in 2013 and had several successful NFL seasons before injuries ended his career.

Expect to see Haynes in upcoming mock drafts as a Day 2 prospect. He could very well surpass Will Beatty as the highest-drafted UConn offensive lineman in program history. Beatty was the No. 60 overall pick back in 2009.

 

Saints spotted scouting Missouri vs. South Dakota in college football Week 1

The New Orleans Saints were spotted scouting NFL prospects at Missouri’s thrashing of South Dakota in college football Week 1:

The New Orleans Saints’ scouts were busy in the first week of the college football season, with team personnel reserving seats for Missouri’s game with South Dakota, per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Eli Hoff. Other teams in attendance included the Kansas City Chiefs, San Francisco 49ers, New York Jets, and Arizona Cardinals.

Many of the top 2024 NFL draft prospects in this game suited up for Mizzou (which helped them win a 35-10 landslide): defensive backs Ennis Rakestraw Jr. (who had a pass breakup and tackle for loss) and Kris Abrams-Draine, left tackle Javon Foster (who extended his streak of consecutive starts to 27 games), and linebacker Ty’Ron Hopper were among the standouts.

It’s a long season ahead, and many of these young athletes will have opportunities to show NFL teams what they’re capable of. But don’t expect the Saints to draft one of them just because they sent a scout to catch one of games. This is just one step in the process. With that said, making some plays and looking the part in live action can do a lot to make a strong first impression.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]