Tag: Jalen Graham

Previewing Kansas City’s Week 3 game vs. Bears on Chiefs Wire Podcast

On the latest episode of @TheChiefsWire podcast: @EdEastonJr’s chats w/ #CFL punter Adam Korsak, #49ers LB Jalen Graham & @TheBearsWire’s @BrendanSugrue #CHIvsKC

We’re back with an all-new episode of the Chiefs Wire podcast! This week, we’re previewing the Kansas City Chiefs Week 3 matchup with the Chicago Bears.

We check in with this past week’s press conferences featuring comments from head coach Andy Reid, cornerback Trent McDuffie, and defensive end George Karlaftis. We also flashback to Ed Easton Jr.’s NFL Draft Combine conversation with Canadian Football League punter Adam Korsak, describing his former Rutgers teammate Isiah Pacheco and San Francisco 49ers rookie linebacker Jalen Graham on his former Purdue teammate George Karlaftis.

Lastly, Bears Wire assistant editor Brendan Sugrue breaks down Chicago’s strengths heading into Sunday’s game.

Listeners can look forward to being well-informed about the Chiefs’ mindset heading back home this Sunday, Pacheco and Karlaftis’ impressive legacies left at their respective colleges, and the Bears’ improving roster.

Check out the link below to get your fill of Chiefs talk ahead of Sunday’s kickoff:

Report: 49ers 7th round draft pick LB Jalen Graham makes initial 53-player roster

The seventh round rookie linebacker out of Purdue has reportedly made the 49ers’ initial 53-man roster.

Tuesday marks a busy day in the NFL with the final deadline to cut rosters down to 53 spots looming. 

While many players around the league are being cut or waived as training camp comes to an end, others are securing roster spots as the final 53-player rosters are beginning to become official.

One of the final members of the San Francisco 49ers draft class has reportedly earned a spot on the team. According to Matt Barrows of The Athletic, linebacker Jalen Graham has made the 49ers’ initial 53-player roster.

Via @mattbarrows on Twitter:

With the No. 255 overall pick (seventh round) in the 2023 NFL draft, the 49ers selected Graham out of Purdue. Graham had a strong performance in the preseason finale against the Los Angeles Chargers, recording five tackles, including one tackle for loss.

Graham will slide into a stacked linebacker room in Santa Clara with Fred Warner, Dre Greenlaw, Oren Burks, Dee Winters, Marcelino McCrary-Ball and Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles.

This post originally appeared on Niners Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Watch out, SEC. Jalen Graham’s practices starting to look like his games

One major highlight? Jalen Graham has added accountability and work ethic to his already-great skill set.

For Arkansas fans who only watched the games last year and didn’t hear or read about coach Eric Musselman’s remarks before or after, one of the biggest questions was why forward Jalen Graham wasn’t getting more run.

Graham, a 6-foot-9 forward with an offensive game unlike anyone else on the Razorbacks’ roster, was the most roller-coaster player on the team. He scored 16 points against North Carolina-Asheville, then played five minutes combine against LSU and Missouri the next two games. He scored 16 against Alabama, then played nine minutes combined against Vanderbilt and Mizzou.

It was the norm, practically. But there was also a reason for it, something casual fans didn’t notice as much as Musselman, his staff and Arkansas opponents. Graham’s defense and rebounding were poor. Not mediocre, but a liability.

Apparently, that’s changing. So far in the offseason, Musselman said, no one has changed more during practice sessions than his dynamic scoring forward.

“Jalen Graham’s practice habits are dramatically different than last year. Dramatically,” Musselman said. “He’s done an incredible job of understanding expectations and following through on his part.”

That was the knock last year. Graham’s sense of urgency when the ball wasn’t in his or his teammates’ hands was lacking. Musselman pointed it out semi-regularly.

Imagine, then, if that is fixed. The guy who scored 26 points in 27 minutes on 12 of 15 shooting against Florida should no longer follow it up with games of eight, two, zero, two, two, zero and two points. Arkansas will have a legitimate scoring threat from anywhere within 15 feet – and with moves to spare – and a capable player on the other end, too, all in one person.

His coach is excited to see things make a 180-degree turn.

“There’s been some evolving even this summer.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=1]

State of the Roster: Starting job wide open for 49ers at LB

State of the 49ers Roster: There’s a starting LB job up for grabs.

With 49ers OTAs in full swing, we’re taking a position-by-position look at the team’s roster to figure out the strengths, weaknesses, potential dark horses to make the team and other nuggets about the players who will be competing for jobs on the 53-man roster.

The 49ers won’t have a ton of turnover on their defense this year, but linebacker could be a possible exception. San Francisco saw Azeez Al-Shaair leave to join the Titans in free agency, leaving a vacancy at the starting Sam linebacker spot.

While the 49ers have to iron out who starts in Al-Shaair’s stead, they’ll also be aiming to iron out the rest of their depth chart behind that starter. Not only will they have a new starter, but they may have a couple of new faces among the reserves as well.

How the linebacking corps shakes out is a huge question mark since it appears every player on the 90-man roster has a real shot to make the club.

Let’s look at the LB group on the offseason roster:

He’s back! Makhi Mitchell officially announces return to Arkansas

Eric Musselman’s roster for next season continues to take shape after a big piece from last season’s team announces his return.

[autotag]Eric Musselman[/autotag]’s roster for next season is continuing to take shape as he’s received another firm commitment.

Center [autotag]Makhi Mitchell[/autotag] officially announced that he would be returning to the Razorbacks next season. He posted his announcement on Instagram with the caption “I’m back” and “Hog nation….Let’s run it back #WPS.”

Mitchell’s decision to return may come as a surprise after his twin brother, Makhel, opted to enter the transfer portal back in early April. The two brothers had previously followed each to Maryland, Rhode Island and then Fayetteville.

Last season, Makhi was able to crack into the main rotation early on and become a reliable force down low for the Razorbacks. He appeared in all 36 games, averaging 7.0 PTS, 5.3 REB, 1.1 AST, 1.4 BLK and 66.2% FG in 20.1 minutes of action.

Mitchell’s return is huge for a team that was lacking depth and a true traditional big on the roster as things stood. He will join [autotag]Trevon Brazile[/autotag], [autotag]Jalen Graham[/autotag] and incoming freshman [autotag]Baye Fall[/autotag] in the Razorback frontcourt next season.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=130]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01fc3h383th881vsf1 player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=]

How LB Jalen Graham can carve out roster spot with 49ers

LB Jalen Graham has all the tools to thrive right away in a key phase of the game for the 49ers.

The 49ers have an open starting job at linebacker, and they selected two players at the position in this year’s draft. The second of those two, Pudue LB Jalen Graham, was their last pick at No. 255 overall. His path to the roster will likely be paved on special teams.

Graham has all the tools to be a terrific special teams player. He’s 6-2, 220 pounds and has plenty of functional athleticism to be effective in that phase. He’s relentless tracking down ball carriers and doesn’t often get hung up on blocks. Both of those characteristics should help him in kick coverage.

There’s a chance he fights for the open Sam LB spot, but he’ll have a steep hill to climb as one of the final LBs on the roster.

If he can step in and help a kick coverage unit that’s struggled at times over the last few years though, he’d be an extremely valuable player for San Francisco.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbxacb60r3mr0ac player_id=01eqbvhghtkmz2182d image=]

WATCH: Best Jalen Graham highlights from Purdue

Jalen Graham was a key part of Purdue’s secondary in 2022 and shouldn’t be overlooked as the #49ers’ final selection of the 2023 NFL draft

Jalen Graham was the San Francisco 49ers’ last selection in the 2023 NFL draft, but shouldn’t be overlooked. His dynamic skillset was a boon for Purdue’s secondary last season, and he showed an ability to make plays in big moments to keep the Boilermakers’ heads above water.

Whether he will make an impact for the 49ers in 2023 is unknown, but judging from his highlight reel from college, he should be able to push for snaps in training camp. Check out his best plays from Purdue below to get a sense of what he might bring to the table for San Francisco ahead of the 2023 season:

49ers add Purdue LB Jalen Graham with final pick in 2023 draft

Another LB for the 49ers. They finish the draft with Purdue’s Jalen Graham.

The 49ers wrapped up their 2023 draft class by adding Purdue linebacker Jalen Graham with the 255th overall pick.

Graham is nearly 6-2, 220 pounds and started 35 of the 38 games across four seasons with the Boilermakers. He’s not a particularly strong athlete and doesn’t excel in coverage. However, he was a productive college player and could be a factor on special teams.

At Purdue Graham posted 169 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks 16 pass breakups and three interceptions.

He was the second LB taken by the 49ers in this year’s draft. The other was TCU’s Dee Winters, who went with the 216th overall pick.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbxacb60r3mr0ac player_id=01eqbvhghtkmz2182d image=]

Jalen Graham announces return to Arkansas next season

Arkansas basketball received some more clarity on their roster after Jalen Graham’s decision Wednesday night.

The [autotag]Arkansas basketball[/autotag] roster for the 2022-23 season continues to take shape as forward [autotag]Jalen Graham[/autotag] will be returning next year.

Graham announced his decision in a two-minute video posted to his Twitter account late Wednesday night. He is the second Razorback to officially announce his return for next season, joining [autotag]Trevon Brazile[/autotag].

Last season was up-and-down for Graham, but fans saw glimpses of his potential to be a special basketball player. Graham appeared in 31 games last year while averaging 5.2 points on 66% from the field. He also grabbed 2.3 rebounds a game in his limited action. Where the optimism towards Graham comes from is his per 40minutes average. His numbers per 40 minutes are 22.1 PPG, 10.0 RPG, 2.0 APG, 2.0 BPG and 2.0 SPG.

If Graham is able to improve his performance on the defensive end of the floor, he has the potential to be a regular rotation player – but that’s a big if. His flashes of brilliance on the offensive end gave Arkansas fans hope, but next season is when he will need to put everything together on both ends of the floor.

The return of Graham gives the Razorbacks a full allotment of scholarships, but that will likely change as we await the decisions of [autotag]Anthony Black[/autotag], [autotag]Makhi Mitchell[/autotag] and [autotag]Makhel Mitchell[/autotag] among others.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=130]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01fc3h383th881vsf1 player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=]

Report: Jordan Walsh a strong candidate to return to Arkansas next season

According to one college basketball insider, there’s a good chance that Jordan Walsh could return to Arkansas to improve his draft stock for 2024.

It’s been a pretty disappointing season for Arkansas basketball after entering the year with high expectations. [autotag]Eric Musselman[/autotag] signed the No. 2 recruiting class in the country and added key transfers which had fans thinking about a potential Final Four run.

Instead, the Razorbacks were hit by the injury bug and sit at 19-11 overall and 8-9 in conference play ahead of their regular season finale against No. 23 Kentucky. That No. 2 ranked recruiting class included three five-star McDonald’s All-Americans: [autotag]Nick Smith Jr.[/autotag], [autotag]Anthony Black[/autotag] and [autotag]Jordan Walsh[/autotag].

Walsh was the biggest potential x-factor and “unknown” of the trio as experts knew he had the tools to be a special player, but was still very raw in key areas. This season has been an up and down ride for the Desoto, Tex. native where he’s just never really looked comfortable on the floor.

For that reason, college basketball insider Adam Finkelstein of 247Sports believes that there’s a strong possibility Walsh could stay at Arkansas for another year to improve his draft stock.

“Arkansas’ Jordan Walsh is another prospect who should consider a return to college basketball next season,” Finkelstein said. “If he can earn a bigger offensive role next season, he has a chance to show some of the scoring punch we saw in high school. Back then, that came in the open floor and straight-line drive situations first and foremost.

“There’s no reason he can’t incorporate those aspects into his game more at the college level. Simultaneously, if he can became a more respectable open shooting threat from behind the arc, he’s a player that could certainly help himself.”

The basis of Finkelstein’s argument stems from the fact that the 2024 NBA Draft is not expected to be very good. That means that guys who probably won’t be first round picks in the stacked 2023 draft class could potentially be first round locks in 2024, due to the lack of highly talented prospects.

There’s no arguing that Walsh has struggled immensely at times this season. While he’s occasionally shined on defense – when he’s not fouling – he’s never really found a rhythm on offense. He’s averaging just 7.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 0.9 assists 1.0 steals and 2.9 fouls per game while shooting 44.1% from the field, 28.3% from three and 73.5% from the foul line. In 30 games played, he’s only scored more than 13 points one time.

According to KenPom’s “Percentage of Possessions Used” stat – which determines how often a player is responsible for the end of a possession by either missed shots, made shots or turnovers – Walsh ranks eighth on the team in that metric behind [autotag]Makhi Mitchell[/autotag], [autotag]Jalen Graham[/autotag] and [autotag]Devo Davis[/autotag].

There are a lot of mouths to feed on the Arkansas offense this season, which has limited the looks that Walsh. In his limited looks, he has been extremely inconsistent which has not helped his draft stock much. He’s fallen out of the first round and is now a projected late second round pick in most mock drafts in which he’s included.

It’s impossible to say what Arkansas’ roster will look like next year because Eric Musselman is notorious for his year-to-year overhauls. However, if Walsh wants to return it’s hard to argue that another season won’t benefit both parties.

There’s still a lot of games to be played and decisions to be made between now and next season, but this year may not be the final time we see Jordan Walsh in an Arkansas Razorback jersey.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=130]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01fc3h383th881vsf1 player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=]