Tag: Javontae Jean-Baptiste

2024 NFL Draft – Commanders Select Notre Dame’s Javontae Jean-Baptiste

Make it 6 former Golden Domers going in the draft!

A sixth former Notre Dame football standout has been selected in the 2024 NFL draft as defensive lineman Javontae Jean-Baptiste was selected by the Washington Commanders near the start of the seventh round.

Jean-Baptiste heard his name by the Commanders with the 222nd overall pick.  He spent one season at Notre Dame after being a graduate-transfer last year from Ohio State.

He played all 13 games for the Fighting Irish last season, making 49 tackles and leading the team with 10.5 tackles-for-loss, five sacks, and 11 quarterback hurries.

Jean-Baptiste deserves credit for his development but it also speaks to the skill of defensive line coach Al Washington who originally helped recruit the now Washington Commanders defender to Ohio State.

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Commanders select Notre Dame edge Javontae Jean-Baptiste at No. 222 overall

The Commanders finish off their 2024 draft by choosing Notre Dame edge Javontae Jean-Baptiste.

The 2024 NFL draft is in the books for the Washington Commanders. With their final pick — No. 222 overall in the seventh round — the Commanders selected Notre Dame edge rusher Javontae Jean-Baptiste.

Jean-Baptise began his career at Ohio State, where he played five seasons, appeared in 44 games and made six starts. He had eight sacks during his time with the Buckeyes. In his one year at Notre Dame, Jean-Baptiste recorded 49 tackles, including a team-high 10. 5 for loss and five sacks. He played in every game and made 12 starts for the Fighting Irish.

Jean-Baptiste has exciting measurables, standing 6-foot-5, weighing 239 pounds with 33 3/4″ arms. Jean-Baptiste ran the 40-yard dash in 4.66 seconds.

The Commanders hosted Jean-Baptiste on a top 30 visit.

Here is NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein’s scouting report on Jean-Baptiste:

After a five-year run at Ohio State with modest production, Jean-Baptiste’s Notre Dame tape has put him in position to become a developmental Day 3 draft pick. He has good length but lacks play strength to stack and discard tackles. He’ll need to hit the weights to improve his anchor, but he has the footwork and agility to slide off of block sustain and make tackles. He’s a step slow off the snap, dulling his ability to outrace tackles to the edge, but he flashes the hands and hips to become a more impactful rusher if teams rewire his rush plan. There is still a level of upside available for Jean-Baptiste.

Commanders to host Notre Dame edge Javontae Jean-Baptiste on top 30 visit

The Commanders to host an intriguing pass rusher on a pre-draft visit.

The Washington Commanders continue to schedule pre-draft visits ahead of next month’s 2024 NFL draft.

According to Ryan Fowler of Bleacher Report, the Commanders will host Notre Dame edge rusher Javontae Jean-Baptiste on a top-30 visit.

Jean-Baptiste is an interesting prospect. He originally committed to Ohio State out of high school, where he spent the first four seasons of his college career. During his time with the Buckeyes, he appeared in 33 games, recording 51 tackles, including 10 for loss and eight sacks. Due to Ohio State’s depth, he often played a part-time role, so he transferred to Notre Dame for his final season.

Jean-Baptiste took advantage of the opportunity, playing in all 13 games and finishing with 49 tackles, 10.5 for loss and five sacks.

Now, the 6-foot-5, 239-pound Jean-Baptiste has himself on the radar of NFL scouts. He had an impressive combine, running the 40 in 4.66 seconds. He has outstanding length and is the type of player NFL teams will love to select on Day 3 of the draft so they can develop. Jean-Baptiste is an ideal development candidate because he possesses many tools needed to be a starting edge rusher in the NFL.

Washington head coach Dan Quinn has had plenty of success with players of similar profiles as Jean-Baptiste.

As we mentioned with Boston College cornerback Elijah Jones, Quinn and GM Adam Peters are looking for players with high-level traits, which Jean-Baptiste has with his length and athleticism.

Social media reacts to Jean-Baptiste scoring off blocked field goal

Holy moly.

Notre Dame didn’t start off well against Stanford, but that changed as the game progressed. By the fourth quarter, all that was left was to take whatever was left of the Cardinal’s soul. What was the best way to do that? How about [autotag]Jason Onye[/autotag] blocking a field-goal attempt and [autotag]Javontae Jean-Baptiste[/autotag] returning the ball 60 yards to the house?

Jean-Baptiste is 6-foot-4, 260 pounds. That’s all you need to know about the improbability of this play. There surely are many moments Jean-Baptiste will remember when his Irish career is over, but this one has to be near if not at the top of the list. One simply has to love when a defensive lineman gets a moment to shine with the ball.

As one might have guessed, social media was ablaze with this moment. You don’t see this happen every football game, so it deserves to be celebrated once it’s seen:

 

Notre Dame statistical leaders through 11 games

Hopefully, these players can end the regular season on a high note.

Notre Dame has one game left in the regular season against Stanford. Good luck finding a way to watch it on the Pac-12 Network, but that’s a topic for another day. Right now, let’s focus on who is most likely to help the Irish beat the Cardinal.

Statistically, here’s who is likely to factor in whether the Irish can get revenge for last year’s defeat in South Bend:

Notre Dame statistical leaders through eight games

In case you forgot after the week off.

Notre Dame has had an extra week to enjoy the blow it dealt to USC’s season. Now, it’s back to business with Pittsburgh coming to South Bend. With the gauntlet portion of the schedule behind the Irish, this hopefully will be the easiest game they’ve had to look forward to in a month.

For those who need refreshing after the week off, here are the Irish’s major statistical leaders:

10 under-the-radar 2024 NFL draft prospects to watch in CFB Week 7

10 under-the-radar 2024 NFL draft prospects to watch in CFB Week 7

The seventh full weekend of college football brings several big games to center stage. With so much attention focused on the top prospects and their key matchups this weekend, it’s good to also shed some light on some lesser-known prospects who will be in action on October 14th.

 

Notre Dame statistical leaders through seven games

Having lost two of its past three, Notre Dame officially has little left to play for. Before it can enjoy its first of two bye weeks, it must first deal with yet another ranked undefeated in USC. This could get worse before it gets better. Alas, the …

Having lost two of its past three, Notre Dame officially has little left to play for. Before it can enjoy its first of two bye weeks, it must first deal with yet another ranked undefeated in USC. This could get worse before it gets better. Alas, the Irish must carry on because the schedule dictates such.

Here’s who leads the major statistical categories for the Irish:

Notre Dame statistical leaders through six games

Who’s most likely to help defeat the Cardinals?

Notre Dame is getting ready to face another surging program, this time in Louisville. It probably would prefer to have an easier time than it did against Duke, which it barely escaped against. The road atmosphere the Cardinals fans will provide unlikely will be anymore forgiving though. That’s why the Irish must prepare for any and all possibilities.

Here are the statistical leaders for the Irish at the midway point of the season:

Week 5 Scouting Notebook: A look at potential Chargers prospects in 2024 NFL draft

Here are a handful of prospects for Chargers fans to watch in Week 5.

The fifth week of college football is here, which means we are back with another edition of the Scouting Notebook.

The Scouting Notebook will feature prospects to keep an eye on throughout the day. While some may think it’s too early to start talking about the 2024 NFL draft, there’s never a bad time to talk about the future of the Chargers.

With that being said, here are a handful of prospects to watch for in Week 5.