Tag: NFL Draft

Chiefs scouting report: Ole Miss Rebels OLB Princely Umanmielen

The Kansas City #Chiefs could target Ole Miss #Rebels outside linebacker Princely Umanmielen in the 2025 NFL draft.

The Kansas City Chiefs tried to land an explosive sack artist when they drafted Felix Anudike-Uzomah with the 31st pick in 2023. Unfortunately, Anudike-Uzomah barely plays and doesn’t significantly contribute to the defense. Several edge rushers in the 2025 NFL draft fit the mold Kansas City tried to fill several years ago.

Linebacker Princely Umanmielen’s decision to transfer from Florida to Ole Miss for his final college season is paying dividends. He’s tied for second in the SEC with 9.5 sacks and is applying pressure on 17.2% of his pass rush attempts. That number jumps to 22.4% if the sample size focuses on Umanmielen’s past three games. He produced two sacks in each of those appearances.

Umanmielen is around 250 lbs. with arms that fall an eighth of an inch below the 34-inch mark. His speed rush is one of the best in college football. Offensive tackles lack the quickness to match Umanmielen’s pace off the line, especially when he deploys from wide alignments. He covers ground quickly with long strides to beat tackles to the top of the arc.

Umanmielen drops his hips and whips himself around the corner once he draws even with or blows past the offensive tackle’s outside shoulder. His hip flexibility helps him dip under the pad level of offensive linemen and flatten his rush angle to the quarterback. This generates quick pressures that many quarterbacks can’t avoid.

Umanmielen’s pass rush plan relies on more than pure speed. He uses rips and chops to win around the outside, counters into the B-gap with an inside spin and occasionally converts speed to power to rush through the offensive tackle’s frame.

Umanmielen primarily excels as a pass rusher but makes some nice plays in run defense. He uses a long-arm to stack and shed blocks and hunts down running backs on outside zone plays with his speed. Umanmielen’s burst makes him a threat as a backside run defender.

The Rebels play their next game on the road against the Florida Gators on Nov. 23 at 11 a.m. CST.

Rams draft polarizing Georgia QB to be Matthew Stafford’s successor in ESPN mock

Could the Rams go from one Georgia QB to another?

Matthew Stafford has shown no signs of regression at the age of 36, continuing to play at a high level for the Rams this year. But there’s no denying he’s getting up there in age as one of the oldest quarterbacks in the league, which means the Rams have to start thinking of a succession plan.

With two former Georgia Bulldogs already on the quarterback depth chart, might they consider adding a third in the first round of the draft next year? That’s how ESPN’s Matt Miller sees things playing out for Los Angeles in April.

Miller released a new first-round mock draft this week and at No. 18 overall, he has the Rams selecting Georgia quarterback Carson Beck. At one point before this season, Beck was viewed as a candidate to go first overall as the top quarterback in the class, but his struggles in 2024 have caused his stock to slip.

The talent is certainly there for Beck, but turnovers have been a big issue, partly due to his accuracy regression. Here’s what Miller wrote about the possibility of Beck landing in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles could be the beneficiary of Beck’s stock dropping. Beck has thrown 12 interceptions, and his accuracy has suffered without Brock Bowers and Ladd McConkey, but he has a strong arm, the ability to make full-field reads and upside. The consensus in talking to scouts this week was that Beck could get himself back into mid-Round 1 consideration with a strong finish — which is what we’re projecting here due to the supply and demand at the position.

At 5-5, the Rams don’t look like a team that will be picking in the top 10 of the draft. They’re closer to a playoff berth than they are a top-10 pick, so it’ll be hard for them to land the highest-ranked quarterback on their board.

This is expected to be a weaker quarterback class than usual, though. Shedeur Sanders is pulling away as the projected QB1, with Cam Ward also in the conversation, but there’s no true franchise QB in this class like there was last year with Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye.

Beck has the tools to be a productive starter in the NFL and the Rams have the need at the position to take him in the middle of Round 1, but there’s plenty of risk that would come with that selection.

Browns fans should be paying attention to this College Football head-to-head this weekend

Tune into Penn State vs. Minnesota to see a matchup between two potential future Browns

The Cleveland Browns are riding the high of a win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, but it’s hard not to have an eye on the 2025 NFL draft. And this weekend in College Football there is a big-time matchup between Penn State pass rusher Abdul Carter and Minnesota offensive tackle Aireontae Ersery.

Carter, who is seen as a top-five player in this draft class, has been a terror off of the edge ever since entering Big Ten play. In his last seven games, Carter has racked up seven sacks and 32 pressures.

He will look to continue that reign over a potential first round pick in Ersery. Listed at 6-foot-6 and 330 pounds, Ersery is a mammoth of an offensive tackle. He has given up just one sack all season and 12 total pressures.

With needs at both offensive tackle and pass rusher, the Browns should be dialed into this matchup. The Daft on Draft podcast broke down this matchup in their latest episode. Tune in there to hear all about it.

Regardless, could Carter or Ersery be on their way to Cleveland in the 2025 NFL draft?

Travis Hunter reaffirms plans to enter 2025 NFL draft

Travis Hunter reaffirmed that he’ll be declaring for the NFL draft after this season

It didn’t exactly need to be confirmed, but Colorado football star Travis Hunter made his plans to enter the 2025 NFL draft clear once more earlier this week.

According to ESPN’s Rittenberg, Hunter was asked in a Zoom interview if he has any doubts about leaving for the NFL after this season. The cornerback/wide receiver reaffirmed that he’s “definitely” set to declare for the draft after this season — his third at the college level.

Updated 2025 NFL mock drafts have Hunter as a projected top-five pick. USA TODAY Sports recently predicted Hunter to go No. 1 overall to the Jacksonville Jaguars, followed by Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders landing No. 2 to the New York Giants.

Amid his second year with the Buffs, Hunter is currently favored to win the Heisman Trophy. Through 10 games, he owns 911 receiving yards, 10 total touchdowns and three interceptions.

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Potential Cowboys target Travis Hunter says he’s ‘definitely’ declaring for 2025 NFL Draft

Colorado’s Heisman Trophy favorite Travis Hunter says he’s “definitely” declaring for the 2025 NFL draft and could be a target Dallas Cowboys

The Eagles are 8-2, and outside of another dramatic collapse, Nick Sirianni’s team is set for another playoff run and a late first-round pick.

For the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, and possibly the Washington Commanders, Thursday’s NFL draft announcement from Travis Hunter should make potentially missing the playoffs worth it.

The Giants will surely be in on the Shedeur Sanders sweepstakes at the top of the NFL draft. For the Cowboys and Commanders, all eyes will be on Travis Hunter and his draft position.

Hunter made it clear to Adam Rittenberg of ESPN that his time in Boulder is ending.

Dallas and Washington have urgent needs on both sides of the football field, and Hunter would solve many of them. Hunter has 74 catches for 911 yards and nine touchdowns this season at wide receiver, and he’s also run for one touchdown on offense. As a shutdown cornerback, Hunter has 24 tackles, three interceptions, eight passes defensed, and a forced fumble.

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49ers solve biggest roster flaw in ESPN mock draft

The 49ers address the offensive line in the latest mock draft from ESPN.

While the stretch run and playoff push of the season is looming in the NFL, the college football schedule is entering the final two weeks before conference championships, bowl season and the highly-anticipated 12-team playoff.

As the college football season heats up, the final handful of weeks will display some of the top prospects in the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft class for the final time.

In the latest NFL mock draft from ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller, the San Francisco 49ers addressed their offensive line in the first round. With the No. 16 overall pick in the 2024 edition of the NFL draft, Miller penned Texas Longhorns offensive tackle Cameron Williams.

According to Miller, Williams’ game is still “raw,” but he could be a “long-term fix” for the 49ers offensive line on the right side alongside breakout young guard Dominick Puni.

Via ESPN:

He’s a first-year starter, and his game is still raw, but he shows considerable potential. The 6-foot-5, 335-pounder has drawn comparisons to 2024 first-rounder Amarius Mims in terms of his strength and agility, with one NFC South area scout telling me that Williams has a chance to be the first OT drafted if he declares. The 49ers could plug him next to guard Dominick Puni, their third-round pick in 2024, and form an incredibly young and strong right side of the line.

Read Miller’s full mock draft here via ESPN. 

The former three-star recruit is listed at 6-foot-5, 335 lbs. Williams plays on the opposite side of the Longhorns’ line as fellow top offensive tackle prospect Kelvin Banks.

According to Pro Football Focus, Williams has earned a 72.0 offensive grade this season with a 79.3 pass-blocking grade and a 76.2 run-blocking grade. Williams earned his best grade during Texas’ contest against Vanderbilt with an 81.1 grade.

Williams will suit up for Texas against Kentucky on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. PT.

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USC defensive back Jaylin Smith accepts Senior Bowl invite

Although he has never gotten a ton of star-level recognition, USC defensive back Jaylin Smith has quietly produced a solid career in Cardinal and Gold.

On Monday, USC defensive back Jaylin Smith officially accepted an invitation to the Senior Bowl.

Although he has never gotten a ton of star-level recognition, Smith has quietly enjoyed a really solid career in Cardinal and Gold. Splitting time between cornerback and safety over the past four seasons, Smith has recorded 170 tackles, five pass breakups, three interceptions, two forced fumbles, and two sacks during his career as a Trojan.

Perhaps Smith’s most impressive performance of his college career came in last year’s Holiday Bowl, when he recorded 12 tackles. Smith was named the game’s defensive MVP for his efforts.

This past Saturday, Smith had a key interception in USC’s 28-20 victory over Nebraska. It was his second pick in the last month. Smith has been part of a USC defense which has quite frankly been very solid this season. The Trojans are not getting blown out despite losing a ton of important players. The defense has very consistently given this team a chance to win games. It has largely held up its end of the bargain in 2024.

The Senior Bowl will take place on February 1, 2025 in Mobile, Alabama.

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Where are the 49ers scheduled to pick in the 2025 NFL draft?

For those of you reading ahead, here’s where the 49ers stand in the NFL draft order:

Mid-November is probably too early to start earnestly diving into the NFL draft for the San Francisco 49ers.

Some teams are already eyeing April’s three-day selection event, and while the 49ers playoff chances are dwindling, they still have the talent to turn a corner and make a run at the postseason.

Until the 49ers turn that corner though, we have to operate like they’re not going to, thus leading us to take a quick peek at the 2025 NFL draft order.

Next year’s draft will be particularly important for a 49ers club that’s may be entering a transition stage where they need to supplement their roster with some top-end talent to fill some starting jobs and shore up depth on a top-heavy roster.

The problem for the 49ers goes back to what we just talked about up top — they’re not bad enough to worry about the draft yet which means they’re in the purgatory that sits between a playoff berth and a premium draft pick.

Here’s where things stand in the NFL draft order (non-playoff team edition) after 11 weeks according to Tankathon:

1. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-9)
2. Tennessee Titans (2-8)
3. Cleveland Browns (2-8)
4. New York Giants (2-8)
5. Las Vegas Raiders (2-8)
6. New England Patriots (3-8)
7. New York Jets (3-8)
8. Carolina Panthers (3-7)
9. Dallas Cowboys (3-7)
10. New Orleans Saints (4-7)
11. Cincinnati Bengals (4-7)
12. Miami Dolphins (4-6)
13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-6)
14. Chicago Bears (4-6)
15. Indianapolis Colts (5-6)
16. Seattle Seahawks (5-5)
17. Los Angeles Rams (5-5)
18. San Francisco 49ers (5-5)

That’s right. The 49ers, who are last in the NFC West by way of tiebreaker, would also pick last out of the three 5-5 NFC West teams because of the strength of schedule tiebreaker.

Because the 49ers, Rams and Seahawks all have 5-5 records, the strength of schedule tiebreaker kicks in. The team with the lower strength of schedule gets the earlier draft pick. San Francisco’s opponents have a .549 winning percentage. Seattle’s is .531, and LA’s is .534.

It’s worth noting those numbers are based on season-long percentages. The 49ers have the lowest strength of schedule after 11 weeks.

Ideally the 49ers will turn their season around and find their way into the postseason. For now, we’ll continue keeping track of where they stand in the NFL draft order.

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Rams rookie Kamren Kinchens has the makings of a future star in the NFL

Kamren Kinchens is getting comfortable in the Rams’ secondary and he’s showing why he could be a future star in the NFL

It was a surprise to see Kamren Kinchens’ name still on the board at No. 99 overall in the third round of the 2024 draft. He was a ball hawk at Miami, picking off 11 passes in the last two seasons alone, returning two of them for touchdowns.

He also laid the hammer quite a few times in college, proving to be a big hitter in the secondary when he sized up ball carriers. So why did he fall so far in the draft? Most likely because of his 4.65 time in the 40-yard dash, but with the Rams being a team that doesn’t prioritize testing numbers, they snatched him up.

That decision is already paying dividends because Kinchens is shining in the Rams’ secondary. He has three interceptions, one of which being a 103-yard pick-six, making 26 total tackles and forcing one fumble.

He was voted NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his two-interception game in Week 9 and on Sunday, he jumped off the screen again with his third interception. Pro Football Focus selected Kinchens to its Week 11 Team of the Week and also named him both Rookie of the Week and and Defensive Player of the Week.

The third-round draft pick out of Miami had his best game in the NFL to date, earning a 92.6 PFF grade to lead all defensive players in the NFL in Week 11. Along with an interception, he also finished the game with a forced fumble and two defensive stops.

His 92.6 grade was the highest of any defensive player in the league and also set a career-high for him through 10 games, making a huge impact on defense in the Rams’ win over the Patriots.

Sean McVay loves the aggression and ball skills Kinchens has shown up to this point and believes he’s only going to get better as he gains confidence.

“You could say, ‘What’s this guy about? What does the tape tell me what this guy is about?’ He’s competitive,” McVay said. “He’s tough. I thought he played pretty – it felt like he was sometimes playing at a different speed than everyone else yesterday. You could see he doesn’t flinch at the point of contact. I thought he made some great open-field tackles. He’s continuing to get an understanding. He’s got great range and great athleticism, but he’s continuing to get an understanding of, where do I fit within these coverage contours? Where are people trying to attack me? It’s another game where he ends up making a game-changing play to be able to close it out. I appreciate his awareness as a young guy to go down and just let us knee it out. I know [Christian] Rozeboom was yelling at him, but he’s a stud. I thought he really made his presence felt throughout the course of the game and the confidence is continuing to grow as he’s getting reps.”

Kinchens isn’t technically a starter and has only played 33% of the defensive snaps this season, but he’s having the impact of a playmaker every time he steps on the field. There have been some expected growing pains, whether it’s penalties, falling out of position in coverage or missing tackles, but Kinchens has been outstanding in two of his last three games.

As a third-round pick, he has a chance to be a future star in this league and every team that passed on him because of his 40 time is likely to regret it.

“He’s getting more and more confident,” McVay added. “He’s getting a bunch of reps in practice. A lot of that practice, performance and preparation is starting to equal game reality for these young cats. It’s cool to see.”

Browns land Best Player Available with pick No. 3 in new mock draft

The Browns land the lethal Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham in a new mock draft

The Cleveland Browns would love a quarterback in the 2025 NFL draft, but a new mock draft has them selecting Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham instead.

Why is that? Because Colorado’s duo of quarterback Shedeur Sanders and playmaker Travis Hunter are already off of the board. Instead of reaching for another quarterback like Miami’s Cam Ward, they opt for the BPA (best player available) approach.

And that road leads to the ultra-physical and explosive Graham who has been a havoc wreaker from the very first time he stepped on the field for the Wolverines. A new mock draft by Daft on Draft has the Browns taking him at pick No. 3.

He is currently second in all of college football in pressures with 32, sitting with a career-high five sacks as well.

While the Browns just selected Mike Hall Jr. in the second round last year, the rest of the defensive tackles on the roster are 30 or older or on expiring contracts. That room needs an infusion of young explosiveness, and Graham gives them that as one of the best players in the entire 2025 NFL draft.