Tag: NFL Rookies

Alabama lands 3 former players on ESPN’s top 10 rookie list

Alabama lands 3 former players on ESPN’s top 10 rookie list

Alabama has more than its fair share of players currently on NFL rosters. It should come as no surprise that some of the leagues best players are former stars of the Crimson Tide.

Now that the regular season is over and the playoffs are underway, ESPN has decided to release its list of the top ten NFL rookies from the 2021-2022 season.

Alabama landed three of the top ten and a handful of others that just missed the cut.

Representing the Tide was Mac Jones at No. 2, Patrick Surtain II at No. 7, and Jaylen Waddle at No. 8.

Najee Harris, Christian Barmore, and DeVonta Smith all narrowly missed out on being in the top ten.

Stay tuned to Roll Tide Wire for all the latest on the former Crimson Tide stars now in the NFL.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Stacey Blackwood on Twitter @Blackwood89.

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Falcons TE Kyle Pitts is PFF’s highest-graded rookie

Over the last two weeks, Pitts has posted an average Pro Football Focus grade of 92.1.

It took a few weeks, but Falcons rookie Kyle Pitts has clearly gotten comfortable in head coach Arthur Smith’s offense. Through the first four weeks of the season, Pitts averaged a 64.4 player grade per Pro Football Focus’ grading system. Then in Week 5, aided by the absence of Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage, Pitts was forced to become a bigger part of the offense.

Over the last two games, Pitts has posted an average offensive grade of 92.1. These two performances have brought his overall grade up to 85.2, the highest average for a rookie this season.

“Pitts already has more yards through his first six games than any tight end in NFL history, with 471,” writes PFF’s Michael Renner. “He’s seen his inline usage drop significantly in recent weeks as Atlanta is finally coming around to the idea of him as an X receiver. Pitts has only played 20 snaps inline the past two games and has responded with back-to-back 100-yard outings.”

The Falcons have previously benefited from Julio Jones as the X receiver because he drew so much attention in the passing game. This also allowed for Ridley to become as effective as he was, and could be a reason why he has been underwhelming this year. The hope is, as the season progresses, Pitts will draw similar attention and open things up for other playmakers along the perimeter and slot.

Here’s a list of Pitts’ notable stats through the first six games of his NFL career.

Justin Jefferson headlines PFF’s highest-graded rookies after Week 13

Check out Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded rookies through the first 13 weeks of the 2020 NFL regular season

Pro Football Focus has updated their list of the NFL’s highest-graded rookies after the first 13 weeks of the 2020 regular season, and the strength of this year’s wide receiver class is reflected in the top 10.

Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings tops the list, with Brandon Aiyuk of the San Francisco 49ers coming in at No. 3, while Tee Higgins of the Cincinnati Bengals also cracks the top 10 at No. 9 overall.

The list is also big on some of this year’s best offensive linemen, led by New England Patriots guard Michael Onwenu (No. 2) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers tackle Tristan Wirfs (No. 4). New York Jets tackle Mekhi Becton (No. 7) and Seattle Seahawks guard Damien Lewis (No. 8) also make the list.

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Longhorns in NFL: How each rookie performed in their professional debuts

Take a look at how former Texas players Brandon Jones, Devin Duvernay, Collin Johnson and Malcolm Roach each performed in their NFL debuts.

If you’re a Texas fan, it was a successful weekend of football at both the college and NFL level. Continue reading “Longhorns in NFL: How each rookie performed in their professional debuts”

Touchdown Wire’s preseason All-Everything teams

Here are Touchdown Wire’s selections for the rookies, breakout players and stars to watch in 2020.

We. Are. Back.

Actual NFL games to talk about kick off starting Thursday night, when the Kansas City Chiefs raise a banner and then host the Houston Texans in the season-opener.

As part of our effort to get you ready for the 2020 NFL season, here is a collection of pieces from Doug Farrar and Mark Schofield. In these six articles, you’ll see their preseason choices for the All-rookie teams, the All-breakout teams, and the All-NFL teams.

Touchdown Wire’s 2020 preseason All-rookie team: Offense Sure, Joe Burrow has grabbed the headlines this preseason, but it takes more than just a quarterback to assemble an offense. Who joins the new Cincinnati Bengals’ passer on the list?

Touchdown Wire’s 2020 preseason All-rookie team: Defense With Chase Young and Javon Kinlaw, there are some impressive young talents on the defensive lines in 2020. But there are also intriguing defensive players at all levels, including in the secondary.

Touchdown Wire’s 2020 preseason All-breakout team: Offense Everyone is expecting Kyler Murray to take a huge leap forward in year two, particularly with DeAndre Hopkins in the huddle with him. Who are some other young players primed for stardom?

Touchdown Wire’s 2020 preseason All-breakout team: Defense Last year Za’Darius Smith had a huge season, becoming one of the league’s best pass rushers. Who can take a similar step forward following in his footsteps?

Touchdown Wire’s 2020 preseason All-NFL team: Offense Who does Touchdown Wire think the best of the best on offense will be at the end of the season?

Touchdown Wire’s 2020 preseason All-NFL team: Defense It may be an offense-dominated league, but defenses are catching up. Who are the best on that side of the ball?

Every undrafted free agent that made an NFL roster heading into 2020

Check out the list of undrafted free agents that made an active 53-man roster heading into the 2020 NFL season

In any year, it’s an uphill battle for undrafted free agents to make the initial 53-man roster for their respective NFL team. It’s even more difficult to accomplish during a pandemic, without the benefit of OTAs, minicamps and preseason games.

But that hasn’t kept a long list of those undrafted hopefuls from accomplishing that feat this year.

This year’s group features players from college football programs both big and small, across all positions, and many with the opportunity to make an impact for their team from Day 1. Check out the list recently compiled by What’s On Draft’s Mark Jarvis and shared by Draft Countdown’s Scott Wright:

The journey is just beginning for these players, but they’ve got one challenge checked off their to-do list heading into their first NFL season.

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Look: Rams 2020 draft picks officially sign rookie contracts

Cam Akers and the rest of the Rams’ rookies made their contracts official on Monday.

On their first day at the Rams’ facility for COVID-19 testing, rookies took care of another important piece of business. They officially put pen to paper and signed their first NFL contracts, making them members of the Rams.

It was reported earlier that the Rams had agreed to terms with their top four picks, but now all nine of the team’s draftees made their contracts official. The Rams shared photos of each player signing their deals while wearing masks.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CDKbld_J9rm/

Each player will receive a four-year contract and none will have a fifth-year option, which only applies for first-round picks. Cam Akers was the team’s top pick in the second round, while Van Jefferson followed five picks later.

Although it took longer for rookies to sign their contracts this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, it wasn’t because the Rams were busy negotiating with their agents. Players haven’t been able to get in the building until now, which made it difficult to make their contracts official.

Jags rookies Laviska Shenault Jr., Collin Johnson, Jake Luton receive Madden 21 ratings

Three members of the Jags’ rookie class have received their “Madden NFL 21” ratings with Laviska Shenault receiving first-round pick numbers.

With “Madden NFL 21” set to come out next month, Electronic Arts has began to release the ratings for each rookie selected in the 2020 draft class. On Thursday and Friday, the respective ratings for the league’s rookie quarterbacks and receivers came out, which included Jacksonville Jaguars rookies Jake Luton, Laviska Shenault Jr., and Collin Johnson.

Luton, who was drafted out of Oregon State University, was selected the latest out of the trio (No. 189th overall). As a result, he was given a 59 overall rating, which is the lowest grade of the Jags’ rookie class so far. Luton’s best attribute is his throwing power, which comes in at a solid 87 rating.

Johnson, a fifth-round selection from the University of Texas, was given a 67 overall rating. He is a highly athletic receiver as evidenced by his 90 rated jumping attribute.

Shenault registered the highest rating among the Jags’ rookies, coming in with a 72 overall rating. The 6-foot-1, 223-pound receiver out of Colorado University is another incredible athlete on the Jaguars’ roster as evidenced by his ratings spread. He received a jump rating of 91 (his highest), but he has attributes that are actually similar to most running backs. For instance, Shenault’s ball carrying vision and juke move ratings came in at 85 and 89, respectively. For good measure Shenault’s tackle breaking rating came out to be an 82, which once again shows off how physical of a player he is.

While these numbers may seem low at first glance, rookies generally take a pounding in the ratings since their professional talent has yet to be established. If the season goes well for them, they may see a huge jump in their rating for the next “Madden NFL” installment.

Bucs rookies claim top-10 spot on ESPN’s rookie class rankings list

See where the Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookies ranked on ESPN’s list of the top rookie classes by team.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers hold the 14th pick in April’s NFL draft after their 7-9 finish this season. Despite their record, however, the second half of the season saw the team play some of its best football, namely from their rookie class.

Tampa Bay used the majority of their picks in last year’s draft to address their defensive needs, including taking linebacker Devin White with the fifth overall pick. While it took some time for the rookies to come into their own this season, ESPN still had them No. 7 on their rookie class rankings list, which used Pro Football Focus’ wins above replacement metric (PFF WAR) to rank all 32 teams on the value of their rookie class over expectation given.

Here’s what they said about the Bucs’ ranking:

“The Buccaneers have made the secondary a priority in recent drafts, and they have hit on some of those picks. Both Sean Murphy-Bunting and Jamel Dean showed promise as rookies, particularly Dean. He played like one of the better cornerbacks in the league over the second half of the season.”

You might be wondering why White’s name didn’t show up. They saved that for a section devoted to breaking down how each team’s top pick fared.

“The biggest strength for linebacker Devin White (No. 5 overall) coming out of LSU — his coverage ability — didn’t translate to the NFL right away. He did finish the season with his five highest PFF coverage grades of the year, which bodes well heading into 2020.”

The Bucs’ defense is on the rise, so it’ll be interesting to see if Bruce Arians and co. continue to build through the draft, or, if they’ll use their early round picks to address their offensive line issues this time around.

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Notre Dame Football: Former All-American Returns to South Bend

Love finished his rookie season with the Giants this past Sunday having started the final five games.  He wound up with 34 tackles (27 solo), five tackles for loss, a forced fumble and an interception of former second overall pick, Mitch Trubisky.

Monday’s news that Alohi Gilman was entering the NFL Draft was expected but as we’ve discussed on multiple posts here this evening, leaves a void in Notre Dame’s secondary, especially from a leadership standpoint.

The good news is that on the same day of Gilman’s announcement, a former All-American defensive back who wore blue and gold let it be known he’s headed back to campus immediately.

One small problem however is that his playing for the New York Giants this fall means he’s no longer eligible to play football for the Fighting Irish.

Julian Love just wrapped up his rookie season for the Giants and although the team struggled mightily to a 4-12 final record, Love flashed like anyone who watched him at Notre Dame would expect.

Love’s first NFL off-season will be spent largely at a place he quickly became loved at.

I went to a college that was on the trimester/quarters plan, not semesters like Notre Dame but the most credit hours I ever took on at one time was 12 so a hearty congratulations to him and the plenty of other students who challenge 21 at a time everywhere, whether that’s at Notre Dame or anywhere else.

Love finished his rookie season with the Giants this past Sunday having started the final five games.  He wound up with 34 tackles (27 solo), five tackles for loss, a forced fumble and an interception of former second overall pick, Mitch Trubisky.