Tag: NFL

Nick Saban: Mike Sainristil may be best pound-for-pound player in the NFL draft

Nick Saban is a huge fan of Mike Sainristil.

Everyone loves Mike Sainristil.

The new Washington Commanders cornerback was a star defender for the national champion Michigan Wolverines last season and was the No. 50 overall selection in the 2024 NFL draft.

Former Michigan coach — and current Chargers coach — Jim Harbaugh often talked about how special of a player and person Sainristil was.

After he was picked on Friday, former Alabama coach Nick Saban weighed in on the former Wolverine. Saban said he loved, loved Sainristil and he was perhaps the best pound-for-pound football player in the draft. Saban saw Sainristil up close in January’s College Football Playoff game, where the Wolverines came out on top.

Here’s the video:

Saban knows defensive players. And going on record to be that effusive in his praise for Sainristil tells you all you need to know about who/what the Commanders will be getting here.

Many believe it will not take long for Sainristil to become the NFL’s top slot cornerback.

What is Falcons EDGE Bralen Trice’s projected cap hit in 2024?

What is #Falcons third-round pick Bralen Trice’s projected cap hit in 2024?

On Day 2 of the 2024 NFL draft, the Atlanta Falcons drafted Ruke Orhorhoro with their first selection and followed that up by taking edge rusher Bralen Trice in Round 3.

Trice joins Washington teammate Michael Penix in Atlanta but obviously won’t see the same financial accommodation. Over The Cap breaks down the projected rookie salary for each player based on their respective draft slot.

Since Trice was the No. 74 pick in the draft, he will account for $1,078,133 of the team’s cap space this season — which is the allotted cap hit for that particular draft spot. Trice will make $500,000 less than Orhorhoro’s second-round salary this season.

The projected total for the 2024 rookie class for Atlanta is $11,483,170. Currently, the Falcons have over $5 million in available cap space, so expect moves to be made before a number of the class is signed.

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Updated list of Rams’ picks entering Day 3 of 2024 NFL draft

After making four picks already, the Rams still have six more selections on Day 3 of the draft

The Los Angeles Rams have already been busy in the 2024 NFL draft, making four selections in the first three rounds. However, they’ve still got a lot of work to do on Day 3 Saturday.

After trading away the 155th overall pick in the deal to go get Braden Fiske, the Rams are left with six picks on the final day of the draft. They’re without a fourth-round pick, but they have one in the fifth, four in the sixth and one in the seventh.

The Rams will try to make the most of those selections Saturday, filling some of their remaining roster needs – including cornerback, offensive tackle, wide receiver and possibly tight end or quarterback. We could even see the Rams draft a kicker at some point on Saturday.

Below are their remaining picks, as well as the players they’ve already drafted.

Remaining picks

  • Round 5, No. 154
  • Round 6, No. 196
  • Round 6, No. 209
  • Round 6, No. 213
  • Round 6, No. 217
  • Round 7, No. 254

Previously drafted players

What is Falcons DT Ruke Orhorhoro’s projected cap hit in 2024?

Looking at Falcons second-round pick Ruke Orhorhoro’s projected salary cap hit in 2024

On Day 2 of the 2024 NFL draft, the Atlanta Falcons traded up to pick No. 35 and took Clemson defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro. This selection addresses a need for Atlanta, plus the team doubled down by taking another defensive player in Round 3.

Now that Orhorhoro is a Falcon, what is his projected salary cap hit for the 2024 season? Over The Cap breaks down the projected rookie salary for each player based on their respective draft slot.

Since Orhorhoro was the No. 35 pick in the draft, he will account for $1,616,055 of the Falcons’ cap space this season. This number isn’t tied to any specific position group, it’s just the allotted cap hit for that particular draft spot.

That $1,616,055 shows just how far the dropoff is for players drafted in the first round compared to those drafted on Day 2 and beyond. The projected total for the 2024 rookie class for Atlanta is $11,483,170.

Currently, the Falcons have just over $5 million in available cap space, so expect moves to be made before a number of the class is signed.

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Air Force S Trey Taylor a perfect prospect for Cardinals to honor Pat Tillman

Air Force safety Trey Taylor would be the perfect player to select with pick No. 226, the same pick the Cardinals used to draft Pat Tillman in 1998.

Going out on a realistic limb to advocate for Cardinals 7th-round pick in honor of Pat Tillman

The Arizona Cardinals are scheduled to have five picks on Day 3 of the draft, including the final one at No. 226, the same slot at which the team selected Pat Tillman in the seventh round of the 1998 draft.

Through its Salute to Service initiative, in which the Pat Tillman Foundation is an NFL partner, the NFL will honor the legacy of Tillman Saturday when two Tillman Scholars will make the announcement of the team’s seventh-round choice: Jeremy Glasstetter and Deborah Trimble.

Glasstetter is an Army veteran and a member of the inaugural class of Tillman Scholars. He continues to serve his community as a State of Michigan employee.

Trimble is an Air Force veteran and current Tillman Scholar at the University of Michigan where she is pursuing a medical degree to support the military community.

It would be fitting if the Cardinals join in the honor by selecting Air Force safety Trey Taylor with that choice. Taylor was named winner of the Pat Tillman Award at the East-West Shrine Bowl in early February given to a player that exemplifies character, intelligence, sportsmanship and service.

On the field, this would be an excellent fit for the Cardinals, considering most draft analysts have Taylor projected as a seventh-round pick or priority free agent. The Cardinals need safety depth and while Taylor doesn’t have great speed, he is a student of the game and checks all the character boxes the Cardinals covet.

His father Tyree, a former linebacker at SMU, had him watching tape when he was six years old and Trey said, “I had a football in my hands literally right after birth.”

In addition, Pro Football Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed is a cousin by marriage and Tyree and Reed have been close friends since high school. Reed has been a mentor for Trey.

“I can call him and talk about anything football-wise,” he said. “He gives me all types of input when it comes down to postgame. We’ll sit down and talk for 30 minutes to an hour just about small things going on — what he saw in the game, what I can fix, things that he did in his game that I can put into mine and just to create a little bit bigger toolbox for me, how he reads things with the quarterback, how he reads things with the receivers, how he reads things with linemen.

“There are some things that he’s shown me with quarterback intentions just in game film that you can see, ‘OK, he did this, this and this for the first three games in the season. He’s not just going to change it up this game because of who he’s playing.’ Look at these similarities and attack that weakness that you see.”

While Taylor’s talent has been picked apart by analysts, he simply says, “I love the question marks. I love proving people wrong.”

As for receiving the Tillman award, when asked on SiriusXM NFL Radio recently what an honor that was, he said, “It was huge. I had to do a lot of soul searching after that. You know, war. Because I’m in a very similar position that Pat Tillman was in. For him to give that up to go fight for his country made me sit back and ask myself, ‘What would I do realistically in his situation?’

“And that took me (through) a lot of reflecting, a lot of time to deal with that. But that just made me respect him even more because I know sorta where he was in his journey and his mentality and so being able to carry that award with me is huge. It’s crazy that I was able to even win that and being able to carry on his legacy that’s tied to my name and my family forever, so it’s a blessing.”

What a blessing it would be to continue to carry it further by playing for the Cardinals.

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify.

 

Rams, Matthew Stafford have ‘had good dialogue’ about QB’s contract situation

The Rams have had some “good dialogue” with Matthew Stafford about his contract as he seeks more guaranteed money, but his status for OTAs is TBD

Out of nowhere on Thursday night during the NFL draft, Ian Rapoport shared some unexpected news about Matthew Stafford and his contract. He said on NFL Network that Stafford wants his contract adjusted to include more guaranteed money beyond the 2024 season, which is the last year of his deal with any guaranteed salary.

Stafford just signed an extension after the Rams’ Super Bowl win in February 2022, but he seemed to take a discount at the time and would now like more assurances financially as he looks to continue playing for a few more years.

On Friday night after the Rams wrapped up Day 2 of the draft, Sean McVay and Les Snead were asked about Stafford’s contract situation and their answers were brief.

“I’ve had good dialogue with Matthew,” McVay said. “We’ll keep those things in-house but he’s been working with our guys.”

Will he be at OTAs in May?

“He’s been working with our guys the last couple of weeks so that’s kind of where we’re at with that,” McVay said, sidestepping the question.

Snead was then asked if he’s encouraged the team and Stafford will come to a resolution, to which he said this: “We’re definitely jacked to have Matthew as our QB.”

McVay was asked again about Stafford’s status for OTAs, and while he did share a bit more about the ongoing conversations, he isn’t sure the veteran quarterback will be in attendance for OTAs, which are completely voluntary.

He and the Rams just want to make sure the team shows Stafford he’s appreciated and how much they want him to be the quarterback moving forward.

“We’re going to take it a day at a time. We’ll see,” McVay said. “So we’re going to try to figure it out. There’s nothing that’s more important than making sure that he feels appreciated and he knows how much we love him and want him to lead the way. I think that commitment that I think he wants to have can be reciprocated and we want to work towards figuring that out.”

The Rams’ offseason program has already begun, but things ramp up in May with on-field practices and again in June with mandatory minicamp. There have been no indications that Stafford is planning any sort of holdout, so hopefully this situation gets resolved relatively quickly.

2024 NFL draft: Best available players for the Bucs on Day 3

Check out some of the top prospects the Tampa Bay Buccaneers could target on the final day of the 2024 NFL draft

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have already added four players through the first three rounds of the 2024 NFL draft, filling some of their biggest needs with blue-chip talent that should have an immediate impact on both sides of the ball.

Heading into the final day of this year’s draft, the Bucs have three more selections to make, starting with the No. 125 overall pick in the fourth round. Tampa Bay picks again at the end of the sixth round, and they also have a late seventh-round pick.

Here are the top prospects still available on the board that the Bucs could target with those picks on Saturday:

Raiders use Draft Day 2 to shore up right side of offensive line

Draft Day 2 for the Raiders was all about completing the re-built of the offensive line.

Build from the trenches out. That’s a philosophy you hear a lot in today’s NFL. That means you focus on the offensive and defensive lines and go from there.

This process started in free agency. They re-signed center Andre James to make sure that wasn’t yet another position they needed to address this offseason. Then they turned to the other side of the ball, making DT Christian Wilkins their big free agent signing and bringing back John Jenkins and Adam Butler. Last month they brought in guard Cody Whitehair, who worked in Luke Getsy’s system in Chicago to help the line transition to a new offense.

Those moves were a great start, but still left the Raiders with two glaring needs — right guard and right tackle. And after taking tight end Brock Bowers at 13, they still had those holes to fill heading into day two.

Following Day two, GM Tom Telesco made it clear that was his intention coming into the day.

They went about filling those holes with both of their picks, grabbing Oregon’s Jackson-Powers Johnson in second round (44 overall) and Maryland’s DJ Glazer in the third (77 overall).

“We felt that as we build this team, it has to come from both sides of the ball, offensive and defensive line,” said Telesco. “That was my project when I originally arrived here. [Antonio Pierce] had the same job, which was perfect that we had the same vision. We’ve got some work to do, we know that. It’s not a total rebuild, but it really has to start on the offensive line and defensive line.”

Both Powers-Johnson and Glaze played multiple positions over their college careers. And neither will be playing the position where they most recently lined up.

Jackson was the best center in the country while Glaze made third team All Big Ten at left tackle. But before that JPJ lined up at right guard while Glaze played at right tackle. Those positions respectively are where each will call home for now.

“He’ll play guard for us,” Telesco said of Powers-Johnson. Another young kid, 21 years old, still a lot of growth in his game. But he’s big, he’s tough, plays a Raiders style of football.”

Jackson says the transition from center back to right guard will be “seamless.”

And while Telesco values Glaze’s versatility, the Raiders will need him to compete on the right side of the line right away.

“We see him more as a right tackle,” Telesco said of Glaze. “Big frame, long arms, really productive college player. He blocked the guy in front of him really consistently.”

Both players put good work on tape from their college days. But it was the Senior Bowl that was the clincher for Telesco that each could be the answer for the right side of the Raiders offensive line.

“It was nice that they put him at guard a little bit at the Senior Bowl even though he played it some at Oregon,” Telesco said of Powers-Johnson.

As for Glaze, it was more about seeing him face pro prospects to see how he held up. Something he called a “confirmation” of what the Raiders saw on tape from him.

While Powers-Johnson was the consensus big board top prospect at any position, he also happened to come at a position of need. Glaze, on the other hand, was positioned in the rankings as a fourth round pick, but Glaze said over conference call that he was told he very well could have a team take him in round three. That team was the Raiders. And he became the final piece to the puzzle the Raiders were putting together in the trenches.

Watch 25 minutes of Blake Corum highlights from his decorated career at Michigan

New Rams running back Blake Corum was as productive as any player in college, and his highlight reel is filled with eye-popping plays

The Los Angeles Rams already had one highly productive running back in the backfield, but they added another in the third round of the 2024 NFL draft. At No. 83 overall, the Rams selected Michigan’s Blake Corum, pairing him with Kyren Williams as their new 1-2 punch at running back.

Corum is one of the best backs in Michigan history, rushing for 3,737 yards and 58 touchdowns in four seasons, adding another 411 yards receiving with three touchdowns. Last season alone, he scored 28 total touchdowns during Michigan’s championship run after scoring 19 in just 12 games the year prior.

Though he might be small at just 5-foot-8 and 205 pounds, Corum is difficult to get on the ground and as shifty as any back in the 2024 class. His highlight reel with the Wolverines is chock full of eye-popping plays, whether it’s a sudden cut or a burst of speed through the hole for a big gain.

Thanks to the Big Ten Network, there’s a 25-minute highlight package from Corum’s decorated career at Michigan, which you can watch below.

Kamren Kinchens is in company of Sean Taylor, Ed Reed with 11 career INTs

Kamren Kinchens is one of three Miami players with 10+ interceptions in the last 25 years. The other two are Ed Reed and Sean Taylor.

Given the lack of proven talent on defense, the Los Angeles Rams seemed to exceed expectations on that side of the ball in 2023. If there’s one thing they lacked, though, it was turnovers. The Rams ranked 30th in takeaways and 23rd in interceptions, picking off just 10 passes in the regular season.

That’s fewer than new safety Kamren Kinchens had in his last two seasons at Miami alone. Kinchens, who the Rams drafted 99th overall on Friday night, is a certified ballhawk. He picked off 11 passes in the last two years, the only player in college football with at least 10 interceptions since 2022, according to Dane Brugler’s draft guide for The Athletic.

He had six interceptions and 12 passes defensed in 2022 before adding five interceptions and 10 passes defensed last season. It’s rare for a player to create so many turnovers in a two-year span, and this stat puts it into perspective.

According to Brugler, Kinchens is one of three Miami defenders with at least 10 interceptions in the last 25 years. The other two? Sean Taylor and Ed Reed. Talk about elite company.

That’s the sort of playmaking ability Kinchens brings to the Rams defense as a rookie, potentially taking over as a starter from Day 1 next to another Kamren, Kamren Curl.