Tag: Notre Dame NFL Draft

ESPN: Quinn Disappoints as NFL Quarterback

Although Irish QB Brady Quinn had a stellar career in South Bend, that success did not translate over to the highest level.

Irish Nation celebrated the huge recruiting win over Midwest powers Ohio State and Michigan when Brady Quinn announced his commitment to Notre Dame. His career in Blue and Gold was a record setting one, 36 of them, during his four years with the Irish. Quinn would win the Unitas Golden Arm Award and the Maxwell in his senior year, setting up what should have been a fantastic professional career.

Quinn would then be drafted 22nd overall by Cleveland, the second QB taken in a weak class (all-time bust JaMarcus Russell from LSU went 1st overall), would return to his home state and be the Browns savior. Quinn never really got an opportunity to start for the Browns, playing a total of 14 games over 3 seasons, went to Denver and didn’t get his shot there either. Finally, an opportunity in Kansas City in 2012, but a missed one which saw Quinn start 10 games but have a 2 to 8 TD to INT ratio. A few years later, Quinn was out of the league.

ESPN this morning reminisced about collegiate players whose stars shone bright but never made it at the highest level. Two of their writers, Ivan Maisel and Adam Rittenberg, chose Quinn as their player who didn’t translate their collegiate success to the NFL. Maisel didn’t just pick Quinn, but more the 2007 QB draft class with the aforementioned Russell along with the Heisman winner Troy Smith, Kevin Kolb of Houston and others. The “nine quarterbacks, none of whom threw for more than 6.033 yards or 28 touchdowns in their NFL careers,” Maisel explained. Quinn wasn’t the only prospect to underachieve that year.

Rittenberg was more focused on Quinn as opposed to the entire QB class like Maisel. “Quinn looked like the perfect NFL prospect, playing in the perfect system to prepare him for the next level and with the perfect coach in Weis,” Rittenberg remembers. The kicker here is that Rittenberg opines that Quinn’s career might have been completely different had he not been drafted by the miserable Browns. In Quinn’s time in the NFL the Browns combined to start 12 different quarterbacks, who compiled a 37-75 record and became a grave for QB’s. Rittenberg might have a point here, but even when Quinn exited Cleveland, his struggles continued.

Brady Quinn will go down as one of the all-time great quarterbacks in Notre Dame history. It would have been fantastic for him to continue his success in the NFL but that wasn’t in the cards. Regardless, fond memories of Quinn’s time in South Bend will always trump his time in the League.

All-time Notre Dame NFL draft selections: New York Jets edition

Notre Dame’s ties with the New York Jets aren’t exactly extensive…

The New York Jets came into existence in 1960 as the New York Titans of the AFL.  They kept that name for three seasons before switching to the Jets in 1963 and their AFL and Super Bowl championships in 1968 played a huge part in the eventual AFL-NFL merger.

History hasn’t been so kind to the Jets however as they’ve never gotten back to the Super Bowl since Joe Namath’s famed guarantee over the Colts in January of 1969 and they’re a franchise that went just 6-27 from 2020-2021.  Last year saw a turn however as they still finished in last place in their division, but won seven games.  Could a playoff spot be in the picture this year?

It hasn’t happened often but perhaps a Notre Dame player could be on their way to get drafted by the Jets.  It’s something that has happened just four times before.

Here are the four former Notre Dame players to ever be drafted by the New York Jets:

Nation’s best tight end declares for NFL draft

In the storied history of Notre Dame football no tight end has been a bigger force than Michael Mayer.

By no means a surprise but newsworthy nonetheless, Notre Dame star tight end [autotag]Michael Mayer[/autotag] has officially declared for the 2023 NFL draft. Mayer will be expected to be the first tight end selected this coming spring.

For a program that is referred to as “Tight End U”, Mayer has as strong as case as any to be called the best tight end in storied history of Notre Dame football. Mayer holds the program records for receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns all-time by a Notre Dame tight end.

And might I add, he’s an above average blocker to boot.

The news was expected as Mayer has now played his final down for the Fighting Irish, opting to sit out the December 30 Gator Bowl against South Carolina.

https://twitter.com/mmayer1001/status/1600571161791840257?s=46&t=l1laXeu7sBs2xNvDMVskmg

Some NFL team is going to be thrilled when he shows up in their training camp next summer. All the best to the best to ever do it at Tight End U.

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See it: The very best photos of Michael Mayer’s career at Notre Dame

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Okwara Named One of Biggest Steals of NFL Draft by PFF

Its safe to say the Detroit Lions got a steal in the 3rd round when they selected Notre Dame DE Julian Okwara.

Former Irish star Julian Okwara’s career did not end the way he would have liked, breaking his left fibula against Duke which caused him to miss the final few games of his career. Although Okwara put together enough good film to pop up on a few first round NFL mock drafts, it seemed much more likely to hear his name getting called in the second round of the draft.

Well, the second round came and went without Okwara hearing his name being called but didn’t have to wait long in the 3rd round as the Detroit Lions picked him with the 67th overall selection, the 3rd pick of the round. Okwara’s fall shocked many, including the folks at Pro Football Focus.

Okwara was ranked as the 28th overall prospect by PFF, which means he should have been a first round selection based on the grade they gave him. Well, the Lions were the benefactor after Okwara was looked over. Anthony Treash, who put together the info for PFF, explained “there’s no reason Okwara should have been available in the third round. With his explosiveness off the line, overall athleticism and long arms, Okwara was a first-round talent in this draft.”

The Lions should be pretty happy that Okwara slid to the early portion of the 3rd round, anytime you can get a first day talent towards the end of the second day of the NFL Draft, front offices get very giddy. I expect Okwara to have a long and successful NFL career.

ESPN Not High on Book’s NFL Projection

The senior Notre Dame signal caller, Ian Book, is not getting any early love from NFL draft projectors at ESPN.

It seems like a right of passage every year after the NFL Draft concludes, many pundits are already looking forward to the 2021 version and the focus like most years is on the quarterback position. It seems like a consensus that Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence and Ohio State’s Justin Fields are the cream of the crop, with the draft almost a year away from being held in Cleveland.

Since the 2000 draft, four Irish quarterbacks have been drafted, Jarious Jackson in ’00, Brady Quinn in ’07, Jimmy Clausen in ’10 and DeShone Kizer in ’17. None of them had much success in the NFL, but that has never stopped teams from selecting who they believe will be effective at the highest level.  All it takes is that one elite season, see Washington selecting Dwyane Haskins or this year’s number one pick LSU’s Joey Burrow, for the NFL brass to change their views on a player.

ESPN looked at the 8 most likely drafted quarterbacks for this upcoming class, Book ended up being featured in their other QB’s to watch. The world wide leader told us what we already knew, that “Book has above-average athleticism and good accuracy, particularly in short and intermediate throws, but his downfield work and height (6-foot) don’t project as well to the next level.”

To me, the height isn’t an issue at all. Looking around the NFL numerous teams have successful QB’s that aren’t over 6-feet tall, New Orlean’s Drew Brees, Seattle’s Russell Wilson and Arizona’s Kyler Murray are just a few that height isn’t seen as a detractor.

What is a bit concerning at the next level is accuracy. This trait is viewed as something that is difficult to teach, either you have it or you don’t. Book had it in 2018, completing 68% of his passes during his sophomore year, but took a step back last year dropping 8% to just 60% completion rate. Yes, there were more than 80 more attempts, but a drop off should not have been as large. This could potentially hurt the way NFL team’s view Book.

With a big senior season, Book can change those narratives and become a viable NFL quarterback option for teams in the coming draft. He will need to improve his deep ball accuracy and if he can do that, could have a potentially huge season for the Irish this year. Here’s hoping Book can get better in that area, which would help the Irish in the short term and his NFL career in the long term.

Pride Jr. goes to Carolina In Fourth Round

It didn’t take long for Notre Dame DB Tony Pride Jr. to hear his name called on the 3rd day of the NFL Draft.

This draft was viewed as a very deep one for the secondary and after six corner backs were taken in the first round, the notion was solidified. Notre Dame’s Troy Pride Jr. did have to wait longer than the first round to hear his name called but going in the fourth round is nothing to scoff at.

Pride Jr. is a physical corner who isn’t afraid to come up and make the tackle. Back to back years with over 40 tackles for a corner is impressive, he even forced a fumble in 2018. Pride Jr. will bring that physical nature to the Panthers next year.

As a solid member of last years secondary for the Irish, Pride Jr. veteran presence will be missed but seeing him move on to the next level is still great to see. Pride Jr. will look to make Irish Nation proud with Carolina.

Pittsburgh Steelers grab Chase Claypool in Second Round

Irish wide receiver Chase Claypool is taken by Pittsburgh Steelers as the forty-ninth overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Yesterday during the draft Chase Claypool tweeted out a video stressing taking care of his mother. The new Steelers’s wide receiver emphasized his work ethic in getting to this point in his career, and that’s exactly what he did in his time with the Irish.

Claypool continued to get better each year in South Bend, his receptions, yards, and touchdowns each better than the last showed the all of the hard work he put in. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin is expecting more of that when he arrives in Pittsburgh as soon as its safe. Who knows what could have been as after Claypool’s impressive NFL Combine, there was chatter he could sneak into the first round.

Last years leading receiver and MVP for the Camping World Bowl for Notre Dame will be missed, anytime you lose a thousand yards and 13 touchdowns it’s not easy to replace. Claypool is bringing his talents to the Steelers and if he continues his upward trajectory, you’ll be hearing his name being called on lot on Sunday’s.

Notre Dame TE Kmet Drafted in Second Round By Hometown Bears

After an impressive junior year, Notre Dame’s Cole Kmet declared for the NFL Draft and his decision paid off being drafted in the 2nd round.

Although Notre Dame tight end Cole Kmet though he would be returning to South Bend for his senior year, that all changed when he saw the lack of elite tight end’s in this draft. Although no TE’s were selected on the drafts first night, Kmet was still chosen early in the second round by Chicago Bears, the 43rd overall pick.

The Illinois native didn’t blow up until last season when he caught 43 balls for 515 yards and got into the endzone six times. Kmet is seen as more of a receiver than a blocker, something that he will need to work on at the NFL level. Even with that flaw, Kmet knows he needs to be better in that area, put enough on film to impress Chicago to select him on the drafts second evening.

There were initial thoughts that Kmet could be chosen in the first round, but this draft has shown it’s fairly deep. It was one extra night that Kmet had to wait, and in the long run if he performs as well as the Bears thinks he can, it’ll be a small blip on his career.

Notre Dame OT Eichenberg is A Top 2021 NFL Draft Prospect

Irish offensive tackle Liam Eichenberg should be hearing his named called early in next years NFL Draft.

Notre Dame offensive tackle Liam Eichenberg could have left early to the NFL this past season but opted to return for his final season with the Irish. If he had decided to leave, most likely would have been either a first-round pick or at worst a second rounder.

By staying for his redshirt senior year, Eichenberg will add on to the 26 starts under his belt this upcoming season. Viewed as the leader of the offensive line, the left tackle will lead a group that returns everyone and should be viewed as one of the best groups in the nation.

Looking ahead to the 2021 draft, Eichenberg will not a have a decision to make at the end of the year, but NFL teams will. College Football News named Eichenberg as the 15th ranked best player regardless of position who will be selected next year. The third offensive lineman on the list behind Oregon’s Penei Sewell and Standfords Walker Little, the Irish star should hear his name called early.

Pete Fuitak, the publisher of CFN, does see some issue’s NFL teams might see in Eichenberg as “he’s not as massive as some might like, and he’ll likely be just behind the prototype-looking tackles at the top of the 2021 NFL Draft.” Regardless of any nitpicking NFL teams may do regarding the tackle, Eichenberg is still in line to join the likes of Mike McGlinchey and Ronnie  as Notre Dame tackles selected in the first round of the NFL Draft.

NFL Combine: Claypool, Finke and Kmet’s Bench Press Results

Wednesday saw the wide receivers attack the bench press with two former Notre Dame targets getting their reps in.

Workouts are getting underway at the 2020 NFL Combine in Indianapolis and we’ll keep you as up to date as we possibly can with any results or news that come from Notre Dame prospects in attendance.  Wednesday saw the wide receivers attack the bench press with two former Notre Dame targets getting their reps in.

Chase Claypool, who plenty of conversations have focused on potentially changing positions to tight end, put up an outstanding 19 reps in the bench press (225 pounds).  That will do little to downplay a potential position change for him as it’s a very high number for a receiver.

Chris Finke also participated in the bench press Wednesday, putting up seven reps himself.

Finke and Claypool will both go through the more advanced workouts starting Thursday, as will former Notre Dame tight end Cole Kmet who chose not to participate in the bench press at the combine but could during Notre Dame’s pro day that will be held in March.