Tag: Solomon Byrd

Solomon Byrd listed as Texans’ sleeper pick by Touchdown Wire

Solomon Byrd was an interesting player added to the Houston Texans’ defensive line and Touchdown Wire believes he could be a star in the making.

Who is the sleeper pick of the 2024 NFL draft? For the Houston Texans, it’s likely edge rusher and seventh-round pick Solomon Byrd out of USC. 

At least that’s what Touchdown Wire thinks. 

USA Today’s Doug Farrar recently listed every team’s top “sleeper” selection heading into the regular season. For Houston, Farrar believes Byrd’s ability to win both off the edge and while inside gives him the advantage to force his way up the depth chart and onto the field. 

This offseason, the Texans got that much closer to a Super Bowl defense by adding Danielle Hunter to their edge-rush profile with a two-year, $49 million contract with $48 million guaranteed. Hunter is a perfect complement to Will Anderson, the reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year, as Hunter’s game is about speed and bend, while Anderson is all about power to the pocket. 

To double down on that speed/bend thing, Houston also selected USC end Solomon Byrd with the 238th pick in the seventh round. That pick could pay off far past its value. Last season for the Trojans, the Wyoming transfer totaled seven sacks and 41 total pressures on 320 pass-rushing reps. There’s not much to say about Byrd as a run defender, but then again, the Texans probably won’t line him up inside 20% of the time in 3-man fronts as the Trojans did for whatever reason.

With Byrd, you put him on the outside in a rotation and let him hunt… or you let him use his formidable gap quickness on stunts and games. No reason to overthink it.

Byrd is coming off a career season with the Trojans as a pass-rusher and was one of two bright spots in an underwhelming season. In Houston, he’ll serve as a rotational player with upside on passing down behind Hunter and Anderson. 

Houston needs a long-term No. 3 edge rusher. Derek Barnett re-signed a one-year deal after being claimed off waivers following his release from Philadelphia, but he could be looking to cash in after a promising campaign. Dylan Horton, Houston’s fourth-round pick of TCU last year, is currently in remission and undergoing treatment for stage 4 Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Byrd could fill that void in time. He’s a veteran player with six years of experience between Wyoming and USC. Texans general manager Nick Caserio also praised the 23-year-old’s maturation and attention to detail during his collegiate career. 

“He plays hard, relentless. He’s a tough player, and he has the skill to get after the quarterback,” Caserio said last week following the draft. “We’re excited about him.”

Byrd heads to Houston next week as the Texans return to practice for the start of rookie minicamp on Thursday. 

USC’s Solomon Byrd, in an upset, finds his way onto NFL draft board

Solomon Byrd got drafted. Many thought that would not happen.

The USC Trojans are collecting more NFL draft picks on Day 3, but they are coming from unexpected sources. After Jarrett Kingston went off the board at No. 215 thanks to the San Francisco 49ers, Solomon Byrd was selected at pick No. 238 by the Houston Texans. Byrd was a decent player — nothing spectacular — for the Trojans. He did not have a memorable or imposing 2023 college football season. He was part of a bad USC defense under Alex Grinch. If you asked NFL draft experts whether Byrd was going to land on the draft board at all, most probably would have said no. If Byrd was going to be an NFL draft pick, however, everyone agreed it would be in the seventh round at the very back end of the draft. Still, this is an upset. The Houston Texas took a flier on Byrd and want to see what he can do.

If there is good news for Byrd beyond the draft pick itself, it is that he lands in Houston under a defense-first coach, DeMeco Ryans. Maybe Ryans can develop Byrd in ways USC could not.

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Solomon Byrd gets his big chance at NFL scouting combine

Solomon Byrd likely needs a high-impact combine to boost his NFL draft stock.

USC senior edge rusher Solomon Byrd just wrapped up his pre-draft season by playing in the East-West Shrine Bowl. Now he gets to prepare for the NFL combine with his recent invite announced days ago.

Byrd was productive in his two years at USC, transferring from Wyoming after the 2021 season.

In 2022 and 2023, Byrd recorded 77 total tackles, 18.5 tackles for loss, 10 sacks, two passes defended, four fumble recoveries, and five forced fumbles.

Byrd played in the final game of the 2023 season, a win over the Louisville Cardinals in the Holiday Bowl. In his last game as a Trojan, Byrd recovered one fumble and recorded four total tackles.

Byrd should benefit from having been coached by Shaun Nua at USC. Nua, at Michigan, developed Aidan Hutchinson into an elite pass rusher and difference-maker for the Detroit Lions. Hutchinson helped the Lions make the NFC Championship Game. Byrd’s football IQ should stack up well against a lot of other defensive linemen.

The problem for Byrd is that on a USC defense coached by Alex Grinch, he and his teammates on the defensive line didn’t get much help from the Trojan linebackers or defensive backs. It wasn’t easy for Byrd to stand out. He was also overshadowed in 2023 by Bear Alexander. How this will affect his overall draft standing remains to be seen, but that’s why the combine is so hugely important for Byrd. We will see what he does with this opportunity.

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Know your foe USC: Which Trojans can give Notre Dame problems

The Irish will have their hands full this weekend

We are not going to state the obvious here, [autotag]Notre Dame football[/autotag] needs to somewhat contain USC  quarterback[autotag]Caleb Williams[/autotag].

It’s a tough task that not many have been able to do, but he’s not the only weapon that the Trojans will bring to South Bend on Saturday evening. As one of the top ranked teams in the country and one of the few remaining unbeaten teams, USC has talent all over the field. Even if it does seem like they have underperformed.

Let’s take a look at some of the other Trojans that could give Notre Dame problems this weekend.

USC statistical leaders through six games

You probably can name one of these guys offhand.

USC nearly lost its perfect season against Arizona but survived. Notre Dame’s College Football Playoff chances ended with a loss at Louisville. Neither team is coming into their annual meeting with the best momentum. That means talent could be the game’s determining factor.

This is a perfect opportunity for the Trojans to make a statement. They’re catching the Irish when they’re fatigued and struggling. The only thing that could slow them down is the wet conditions forecast for the game, but they’re preparing for that by using water in rather interesting ways in practice. While there’s no way to tell if that will affect anything, it shows they’re not leaving anything up to chance.

As you’re about to see, there are several players responsible for the Trojans’ offense being the country’s highest scoring, not the least of whom is the reigning Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback. Here he is among the top Trojans players on both sides of the ball:

Solomon Byrd will need to make a significant impact on Saturday against Colorado

Solomon Byrd needs to take his game to another level and lift USC’s defensive line.

Fox’s Big Noon Saturday game is set to take place in Boulder this weekend. All eyes are on USC as well as Deion Sanders and Colorado.

USC’s defensive performance in a 42-28 win at Arizona State on Saturday brought back a lot of the concerns about the unit from last season.

Those mistakes will need to big fixed this weekend versus a hungry Colorado team which is coming off an embarrassing blowout loss to Oregon.

“I think there’s always concerns,” USC defensive coordinator Alex Grinch said Tuesday. “There’s concerns when the scoreboard says 28 at the end of the game, and that’s no disrespect to the opponent.”

The two biggest bright spots on the Trojans’ defense against ASU were Pac-12 Freshman of the Week Tackett Curtis and fifth-year senior Solomon Byrd.

In three games this season, Byrd has two and a half sacks, two more tackles for a loss, and two forced fumbles.

The fifth-year senior transferred from Wyoming after the 2021 season and is trying to make a serious impact. USC’s defense was a massive liability in 2022 and a major reason the Trojans missed the College Football Playoff. If Byrd can play at a higher level, the Trojans’ defense could help USC win the Pac-12 title in 2023 and pursue a national championship.

Follow Buffaloes Wire for complete coverage of Deion Sanders and Colorado, as CU prepares to play USC on Fox Big Noon Saturday.

USC win over ASU felt like a loss in many ways.

Alex Grinch is not quieting his critics, and bigger tests await.