Tag: top 30 visits

Colts hosted versatile Florida State CB Jarrian Jones on top-30 pre-draft visit

The Colts reportedly hosted versatile Florida State cornerback Jarrian Jones on an official pre-draft visit. Here’s what you need to know.

In need of help at the cornerback position, the Colts reportedly hosted versatile Florida State cornerback Jarrian Jones on an official pre-draft visit, according to Aaron Wilson.

Jones measures in at just under 6-0 and weighs 190 pounds. He really impressed at the NFL Combine running a 4.38-second 40-yard dash along with elite vertical and broad jump numbers, resulting in a 9.87 Relative Athletic Score–the third-highest RAS at the cornerback position.

Jones played 1,796 snaps at the college level. In 2023, 394 of those snaps came from the slot. Prior to that, he was primarily a boundary cornerback.

In the slot, Jones allowed a completion rate of 50 percent on 32 targets, holding pass-catchers to 9.9 yards per catch. He also came away with three interceptions nad three pass breakups. It was a very small sample size, but Jones did find some success as a blitzer as well.

From the boundary in 2022, Jones was targeted 24 times, allowing a completion rate of 46 percent at 10.4 yards per catch with one interception and three pass breakups.

By PFF’s grading system, Jones was a much more effective slot corner than a boundary corner. Jones’ missed tackle rate of 16 percent for his career is a bit on the high side.

For more on Jones, here is what Lance Zierlein of NFL.com had to say in his pre-draft report:

“Urgent cornerback with good size and above-average aggression in all aspects of his game. While Jones is all gas from snap to whistle, he can be clunky matching a receiver’s release and has a hard time transitioning through sharp break points without allowing glaring separation. His chase speed is average and he might require help over the top. He does a nice job of anticipating breaks from a shuffle and is effective from zone with a decent burst to close when playing forward. He’s aggressive in run support and battles for positioning in coverage. Jones’ limitations might be mitigated and his strengths maximized as a nickel cornerback playing forward from a zone-heavy cover scheme.”

Cornerback is the biggest need that the Colts have to address in this year’s draft, and if they are unable to do so in the first round, Jones provides them with a Day 2 option.

With Kenny Moore re-signed this offseason, if the Colts were to select Jones, while he could be a backup to Moore in the slot, the Colts would have to view him as a capable boundary defender, since that is where his playing time would come from.

Last season, explosive pass plays were an issue for this Colts secondary, along with them ranking in the bottom-third of the NFL in both total pass breakups and yards per pass attempt allowed.

Presumably, as the roster is currently constructed, JuJu Brents will man one of the boundary spots with Dallis Flowers and Jaylon Jones competing for the other.

In what is a very good cornerback class, Jones is PFF’s 15th ranked corner and the 113th rated prospect overall.

Colts hosting OT Travis Glover on official top 30 pre-draft visit

The Colts are reportedly hosting OT Travis Glover from Georgia State on an official pre-draft visit. Here is what you need to know.

The Colts will be hosting Georgia State offensive tackle Travis Glover on an official pre-draft visit, according to Justin Melo of The Draft Network.

Each team is permitted to have 30 of these pre-draft meetings. It’s an opportunity for the player to come to the facility, where the team is able to have one-on-one time with them to go over film, see how they would fit in the locker room, and to go through medicals if needed.

Glover is listed at 6-6 323 pounds and is reportedly 15 pounds down from that figure this offseason. He was not invited to the NFL Combine, but at his Pro Day, Glover recorded 23 reps on the bench press and a 32-inch vertical with 35.5-inch arms.

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a more experienced player than Glover. A five-year starter with 4,164 career snaps and experience at both tackle positions, along with also playing some left guard.

Over the last two seasons, he has allowed five total sacks and 24 pressures over 707 pass-blocking snaps. Glover ranked 29th among all tackles in PFF’s pass-blocking grade and had his best season in 2023 as a run blocker by that metric as well.

Glover competed in both the Hula Bowl and the Senior Bowl during this pre-draft process.

“I can’t wait to get in the building and learn from the veterans around me,” said Glover in an interview with The Draft Network. “I can’t wait to find my fit and execute our playbook. I feel like I’m going to get better every single season. I’m going to keep developing. I’m excited to compete.

“I’m going to start off by executing small goals once I get inside the building. I want to make the team first and foremost, and then I want to find my way onto the field. I want to make the biggest impact my team needs from me.”

The Colts have invested in the offensive tackle position in recent drafts, selecting Blake Freeland, Bernhard Raimann, and Jake Witt. However, with tackle being a premium position and this draft class loaded with talent, the opportunity to add to this position group at some point will likely be there for GM Chris Ballard.

Glover is projected as a Day 3 pick or potential undrafted signee.

Colts hosting Ole Miss CB Deantre Prince on official pre-draft visit

The Colts are reportedly hosting Ole Miss cornerback Deantre Prince on an official pre-draft visit. Here is what you need to know.

The Indianapolis Colts will host Ole Miss cornerback Deantre Prince on an official pre-draft visit, according to Tony Pauline.

Each team is permitted to have 30 of these pre-draft meetings. It’s an opportunity for the player to come to the facility, where the team is able to have one-on-one time with them to go over film, see how they would fit in the locker room, and to go through medicals if needed.

Prince measures in at 6-0 and weighs 183 pounds. He recorded a so-so Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of 6.61 but did run a 4.38-second 40-yard dash and post a 10-5 broad jump. The bench press, vertical, and 3-cone tests are what brought his overall RAS down.

Prince played 2,611 career defensive snaps at Ole Miss, most of which came lined up on the boundary. Prince also has special teams experience, playing 341 snaps across four phases.

For his career on defense, Prince has allowed a completion rate of just 52 percent and 13.6 yards per catch, with six interceptions and four pass breakups over four seasons.

Prince has been a very sound tackler over his career as well, missing only 13 of his 140 attempts over the last three seasons. This has contributed to him being one of PFF’s higher graded run defenders at the cornerback position as well.

For more on Prince’s game, Lance Zierlein of NFL.com had this to say in his pre-draft report:

“Starter for the better part of three years while at Ole Miss. Prince plays with an upright posture and lacks desired hip fluidity in his transitions. He could become a more effective press corner but needs to play with greater physicality and effort.

“He allows receivers ample workspace as route runners due to the amount of deep zone coverage Ole Miss runs but might have the athletic ability to squeeze routes tighter if asked to play more man. He has average instincts and an average nose for the football. His size and willingness in run support help and could make him a Day 3 selection with a chance to become a CB4/5.”

Cornerback remains the biggest need for the Colts in this year’s draft and a position they will have to address in the early portion of the draft. With how deep this year’s cornerback class is, the Colts will likely have the opportunity to double-dip at this position later on in the draft as well.

Prince is PFF’s 278th-rated prospect overall and their 28th-rated cornerback in this class.

Top 30 visits tell us a lot about Packers’ draft strategy

Teams will host 30 prospects for official visits in the pre-draft process and those meetings tell us a lot about the Packers’ draft strategy.

As reports of NFL draft prospects taking official top 30 visits begin to come out, pay very close attention to who the Green Bay Packers are having in because, under GM Brian Gutekunst, there’s been a strong connection between who visits and who the Packers select.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. Of course, there is a strong connection between visits and draft picks. That’s why the Packers have them in—they are interested, to at least some degree.

And while, yes, that is true, the correlation between top 30 visits and eventual draft picks isn’t as strong with other NFL teams. Even with former Packers GM Ted Thompson, there wasn’t a ton that could be gleaned from top 30 visits and who he was going to select.

Last year, four of the Packers official 30 visits ended up as draft picks by Gutekunst, with three more eventually joining the team as either an undrafted rookie in Kadeem Telfort and Camren McDonald, or Ben Sims, who was claimed off waivers when released by Minnesota.

In 2022, six of the top 30 visits ended up as Gutekunst selections, with three more being signed as undrafted rookies. So, in the last two years, 16 of the 60 visits (or almost 27 percent) have been members of the Packers.

The 2021 offseason was the outlier for Gutekunst, where no top 30 visitors ended up being drafted. But in 2020, there were two. In 2019, three, and in 2018, there were again six.

These visits provide the team and the prospects with the opportunity to meet one-on-one with the general manager, coaching staff, and even scouts. The organization gets the chance to know each player a bit better. They’ll also go over film with them to learn about their thought and decision-making processes on the football field.

These visits also give teams a chance to address any red flags that may have popped up, go through medicals, and get an idea of how that player would fit within the locker room.

“I think any time you have a chance to sit down with players in your facility, (you) get to know them a little bit better,” said Gutekunst. “I just thought for me and how I wanted to go about it, yes, I wanted to have some face-to-face time with individually. I also think getting them with our coaching staff and seeing how they might fit in our room and our team locker room was important.”

Thompson would often bring in many late-round or even potential undrafted prospects for these visits, and while Gutekunst still does that as well, he has also prioritized meeting with prospects who are going to be selected in the top 100 as well.

The Packers currently hold 11 draft picks in total, which is tied for the most in the NFL, with five of those selections coming within the top 100.

With the first wave of free agency behind us, there are several positional needs that the Packers still have to address, including building out the safety and offensive line depth, finding a starting-caliber linebacker, and adding more competition to the running back room, among others.

Click here to stay up to date with all of the reported top 30 visits the Packers will have this draft cycle.

Jaguars 2023 pre-draft visits tracker: Pass rush is a focal point

The Jaguars are using a lot of their top 30 visits on pass rushing prospects.

Jacksonville Jaguars brass won’t be revealing much about their plans for the 2023 NFL Draft in the final weeks before the first round begins on Thursday, April 27. The way the team is using its pre-draft visits may be providing a sizable hint, though.

Each NFL team is allowed to bring in 30 prospects for a visit before the draft. The Jaguars have overwhelmingly focused that allotment on defensive linemen and outside linebackers.

Here we’ll keep a running list of all the players who reportedly received an invite to TIAA Bank Field before draft day (listed alphabetically):

Tennessee LB Jeremy Banks taking top-30 visit with Chiefs

The #Chiefs have an athletic linebacker prospect in town for a top-30 visit.

The Kansas City Chiefs continue to host draft-eligible prospects on top-30 visits leading up to the 2023 NFL draft. The latest to come and visit team facilities at 1 Arrowhead Dr. is an athletic linebacker from the SEC.

Tennessee LB Jeremy Banks was in Kansas City for his top-30 visit on Tuesday. Banks was originally recruited as a running back, which he played during his Freshman year with the Volunteers to the tune of 52 carries for 185 yards and three touchdowns.

As a sophomore in 2019, he began making the switch to linebacker and appeared in four games. He recorded two interceptions in a game against Chattanooga that season. He’d go on to appear in 31 games at linebacker over the next three seasons, posting a career year in 2021 with 128 total tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, four passes defended and one interception.

The 6-foot-1, 232-pound linebacker participated in the East-West Shrine Game and the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine. His vertical (37.5), broad jump (10-3), short shuttle (4.38s), and 40-yard dash (4.53s) all ranked within the top 10 in his position group.

Chiefs fans are probably looking at the team’s linebacker room and asking themselves, “Why are they bringing in a linebacker for a top-30 visit?”

Remember, these are part of the pre-draft fact-finding mission. Banks is a player who had some serious off-field concerns during his time at Tennessee. You can rest assured that the Chiefs are working to get to the bottom of those issues and determine whether a player like Banks would be a cultural fit in Kansas City.

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Tracking Chiefs’ top-30 visits, private workouts

It’s the season for top-30 visits (and private workouts) and we’re keeping track of all those reported for the #Chiefs here:

It’s the season for pre-draft visits and private workouts for NFL teams.

From March 7 through April 19, NFL teams are permitted to host draft-eligible prospects at their facilities on what is called a top-30 visit. The name of the visit is a bit of a misnomer as many people think it refers to draft status. It simply refers to the 30 allotted pre-draft visits that teams are allowed each year.

Teams can use these 30 visits on whichever draft-eligible players they want. Some teams will use it on high-value targets who could be selected in the first round. Other teams prioritize players who might not be drafted at all. There are even teams who use these visits strategically to feign interest in the public eye.

What exactly goes on during top-30 visits, though? Prospects have an opportunity to meet with coaching staff members, front office executives and tour the team facilities. Some players who dealt with injuries during college will undergo a medical evaluation with team physicians and trainers. This was key for the Kansas City Chiefs eventually drafting a player like Trey Smith, who dealt with a blood-clotting issue in college.

Teams will often go over a player’s game film with them in order to try and get a better understanding of their football knowledge and how they study the game. From a general point of view, teams often want to just spend some time getting to know the person behind the player. It helps craft an idea of how they’d fit into the team culture and within their local community.

Private workouts are a separate distinction from top-30 visits. These are when scouts or coaches schedule an on-field workout with a player, usually at a player’s school or a pre-determined location. They’re allowed to put prospects through pro-day timing events or have them participate in various football exercises and drills, simulating what might take place in practice or on game day. These typically happen for Kansas City when the team misses out on a pro day or doesn’t have testing information on a player.

Really, both private workouts and top-30 visits are just another tool for NFL teams to gather more information on prospects. That information could help solidify a player’s place on the team’s draft board or it could see them removed from it altogether.

The Chiefs have already scheduled or completed several visits with a number of prospects. They haven’t had any reported private workouts yet, but if they do in the future, we’ll make note of it. Below you’ll find a list of the prospects who have been in or will travel to Kansas City for top-30 visits, which we’ll keep up to date leading up to the draft:

2023 NFL draft: Utah OL Braeden Daniels has top-30 visit with Seahawks

Daniels’ best selling point is that he has experience lining up all over the place.

The Seahawks are doing their due diligence on their preferred prospects ahead of the 2023 NFL draft. The latest news is that they will be hosting Utah offensive lineman Braeden Daniels for an official top-30 visit, according to Justin Melo at the Draft Network.

Daniels’ best selling point is that he has experience lining up all over the place, having started at least 11 games each at left guard, right tackle and left tackle for the Utes. That kind of versatility is always a premium for teams that need depth at multiple spots up front. Daniels has also been stout in pass protection, allowing only five sacks in almost 1,400 pass-blocking snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.

At the Scouting Combine, Daniels checked in at 6-foot-4, 294 pounds with 33″ arms and 9.375″ hands. He tested well athletically, posting a 40-yard dash time just under five seconds, plus a 30.5″ vertical.

Here’s a look at the tape.

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Clemson DE prospect Myles Murphy set to visit Saints ahead of 2023 NFL draft

The #Saints will need to draft well to help rebuild their defensive line, and Clemson’s Myles Murphy may be an option to watch, via @RossJacksonNOLA:

As the 2023 NFL draft nears, the New Orleans Saints are no strangers to taking first-round edge rushers. This offseason, one of the nation’s best will be visiting the Big Easy ahead of the annual selection process. At Clemson’s pro day, which features several defensive linemen that could be of interest to the Saints, edge rusher Myles Murphy said that he plans to visit New Orleans on April 14, having scheduled visits with several other teams.

Based on the timeframe, this sounds like it will be one of the Saints’ Top 30 facility visits. This year’s window for those runs from March 7 to April 19. Top 30 visits usually indicate strong interest in getting to know the players and therefore requesting a closer look and meeting. While the visits suggest interest, teams will also often draft players without much contact. So interest during this period does not correlate consistently with draft selections.

Murphy totaled 18.5 sacks in his three-year stint with Clemson, including 14.5 sacks in the last two years. He also tallied double-digit tackles for loss in each season. At 6-foot-5 and 268 pounds, Murphy checked the Saints’ measurements boxes at the NFL Scouting Combine where he only participated in the bench press, putting up 25 reps.

While Murphy would likely require a move up in the first round, New Orleans could be interested in his Clemson teammates Bryan Bresee and K.J. Henry. All three are former five-star recruits and extremely talented players where the Saints now find themselves depleted along the defensive line. After losing defensive tackles David Onyemata and Shy Tuttle as well as defensive end Marcus Davenport in free agency, Clemson’s pro day offers a look at some realistic options to help rebuild the defensive line in New Orleans.

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Bucs to host Tennessee QB Hendon Hooker for pre-draft visit

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are set to host Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker for a top-30 visit ahead of the 2023 NFL draft

Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker is scheduled to visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with a Top 30 visit among other teams, according to The Draft Network’s Ryan Fowler:

Each year, NFL teams are allowed to host up to 30 draft prospects at their facilities for meetings. While not a direct indication that a team is going to draft a prospect, the limited quantity of visits does suggest at least some interest.

Hooker was one of the best quarterbacks in college football last year, particularly passing deep. He led all quarterbacks (minimum 50 percent of snaps) in yards per attempt (9.5) and finished fourth in average depth of target (11.7) while also averaging a turnover worthy play on just 1.1% of his dropbacks per Pro Football Focus.

The Bucs have only one quarterback on the roster, former 2021 second-round pick Kyle Trask. With little cap space, the Bucs are unlikely to bring in a pricey veteran passer and could be looking for some competition for Trask.

Hooker is likely to slip to the mid-rounds due to his age (25) and the fact he is recovering from an ACL tear that he suffered in November. Tampa has numerous roster holes to fill, including left tackle and across the defense. Drafting Hooker on Day 2 of the NFL draft could upgrade the quarterback room without unduly impacting the Bucs’ other needs.