Tag: udfas

Broncos expected to sign NCAA’s all-time leading rusher as UDFA

Undrafted free agent Jaleel McLaughlin, who set an NCAA record with more than 8,000 yards in college, is expected to sign with the Broncos.

The Denver Broncos have not yet officially announced their 2023 undrafted free agent signings, but we’ve been tracking the team’s UDFA additions on Broncos Wire.

One of the biggest names on the list so far running back Jaleel McLaughlin. The speedy running back started his college career at the Division II level, rushing for more than 2,400 in each of his two years at Notre Dame College (Ohio). McLaughlin then transferred to Youngstown State (FCS).

At YSU, McLaughlin rushed for 3,418 yards in three years, finishing his college career with 8,155 rushing yards, an NCAA record at any level. He scored 79 rushing touchdowns in five seasons.

The productive running back then turned heads at YSU’s pro day by running a 40-yard dash in 4.44 seconds. McLaughlin was “widely expected to be drafted,” according to Draft Wire’s Jeff Risdon, so Denver might have landed a gem by signing him as a UDFA. 

Before the draft, NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein predicted McLaughlin would be a sixth-round pick. He might now be an early favorite to make the Broncos’ 53-man roster as an undrafted free agent. 

We are tracking all of the team’s UDFA signings on this page.

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Broncos will invite veterans to try out at rookie minicamp

The Broncos will have four groups of players at rookie minicamp: Drafted rookies, UDFA signings, rookie tryout players and veteran tryouts.

The Denver Broncos will have plenty of bodies on the field when they hold a rookie minicamp next week.

In addition to the five members of their draft class and 16 undrafted free agent signees, the Broncos are also inviting at least 12 rookies on a tryout basis as well as several veteran players.

“There’ll be some tryout players at that camp,” coach Sean Payton said after the NFL draft last week. “There’ll be some veteran tryout players. Let’s call it four different groups of players: draft picks, signed free agents, tryout free agents and veteran tryouts.”

Undrafted players often face long odds to make the 53-man roster, and tryout players face an even tougher uphill battle. But once they get an opportunity, any player can stand out and impress Denver’s coaching staff.

“[O]nce they’re sitting in that meeting room, how they arrived is of no importance to us at that point,” Payton said. “We’re playing the best players. … I think it’s important for every one of them. They’ll all have a piece of tape on the front of their helmet with their last name, and we’re just going to go by what we see.”

So far, we know the names of two veterans — running back Jacques Patrick and outside linebacker Trent Harris, who were standout players in the XFL this spring. More names will likely be added to the list in the coming days.

The Broncos are expected to hold rookie minicamp from May 12-15.

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Broncos invite 2 XFL standouts to rookie minicamp

Trent Harris led the XFL with 9.5 sacks this spring. Jacques Patrick ranked second in the XFL with 443 rushing yards and 5 TDs.

The Denver Broncos will have at least 35 players in attendance for a rookie minicamp next weekend.

In addition to the five members of Denver’s draft class, the Broncos have also signed 16 undrafted free agents so far. The team has also invited at least a dozen undrafted players to try out at rookie minicamp and several veteran players will be invited as well.

We know of two veterans so far, both of whom played in the XFL this spring. The first is San Antonio Brahmas running back Jacques Patrick.

Patrick (6-2, 234 pounds) ranked second in the XFL this year with 443 rushing yards and five touchdowns. The 26-year-old running back started his pro career with the XFL’s Tampa Bay Vipers after going undrafted out of Florida State in 2019. After that, he spent time with four NFL teams before returning to the XFL this spring.

The second known XFL invite is Houston Roughnecks outside linebacker Trent Harris. The 27-year-old pass rusher led the XFL with 9.5 sacks this spring. Before that, Harris (6-2, 255 pounds) spent time with five NFL teams after going undrafted out of Miami in 2018. He recorded 1.5 sacks in 11 games with the Dolphins in 2019.

Patrick and Harris will hope to use the XFL as a launching pad for a return to the NFL. We are tracking all of Denver’s rookie minicamp invites on Broncos Wire.

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Something on each of 49ers 11 undrafted rookie signings

Get to know the 11 undrafted rookies the 49ers signed:

The 49ers on Monday officially added 11 undrafted rookie free agents to their nine-player 2023 draft class.

While the draft class will get plenty of pub, the undrafted free agents are more likely to fly under the radar. That group will have far more misses than hits, but San Francisco has done a nice enough job of finding success in the UDFA market that it’s worth keeping an eye on any players they bring in.

Here’s a quick rundown of each of the 11 UDFA additions:

Broncos aiming to find more undrafted free agent gems

The Broncos have a great history of finding UDFA gems, a tradition they hope continues this year.

The Denver Broncos had just five picks to use in the 2023 NFL draft, but they will enter rookie minicamp with upwards of 20 rookies in attendance.

The Broncos have signed 14 undrafted free agents so far on our unofficial UDFA tracker, and at least one more player has been invited to camp on a tryout basis. Denver has a history of uncovering undrafted gems seemingly every year.

“[T]he minute the draft ends, [there is a] two-and-a-half-hour period where you don’t know that you’re going to be doing it, but you’re going to find the last starting running back for this team that played in the Super Bowl in [undrafted] free agency,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said last week, referring to former Denver running back C.J. Anderson.

“There are a bunch of those players that are sitting out there. They don’t know it yet. They’re not going to be drafted. Procuring more players and looking at each one with the lens of, ‘How can this guy do it?’ That’s still exciting. That’s the part that you’re like, ‘Did I flip enough magnets?’ The scouts have these guys stacked and there’s a process. We’re still working.”

The Broncos’ recent history of UDFA success stories includes Anderson, Chris Harris, Shaq Barrett, Phillip Lindsay, Alexander Johnson and just last year, Jalen Virgil and Brandon Johnson. Rod Smith was the best UDFA signing in franchise history, and Tim Patrick and Alex Singleton are also among the team’s current players who entered the league undrafted.

“Our scouts are over there working free agency,” GM George Paton said on Saturday. “Sean spoke to the scouts and the entire room today about all the former free agents that have made teams and gone to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. We’re hoping to find a few really good players in free agency post draft.”

Who knows, maybe another UDFA gem will be part of this year’s signing class.

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Broncos invite QB Judd Erickson to rookie minicamp

The Broncos have invited former CSU QB Judd Erickson to rookie minicamp on a tryout basis.

After selecting five players in the 2023 NFL draft, the Denver Broncos are now filling out their 90-man offseason roster by signing undrafted free agents.

In addition to their under-contract UDFAs, the Broncos will also invite several players to try out at their rookie minicamp in two weeks. So far, we know of two rookies who have been invited to rookie camp on a tryout basis.

The first is Incarnate Word outside linebacker Chris Whitt. The second is San Diego quarterback Judd Erickson, according to a report from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. He’s a local prospect who grew up in Highlands Ranch and started his college career at Colorado State.

After three years at CSU as a backup, Erickson was a graduate transfer to San Diego, playing in four games in 2021. He played in seven games in 2022, completing 113-of-211 passes for 1,406 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Erickson will be a long shot to get a contract offer from the Broncos as current third-string quarterback Jarrett Guarantano has 40 college starts on his resume and spent last season as a practice squad backup in the NFL. Erickson will get an opportunity, though, and that’s all he can ask for.

We are tracking all of Denver’s UDFA signings on Broncos Wire.

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10 potential UDFAs Broncos could target after the NFL draft

Here’s a quick list of 10 potential undrafted free agents the Broncos could consider after the NFL draft.

The Denver Broncos only have five picks to use in the NFL draft this year, so barring any trades that add more picks, Denver will have room to sign 13 undrafted free agents following the draft next weekend.

The Broncos have a great history of landing UDFA gems, including wide receiver Rod Smith and cornerback Chris Harris. Last year, Denver signed 13 UDFAs, including wide receivers Jalen Virgil and Brandon Johnson.

It’s impossible to know for sure which prospects will go undrafted this year, but we have put together a list of 10 potential UDFAs that the Broncos could consider late in the draft or potentially immediately after the draft.

Here’s a quick list of 10 names to watch for as potential UDFA targets.

Ranking Broncos’ rookies by potential impact in 2022

Montrell Washington has an opportunity to make an instant impact with the Broncos this season.

Denver Broncos outside linebacker Nik Bonitto (second-round pick) and tight end Greg Dulcich (third-round pick) were the team’s highest-picked players in April’s draft, so it’s reasonable to assume they will have the biggest contributions on defense and offense among Denver’s rookies this season.

That doesn’t necessarily mean Bonitto and Dulcich will have the biggest overall impacts among the Broncos’ rookies this year — special teams is also a key part of any NFL team’s success.

Denver wide receiver Montrell Washington wasn’t picked until the fifth round, but he’ll be the team’s starting returner, giving him the greatest opportunity to make a big impact as a rookie.

With that in mind, here are our rankings for the Broncos’ rookies, ranked based on their expected instant impact in 2022.

Broncos cut 4 players to make room on roster for UDFAs signings

ICYMI: Broncos waived OLB Andre Mintze, CB Cortez Davis, OT Drew Himmelman and TE Shaun Beyer. Denver’s now at the 90-man offseason roster limit.

The Denver Broncos cut four players last week to make room on the 90-man offseason roster for their 13 undrafted free agents, the team announced.

The cuts started on Thursday with outside linebacker Andre Mintze, who joined the team as an undrafted free agent out of Vanderbilt last year. Denver has a crowded OLB room and Mintze apparently ranked near the bottom of the depth chart.

After that, the Broncos waived guard Zack Johnson, offensive tackle Drew Himmelman and tight end Shaun Beyer ahead of the start of their rookie minicamp last Friday. Following those moves, Denver’s roster now stands at the 90-man offseason limit.

Story update: Johnson was re-signed on Monday. To make room for Johnson, cornerback Cortez Davis was waived.

The Broncos also recently announced that they re-signed veteran tight end Eric Saubert to a one-year contract. Saubert (6-5, 253 pounds) played in all 17 games with Denver last year (four starts), serving primarily as a blocker (he caught eight passes for 47 yards). Saubert was also a key special teams player for the Broncos in 2021.

Following Saubert’s return, Denver has a somewhat crowded tight end room. Saubert joins Albert Okwuegbunam, Eric Tomlinson, third-round pick Greg Dulcich, Dylan Parham and Rodney Williams at the position.

The Broncos will begin trimming the roster from 90 players down to 53 in August, with a finalized 53-man roster announced in early September.

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Broncos signed 2 of the top undrafted free agents available

Christopher Allen and Ja’Quan McMillian were among the top UDFAs available, and the Broncos signed both of them.

After selecting nine players in the 2022 NFL draft, the Denver Broncos then signed 13 undrafted free agents. Two of those UDFAs stand out.

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar and Draft Wire’s Luke Easterling both published lists of the top UDFAs available after the draft wrapped up on Saturday evening. Alabama pass rusher Christopher Allen, who signed with Denver, was on both of their lists.

Allen (6-3, 241 pounds) missed last season with a broken foot. Before that, he totaled 54 tackles (including 18.5 tackles for losses), 6.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and one fumble recovery from 2017-2020 (19 games). NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein predicted Allen would be a fourth-round pick, so landing him as an UDFA is a big get for the Broncos.

Easterling also included East Carolina cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian on his list of top UDFAs — he’s another player who signed with Denver.

McMillian (5-10, 183 pounds) was a playmaker for the Pirates, totaling 127 tackles, 28 pass breakups, 12 interceptions, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one defensive touchdown in three years (33 games).

Denver has a great tradition of landing undrafted free agent gems who go on to make the roster — Allen and McMillian will aim to continue that trend this summer.

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