UDFA Tracker 2022

[PikeBadger]

I don't remember me saying something similar specifically about Tonyan. But I'm quite sure I mentioned it about a lot of second and third year players ending up being correct.

Please rephrase the bolded portion. There is a couple of very different ways to interpret your meaning.

 

[rmontro]

I think so. It is a bit like the day Free Agency begins, but with very low priced, potential diamonds in the rough. Teams are spending pocket change and bringing in guys that are on the fringe of being in the NFL. Lots of stories on why some of these guys didn't hear their names called during the draft, so for those who have "scouted" them before the draft, it is fun to see where they end up signing.

I expect almost every drafted player to make the 53 or the PS, whereas when an UDFA defies the odds and makes it as an underdog, I can get on board with rooting for him.

Oh, so Super Bowl for sure, then

 

[OldSchool101]

Deguara is still iffy for me. I see some spots where i'm like, yeah, he can do it. And then I see the exact opposite and not enough of the flashes to give me a lot of hope, but enough to think he still has time to put things together.

Possibly what they are thinking in that TE group is really one where we see some positive gains in that year 3-4 range. Tonyan is already there he just needs to get healthy.

Tyler Davis and Josiah Deguara are both guys going into their 3rd Camp and we should conceivably see 1 of those 2 show up more.
It’s looking more and more like they expect Tonyan back earlier than originally anticipated.

I’d love for someone to have asked Gute if he had considered the TE position at all in the draft or was he just pretty content?
I really thought he’d draft one somewhere in that Rd3-5 area.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Please rephrase the bolded portion. There is a couple of very different ways to interpret your meaning.

I meant that I have probably been correct about several players when I predicted that they wouldn't significantly improve in their second or third season.

 

[PikeBadger]

I meant that I have probably been correct about several players when I predicted that they wouldn't significantly improve in their second or third season.

You think there are any under the radar 2nd or 3rd year players that will make a nice jump this year?

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

You think there are any under the radar 2nd or 3rd year players that will make a nice jump this year?

Side bet Captain doesn't say Jordan Love.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

From the 2020 draft class, I would say that Dillon isn't under the radar, but the rest of the class that is left is.

- Love: He has the potential to have the BIGGEST breakout season. That would require Rodgers to suffer a major injury though. So unless Love can guide us to the Super Bowl, I'm not pulling for that to happen.

- Deguara: This would be my choice for highest potential breakout from this draft class.

- Runyan: Probably already has "broken out". Getting 16 starts from a 6th round pick in his second year is pretty good. I think he improves even more this season.

- Disappointments of class: Martin (cut after 1 year), Hanson and Scott, both have played very little. Stepaniak never suited up and retired due to injuries.

- Garvin: He could be a guy that sees more playing time than he already has and potentially could make a jump if he does. However, he is going to have to beat out Enagbare, Galeai and Ramsey for that playing time behind Preston and Gary.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

You think there are any under the radar 2nd or 3rd year players that will make a nice jump this year?

Yes, Dominik Eberle will beat out Crosby for the job and end up leading the league in field goal percentage

 

[PikeBadger]

From the 2020 draft class, I would say that Dillon isn't under the radar, but the rest of the class that is left is.

- Love: He has the potential to have the BIGGEST breakout season. That would require Rodgers to suffer a major injury though. So unless Love can guide us to the Super Bowl, I'm not pulling for that to happen.

- Deguara: This would be my choice for highest potential breakout from this draft class.

- Runyan: Probably already has "broken out". Getting 16 starts from a 6th round pick in his second year is pretty good. I think he improves even more this season.

- Disappointments of class: Martin (cut after 1 year), Hanson and Scott, both have played very little. Stepaniak never suited up and retired due to injuries.

- Garvin: He could be a guy that sees more playing time than he already has and potentially could make a jump if he does. However, he is going to have to beat out Enagbare, Galeai and Ramsey for that playing time behind Preston and Gary.

I think Barnes and Ty Davis are also 3rd year guys? I'd look for both of them to continue improvement. Lots of young guys on this roster. I suspect some of them will raise eyebrows.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I think Barnes and Ty Davis are also 3rd year guys? I'd look for both of them to continue improvement. Lots of young guys on this roster. I suspect some of them will raise eyebrows.

Yup...Barnes was a UDAF and Davis was a 6th rounder for Jacksonville that got cut last year, picked up by the Colts and the Packers poached him off their PS.

I didn't include them, since they weren't technically in the draft class. Barnes has the most upside IMO, but will be battling first round pick Quay Walker and Campbell for snaps.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Barnes has the most upside IMO, but will be battling first round pick Quay Walker and Campbell for snaps.

If Walker plays up to potential I don't believe Barnes will receive a ton of snaps moving forward.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

If Walker plays up to potential I don't believe Barnes will receive a ton of snaps moving forward.

Agreed, but you just never know with a rookie and injuries can always come into play as well. I do think that Barnes has a lock on the #3 spot on the depth chart at ILB, with very little competition behind him. Carpenter being switched from a S to ILB could prove to create some competition down the road, but for now, I think Tariq will be a special teams contributor.

 

[tynimiller]

If Walker plays up to potential I don't believe Barnes will receive a ton of snaps moving forward.

I predict Walker gets the nod behind Campbell...but I'd bet Barnes still sees about 25% or just shy of the defensive snaps. I love the ILB room, both from a what we have status and a what we could have....toss in Ellis Brooks from Penn State we nabbed as an UDFA that I truly think could push McDuffie and Summers aside by seasons' end.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I predict Walker gets the nod behind Campbell...but I'd bet Barnes still sees about 25% or just shy of the defensive snaps. I love the ILB room, both from a what we have status and a what we could have....toss in Ellis Brooks from Penn State we nabbed as an UDFA that I truly think could push McDuffie and Summers aside by seasons' end.

I'd actually be surprised if Summers makes the final 53. If he does, it will be due to showing some good abilities on special teams. However, I think with Bisaccia, he is going to know how to get the most out of all the players that he is given to use for special teams. He is going to push all these back of the roster guys even harder in their efforts to make the roster and guys like Summers will have to do more than just make a tackle in preseason to stay on the team.

 

[tynimiller]

Every year at least one UDFA seems to make a spot for themselves...I rank my personal Top 5 as:

ILB - Ellis Brooks
S - Tre Sterling
DL - Akial Byers
OLB - Chauncey Manac
CB - Raleigh Texada

*RB - Tyler Goodson gets my honorable mention as 6th.

Brooks I think purely is good enough for a 53 man spot is all....Sterling, Manac and Texada have the best positional opening for a spot and Byers again like Brooks (but lesser degree) I saw as draftable on Day 3 and like to maybe nab last spot in that positional group.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Every year at least one UDFA seems to make a spot for themselves...I rank my personal Top 5 as:

ILB - Ellis Brooks
S - Tre Sterling
DL - Akial Byers
OLB - Chauncey Manac
CB - Raleigh Texada

*RB - Tyler Goodson gets my honorable mention as 6th.

Brooks I think purely is good enough for a 53 man spot is all....Sterling, Manac and Texada have the best positional opening for a spot and Byers again like Brooks (but lesser degree) I saw as draftable on Day 3 and like to maybe nab last spot in that positional group.

I alluded to this in a previous post, but I think one change we will see this year is at the bottom of each position's depth chart, at least I hope so. That change will be spurred on by new special teams coach Rich Bisaccia having more say in who makes the team. Guys that might be "developable" at a certain position, but can't play special teams, are going to be cut in favor of keeping 3rd and 4th stringers that excel at special teams. That would be a welcome change VS keeping players that really have no future as a starter on offense or defense and add very little as special teams players. Obviously it is a delicate balance of knowing which players have a lot of future potential VS how much you lose by keeping them and only getting poor special teams play out of them. You can't expect to field 46 players each week and out of them have 11 special teams aces.

One big name player I could see this happening with is Amari Rodgers. If he isn't going to be a decent WR in the NFL and adds nothing to special teams, I would get rid of him and cut my losses by giving the roster spot to a better special teams players.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

I predict Walker gets the nod behind Campbell...but I'd bet Barnes still sees about 25% or just shy of the defensive snaps. I love the ILB room, both from a what we have status and a what we could have....toss in Ellis Brooks from Penn State we nabbed as an UDFA that I truly think could push McDuffie and Summers aside by seasons' end.

Barnes only played 48.8% of the snaps last season with no other decent option available as the #2 inside linebacker. Therefore I don't expect him to play more than 25% of the snaps if Walker performs up to potential.

 

[tynimiller]

Barnes only played 48.8% of the snaps last season with no other decent option available as the #2 inside linebacker. Therefore I don't expect him to play more than 25% of the snaps if Walker performs up to potential.

Either way if Quay forces Barnes number down, that is a great sign for the defense for sure.

 

[tynimiller]

So I did a little deep dive on Brooks and Manac this past weekend just out of curiosity and I'm still baffled how Brooks didn't get drafted....I get it his testing measurables left some to be desired, but this cat is a gameday player and I swear is a better athlete than his measurables argue he should be. Some guys just click when the helmet and pads go on more than others.

Manac to me just screams raw ability that has a motor and effort that wins plays not his skillset. He is that prototypical "coin flip" type guy that just out hustles and works opponents on plays that if he could just add a touch of more flexibility, a touch more in his move skillset and learn better hand technique could easily find himself on the GB roster in 2022 (working towards a 2023 push most likely...).

I've heard excellent reports out of Byers from OTAs - for a guy that measurables were slothlike, he came out more athletic than many assumed he was.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Manac was an absolute steal as an UDFA!

Although he finished 58th among the 2022 edge rusher class with 40 pressures. That’s only two fewer than the hyped Big Ten tandem of David Ojabo and Boye Mafe, and more than Day 2 draft picks Josh Paschal and DeAngelo Malone. Of 112 edge defenders with at least 275 snaps as a pass rusher, Manc ranked 15th in PFF’s pass-rushing productivity, which measures sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing snap.

I think the only red flag on him was his herniated disc surgery in 2020 and the team he played for. I don't follow other teams rosters, but I have to think that the Packer LB group, including inside, has to be a top 5 in starting talent and potentially really good young depth at both ILB and OLB. I am stoked to see what this defense does.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Manac was an absolute steal as an UDFA!

Although he finished 58th among the 2022 edge rusher class with 40 pressures. That’s only two fewer than the hyped Big Ten tandem of David Ojabo and Boye Mafe, and more than Day 2 draft picks Josh Paschal and DeAngelo Malone. Of 112 edge defenders with at least 275 snaps as a pass rusher, Manc ranked 15th in PFF’s pass-rushing productivity, which measures sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing snap.

I think the only red flag on him was his herniated disc surgery in 2020 and the team he played for. I don't follow other teams rosters, but I have to think that the Packer LB group, including inside, has to be a top 5 in starting talent and potentially really good young depth at both ILB and OLB. I am stoked to see what this defense does.

I don't want to be a Debbie Downer here but it's probably easier to put up that numbers playing in the Sun Belt conference compared to any of the Big 5s.

 

[tynimiller]

I don't want to be a Debbie Downer here but it's probably easier to put up that numbers playing in the Sun Belt conference compared to any of the Big 5s.

Correct, which is why he's got a steeper learning curve than some and no doubt is working towards a 2023 push for roster not this year. FTR he did well against his best competition in 2021 which were Texas, App State twice and Liberty - in those four games he compiled 20 tackles and 6 sacks. However, for perspective while he didn't have many tackles, four of his 6 sacks were against Liberty where he chewed up a younger but promising tackle prospect.

 

[tynimiller]

To add, one thing that is impressive however is just how many of his tackles are for loss or no gains. He is not a timid or reactive defender (think Blake Martinez type approach to tackling). He is a long shot, and will be fun to see how his story goes.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Correct, which is why he's got a steeper learning curve than some and no doubt is working towards a 2023 push for roster not this year. FTR he did well against his best competition in 2021 which were Texas, App State twice and Liberty - in those four games he compiled 20 tackles and 6 sacks. However, for perspective while he didn't have many tackles, four of his 6 sacks were against Liberty where he chewed up a younger but promising tackle prospect.

I didn't know Manac had four sacks on Malik Willis. I agree that's an impressive feat.