We continue our divisional draft & roster review series, switching from the NFC to the AFC North!
Once again, I’ll give a quick scouting report on every single player selected, talk about each team’s class overall & at the end of the video, rank those four against each other!
Tag Archives: Undrafted Free Agents
Which undrafted free agents could make an impact in 2023:
We’ve spent a ton of time talking about all these highly-rated prospects for the NFL Draft and where they landed. So I wanted to once again show love to the guys who didn’t hear their names called, but have now been signed as UDFAs and have a chance to still make their mark on the league.
I settled on six players on offense and defense each, who I thought are in a situation to quickly make an impact – whether that’s actually having a chance to start at some point this this year or just fill a certain role for their new team. I tried to not include players that are widely considered to have gone undrafted due to medical red flags, although I added (at least) one more name for all the teams I didn’t mention among these twelve, at the end of this piece.
Here’s the list:
Most improved position groups from the 2022 NFL offseason:
Now that “draft season” of 2022 is finally done for me, with the conclusion of my divisional draft breakdown series (breaking down every single pick, their fit on the roster, etc. for all 32 NFL teams), it’s time to point out which teams improved the most this offseason at every single position, through free agency, trades and of course the draft.
For the purpose of this exercise, I didn’t want to just mention the obvious major additions of one specific player, such as quarterback Russell Wilson going to Denver or wide receiver Davante Adams going to Las Vegas, but rather look at the entire unit and how much better their depth chart looks like altogether, compared to 2021. Therefore I’m also considering the allocated resources to some degree, in particular the money invested.
I will mention all the additions and departures, explain how big of a difference those moves will actually make and how it changes what each team can now expect or even do altogether from a schematic/game-plan perspective.
Now that “draft season” of 2022 is finally done for me, with the conclusion of my divisional draft breakdown series (breaking down every single pick, their fit on the roster, etc. for all 32 NFL teams), it’s time to point out which teams improved the most this offseason at every single position, through free agency, trades and of course the draft.
For the purpose of this exercise, I didn’t want to just mention the obvious major additions of one specific player, such as quarterback Russell Wilson going to Denver or wide receiver Davante Adams going to Las Vegas, but rather look at the entire unit and how much better their depth chart looks like altogether, compared to 2021. Therefore I’m also considering the allocated resources to some degree, in particular the money invested.
I will mention all the additions and departures, explain how big of a difference those moves will actually make and how it changes what each team can now expect or even do altogether from a schematic/game-plan perspective.
Which undrafted free agents will make an impact in 2022?
Even with 262 college prospects being selected in the NFL draft, there were still several talented young athletes left and we see it every year, where those guys make a significant impact and at worst are key to filling out rosters around the league, with very little investment being needed. About 30 percent of the league is made up of these UDFAs and while it may take a lot of them longer to earn playing time, I want to identify those, who I believe can make a name for themselves early on.
For this exercise, I looked through all the signings that were made once the draft wrapped up, compared them to my personal grades/rankings and looked at how these guys may fit into the roster they’re not a part of. So I will mention why I believe these ten players did go undrafted, give a quick scouting report of these players and break down their path to playing time or role they may inherit.
Two players I didn’t include – former Arizona State and now 49ers center Dohnovan West, who I had as a top-100 overall prospect and Nevada and now Eagles quarterback Carson Strong, who was actually my QB3 purely based on tape – I believe can both be long-time starters in this league, but have players in front of them, that won’t allow them to make an impact right away.
At the end, I also added one (more) UDFA to keep your eyes on for all 32 teams.
Here’s the list:
Even with 262 college prospects being selected in the NFL draft, there were still several talented young athletes left and we see it every year, where those guys make a significant impact and at worst are key to filling out rosters around the league, with very little investment being needed. About 30 percent of the league is made up of these UDFAs and while it may take a lot of them longer to earn playing time, I want to identify those, who I believe can make a name for themselves early on.
For this exercise, I looked through all the signings that were made once the draft wrapped up, compared them to my personal grades/rankings and looked at how these guys may fit into the roster they’re not a part of. So I will mention why I believe these ten players did go undrafted, give a quick scouting report of these players and break down their path to playing time or role they may inherit.
Two players I didn’t include – former Arizona State and now 49ers center Dohnovan West, who I had as a top-100 overall prospect and Nevada and now Eagles quarterback Carson Strong, who was actually my QB3 purely based on tape – I believe can both be long-time starters in this league, but have players in front of them, that won’t allow them to make an impact right away.
At the end, I also added one (more) UDFA to keep your eyes on for all 32 teams.
Here’s the list:
Most impactful UDFA signings 2021:
After recapping the NFL Draft last week, I want to talk about the players that actually didn’t hear their names called and the teams that signed them as undrafted free agents. I will analyze those prospects and how they could impact the organizations they signed with.
Make sure to also check out my detailed draft recap!
Undrafted free agents from 2020 who could make an early impact:
Like I mentioned in my big draft recap last week – this was a very unique version of the NFL draft with its positives and negatives. So much talent fell down the board and several prospects I really liked didn’t even hear the name called at all. That includes six of my top 120 overall players available. A lot of that was certainly due to the circumstances, where teams weren’t able to conduct personal meetings or let their doctors take a look at these athletes. Some prospects may have fallen for good reason, which we aren’t necessarily aware of, but every year there are a bunch of guys who didn’t get selected, but turn out to make an impact with the teams they sign with shortly after.
Those are the type of names I want to point out in this article. Since I don’t have information on all the medical reports or off-field concerns, this is purely based on my evaluations of these prospects and the situations they find themselves in.
Undrafted free agents who could make an early impact:
We have spent a lot of time talking about the NFL draft, handing out grades and pointing out steals from that weekend. With that being said, even after 254 picks there still was a lot of talent left out there and some prospects, who I had rated pretty high, never heard their names called on those three days. Instead they are now entering some team’s practice squad, looking to prove themselves and carve out a role. These ten names I think have the talent and/or are in a situation where they could contribute early on and be valuable pieces for their respective franchise. Every year there are some undrafted free agents I see making an early impact, who actually end up doing so – Phillip Lindsay and J.C. Jackson in 2018 for example.
Notable undrafted free agents, who could make an early impact:
It’s been one-and-a-half weeks since we wrapped up the 2018 NFL Draft and after talking about the top prospects and which teams selected them where, it’s time to look at the guys, who didn’t hear their names called in Dallas. I thought this year we had an enormous amount of talent still left out there among the undrafted players and I want to shed a light on who they are and how I think they could find a role with their respective teams early on.
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