#college-career

#college-career

The Cowboys didn't draft a quarterback, so they need somebody to throw at their rookie minicamp this weekend.They have invited Elon quarterback Matthew McKay for a tryout, the school announced.McKay went undrafted last month.In 2022, he completed 61 percent of his passes for 2,690 yards with 21 touchdowns and four interceptions.

This is the second installment in this offseason's Helium Series (the first of which, which also has details on my rough selection guidelines, can be found here).Without further preamble, let's get started.--
River Ryan First, some background - Ryan, a righthanded pitcher, who is listed at 6-foot-2, 195 pounds, was a two-way player at NCAA Division II UNC Pembroke.

Third time's a charm for the Dodgers as they acquire RHP Jake Reed once again.Reed is set to enter his third season in the league and third stint with the Dodgers during the span.Reed was claimed off waivers from the Red Sox although he began the 2022 season with the Dodgers.Reed was also acquired from waivers from the Mets before eventually being claimed off waivers by the Orioles in September from the Dodgers.

The Packers still have questions after the draft but, in light of that, these three UDFA signings afterward have a great chance to make the roster.With Aaron Rodgers gone and Jordan Love now QB1, things look much different for the Green Bay Packers.More pressingly, though, the task at hand has become putting the first-time starter in the best position to succeed.

Because of the apparent needs on the offensive side of the ball, seeing the Patriots not make any offensive selections until the fourth round of the draft was shocking.That changed, however, as they took a pair of offensive linemen, followed by another one in the fifth round, drafting a center and two guards so far through the first five rounds of the draft.

There was a lot of pressure on the Patriots to nail their first-round pick this year, and it appears they may have walked away with the steal of the night.Because they had a prime position at pick 14, they had numerous prospects to choose from compared to years past.Most assumed they would go with one of their top three neediest positions; cornerback, offensive tackle, or wide receiver, and all the stars were aligned as they were initially put on the clock.

The Dallas Cowboys hit a home run in the 2022 NFL Draft, and fans are hoping the front office puts forth a similar display this year.Between Tyler Smith, DaRon Bland, Sam Williams, Damone Clark, and Jake Ferguson, the Cowboys nabbed five players who made significant impacts as rookies.That doesn't happen often, and would explain why Dallas' 2022 class earned the highest grade of any NFC East team, per NFL Media's Eric Edholm.

Stetson Bennett is on the field for Los Angeles Rams practice and he's already stirring up significant buzz.The Los Angeles Rams selected Stetson Bennett with the 128th pick in April's NFL Draft, giving priority to his remarkable list of accomplishments at the collegiate level with Georgia.The 25-year-old is expected to spend at least his first couple of seasons learning the ropes from Matthew Stafford, another former Bulldog.

Handing out Vikings Draft Grades for every Minnesota selection in the 2023 NFL Draft, from Jordan Addison through DeWayne McBride.No one is going to call the Minnesota Vikings one of the biggest winners of the 2023 NFL Draft.With only seven selections and just one that was made inside the Top 100 picks, they were never going to be on the level of teams like the Steelers, Eagles, Seahawks and so on as a surefire home-run hitter for the draft.

Will Anderson should be one of the first defensive players off the board in the 2023 NFL Draft and we're breaking down the Alabama EDGE's scouting report.Once you finally are able to look past the quarterbacks in the 2023 NFL Draft like Bryce Young, Anthony Richardson, Will Levis and C.J. Stroud, you get to a few elite defensive prospects.

2023 NFL Draft Big Board with Top 5 positional rankings at every position to see which players your team should target early.The 2023 NFL Draft is only one month away, so now is a good time to reexamine this year's draft class.This year's draft class is deep at several positions.Running back, wide receiver, offensive tackle, and cornerback all feature high-end talent and extensive depth.

The Dallas Cowboys know that Tony Pollard is RB1 after releasing Ezekiel Elliott but they need to replace the veteran and have several options to do so.While many Dallas Cowboys fans might not have expected the offseason that's transpired thus far as far as the running back position goes, it's all been the right decisions thus far from Jerry Jones and Co.

The Carolina Panthers acquired the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft from the Chicago Bears, and it drastically shifted the quarterback odds.The Chicago Bears are no longer the holders of the first-overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.That now belongs to the Carolina Panthers, after they gave the Bears multiple draft picks over the next three years and wide receiver D.J. Moore.

The 5 o'clock club is published from time to time during the season, and aims to provide a forum for reader-driven discussion at a time of day when there isn't much being published.Feel free to introduce topics that interest you in the comments below.Washington's top-3
Let's assume that the top-3 WR spots on the roster are set:
Let's further assume that the team will enter the season with 5 players in the position group.

2023 NFL draft grades for all 32 teams: Mel Kiper's steals, sleepers I liked who they added in Round 1. I've been calling cornerback Emmanuel Forbes (16) this draft's "Splendid Splinter," because of his frame.He is a thin 6-foot-1 and 166 pounds.All he does is make plays, though.He had six pick-sixes and 14 total interceptions in his college career.

There is a long tradition of people giving draft picks a grade less than 24 hours after they've been made.Some of them are spot on after the players have shown who they are after a few years in the league, and some of them look pretty bad.A lot of graders get stuck on their personal rankings, and will tank a player's selection because of that.

Mississippi State cornerback Emmanuel Forbes (13) reaches in to intercept a pass during a 2022 game.The Commanders made Forbes their first-round pick Thursday.(Rogelio V. Solis/AP)Comment Gift Article The Washington Commanders selected Emmanuel Forbes, a cornerback out of Mississippi State, with the 16th pick of the NFL draft on Thursday, adding more youth and speed to a secondary that has transformed in recent years.

Player Comp: Rodrigo Blankenship
College Statistics
Player Overview
Ryland played the first four years of his college career at Eastern Michigan, where he eventually became the leading scorer in team history.He transferred to the University of Maryland for his senior season and finished as a second team All Big 10 selection to Michigan's Jake Moody.

Joe Kapp, who spent the final season of his 12-year career as a professional quarterback with the then- Boston Patriots, has passed away.He died on Monday at age 85, the San Francisco Chronicle first reported.Following a college career at Cal, Kapp entered the NFL as an 18th-round draft selection in 1959.

(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)

There was no consensus, some observers predicting it would be Dalton Kincaid while others forecast Michael Mayer or perhaps a pick in a later round.But there was no doubt among those outside the organization that the Chargers would draft a tight end last week.

Patriots "I want to work.I want to win.I feel like that's what the Patriots offer and that's where we meet in the middle at"
Keion White was surprised that the Patriots selected him with the No. 46 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft because he didn't have any predraft contact with the organization.

The New England Patriots have found their new offensive coordinator.As reported on Tuesday, the organization has hired Bill O'Brien to take over the unit - returning to a job he already held back in 2011.In light of his return, let's take a closer look at O'Brien and find out why the Patriots see him as a coach worth handing the keys to their offense.

10:39 AM ET


CloseEmily Kaplan is ESPN's national NHL reporter.The New York Rangers singed forward Jimmy Vesey to a two-year extension through the 2024-25 season.According to sources, the annual average value of the contract is $800,000, which the Rangers feel give them flexibility to shape their roster amongst uncertainty over next year's salary cap.

Celtics The guard completed his bachelor's degree in general studies this year, 27 years after he last played for the Huskies.It's not often that a college graduate walks across the stage to receive his diploma with his retired jersey hanging in the rafters above.Of course, it's not often that someone like Ray Allen comes along, either.

The Boston Celtics are eyeing a 2021 lottery pick who is on a team President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens has already established a trade rapport with - that being Indiana Pacers guard Chris Duarte.Duarte was the driving force behind Oregon's 2021 March Madness run to the Sweet 16, but he has yet to catch on at the professional level.

Analysts are already speculating which prospects teams could take during the 2024 NFL Daft, with the Washington Commanders linked to a generational playmaker.We are just a few short days removed from the 2023 NFL Draft.However, that hasn't stopped media outlets from speculating which prospects could land where when next year's selection process gets underway.

Several holidays have a sport that can act as something to watch or background noise as you spend time with family and friends.Baseball can be that for the Fourth of July.The NFL's Thanksgiving games are a decades-long tradition.The NBA always puts out a marquee schedule for Christmas day.For New Year's Day, college football has traditionally been the main sports offering.

Even though he had to wait until the third round to hear his name called in this year's NFL Draft, Marcus Jones entered the league with some enticing potential.Spending his college career at Troy and Houston, he developed into the most versatile player in the country.Listed as a defensive back, he registered a total of 11 touchdowns: he had nine scores in the return game - tying an NCAA record - as well as one pick-six and even a receiving TD.

Caleb Williams climbed a red ladder in the south end zone of the Rose Bowl, raising a sword in the air as the Trojan Marching Band serenaded the traveling Trojan faithful with USC 's ubiquitous fight song.This couldn't have been the way Dorian Thompson-Robinson imagined his career in the Rose Bowl would end.

MIAMI GARDENS - On Day 3 of the NFL draft, the Miami Dolphins finally selected a tight end - sort of - and an offensive tackle.The long wait for the Dolphins' first pick Saturday, which began with Round 4, finally concluded when the team took Stanford pass-catcher Elijah Higgins with their sixth-round selection, pick No. 197.

AVENTURA - All the Miami Dolphins running backs that were on the active roster last season are heading into free agency next month.Raheem Mostert, Jeff Wilson Jr., Myles Gaskin and Salvon Ahmed, who is a restricted free agent while the other three are unrestricted.Change, to some extent, is presumably coming to the Dolphins backfield.

AVENTURA - Yasir Abdullah, a South Florida native and Louisville linebacker who's a prospect in the upcoming NFL draft, has memories of growing up essentially in the shadows of Hard Rock Stadium, which the Miami Dolphins call home."When I was a kid, it was just crazy driving past it, like, 'I want to be there,'" Abdullah told the South Florida Sun Sentinel on Wednesday as he preps for the NFL scouting combine in two weeks.

Just four picks after their last selection in the 2023 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots were on the clock again.This time, they added to their cornerback group group: with the 214th overall pick in the sixth round, the team drafted Michigan State's Ameer Speed.Speed lives up to his name.Standing at 6-foot-3, 209 pounds, he ran a 4.33-second 40-yard dash at his Pro Day.

For the past two weeks, as the pieces finally started to fit for USC, Boogie Ellis had been the glue, a once-streaky point guard finally coming into his own as the engine of a suddenly soaring offense.But as those pieces began to come apart Thursday for USC, its senior point guard was left to hold them together by himself, firing one three-pointer after another, emptying his tank until only fumes remained and a fifth foul sent him to the bench for good.

His back still ached, the tightness building over the second half of a long season, down the homestretch of a long college career.Drew Peterson was not his usually limber self.That much was certain Saturday night.The senior's stiff back had slowed him Thursday and nearly sidelined him for USC 's regular-season finale.

Growing up in Southern California, Cameron Rising dreamed of winning the Rose Bowl game.Every year he'd sit down to watch his favorite bowl game and imagine what it might feel like to hoist that historic trophy."I just hope to find out what it feels like," the Utah quarterback said.The Ventura County native, who played at Newbury Park High School as a four-star recruit, recalled one of his earliest and favorite memories of watching " The Granddaddy of Them All."
" Vince Young running that touchdown in against USC - that's one moment that stuck out to me," Rising said.

UCLA fans watching the Pac-12 Conference championship football game Friday might be tempted to utter two appalling words: fight on.A USC victory over Utah at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas would enhance the Bruins ' chances of being selected for the Alamo Bowl, the best possible postseason outcome for a team that finished in a tie for fifth place in the Pac-12 alongside Oregon State.

The New England Patriots had some inside information about Christian Gonzalez entering the 2023 NFL Draft.Recently-hired offensive line coach Adrian Klemm and the young cornerback spent last season together at the University of Oregon.While they worked on different sides of the ball, Klemm still got a close look at Gonzalez's potential and big-play ability.

Will Levis is one of the biggest enigmas of the 2023 NFL Draft and we have a full scouting report and guide to the Kentucky quarterback.Kentucky quarterback Will Levis is one of the proverbial Big 4 at the position in the 2023 NFL Draft, but he's also a bit of an outlier in that group while simultaneously fitting in perfectly.

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper's recent mock draft pick for the Washington Commanders was lauded as a future All-Pro selection.Excitement is building ahead of the upcoming 2023 NFL Draft.While all the primary national focus centers on the top-four quarterbacks, the Washington Commanders are further down the pecking order with a few needs to fill in pursuit of a playoff return.

Dorian Thompson-Robinson had a secret plan to elevate his draft stock."I don't think anybody else knows this," he said with a sly smile.At UCLA's pro day, Thompson-Robinson wanted to perform drills that would showcase his potential to play positions other than quarterback."Just try and show a different look and add value to myself," he said.

When franchise icon Freddie Freeman left the Atlanta Braves in free agency following their 2021 World Series run, the team was left with more than just a new first baseman: they also got a compensation pick in the 2022 MLB draft.That pick turned into a product from Braves country in Auburn relief pitcher Blake Burkhalter.

It seems increasingly likely that the New England Patriots will not be making a splash move to acquire a veteran wide receiver via trade.Not only are there questions about the team's involvement with Arizona's DeAndre Hopkins, another potential target will apparently not be moved this offseason.According to Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton, the club will keep wideout Jerry Jeudy for 2023.

The Washington Capitals plan to sign goaltender Mitchell Gibson to an NHL contract, according to a report from The Athletic's Tarik El-Bashir.The Harvard University goaltender was previously selected by the Capitals in the fourth round, 124th overall, in the 2018 NHL draft.The #Caps intend to sign 2018 fourth round pick Mitchell Gibson, I'm told.

The New England Patriots have a new punter.As was announced by the club on Thursday, free agent Corliss Waitman has been signed to the roster.Waitman entered the open market earlier this week, after the Denver Broncos rescinded the exclusive-rights tender they had originally placed on him.This set the stage for the 27-year-old to return to a familiar setting: he already had spent one month on the Patriots' practice squad back in December 2021.

The Seattle Mariners are looking to continue to build off a successful 2022 season in which they finished 90-72 and made their first playoff appearance in 21 years.Unfortunately for the Mariners, they found themselves playing the Houston Astros in the ALDS, and were swept 3-0 by the eventual World Series winners.

Braves 2022 second-round pick, RHP Blake Burkhalter, is set to undergo Tommy John surgery, according to a report from Lindsay Crosby of SI.com.Burkhalter spent his college career at Auburn as a pure reliever where he made 2nd Team All-American in 2022 with a 3.69 ERA.Later that summer, the Braves made him their second round pick and the 76th overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft.

Patriots New England's defensive line coach also interviewed with Arizona.Patriots defensive line coach DeMarcus Covington has interviewed with the Los Angeles Chargers for their vacant defensive coordinator position, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Media.The Chargers haven't announced a hire for the position yet, but NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Monday that the team is expected to promote secondary coach Derrick Ainsley.

Before they saw each other as brothers, Boogie Ellis first asked Vince Rogers to be his trainer.Rogers kindly rejected him.Rogers only trained professionals, he told Ellis, and the future USC point guard was just a pre-teen, albeit a confident one.Yet Ellis, whose cousin played on a team Rogers coached, was determined.

Louis Orr, a star forward at Syracuse who in the 1980s played for the Knicks alongside Bernard King and Patrick Ewing, and who later became a college coach, including as Ewing's assistant at Georgetown, died on Thursday.He was 64.The cause was cancer, Orr's family said in a statement released by Georgetown.

It's no secret that the Patriots have some significant needs coming into the draft, and depending on who you ask, the order of importance will differ.But one that most can agree upon is the desperate need for competent offensive tackles.Despite the amount of blame thrown all around the team for the disaster that was the 2022 season, the offensive line was one of the roster's weakest points, leading to many of the struggles offensively.

While seemingly the entire NFL is in Indianapolis for the 2023 Scouting Combine, the New England Patriots are set to hold their own workout session.According to a report by ESPN's Mike Reiss, the team is scheduled to work out free agent wide receiver Slade Bolden.Bolden, 24, did not hear his name called in the 2022 NFL Draft.

The time period from 1982-94 was one of the worst stretches in Yankees' history - the team didn't make the playoffs once.Of course, back then, there weren't three Wild Card spots, so even some good Yankees teams in the '80s didn't crack October.But from 1989-92, the Yankees didn't finish above .500in any season, averaging just 72 victories a year and earning their non-playoff status each time.

The New England Patriots released backup offensive lineman Hayden Howerton on Friday, the team announced.Howerton, 24, originally joined the Patriots as a practice squad pickup in November.He did not see any game action for the team down the stretch, but was nonetheless signed to a reserve/futures pact after its season had come to an end.

Normally, we would have run this when he was acquired at the deadline, but it was a move that we weren't sure how long he would last.Would general manager Julien BriseBois send him down to Syracuse or possibly waive him and release him to create even more cap room at the deadline?Now that it looks like Michael Eyssimont is here to stay for the rest of this season (and possibly longer) let's take a look at the newest member of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The writing was on the wall, and on Thursday it finally happened: the New England Patriots and Bill O'Brien got together for an interview about their vacant offensive coordinator position.The two sides are, of course, familiar with one another given that O'Brien already filled that role back in 2011.

The New England Patriots' list of offensive coordinator candidates is growing.The third and latest addition is another familiar name: current Oregon assistant coach and former New England draft pick Adrian Klemm will interview with the team, according to a report by ESPN's Mike Reiss.Klemm, 45, is no stranger to the Patriots organization.

The New England Patriots are taking a look at some potential options at the punter position.Per the NFL transactions wire, the team had Cody Grace and Ben Griffiths in for free agency workouts on Wednesday.Grace, 26, spent his college career at Arkansas State before getting drafted seventh overall by the Calgary Stampeders in the 2021 Canadian Football League Global Draft.

Your favorite NFL team's next star player might be playing for a national title on Monday night, as the Georgia Bulldogs take on the TCU Horned Frogs at SoFi Stadium.It is no surprise that the defending national champions are back in the title bout.Georgia has recruited at a phenomenally high level ever since Kirby Smart took over at his alma mater.

Christian Koloko's first NBA 3-pointer couldn't have come at a better time for the Toronto Raptors.The rookie center hit a corner three with a little under two minutes to put the Raptors up by six, helping secure a much-needed home win against the Phoenix Suns on Friday.Koloko, who helped limit Deandre Ayton on Friday night, was previously 0-7 from three this season, and he was not a factor from deep during his college career at Arizona.

The Detroit Red Wings yesterday made two trades and acquired center depth.The deal involved three teams swapping three players.The Red Wings kicked this deal off by sending forward Givani Smith to the Florida Panthers for defenseman Micahel Del Zotto.Detroit then traded Del Zotto to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for center Danny O'Regan.

Patriots "I mean, from his college career, what did there, to last year to this year, just has a knack for winning, making big plays."There aren't many coaches that know Mac Jones better than Josh McDaniels.Of course, the Raiders coach was Jones's offensive coordinator with the Patriots during the quarterback's rookie season.

Amari Bailey could hear the insults coming from the opposing bench.UCLA's freshman guard was called a nonshooter.The defense he saw reflected those words, players sagging off to give him extra room to shoot while guarding against drives toward the basket.Pepperdine's game plan was not without some merit.