2018 UDFA prospects

[long distance]

Giving the success of NE UDFA hunting and UDFA players on Pats team maybe we could have a separate thread for guys that NE could bring in after Draft is over. This thread should be mostly for guys that are nowhere near top 250 projections . not so much for the ones we hope could fall..

It was a great UDFA class here last year and while this year the number will be considerably thinner (more draft picks presumably, lots of injured players returning) there will definitely be place for a couple of new “butlers“..

Before kickoff a quick reminder of NE 2017 UDFA class:

DL Adam Butler -- NE 53; played all 18 games
TE Jacob Hollister -- NE 53; played most games as core ST, 3rd TE
OL Cole Croston -- NE 53; mostly inactive backup
LB Harvey Langi -- NE 53; core ST, LB,edge backup

FS David Jones -- NE PS; all year on practice squad, multiple PS player of the week
SS Damarius Travis -- NE PS; all year on practice squad, multiple PS player of the week
WR Cody Hollister -- NE PS; all year on practice squad, multiple PS player of the week
OG Jason King -- NE PS; on and off practice squad, finishing the season on

OL Andrew Jelks -- NE NFI; all year on NFI injury list
DE Keionta Davis -- NE NFI; all year on NFI injury list

So there are 10! UDFAs from last year currently on Patriots team . very likely starting the 2018 season on Pats as well and most of them probably entering 2018 TC!

4 other guys that were serious candidates for NE PS found other homes:

CB Kenny Moore -- IND 53; played all 16 games, first as core ST, later as starting CB
WR Austin Carr -- NO 53; active for 1 game
RB LeShun Daniels -- WAS 53 (first PS, now IR)
LB Brooks Ellis -- JAX PS - signed to future contract

further 3 were waived with injury settlement
CB D.J. Killings -- PHI PS
DT Josh Augusta -- KC PS; signed future contract
DE Corey Vereen -- free agent

So 16 of 2017 Pats UDFAs are still in the league (7 making 53 rosters) and only 6 didn't manage to stick around - Dwayne Thomas (a short stint on JAX PS), Jason Thompson (a short stint on SEA PS), Sam Cotton, Max Rich, Will Likely.

That must be some sort of a record!
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Intriguing UDFA class coming again this yr IMO and though the spots for TC might not be plenty it should be fun again following the underdog stories..
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Here a link to the thread of this amazing 2017 UDFA class . all info in OP:
NE 2017 Draft haul + udfa

 

[long distance]

Lets start with this little bullet: Trenton Cannon

After success in double dipping on Butlers and Flowers why not Cannon this time . small school, low competition but someone will give this boy at least a tryout. If Lewis will go elsewhere, why not try here..

 

[Ochmed Jones]

There is a safety for Oklahoma that I think is draft eligible this year named flowers. Bb can go for a flowers trifecta.

Number 3 for Syracuse is an UDFA type that bb needs to look at for this year’s class. He could force his way into our roster.

 

[sircole]

QB Chris Streveler

Chris Streveler | South Dakota, QB : 2018 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile

ckparrothead from the Dolphins message board Finheaven did a great profile on him.

• Big, strong guy with excellent frame and musculature despite only being 6'2" tall.
• Fast, quick feet, good ball carrying skills. His feet are a weapon the defense must account for.
• Has played wide receiver, tight end, full back, running back. Have to be smart to move all around like that.
• Good communication skills. Widely regarded by teammates to be the leader. Has TWO Master's degrees.
• Easily the fastest release I've seen in the 2018 draft. His release is so quick, it's a major weapon.
• Great natural arm strength that can get even better if he keeps working on consistency in footwork.
• Very accurate with the football. Throws players open. Makes decisions about ball trajectory and touch.
• Doesn't over-rely on one receiving weapon; efficient chemistry with a dozen different players.
• An intangible physicality; absolutely not intimidated by bodies cluttering the pocket. This is a big deal.
• Regularly gets through to his third option, can get from one side of the field to the other with timing and accuracy.
• Keeps his eyes up while scrambling and can flick the ball on a hair trigger to the open player.
• Ran a blazing fast no-huddle, much like Jimmy Garoppolo did at Eastern Illinois. Requires fast information processing.
• Took a team that hadn't won more than 6 games in a decade, won 8 games, beat an FBS team, won a playoff game.
• Tough. Played with an injured throwing hand for much of 2017. Had to start throwing with a glove.
• Throwing Stats: 316 of 481 (66%) for 4,134 yards (8.6 YPA), 31 TDs (6.4%), 8 INTs (1.7%).
• Rushing Stats: 168 runs, +870 positive gains, -150 negative gains (sack yardage), 11 TDs.

If I had to really boil it down to what is so attractive with Chris Streveler, it is that he has a lot of intangibles in terms of physicality inside the pocket, leadership, intelligence, and yet he also has tangible qualities in terms of his strength, feet, ball carrying skills, arm strength, and especially that hair trigger release.

With Streveler playing at a perennial loser in the FCS, turning them into a winner, he's not about to be intimidated by the FCS Championship Game runner-up (beating Bo Pellini's Youngstown State), nor by an FBS team (beating Bowling Green). He's going to carry that offense on his back, representing about 71% of the offense's yardage and 66% of its touchdowns. And if he goes down to a better team in the FCS playoffs, he's going to go down swinging, scoring 42 points of offense, accounting for 571 yards and 6 TDs on his own.

If he doesn't have the time in the pocket to operate the offense, then he doesn't have the time in the pocket to operate the offense. There's not much to be done about that. Streveler's offensive line was NOT good. But he's not going to be overwhelmed, regardless. He's going to stand in there, make passes with guys in his face, take hits and pop back up, and even do some things with his feet to buy time and get a pass off. That snap trigger of Streveler's is a real weapon, yet his mechanics are not standard issue. That makes me compare him to a Phil Rivers.

I really think you can do worse than a guy who is a physical specimen, has intangible qualities, the quickest release in the draft, and is intelligent enough to have accumulated two master's degrees by the time he was done with school. Even in the FCS.

Slimm's 2018 Quarterbacks (Seniors)

He transferred from Minnesota and produce big stats in FCS. He really improved from his junior to senior year in South Dakota's offense and took the Coyotes to their first FCS playoff appearance.

Somewhere during the middle of South Dakota's season, he had a hand injury and started wearing gloves, but it didn't seem to slow him down too much.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

One quick point: most UDFA rookies who end up on IR/NFI before making the 53 get cut before TC.

 

[long distance]

There is a safety for Oklahoma that I think is draft eligible this year named flowers. Bb can go for a flowers trifecta.

Number 3 for Syracuse is an UDFA type that bb needs to look at for this year’s class. He could force his way into our roster.

Can you give us a name and what you saw in him for Pats? Thanks.

 

[long distance]

QB Chris Streveler

Chris Streveler | South Dakota, QB : 2018 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile

ckparrothead from the Dolphins message board Finheaven did a great profile on him.





Slimm's 2018 Quarterbacks (Seniors)

He transferred from Minnesota and produce big stats in FCS. He really improved from his junior to senior year in South Dakota's offense and took the Coyotes to their first FCS playoff appearance.

Somewhere during the middle of South Dakota's season, he had a hand injury and started wearing gloves, but it didn't seem to slow him down too much.

nice find . great post

he certainly qualifies with his “glove“ experience

if nothing else seems like a perfect QB you'd want to have on your practice squad:
accurate, poised in pocket, versatile, durable, dual threat..

 

[WaterfallJumper]

Can you give us a name and what you saw in him for Pats? Thanks.

Tre Flowers. Oklahoma State. I haven't finished my eval, but he could be in the mix based on what I've seen so far. Not sure he's ever going to be a starter, though. Late reads and doesn't seem to have a lot of speed.

 

[patsfaninpa]

Mine is DT Tyrell Chavis. Listed at 6'3" 308. Looks bigger now. He went to PSU as a Juco after 2 years. PSU doesn't take a lot of jucos. He sat behind 2 5th year seniors. A little politics there. Those kids came to PSU under sanctions and I think the coaches felt an obligation to them. Cothran and Cothren. By the end of the year, he was playing just as much as them. Chavis appears to have a NFL body. In addition to
developing into a good player. He also graduated. Shows me that he's willing to
put work into something that's not easy for a JUCO kid at PSU. Needs a lot of work. But, wonder what he'd look like after a year on our practice squad and a pro
training regimen.



I mention Chavis along with Jalyn Holmes - DE - Ohio St a couple of weeks ago. Holmes played in Senior Bowl and got some good reviews. He'll get drafted now. He played behind Hubbard and Tyquan Lewis. Highly recruited kid. They moved him inside in their NASCAR package to get after the qb. I think he's going to make it in the NFL. Has that long, NFL body teams like in their 4-3 de's. He checked in at 6'4 3/4" 279 at the Senior Bowl. Hands 10 Arm 34 3/4 Wingspan 82 7/8.

 

[long distance]

Among WR long shots to hear their name on any Draft day . here is an interesting Pat type player: Dylan Cantrell.

Doesn't put up big numbers and nevertheless he is intriguing prospect for a team like the Patriots: he is big, tough, dependable, very consistent, experienced, team first player who is also a leader. As a player he catches basically everything thrown at him (was even among leaders in PFF rec. ratings in the beginning of the season), he is a monster blocker and a good red zone target, above all he projects to be a core ST player in NFL. With Slater on his last NFL legs certainly something to consider (although I like Cody Hollister as a gunner and backup WR going forward) . but Cantrell can fill different positions @ST - he also has LB experience.

Here a nice article on him:
2017 Tech football rankings: No. 8 Dylan Cantrell

quotes:

Perhaps his most selfless act this season was to switch positions part-way through the year. After Derrick Willies went into the witness protection program (I assume this is what happened because we never saw him again), Cantrell flipped sides of the field so that redshirt freshman TJ Vasher didn't have to learn a new position. This position has historically resulted in fewer targets since it is on the left side of the quarterback and I suspect it did impact Cantrell’s production.

One thing you could always count on, is for Cantrell to show up. Whether it was competing for a jump ball, blocking downfield, or running the right route.

Cantrell should get a look with the NFL, either as a late-round draft pick or as an undrafted free agent. I could see him getting into camp with a team and making the decision to cut him very difficult because of his ability to play special teams. I could see a role like the one Bradley Marquez has carved out with the Rams and Lions for Cantrell.
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[long distance]

Matt Oplinger reminded me of Langi. Same measurables. Plays edge, LB has laso FB experience and looks like a monster STer..

 

[long distance]

While my boy Lauletta rocketed himself far away from UDFA range this winter and Shimonek most probably as well . here's a nice nugget from Reiss on a QB Pats might bring after Draft -- Chad Kanoff:

(NOTE that QBs listed here I see as “double-dip“ options . Id be very surprised if Pats don't draft a QB this year . I wouldn't be surprised at all if they bring another one after Draft where some of the more familiar name could fall as well..)


The Patriots have had notable success drafting quarterbacks who are represented by agent Don Yee -- first with Tom Brady (2000, sixth round) and then with Jimmy Garoppolo (2014, second round) -- which provides a springboard to relay this fun, draft-related note: Perhaps we should be keeping a closer eye on 6-foot-4, 219-pound Princeton quarterback Chad Kanoff. A non-combine invitee known for his accuracy and for setting Princeton’s all-time passing record, Kanoff participated in the College Gridiron Showcase all-star week and is projected as a later-round draftee or priority free agent. He had turned down a scholarship to Vanderbilt (when James Franklin was coach) to play in the Ivy League, and on Friday, he performed in front of 15 scouts (from 12 NFL teams) at Princeton’s pro day. The Patriots were represented by scout D.J. Debick. One specific trait that will likely be noted by all teams: Kanoff’s hand size measured 10¼ inches, which is above average and sparks thoughts of what Scott Pioli once said about the importance of hand size for quarterbacks playing in New England, where inclement weather is often a factor.

 

[Ochmed Jones]

Wr Renfro from Clemson. The next welder Clone?

 

[JerseyShore99]

Wr Renfro from Clemson. The next welder Clone?

Him or Braxton Berrios from Miami...get one or both to NE

 

[manxman2601]

Wr Renfro from Clemson. The next welder Clone?

If it’s a clone of this welder, I’m down with that.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

Cantrell should get a look with the NFL, either as a late-round draft pick or as an undrafted free agent. I could see him getting into camp with a team and making the decision to cut him very difficult because of his ability to play special teams. I could see a role like the one Bradley Marquez has carved out with the Rams and Lions for Cantrell.
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Given how much the Pats love quick receivers from Texas Tech (Welker, Amendola), how about, you know, drafting one, rather than waiting for FA?

 

[ctpatsfan77]

Kanoff’s hand size measured 10¼ inches, which is above average and sparks thoughts of what Scott Pioli once said about the importance of hand size for quarterbacks playing in New England, where inclement weather is often a factor.

As a reminder, Garoppolo had 9¼" hands.

 

[long distance]

Chris Seisay. Since it was recently reported Pats met with this kid at Portland State Pro Day . i found this little film on him and thought id add it here. Nothing to shout about but a few nice PBUs in highlights here.



This is a larger sample from DE Dade's tape of the same game. Not impressed by attitude, focus. Bites too much etc.




He had a good PD though, good size-speed-quickness. I wish it would transfer better on the field . but this is a real small sample.. He is versatile, played WR upon transfer from Oregon f.e., listed also as FS option - and you can certainly see FS mindset on the field which is not always the best way to play outside corner..
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Oregon transfer Chris Seisay, a Week 1 riser, showed next-level skills since his freshman season with the Ducks while junior college transfer Donovan Olumba came out of nowhere this year and started to gain traction last October.

At pro day, Seisay measured 6012 and 197 pounds, timed a better-than-expected 4.51 in the 40, 6.63 in the three-cone and 4.10 in the short shuttle. He touched 38 inches on the vertical jump and 10-foot-2 on the broad jump.

 

[JerseyShore99]

2018 ALL Day 3/UDFA Team:
QB: Kurt Benkert, UVA
RB: Bo Scarborough, 'Bama; Shaun Wilson, Duke, Chase Edmonds, Fordham
WR: Braxton Berrios, Miami; Dylan Cantrell, TT; Ka'Raun White, WVU; Kieth Kirkwood, Temple
TE: Jordan Akins, UCF
OL: Evan Lisle, Duke; Orlando Brown, Oklahoma; Ricky Leonard, FSU; Mason Cole, Michigan; Bradley Bozeman, 'Bama
DL: Andrew Trumbetti, ND;
LB: Shaq Griffin, UCF; David Bellamy, UGA
CB: Avonte Maddox, PITT
S: Dominick Sanders, UGA; Tray Matthews, Auburn

P: JK Scott

 

[sircole]

Two picks I'm hoping we're considering on Day 3/UDFA are CB Chandon Sullivan and RB Larry Rose III.

I'm biased towards Chandon, but he would be a solid pick for us.

-Excellent skills in locating the ball once in the air and making a play on it in coverage.
-A very smart cornerback who is quick at learning new schemes and adjusting his techniques as he did:

-When GSU went from a man-based coverage scheme for his first three years to the mainly zone-based one he played in last year.
-From his initial slow start, while adjusting to the talent level, at the beginning of Senior Bowl week, to being one of the best CBs in the last practices and game.
-
-Good physical tools.

- He ran a 4.6 at the combine (with a bad hamstring) and 4.48s to 4.51s on his Pro Day today
- He had the highest DB vertical jump during the combine at 41.5" and only behind DB Denzel Ward in the broad jump measured at 11'2".

Pro Day March 17: Chandon Sullivan, CB/Georgia State | Draft Analyst

He a willing tackler who needs to wrap up better instead of sometimes tackling with his shoulder and remember not to give up too much space with smaller, speedy receivers.

College Highlights: Chandon Sullivan, CB, Georgia State


Larry Rose III is being criminally underrated by many scouts. He's been the best RB in the Sun Belt his entire 4 years in college and would make an excellent change of pace of back in the NFL.
He has a WR build and uses it to his advantage when getting skinny through the hole. He carried the ball 240 times during his sophomore campaign for 1651 yds. His rushing production dipped slightly the past 2 years from a back injury during his junior season to sharing the load with sophomore RB Jason Huntley this past year but he added 522 receiving yards.

Larry Rose III