A full slate of preseason games is coming up next week. The rookies have had a chance to impress in camp. Who is doing what?
Arizona Cardinals
Kyler Murray is the starting quarterback. That isn’t surprising as Kliff Kingsbury and the Cardinals went all in on the Heisman winner, making him the No. 1 overall pick. Second-rounder Byron Murphy is listed behind Patrick Peterson, which means he will see action early as the All-Pro DB is is suspended. No shame in Andy Isabella being behind future HOFer Larry Fitzgerald on the depth chart. One interesting battle to watch is sixth-round pick KeeSean Johnson and fourth-rounder Hakeem Butler from Iowa State. The Fresno State WR currently has the edge over the higher selection.
Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons look to improve their offensive line and guard Chris Lindstrom is making a solid impression early in camp. He’s listed as the starter at right guard. Matt Ryan has to hope the rookie is up to protecting him. A second, first-round pick is currently behind Ty Sambrallo at right tackle. Fifth-rounder Qadree Ollison is buried in fifth on the RB chart. He rushed twice for six yards and caught a pass for three in the HOF game.
Baltimore Ravens
Marquise Brown wowed ’em in his first practice. The Oklahoma star with the brilliant speed was running 21 mph, according to Marlon Humphrey. Brown isn’t listed as a starter yet as he is just back from a foot injury, but that appears to be a matter of time. Third-rounder Jaylon Ferguson has spent time on the Non-Football Injury list. Another WR to keep an eye on is Notre Dame’s Miles Boykin. “All Miles wants to do is grow and learn,” Willie IV told BaltimoreRavens.com. “I keep telling him every day, I’m like, ‘Dude, you look like Michael Thomas.’ I remember when Michael Thomas came to New Orleans, he was built the same, had the same mentality, just trying to get better every day. That’s his goal right now, to learn as a rookie, to grow as a rookie, and make plays when they come. He’s getting better every day.”
Buffalo Bills
Ed Oliver, the first-rounder out of Houston is making an impression on the defensive line. He has been impressive since the pads were donned and said that is what makes him rev. Second-rounder Cody Ford is taking reps with the first team at right tackle. Despite the presence of Frank Gore and LeSean McCoy, third-rounder Devin Singletary has impressed, also getting some first-team reps.
Carolina Panthers
First-rounder Brian Burns from Florida State received some high praise from a player who understands what it takes to be a stud defensive lineman. “He’s a mix of Noah Spence and Aldon Smith,” Gerald McCoy said to Panthers.com. “Long arms like Aldon, tall. He’s got that long arm power. But when I say he plays like Spence, he can bend. He can turn the corner with his knee dragging on the grass. For him to be that size and dip and turn the corner like that. That’s scary.”
Chicago Bears
The Bears’ draft was impacted — in a stellar way — by their acquisition of Khalil Mack. They picked first in the third round and grabbed RB David Montgomery, who will be counted on to fill the void left by the exit of Jordan Howard to the Eagles. The Chicago Tribune said Montgomery made a strong impression Friday at practice: “When you finish with a forward lean in the 4-minute situation (protecting a late lead) and a bunch of the O-linemen were finishing over the top of him, I love to see that,” offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich said. “Guys are excited when you break a tackle and finish the drill and end the … simulated game that we were trying to make happen there. It was successful. That’s just (more) juice in his confidence bank.” One downer has been Riley Ridley, the Georgia WR and fourth-round pick, who has been bothered by a hamstring.
Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals’ draft suffered early when first-round pick Jonah Williams needed surgery to repair a torn labrum during OTAs and was considered likely out for the season. There is hope for his return but the left tackle’s ability to play this year is a long shot. Fourth-round pick Ryan Finley and undrafted free agent Jake Dolegala are battling for the third QB spot behind Andy Dalton and Jeff Driskel.
Clevleand Browns
Greedy Williams has made a strong impression at camp. The first pick — actually the second-rounder — is getting first-team reps and has caught they eye of defensive coordinator Steve Wilks: “I think he’s doing a great job,” the former Arizona Cardinals coach said. “He’s learning, he’s growing. He needs to learn how to be consistent every day in how he practices, but I’m excited about what he’s doing and where he’s going.” On the down side, fifth-round pick Austin Seibert, a kicker from Oklahoma, has struggled.
Dallas Cowboys
Defensive tackle Trysten Hill, the Cowboys’ first pick also in the second round, had a rough start to camp, cramping up and needing an IV before the end of the first practice. However, Rod Marinelli says Hill has shown a lot since and no longer is the “caboose.” One rookie who is taking advantage of an opportunity is RB Tony Pollard, a fourth-round selection out of Memphis. Pollard has been getting first-team reps as Ezikiel Elliott continues to hold out.
Denver Broncos
The Broncos got a game-winning TD pass from a rookie QB in the Hall of Fame Game. It wasn’t Drew Lock, who made the throw. Lock, who is listed as third-team, did not make a stellar mark. Per NFL.com: The Mizzou product overthrew receivers on two of his first three tosses and lacked anticipation in the pocket on two sacks on his second drive. … Of Lock’s seven drives, five ended in a punt, including three three-and-outs, one concluded in a fumble and one ended on downs. “I was hoping for more, but not surprised,” Broncos coach Vic Fangio said of Lock after the game. “He’s still got a lot of work to do.” Undrafted free agent Brett Rypien made the game-winning TD throw.
Detroit Lions
T.J. Hockenson is doing a solid all-around job at tight end. The rookie from Iowa, who was taken in the first round, has shown his speed, route running ability, strength, and blocking skills. Exactly what Matthew Stafford needs.
Green Bay Packers
Rashan Gary, the Pack’s No. 1 pick out of Michigan, didn’t have to step on the field to draw a “Wow.” The defender checked in at 277 pounds and 10 percent body fat. When he finally got on the field, coach Matt LaFleur has enjoyed what he has seen. “He’s done a lot of nice things. The one thing I really like that he’s shown is just the effort that he plays with,” LaFleur said. “The way we define that is you see a change of speed, a burst then to max speed, and then the finish. He’s had some good clips to show to the team.”
Houston Texans
First-round pick Tytus Howard had a bit of a sputtering start. “Just a little bit of a day off,” Bill O’Brien told reporters of the Alabama State OL’s day off Thursday. “A little banged up, nothing serious.” The Texans took Howard as a tackle but have been testing him early at guard. Second-round pick Lonnie Johnson also has been bitten by the injury bug. He left practice last Sunday with an ice pack on his leg.
Indianapolis Colts
A fifth-round pick has drawn accolades in Indy. “Coming from a small school, our scouting department did a great job of looking at their measurables and those things were certainly high with him,” defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus said of Tarleton State’s E.J. Speed (pictured). “He’s jumping off the tape right now in terms of just hitting, speed and those things.” Also doing well is second-rounder Rock Ya-Sin out of Temple: “I think Rock is doing outstanding,” Eberflus said. “I think when you have techniques that you’ve learned in college and played for a few years, you’re always going to adjust that to the pro game or whatever system you’re going into. It could’ve been vice-versa. If he was playing a lot of zone and all of a sudden now he has to play man. We play all the coverages so he’s going to have to learn all the techniques.”
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jaguars think they have a great one in first-rounder Josh Allen. ″You are starting to see athleticism,” coach Doug Marrone told Jacksonville.com. “You are talking about a guy who is big – 271 [pounds]. He’s strong. You see power moves. You see speed, and now you start to get excited. We’re excited about where he is.″ Veteran defensive end Calais Campbell added Allen is a special talent who can help win games. ″He’s very physically blessed, that’s for sure,″ Campbell said. ″He’s a hard worker. He wants to learn. He seeks a lot of knowledge. Those are good things you want to see from a rookie.″
Kansas City Chiefs
Mecole Hardman left practice Friday due to illness. That has done nothing to take away from the mark he has left on the Chiefs. Hardman is currently listed as the third receiver for KC. Nothing to worry about with Tyreek Hill and Sammy Watkins ahead of him. He has shown good speed and made some nice catches. One concern scouts had was he dropped passes in college but thus far in camp he has shown well.
Los Angeles Chargers
Too soon to judge anything about Jerry Tillery. He has yet to go through a full practice. He has been cleared after shoulder surgery but the team is looking to work him in slowly.
Los Angeles Rams
The Rams were in no rush to dip into the draft pool. They eventually selected Washington’s Taylor Rapp after trading back three times. “I think just day after day, he’s going to continue to carve out a role for himself,” Sean McVay said regarding the rookie safety. ” He’s a guy that had a great college career, did a lot of good things through the offseason program, and I think once we get some more work and some more practices, we’ll have a better feel for where he’s at.” The Rams are deep at safety with Eric Weddle and John Johnson back there.
Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins were one of the many team to pick a Clemson player, grabbing defensive lineman Christian Wilkins at the 13th slot. “He’s not making any rookie mistakes,” defensive end Tank Carradine told the Miami Herald. “When we’re in third down, he’s doing all of the play calling such as like we’ve got to stunt or something. He’s definitely ready.” And Wilkins may not be limited to defense. It’s great to have Christian,” offensive coordinator Chad O’Shea told the Palm Beach Post late in the week. “We worked with him on the offense today, but certainly all players will have an opportunity to create their role based on what they can do, and the more you can do here, the more you’re going to help the team.”
A couple of rookie linemen are making a case for time, too. Michael Deiter, a third-round pick, has been with the first team at left guard all four days since Dave DeGuglielmo replaced Pat Flaherty as offensive line coach. Shaq Calhoun, an undrafted rookie, has been with the first team the past two days, the Miami Herald reported Friday.
Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota No. 1 pick Garrett Bradbury has an interesting mentor. Bradbury has moved the starting center Pat Elflein to left guard and it has gone smoothly. “I can’t say enough good things about him,” Bradbury said. “He’s obviously played the position and understands offensive line play. He was a rookie two years ago, so he kind of can mentor me in things that helped him.” Elflein: “(Bradbury) is a smart cat, so he’s picking up the new offense very well. He knows there’s going to be curve balls thrown at him over the course of a game, and even in practice going up against our defense. Sometimes he’s caught off guard and he’s been doing a good job when that happens. He’s adjusting really well.”
There has also been good news on second-round pick, TE Irv Smith Jr., “He’s come in and done everything right,” Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins said Wednesday. “He’s worked hard, he’s shown that he can roll. He’s got great movement skills and he’ll do whatever is asked of him. He’s a great teammate, and I think he is who we hoped he would be as a player and as a person. That’s really all you can ask for. Then it becomes just a day-to-day grind of teaching him the offense.”
New England Patriots
First-round WR N’Keal Harry has had his ups-and-downs. Wednesday was not a good day, but he rebounded with a strong effort in the next practice. WEEI reported: He made a pretty diving grab in 11-on-11 work and then hauled in a 50-yard pass from Brian Hoyer when he beat Joejuan Williams up the sideline. Harry got up and celebrated, which had to have been a good feeling after all the frustrations with dropping passes. Third-round pick Chase Winovich’s Michigan connection with Tom Brady is paying off in some extra responsibility: “I’ve been getting work in after practice every single day. I just happened to be there,” Winovich said Thursday after practice. “We already had kind of a relationship (being from the University of Michigan). There’s a lot of veterans out here, getting extra work in. I figured it was a good opportunity to get to know (Brady) a little better, help the team out any way I can.”
New Orleans Saints
Erik McCoy was drafted in the second round out of Texas A&M. The center is in a three-way battle for the starting spot. McCoy worked out with the first unit in 11-on-11 drills, according to NOLA.com’s Herbie Teope. It was the third consecutive day for McCoy to work with the first team and the fourth day in seven Saints practices.
New York Giants
No one has to be reminded the Giants drafted Daniel Jones out of Duke in the first round. Every move he makes is going to be under a microscope. “It was outstanding,” Pat Shurmur said Saturday. “He’s made excellent throws in every practice, and that was evidence to me that he has the arm to play in this league. We sort of knew that before we picked him.” Only time will tell how it pans out. He isn’t going to start — yet — with Eli Manning in front of him.
The second first rounder is Dexter Lawrence, another Clemson product. This is high praise from center Jon Halapio: “Of guys I’ve faced, Dex reminds me of [Eagles star] Fletcher Cox – big, strong, can do a lot of things in the pass rush, and you can’t try to block him the same way two plays in a row. Honestly, I’m excited to watch him do some things against somebody else.”
Shurmur also thinks the third first-rounder, Deandre Baker, is making steady progress.
New York Jets
The Jets drafted Quinnen Williams out of Alabama. He’s gonna need to work on his game off the field as evidenced by a rookie slip on Saturday. “My rating? I have an 80 on Ultimate Team,” Williams said when asked about Madden. “So I’m going to go play with myself today.” Despite a couple day delay in starting due to a “holdout,” coach Adam Gase likes what he sees: “He showed up,” head coach Adam Gase said. “He was showing up in the backfield where you could see who made the play, which is great to see. He looks like he’s moving well, he’s understanding what we’re doing and he’s playing faster.”
Oakland Raiders
Like the Giants, the Raiders had a trio of first-round picks. The first was Clelin Farrell, another Clemson D-lineman. Ferrell has impressed Derek Carr: “The guy I just love, man, is Ferrell, My goodness man. That guy works his absolute butt off. We don’t know if he can play football yet, right? We all believe he can, but we don’t know. But if you sit there and you talk to him and you watch him, if it doesn’t work out for him, it won’t be because he didn’t try or he didn’t care. That won’t be the reason. And you can win with that.” The middle pick, Josh Jacobs, has the inside track on the starting job. The third pick, Johnathan Abram, a DB, is impressing, too. He has the talent and drive to be a long-term solution at safety.
Philadelphia Eagles
First-round pick Andre Dillard from Washington State has gotten some first-team reps. He won’t displace the great Jason Peters, but he is showing plenty to make people believe he will be ready when called or needed. Miles Sanders from Penn State was the second-round pick. He has wowed in camp. Sanders is getting reps with the first team..
Pittsburgh Steelers
Hard to make judgment off one play but Devin Bush scored major points by crushing Kentucky RB Benny Snell. Check this out:
San Francisco 49ers
Nick Bosa is making people take notice. The Ohio State star has shown the power and talent that made him the second overall pick. In fact, veteran offensive lineman Joe Staley sought out Bosa to compliment him after a practice.
Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks got bad news when first-rounder L.J. Collier suffered a sprained ankle. “He’s got a badly sprained ankle, and it’s going to be a little bit,” Pete Carroll said Thursday. “It’s unfortunate. It was really an awkward position that he got tangled up in. We’ll have to take some time to figure it out, it’s going to be some weeks though.”
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Bucs are counting on big things from LSU’s Devin White, who takes over the leadership role from Gerald McCoy, who is off to Carolina. Ed Orgeron, has compared him favorably to a couple of other linebackers Orgeron observed up close during a long coaching career, Ray Lewis and Patrick Willis. ”I think that was a big part of the evaluation process. How mature he was and the accolades from coaches that we really trust that were around him every day, and you hear Ed now talk about how they can’t replace him,” new coach Bruce Arians said. ”So, the sky’ the limit. Let’s let him fail before we pull him back. See what he can’t do. Right now, he can do everything. So until he says: ‘Whoa, I can’t learn all this stuff or I can’t do that.’ I don’t think that’s ever coming out of his mouth, though, knowing him.”
Tennessee Titans
The Titans won’t be getting much from Jeffery Simmons for a while as he continues to rehab from an ACL. On the injury front, second-round pick A.J. Brown has also missed time due to injury.
Washington Redskins
Jay Gruden says first-rounder Dwayne Haskins is learning to actually call plays. “It’s the presentation of plays, No. 1,” Gruden told USA TODAY Sports following Thursday’s practice. “Calling the play in the huddle, getting to the line, snap count. He’s getting to be more authoritative in the huddle. He’s starting to handle it a little bit better. “Ohio State, they never called plays and they just clapped for the snap count,” Gruden added with a chuckle. “There’s a lot of things to work on but he’s getting more comfortable. It’s just time out there and reps.” For the time being, Haskins is behind Colt McCoy and Case Keenum. Will be fascinating to see how long that lasts and how fast he progresses.
