Seven players opened the day eligible for the NFL Supplemental Draft, but only one was selected; Clemson offensive tackle Isaiah Battle. The St. Louis Rams added Battle to one of the youngest offensive lines int he NFL, selecting the tackle in the fifth round.
Isaiah Battle Selected in the NFL Supplemental Draft.
STORY: http://t.co/lVnKJcc8VN pic.twitter.com/kC7bvLHjyu
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) July 9, 2015
Because of that selection, the Rams will forfeit their fifth-round pick in 2016.
Battle is the fifth offensive lineman the Rams drafted this offseason. St. Louis drafted tackle Rob Havenstein out of Wisconsin in round two, offensive tackle Jamon Brown from Louisville in Round four, offensive tackle Andrew Donnal from Iowa in round four and guard Cody Wichmann from Fresno State in round six.
Rams GM Les Snead pulled over driving son Logan to Manning Passing Academy to exercise picking OT Isaiah Battle 5th rnd supplemental draft
— Ed Werder (@WerderEdESPN) July 9, 2015
The Rams also signed South Florida offensive lineman Darrell Williams as an undrafted free agent.
Of the Rams projected starters on the line, only left guard Roger Saffold has significant starting experience. Last year’s No. 2 pick, offensive tackle Greg Robinson, is the starting left tackle and Saffold is the left guard. Every other position is open for competition.
Rams approach with Isaiah Battle. This is his final college year, spends with Rams, goes through offseason, then starts rookie year in 2016.
— Ed Werder (@WerderEdESPN) July 9, 2015
At center, fourth-year Tim Barnes is battling with third-year Barrett Jones and second-year Demetrius Rhaney. Barnes was an undrafted free agent four years ago. Jones was a fourth round pick in 2013, but is just now completely healthy and, for the fans at least, the favorite to win the job. Rhaney was the Rams’ seventh round pick in 2014 and got national attention after being selected immediately after defensive end Michael Sam. The Rams cut Sam after training camp after he was beaten out by undrafted rookie Ethan Westbrooks.
Brown and Havenstein have been working with the Rams’ first unit during OTAs, with Brown playing right guard. Battle will immediately impact Havenstein’s prospects at right tackle. At Clemson, Battle did not give up a sack in 12 consecutive regular season games.
Six Players not selected in supplemental draft, will immediately become free agents
While Thursday was a good day for Battle, it wasn’t as fun for the other six players eligible for the supplemental draft.
NCAA Division II West Georgia had two players in the draft, outside linebacker/defensive end Darrius Caldwell and defensive tackle Dalvon Stuckey. Houston was represented by defensive end Eric Eiland, UConn sent tight end Sean McQuillan, Kansas sent cornerback Kevin Short and North Carolina Central sent wide receiver Adrian Wilkins.
There’s a good chance all six could end up signed as undrafted free agents, with Caldwell and Stuckey almost guaranteed a camp invite from somebody. Caldwell signed with Illinois out of high school, but couldn’t get his grades where they needed to be and dropped down to DII. He’s 6-foot-5, 238 pounds and recorded 12 sacks and 18.5 tackles for a loss last season. Stuckey is also blessed with NFL size at 6-foot-3, 300 pounds. Last year with West Georgia he had 40 tackles, nine for a loss, four sacks and three forced fumbles.
The knock on Eiland is his age. He’s 27-years-old after spending four years as a professional baseball player before returning to college to play football. At 6-foot-2, 225 pounds, he’s a prototype linebacker, but unless he wows a team with a workout, he might be forced north of the border to Canada. Size is an issue for Wilkins at 5-foot-8, 175-pounds. He was productive as a kick and punt returner, but both these guys are long shots.
McQuillan and Short, on the other hand, should find their way on a team’s early roster. Short never could get academically qualified at Kansas after being a Juco star at Fort Scott Community College. He owns the record there for picks, with 10 interceptions over two seasons. McQuillan caught 41 passes for 354 yards last season for UConn and has plenty of size, 6-foot-3, 247 pounds, to play in the NFL.
Tebow’s Jersey the No. 16 seller from the NFLShop
It doesn’t matter that Tim Tebow probably won’t start for the Philadelphia Eagles or, at present, he might be the No. 4 quarterback on the depth chart. People will not stop buying his jersey.
Tim Tebow has a higher QB winning percentage than Jay Cutler, Eli Manning, Alex Smith, Cam Newton and Matthew Stafford. So there's that
— Nate the Sports Guy (@HumbleSportsGuy) July 9, 2015
All those No. 15s from the Denver Broncos and New York Jets will need to be replaced and the Tebow fan contingent is wasting no time, snapping up his No. 11 Eagles jersey so often it’s the No. 16-ranked best seller at the NFLShop.
Tim Tebow having the 16th highest selling jersey in June is the reason why we don't have nice things.
— Joe Buscaglia (@JoeBuscaglia) July 8, 2015
Tebow has sold more jerseys this offseason than Ndamukong Suh, Kam Chancellor, Marshawn Lynch, Teddy Bridgewater and Tony Romo.
Odell Beckham Jr. is the top selling jersey, with new Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota right behind him at No. 2. Tamp Bay Buccaneers quarterback and No. 1 pick Jameis Winston is the No. 8 best-selling jersey. The biggest surprise in the Top 10, Top Five even is San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who ranks No. 4, right ahead of Aaron Rodgers. Is he buying them himself?
