Brandon Bryant - Pro Football Rumors

East Notes: Beal, Wake, Giants

July 1st, 2018 at 12:16pm CST by Rory Parks

Sam Beal is widely considered to be the best prospect in this year’s supplemental draft, and most NFL talent evaluators think he will fall somewhere in the first three rounds of the draft. A tall corner who has the fluidity and speed of a smaller DB, some believe Beal has first-round talent, so he has generated plenty of discussion since he declared for the supplemental draft last month. Gil Brandt of SiriusXM says the Bills, who have an extra fourth-round pick in the 2019 draft, could be a fit for Beal (Twitter link). Meanwhile, John Keim of ESPN.com says the Redskins have interest in Beal as well as fellow supplemental draft prospects Adonis Alexander and Brandon Bryant, but Mike Reiss of ESPN.com says the Patriots are unlikely to select one of those players even though they have the 2019 draft capital to do so.

Now let’s round up a few more notes from the league’s east divisions:

Reiss believes that the Patriots, who selected OL Isaiah Wynn with their No. 23 overall selection in this year’s draft, also considered Alabama WR Calvin Ridley in that spot. Although New England’s need for a quality offensive lineman may have swung the pendulum in Wynn’s favor, Reiss also believes the team is more comfortable projecting an offensive lineman to the NFL than a receiver, which made Wynn an easier choice.
Though he is 36 years old, Dolphins DE Cameron Wake is still a highly-productive pass rusher, having posted 10.5 sacks last season. Despite that, and despite the fact that he is entering a contract year, Wake has no issues with the team’s decision to use a rotation that it hopes will keep him fresh in 2018. Per Hal Habib of the Palm Beach Post, Wake said, “I want to do whatever is going to help the entirety of the team, the entirety of the defense. So, if it means me being a third-down guy, let’s do it. If it means I have to start and play every down, I’ll take that role on, too.”
Matt Lombardo of NJ.com does not think the Giants will be players in the supplemental draft, and he says that, while UDFA wide receiver Amba Etta-Tawo has looked good in spring practices, even a strong training camp and preseason will likely only get him another chance on Big Blue’s taxi squad, where he finished the 2017 campaign. Of course, a good showing could get the former Maryland and Syracuse product a shot on a different club.
Many expected Chad Wheeler to push Ereck Flowers for the Giants‘ starting right tackle job this year, but as Ryan Dunleavy of NJ.com writes, Flowers has gotten all of the first-team reps at RT thus far. Dunleavy says Wheeler’s job as the team’s swing tackle is safe, but barring injury, it looks like Flowers will be the right tackle in 2018. However, Flowers is entering a contract year, so Wheeler may get a chance to start in 2019 if he performs well in the swing tackle role.
Earlier today, we heard that Redskins HC Jay Gruden may be looking for a new job in 2019 if his club turns in another so-so performance in 2018.

Latest On DB Brandon Bryant

June 25th, 2018 at 2:39pm CST by Zachary Links

Mississippi State defensive back Brandon Bryant is making his case to NFL scouts in advance of the NFL’s supplemental draft. On Monday, 40 scouts from the Rams, Browns, Falcons, Jets, Giants, 49ers, Redskins, Colts, Steelers, Saints, Jaguars, Texans, Raiders, and Ravens watched Bryant audition, Chase Goodbread of NFL.com tweets.

There may have been even more clubs on hand to watch Bryant work out, according to Tony Pauline of Draft Insider (on Twitter). Pauline hears there were “about 20 teams on hand” and he hears his 40-yard-dash times ranged from the high 4.3’s to the low 4.4’s. He also conducted five separate one-on-one meetings on Sunday.

Bryant established himself as one of the top safeties in the SEC in his time with the Bulldogs. Across three years, Bryant compiled 157 tackles and five interceptions in 37 games. This year, after Mississippi State hired Joe Moorhead as their new head coach, Bryant announced he was going pro.

This year’s supplemental draft will take place on July 11. Other entrants include former Western Michigan cornerback Sam Beal and Virginia Tech cornerback Adonis Alexander.

Safety Brandon Bryant Approved For Supplemental Draft

June 16th, 2018 at 11:16am CST by Ben Levine

There will be another talented defensive back available in this year’s supplemental draft. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports that Mississippi State safety Brandon Bryant‘s applications for the draft has been approved (via Logan Reardon of NFL.com).

Bryant had esetablisehd himself as one of the top safeties in the SEC. In three years with the school, the safety compiled 157 tackles and five interceptions in 37 games. After Mississippi State hired Joe Moorhead as their new head coach, Bryant announced that he’d be leaving the program. Presumably, he was too late to the apply for the NFL draft, forcing him to opt for this alternative.

Of course, despite his talent, it’s uncertain if a team will be willing to take a flyer on the defensive back. If a player is selected during any of the supplemental draft’s seven rounds, the team will have to sacrifice the equivalent pick for the following year’s rookie draft. As Reardon points out, there have only been 43 players selected since 1977, including two in the past six years (the Browns selected wideout Josh Gordon in 2012 while the Rams selected Isaiah Battle in 2015).

Virginia Tech cornerback Adonis Alexander and Western Michigan cornerback Sam Beal are also eligible for the supplemental draft.

Sam Beal To Enter Supplemental Draft

June 6th, 2018 at 10:37am CST by Zachary Links

Former Western Michigan cornerback Sam Beal and Mississippi State safety Brandon Bryant are set to apply for the NFL’s supplemental draft, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). Beal, in particular, will be of interest to NFL teams as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears that he could become highest player selected since Browns used a second-round supplemental pick on Josh Gordon in 2012.

Beal was already projected to be taken high in the 2019 NFL draft and NFL personnel people believe he’s likely to fall somewhere in the first three rounds, according to Schefter. In the last decade, only Gordon and Terrelle Pryor have been selected in the top three rounds of the supplemental draft.

Bryant isn’t as big of a name as Beal in draft circles, but he also offers potential. At Mississippi State, he was said to have posted a team-high 4.24-second time in the 40-yard dash.

The supplemental draft allows teams to select players who, for one reason or another, were barred from entering the regular draft in the spring. When a team selects a player in the supplemental draft, they forfeit the corresponding pick in the regular draft next year.

Since the supplemental draft was created in 1977 only 43 players have been selected. Beal seems to be a lock to become the next player tapped, while Bryant and Virginia Tech cornerback Adonis Alexander also have a chance at being selected.