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Jordan Stout

AFC East Rumors: Bills, Wilson, Hall, Pats

September 25th, 2022 at 7:45pm CST by Ely Allen

The Bills have an obvious 1-2 punch at wide receiver in Stefon Diggs and Gabriel Davis. In the slot, though, it has looked, recently, like Buffalo may be moving towards a bit of a position battle, according to Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic.

After initially favoring Isaiah McKenzie in the first few weeks of the season, the Bills moved closer to an even split of snaps between McKenzie and Jamison Crowder in the team’s win last week over the Titans. Buscaglia notes that, in the game, the duo were only on the field at the same time for three snaps, indicating a one-or-the-other situation. In the remainder of the game, excluding garbage time, Buscaglia counted 21 offensive snaps for McKenzie and 16 for Crowder, a stark difference from the snap advantage McKenzie enjoyed to begin the season. This could lead one to believe that Buffalo is becoming more comfortable with the consistency it gets out of Crowder than the all-or-nothing, big play potential it gets out of McKenzie.

This theory failed to hold up in today’s loss to the Dolphins. Though snap totals have yet to be reported, quarterback Josh Allen clearly favored McKenzie today, targeting him nine times to only three for Crowder. McKenzie rewarded the extra attention with seven catches for 76 yards and a touchdown, tacking on a six yard rush, while Crowder only reeled in one pass for nine yards. If the Bills staff needed to see consistent production out of McKenzie, today was a good start.

Here are a few more rumors from the AFC East, starting with some usage notes from the Jets:

  • There was early concern surrounding New York’s usage of rookie first-round pick Garrett Wilson after the tenth-overall pick only saw the field for 38 of the offense’s 79 snaps in Week 1, according to ESPN’s Rich Cimini. Two weeks later any concerns have certainly been quelled for the time being. Wilson’s playing time did increase to over 50% of the team’s offensive snaps, increasing to 61% in Week 2. While Jets fans may want to see him on the field even more often, he’s made the most of his playing time, becoming the favorite target for quarterback Joe Flacco. After three weeks, Wilson’s 32 targets and 214 receiving yards outpace Elijah Moore‘s 22 targets or Corey Davis‘ 187 receiving yards, both second on the team, despite both older receivers spending more time on the field.
  • There’s been an unpredictable fall from grace this year for Jets cornerback Bryce Hall, according to Cimini. Last year, Hall was fourth in the entire league for defensive snaps played. So far this year, it’s been a completely different story. Hall understandably lost his starting job to rookie fourth-overall pick Ahmad Gardner, but after three weeks, it appears that he’s also fallen behind the other four cornerbacks on the roster. Hall only played five defensive snaps in Week 1 and has been a healthy scratch for the past two games.
  • According to Mike Reiss of ESPN, the Patriots were experiencing some punter-envy today. Reiss reported that Ravens rookie punter Jordan Stout was “highly regarded by the Patriots in this year’s draft.” Stout entered the week ranking 30th in the league for average punt distance, but, even after a dismal 23 yard punt today, he was able to improve to 20th in the league with a 45.9 yard average.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 6/13/22

June 13th, 2022 at 9:35pm CST by Ely Allen

Two players signed their rookie contracts today:

Baltimore Ravens

Stout transferred to Penn State after two fairly inactive years at Virginia Tech. Stout served double-duty in Happy Valley kicking both punts and field goals. Stout kicked 100 punts during his time as a Nittany Lion, as well as converting 16 of 23 field goals and 34 of 36 extra points. Stout will be asked to fill big shoes after long-time Ravens punter Sam Koch announced his retirement last month. Stout will likely also be able to save All-Pro kicker Justin Tucker‘s leg a little stress, as Stout served as the kickoff specialist during his time at both Virginia Tech and Penn State.

Los Angeles Chargers

Woods’s role as a safety changed a bit over his time in Waco. His first two years saw him play a bit more in the box, as he recorded 2.0 sacks and three fumble recoveries. He developed a bit of range in his next two years as a Bear, totaling eight interceptions over that time period. Woods even had a knack for being dangerous with the ball in his hands, averaging 25.13 return yards per interception. He showed true play-making ability as a senior recording 4.5 tackles for loss while also returning both an interception and a fumble for a touchdown. He adds safety depth to a Chargers roster with Nasir Adderley, Derwin James, and Alohi Gilman at the top of the depth chart.

Ravens Select P Jordan Stout At No. 130

April 30th, 2022 at 12:24pm CST by Ben Levine

We’ve got a fourth-round punter. The Ravens have selected Penn State’s Jordan Stout with the No. 130 pick. San Diego State’s Matt Araiza, who many considered the best punter in the draft, is still on the board.

The last punter selected this high was Bryan Anger, who was selected at No. 70 by the Jaguars in 2012.

Stout made a name for himself during his time in college thanks to both his punting and kicking prowess. He had 100 punts between the 2020 and 2021 seasons, averaging 46 yards on his attempts. He also served as their kicker, converting 16 of his 23 field goal attempts, including a 57-yarder.

“It’s definitely huge,” Stout said of his versatility (via Oliver Hodgkinson of ProFootballNetwork.com). “There’s a lot of good punters in the league. There’s a lot of good kickers in the league. But, there aren’t a lot of people who are great at both. I’ve always prided myself as a combo guy. I’ve figured out how to do all three at a high level.”

This move means the Ravens will surely move on from punter Sam Koch, the team’s longest-tenured player. Cutting the veteran will save the Ravens $2.1MM in cap space.