UDFA breakdowns

[lamberts-lost-tooth]

Mike Reilly, QB, Central Washington State, 6’3 214lbs
Combine invite. More shifty than fast. Threw 118 TD's as a starter with 12,448 yards. Intelligent...carrying a 3.6 GPA...might stick as third QB.

Kevin McCabe, QB, California (Pa.), 6’2 222 lbs
Transfer From Virginia to the Vulcans...one year starter...completed 65% of his passes for 32 TD's and 3,214 yards. Worth a look but wont beat out Batch or for that matter...Reilly

Isaac Redman, RB, Bowie State, 5’10”-228
Ran for 3,300 yards...a school record at Bowie St. Can break tackles and knows how to "get small" when hitting holes. Decent hands out of the backfield...faced lower competition but may be able to catch on with ST. Might be able to grab a practice squad slot.

Tyler Grisham, WR, Clemson, 5’10 184lbs
Good hands but way to slow for the NFL...ran a 4.65 forty....and doesnt show a quickness or shiftiness that might translate to a slot reciever at the pro level. I dont think he will be able to seperate from CB's and will be training camp fodder.

Steven Black, WR, Memphis, 6’2 212lbs
Ran a 4.55 forty ..Good size...looked to play faster than timed speed. Decent hands...Versatile...played QB also. He's not ARE...but he is intriguing.

Cedric Goodman, WR, Georgia, 6’2 190lbs
If you cant find this prospect in your draft mags...look up "Demiko Goodman"...its the same guy. Built very well...Looks the part. Doesnt drop his hips well but still gets respectable seperation. On tape he makes some pretty good catches and looks as if is willing to put a shoulder on defenders to get a couple of extra yards. Is listed as a good blocker when the ball doesnt come his way. Looks to run in the low 4.5's

Ramon Foster, OT, Tennessee, 6’5 328lbs,
Played right tackle but projects as a guard at the next level.. Good feet for a big guy..might need a year in a strength program but shows good leverage. Ability to play OG & OT might earn him a roster spot.

Steve McLendon, DT, Troy, 6’1 306lbs
Short..squat NT......Good strength... 31 reps on the bench. High motor guy who seems to play until the whistle. If a coach can teach him to stay low he might actually stick on the team as a practice squad guy.

Jeff Bradley, DE, Western Carolina, 6’3 280lbs
Conference honors after his junior and senior seasons....15 tackles for loss as a senior.. Well-built, works hard to get off blocks....Good job of locating the ball...As a DT he was able to explode through gaps but projects as a DE with the Steelers.

Tom Korte, LB, Hillside (Mich.), 5’11 236lbs
Size doesnt really match up for a 3/4 ILB...but his workout numbers were pretty decent. He ran a 4.76 forty ...a cone time of 4.34... and put up 21 reps at the bench press...Two-time MVP of his conference...Reminds me a little of Zach Thomas...Hard worker...and looks to be all over the field on tape. Might be a ST demon.

Andrew Schantz, LB, Portland State, 6’1 234lbs
4.71 forty...19 reps on the bench....I read an article that had me thinking Schantz might be a sleeper...but on tape he looked average at best. Didnt appear to be a stong tackler...and seemed to be chasing the play alot. Camp fodder.

Derrick Richardson, S, New Mexico State, 5’10 201lbs
Ran a 4.64 forty and a 4.42 at the cone drill. Not great numbers, but look at him on tape and he is aggressive and a VERY good run supporter. Coverage skills are average but puts a good hit on recievers in his area. Good or bad he reminds me a little of Anthony Smith.

Mark Estermeyer,LS,Pitt, 6’1 251lbs
What can you say...We all know the Steelers...if this guy can snap....we will take him to save money.

[BubbyBrister]

Mark Estermeyer,LS,Pitt, 6’1 251lbs
What can you say...We all know the Steelers...if this guy can snap....we will take him to save money.

Perhaps someone could correct me if I'm wrong, but I remember reading somewhere that Shipley used to long snap at PSU. Anyone know for sure?

[edit] Nevermind, I found it. It was in his interview w/ Pitt that he mentioned that he could long snap, and I know that he did do it at the combine, not sure how effectively though.

[lamberts-lost-tooth]

Perhaps someone could correct me if I'm wrong, but I remember reading somewhere that Shipley used to long snap at PSU. Anyone know for sure?

[edit] Nevermind, I found it. It was in his interview w/ Pitt that he mentioned that he could long snap, and I know that he did do it at the combine, not sure how effectively though.

Dont forget...Harrison can snap also.:chuckle:

[Steelman16]

Dont forget...Harrison can snap also.:chuckle:

and pretty far too! :chuckle:

[lamberts-lost-tooth]

I was looking for DE Jeff Bradley's Pro Day results and came across this pretty cool article.....


............Bradley, a defensive lineman from Western Carolina who graduated from West Forsyth in 2004, has signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and Nicholson, a linebacker from Florida State and a 2005 graduate of Mount Tabor, has signed with the Atlanta Falcons.

Bradley, 6-3, 275, was a two-time All-Southern Conference player at Western. When he received the free-agent offer from the Steelers, it couldn't have come from a more fitting team, according to his father, Ed Bradley. Ed Bradley played eight years in the NFL and played for Super Bowl winning teams in Pittsburgh 1974 and '75.

"He was concerned if he got picked up by another team he would have to take the Steelers decals off his pickup truck and now he doesn't have to worry about that," Ed Bradley said. "I am not sure if it's sunk in to him yet. He was tight lipped when he got the call, but very relieved. There was a lot of emotion built up. I am not sure he has cracked his lip yet."

Jeff Bradley said that Steelers officials were in contact with him throughout Sunday and called him about 45 minutes after the draft ended.

"Everything from here on will be a plus to me," Jeff Bradley said. "I will go in with a good attitude, work hard and try my hardest to make the team. I have been working out really hard for about five months now. Had pro day at Wake (last month) and did really well. I was happy with the numbers I posted and I am still working out hard and have three weeks to report to mini camp."

Bradley said he will be in Pittsburgh on Friday for rookie orientation.

http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/yb/129152993

[lamberts-lost-tooth]

Central's Mike Reilly took the long road to the NFL combine
By Danny O'Neil
Seattle Times staff reporter

INDIANAPOLIS — Mike Reilly still hasn't met Jon Kitna.

He's getting closer, though. He has been following Kitna for a few years now.

Reilly enrolled at Central Washington one decade after Kitna left, and in four years as the Wildcats quarterback Reilly proceeded to throw his way past Kitna among the school's career leaders.

But as Reilly auditions for a job in the NFL, he's still following the path Kitna blazed with an NFL career that has lasted 12 seasons and counting.

"I'm still chasing him, I guess," Reilly said, "to make it in the NFL because that's the one thing he's done that I haven't done so far."

Reilly was one of 21 quarterbacks invited to the NFL's scouting combine in Indianapolis, and the only one who played Division II football last season. Jason Boltus is at the combine from Division III Hartwick.

Reilly spent more than five years in college, earning a degree in mechanical engineering, but first has designs on an NFL career.

He has come a long way since he was a high-school senior whose family moved from the Tri-Cities area to Kalispell, Mont. He came to a team that already had a starting quarterback who had led his team to within a play of the state-championship game the year before. Grady Bennett, former Montana quarterback, then coached at Flathead High School and he warned Reilly that he might not get a chance to play.

"He looked just solidly in my eyes and said, 'I'll beat him out,' " Bennett said.

Reilly had the starting job a month into the season, showing a white-knuckled determination that has been the bedrock for a career he has built from scratch. He didn't get much interest from colleges, but Bennett eventually sold Timm Rosenbach on the kid first at Eastern Washington and then when Rosenbach went to Washington State.

Reilly walked on for the Cougars and after a year there he was still third on the depth chart, paying his own out-of-state tuition and waiting in line behind Alex Brink and Josh Swogger.

"I hadn't really seen a good deal of time on the field, so I was itching to get out and play," Reilly said.

He went from playing at a school with a pedigree of NFL quarterbacks and being coached by Rosenbach to a Division II school that could offer the one thing Reilly truly wanted: playing time.

"At that point in time I was like, 'You know what? I want to play and if it's meant to be it will work out,' " Reilly said.

So it has for Reilly and tight end Jared Bronson, his teammate at Central Washington. Bronson was a high-school quarterback and this weekend ranked in the top third of the 21 tight ends at the combine in the 40-yard dash, broad jump and shuttle run Saturday.

Reilly has been training with former NFL quarterback Erik Kramer, and now Reilly is at the scouting combine, an opportunity for the player from the small school to make his case to play on the game's biggest stage.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/2008773093_combine23.html

[lamberts-lost-tooth]

Central's Mike Reilly may be state's best college quarterback
Steve Kelley
Seattle Times staff columnist

Another record fell early. Mike Reilly is breaking records in his senior season at Central Washington like Michael Phelps at an all-comers meet.

In the final seconds of the first quarter in Central Washington's annual Battle in Seattle against Western Washington, Reilly flung a 10-yard touchdown pass to Sam Togar slanting from right to left.

It was Reilly's 100th touchdown pass at Central, passing Jon Kitna for the most in school history.

It also was the 41st game in a row he had thrown for a touchdown, setting an NCAA record, in all classifications, for consecutive games with a touchdown pass.

For a little perspective, BYU's Ty Detmer is fourth on the all-time list with 35 consecutive games. Steve McNair threw for a touchdown in 36 straight games at Alcorn State.

We came to Qwest Field on Saturday night to see what all the fuss was about. The state's best college quarterback, or at least its most NFL-ready quarterback, was pitching passes in his only appearance of the season in Seattle.

And on the grandest stage of his college career, with most of the 12,258 fans focused on him, Reilly put on a show. He threw for 371 yards and four touchdowns and ran for 58 yards in a highly entertaining 50-28 victory.

Mike Reilly is for real. He can float passes soft as snow over linebackers, laser passes to receivers crossing over the middle and hit them in stride 50 yards downfield. He is raw, but he has a future past this final season at Central.

He is a prototype pro. At 6 feet 3, 212 pounds, he has the size, the arm strength and the savvy. He's a Division I starting quarterback who just happens to be playing for a Division II school.

"Ah, man, every day it's a treat to play with him," junior receiver Johnny Spevak said. "He does things you never see quarterbacks do, especially at this level. He makes the game more fun for me every single time I play with him."

Fourteen seconds after his first touchdown pass, Reilly threw another. Central recovered Anthony Zachary's fumbled kick return, and one play later Reilly passed to Jamal Weems, who was 10 yards in the open, streaking down the right side. The 30-yard pass gave Central a 16-0 lead.

When coach Blaine Bennett took over at Central this season, he promised a pass-happy offense. Bennett and Reilly are the perfect marriage of system and quarterback. They are Dan Fouts and Don Coryell. Joe Montana and Bill Walsh.


"It's so great to play with him. He's one of the most accurate passers I've ever seen," freshman receiver Weems said. "He's real agile, elusive, so even if it's hard for us to get off a [defensive back's] jam, the play's never dead because he can always get outside the pocket and find one of his receivers."

Central's offense is fast. With three-, four- and five-receiver sets, it looks like basketball on turf, all tempo, tempo, tempo.

On the Wildcats' first touchdown drive — a 13-play, 95-yard gem — Reilly was as steady as a heartbeat. He threw 12 yards to his favorite target, Spevak. Fifteen yards to Mike Waller, 20 more to Spevak and 10 to Togar.

Tempo, tempo, tempo.

Like a good point guard in the eye of a fast-break offense, he spread the ball around, all the while facing heavy heat from Western's blitzkrieg defense.

In the fourth quarter, Reilly threw an interception, which is big news in Ellensburg. It was his first pick in 185 throws, another of his many school records.

Reilly, who played at Kamiakin High School in Kennewick until his senior season, walked on at Washington State in 2004. But, after looking impressive in spring practice, he wasn't offered a scholarship.

Instead of biding his time behind Josh Swogger and Alex Brink, Reilly transferred to Central.

Despite the fact Reilly has had three coaches in the last three years, it was the right decision. He has gotten a chance to play. And even though he is playing in the middle of the state on the far left side of the country, he has gotten noticed.

"With his work ethic, the time he puts in the film room and the way he wants to be the best quarterback he can be, there's no doubt in my mind he's going to be at the next level," said Spevak, who caught 13 passes for 148 yards and two touchdowns. "I'll be able to watch him on TV and look back at the great memories I had playing with him."

Reilly will get his January and February NFL auditions and could be drafted in April.

In the meantime, he'll continue doing what he's been doing for the last four years in Ellensburg, filling the air with footballs, picking off records and demanding, with his play, that people pay attention.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/stevekelley/2008257368_kelley12.html