Building an NFL 53-man roster from 2023 undrafted free agents
How many games can a team of 2023 undrafted free agents win in the NFL?
I’m building an NFL roster from undrafted free agents (UDFAs) for the second year in a row. This year’s UDFA pool is even more talented and deeper than the 2022 class. Check the updated UDFA tracker to see which players your team landed.
UDFAs rarely play large roles as rookies, and only a handful per draft class build solid NFL careers. However, this year’s group could be an exception. I had a surprisingly high number of late round draft-able grades on many of the players you’ll see below. Even a few surprise fallers like Thomas Incoom and Rejzohn Wright earned mid-round grades.
Visit my Twitter account @Sam_Teets33 for more opinions on prospects, clips, and the latest football content.
Starting Offense
Quarterback: Tyson Bagent, Shepherd (Scouting Report)
Bagent was the best quarterback during the week of Senior Bowl practices. He’s a multi-year developmental project, but the NCAA career leader in passing touchdowns clearly outplayed fellow Senior Bowl attendees Malik Cunningham, Max Duggan, Jake Haener, Jaren Hall, and Clayton Tune. Cunningham was the only member of that group who didn’t hear his name called in the draft.
Running back: Keaton Mitchell, East Carolina (Scouting Report)
Unfortunately, it looks like Mitchell ranked fourth among the four “smalls” entering the draft. Devon Achane and Tyjae Spears went in the third round followed by Deuce Vaughn in the sixth round. Mitchell offers similar size, fluidity, and explosiveness to those three.
Running back: Sean Tucker, Syracuse (Scouting Report)
A potential medical red flag combined with a disappointing season led to Tucker falling out of the draft after earning some second and third round hype last summer. The redshirt sophomore had more years of eligibility, so declaring only to go undrafted is surprising.
Wide receiver: Rakim Jarrett, Maryland (Scouting Report)
Jarrett was another prospect who received second or third round buzz during the summer. Unfortunately, all three Maryland wide receivers fell flat this past season. A receiver room that looked like one of the nation’s most talented produced just one 500-yard player.
Wide receiver: Jalen Moreno-Cropper, Fresno State (Scouting Report)
Cropper is an undersized receiver with short arms, but he’s a solid separator with savviness to his game. Cropper had a solid showing at the Shrine Bowl coming off his 1,000-yard season at Fresno State.
Wide receiver: Bryce Ford-Wheaton, West Virginia
Ford-Wheaton tested at or above the 87th percentile in height, weight, arm length, 40-time, the vertical, and broad jump at the NFL Scouting Combine. He also posted a 4.15-second 20-yard shuttle. It’s his short area burst, change of direction, and separation skills teams question.
Tight end: Travis Vokolek, Nebraska
Vokolek isn’t the most athletic tight end in the world, but the 24-year-old offers blocking upside with his 6060, 259 lb. frame. He’s a reliable security blanket as a short-yardage pass catcher.
Offensive tackle: John Ojukwu, Boise State
Ojukwu is already 24 years old, but he’s one of the most experienced linemen in this class. Ojukwu began taking starting snaps for Boise State in 2018 and finished his career with 3,588 offensive snaps. He has multiple years of starting experience at both tackle positions.
Offensive tackle: Earl Bostick Jr., Kansas (Scouting Report)
Bostick is also 24 years old. He’s not as experienced as Ojukwu but still played more than 700 snaps in each of the past two seasons. Bostick has experience playing both tackle positions.
Guard: McClendon Curtis, Chattanooga (Scouting Report)
Curtis is a limited athlete, but he has 35-inch arms and experience playing right guard and left tackle. Guards who are 6056 and weigh 324 lbs. with 35-inch arms don’t grow on trees.
Guard: Emil Ekiyor Jr., Alabama
The Senior Bowl experimented with moving Ekiyor to center, but the transition didn’t seem to help his draft stock. The three-year starter who allowed zero sacks over the past two seasons dropped out of the draft.
Center: Brett Neilon, USC
Neilon suffered an injury late in his college career, but he was a four-year starter for the Trojans who delivered at a high level consistently. He allowed one sack in the past three years.
Starting Defense
Defensive tackle: Jalen Redmond, Oklahoma
Redmond is a superb athlete who dealt with injury and development issues at Oklahoma. We finally saw glimpses of his potential over the past two seasons, but they weren’t enough to get him drafted.
Defensive tackle: Jerrod Clark, Coastal Carolina
Clark is a large, beefy nose tackle with limited to no pass rush upside. It’s nice to have someone around capable of eating double teams and freeing up smaller interior defenders like Redmond.
Edge: Thomas Incoom, Central Michigan (Scouting Report)
Outside of the length of their arms, I don’t understand what the NFL disliked about Incoom and Kansas edge Lonnie Phelps Jr. I knew I would be higher on the two than most, but for both of them to fall out of the draft entirely is mind-boggling.
Incoom needs to refine his hand counters and footwork, but he gave Penn State left tackle Olumuyiwa Fashanu fits in 2022 and has a developed pass rush plan that features push-pull, rip, swim, and long-arm moves along with a speed rush and two-armed bull rush.
Edge: Lonnie Phelps Jr., Kansas (Scouting Report)
Phelps is a little undersized and doesn’t have great bend or arm length, but he was a handful all week at the Senior Bowl. While most edge rushers struggled to meet expectations in Mobile, Phelps exceeded any hype he had going into the event. His pass rush plan includes swim, long-arm, bull rush, club, rip, and hesitation moves.
Linebacker: Ivan Pace Jr., Cincinnati (Scouting Report)
Pace is an undersized linebacker who lacks a proven track record in coverage. However, he’s powerful enough to rock climbing or pulling linemen. Pace thrived as a blitzing linebacker at Cincinnati, a role that allowed him to torture blockers with his downhill speed, contact balance, and motor.
Linebacker: Cam Jones, Indiana (Scouting Report)
Jones isn’t a high-end coverage linebacker, but he has the athletic traits to match up with running backs and some tight ends. Jones is at his best flowing downhill against the run, but he’s also a capable zone defender.
Cornerback: Rejzohn Wright, Oregon State (Scouting Report)
Wright lacks the athleticism for man-heavy schemes, but his size, arm length, and discipline in zone all pop on tape. Wright’s anticipation, awareness, and vision are impressive traits that make him a priority UDFA.
Cornerback: Myles Brooks, Louisiana Tech (Scouting Report)
Brooks has sub-31-inch arms, which raised questions about his draft profile late in the process. He’s not the most explosive or speedy athlete, but Brooks has fluid hips that allow him to stay attached at the top of the stem. He displays an excellent understanding of leverage.
Slot: Starling Thomas V, UAB
Thomas posted some eye-opening numbers over the past two seasons, totaling two interceptions and 23 passes defensed. The 23-year-old had an impressive week at the Shrine Bowl, so his fall off the draft board is confusing. Thomas primarily played outside corner at UAB, but his size makes him better suited for the slot.
Safety: Ronnie Hickman Jr., Ohio State
Hickman had some buzz at the mid-point of the season, but he failed to separate late in the process from a controversial and underwhelming safety class.
Safety: Brandon Joseph, Notre Dame
Joseph had tremendous ball production during his redshirt freshman season at Northwestern in 2020, but his impact declined in each of the past two seasons. A below-average athletic profile didn’t help.
Special Teams
Punter: Michael Turk, Oklahoma
Kicker: B.T. Potter, Clemson
Bench and Rotational Players
Quarterback: Malik Cunningham, Louisville (Scouting Report)
Running back: Xazavian Valladay, Arizona State (Scouting Report)
Running back: Mohamed Ibrahim, Minnesota (Scouting Report)
Fullback: Hunter Luepke, North Dakota State
Wide receiver: Jason Brownlee, Southern Miss (Scouting Report)
Wide receiver: Jacob Copeland, Maryland
Tight end: Daniel Barker, Michigan State
Tight end: Noah Gindorff, North Dakota State
Offensive tackle: Richard Gouraige, Florida
Offensive tackle: Raiqwon O'Neal, UCLA
Guard: Jaxson Kirkland, Washington
Guard: Joey Fisher, Shepherd
Center: Grant Gibson, North Carolina State
Defensive tackle: DJ Dale, Alabama
Defensive tackle: Devonnsha Maxwell, Chattanooga
Edge: Tyrus Wheat, Mississippi State
Edge: Brenton Cox Jr., Florida (Scouting Report)
Edge: Habakkuk Baldonado, Pittsburgh (Scouting Report)
Linebacker: Aubrey Miller Jr., Jackson State
Linebacker: Anfernee Orji, Vanderbilt (Scouting Report)
Linebacker: Drake Thomas, North Carolina State
Cornerback: Eli Ricks, Alabama (Scouting Report)
Cornerback: Kaleb Hayes, BYU
Cornerback: Mekhi Garner, LSU
Safety: Trey Dean III, Florida
Safety: Quindell Johnson, Memphis
Defensive back: Anthony Johnson, Virginia (Scouting Report)
Defensive back: Bennett Williams, Oregon