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Ducks Drafted to NFL: DJ Johnson, Noah Sewell, Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu, Jordon Riley, Alex Forsyth

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Oregon Ducks edge rusher DJ Johnson selected by Carolina Panthers in 3rd round of NFL draft

 

DJ Johnson is headed to Carolina.

 

The former Oregon edge rusher was selected by the Carolina Panthers with the No. 80 overall pick in the third round of the NFL draft Friday.

 

Johnson is the second Oregon player chosen in this year’s draft, joining Christian Gonzalez. He’s the 20th UO linebacker drafted all-time, first since Troy Dye in 2020 and highest selected Ducks linebacker since Kiko Alonso went No. 46 in 2013.

 

WWW.OREGONLIVE.COM

The former Oregon edge rusher was selected by the Carolina Panthers with the No. 80 overall pick in the third round of the NFL...

 

 

 

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Very surprising…best of luck

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Projected Salary and signing bonus for New Carolina Panther LB, DJ Johnson

 

DJ Johnson just became the second Oregon Duck taken in the 2023 NFL draft. He was selected by the Carolina Panthers with the 17th pick of the 3rd round, and the 80th pick overall.

 

As a Duck, Johnson collected 64 total tackles with 39 of them coming last year. At the combine, Johnson ran a 4.49 40-yard dash, which is quick for an edge rusher. Scouts have also identified that his ability to jump off of the line post-snap is quicker than most, especially on third downs.

 

The 80th pick in last year’s draft was Greg Dulcich, a tight end taken by the Denver Broncos. Dulcich made $849,000 last year under a contract valued at $5.2 million to be paid out over the next four years, per OverTheCap.

 

This year it seems Johnson will be a bit luckier. His contract is valued at $5.6 million and he will receive a signing bonus of $1.1 million. If Johnson is paid the same share of his contract as Dulcich was in 2023, he will make $914,000 next season.

 

Since the departure of Luke Kuechly, the Panthers have been in desperate need of a good linebacker. Only time will tell if that LB will be DJ Johnson, but hopefully, he will be the change that the Panthers’ defense needs.

 

DUCKSWIRE.USATODAY.COM

Projected Salary and signing bonus for New Carolina Panther LB, DJ Johnson
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I am psyched! Gonzo to "my" Pats and DJ to a team that is weekly broadcast in my area of the country.

 

Go forth and prosper. 

 

Excited Golden Retriever GIF by MOODMAN

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SEWELL TO BEARS IN FIFTH ROUND

 

A third Oregon defensive player went off the board on day three of the 2023 NFL Draft on Saturday, as inside linebacker Noah Sewell was selected by the Chicago Bears in the fifth round with the No. 148 overall pick.
 
Cornerback Christian Gonzalez was taken No. 17 overall by the New England Patriots on Thursday, and edge rusher DJ Johnson was the No. 80 overall pick by the Carolina Panthers in the third round on Friday.
 
Sewell joins his brothers Penei Sewell (OL, Detroit Lions) and Nephi Sewell (LB, New Orleans Saints) in the NFL ranks. Penei Sewell was the No. 6 overall pick out of Oregon in the 2021 NFL Draft.
 
A two-time all-Pac-12 selection and the 2020 Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year, Sewell closed his three-year Oregon career with 215 tackles, 19.5 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, two interceptions and three forced fumbles. He became the first Oregon player to be a finalist for the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award multiple times, and is UO's first two-time semifinalist for the Butkus Award.
 
Sewell recorded 56 total tackles, 5.5 TFLs, 1.5 sacks, four pass breakups, one interception and one fumble return in 12 games for the Ducks in 2022. He also rushed for a touchdown in Oregon's win at Colorado, becoming the first full-time UO defensive player to score a rushing TD since at least 1996.

 

GODUCKS.COM

Linebacker Noah Sewell was selected by the Chicago Bears in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft on Saturday.

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

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Cool. He'll be playing against big brother twice a year. 

 

I see Noah as a situational player likely to not be on the field on passing downs. 

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Maleasala Aumavae-Laulu goes to the Baltimore Ravens in the 6th round

 

The newest member of Oregon draftees is offensive lineman Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu. He was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the 6th round of the NFL Draft. He was taken with the 22nd pick of the 6th round, which was number 199 overall.

 

Aumavae-Laulu will now go through offseason workouts with the Ravens and vie for a spot on the 53-man roster once fall rolls around. It will be a tall order as the Ravens had the second-best offensive line in 2022 according to Pro Football Focus.

 

Big Sala played his first two years at Navarro College before transferring to Oregon as a junior. He redshirted with the Ducks as a junior in 2019 but played a lot from 2020-2022. He eventually became a starting right tackle and one of the best offensive linemen for Oregon in a group that was considered among the top units in the nation.

 

DUCKSWIRE.USATODAY.COM

Maleasala Aumavae-Laulu goes to the Baltimore Ravens in the 6th round
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Oregon Ducks defensive tackle Jordon Riley selected by New York Giants in 7th round of NFL draft

 

Jordon Riley is headed to the Big Apple.

 

The former Oregon defensive tackle was selected by the New York Giants with the No. 243 overall pick in the seventh round of the NFL draft Saturday.

 

Riley is the fifth Oregon player chosen in this year’s draft, joining Christian Gonzalez, DJ Johnson, Noah Sewell and Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu.

Riley’s four-year contract is projected to be worth $3,927,460 with a $87,460 signing bonus, according to OverTheCap.com.

 

WWW.OREGONLIVE.COM

The former Oregon defensive tackle was selected by the New York Giants with the No. 243 overall pick in the seventh round of the...
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Former Oregon C Alex Forsyth selected in seventh round by Denver Broncos

 

Former Oregon center Alex Forysth was selected with the 257th overall pick in the seventh round by the Denver Broncos. Forsyth becomes the second offensive player from the 2022-2023 Ducks to be drafted, joining offensive tackle Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu.

 

Forsyth came to Oregon as a three-star prospect in the 2017 class, picking the Ducks over Arizona, Arizona State, and Boise State. From there, Forsyth became one of the best centers in Oregon history, leading the Ducks' offense for multiple years.

 

Across five seasons with the Ducks, Forsyth played 39 games for the Ducks, including 12 of 13 in the 2022-2023 season. With his performance in the 2022-2023 season, Forsyth was named to multiple All-Pac-12 teams, including Phil Steele's All-America second team, Coaches Pac-12 All-Conference first team, Phil Steele All-Pac-12 first team, and the Associated Press All-Pac-12 second team. Forsyth was also named a Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year finalist.


Forsyth played over 800 snaps during his final season at Oregon, registering a 72.0 offensive grade per Pro Football Focus, with a 70.3 run-blocking grade and an 85.8 pass-blocking grade. Amongst all qualified centers, Forsyth's pass block grade ranked fourth in the country, the second highest amongst Power Five players.

 

247SPORTS.COM

Former Oregon C Alex Forsyth is selected in the seventh round by the Denver Broncos

 

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Oregon Ducks safety Bennett Williams signs as undrafted free agent with Miami Dolphins

 

Bennett Williams is reuniting with Verone McKinley III.

The former Oregon safety signed as an undrafted free agent with the Miami Dolphins following the NFL draft on Saturday, according to a league source.

 

Williams led the Ducks with 74 tackles last season with one sack, two interceptions, six pass breakups and two forced fumbles. Williams began his college career at Illinois in 2017 and over his five FBS seasons he had 173 tackles, with seven for loss, including two sacks, eight interceptions, four forced fumbles and 10 pass breakups.

 

WWW.OREGONLIVE.COM

Williams led the Ducks with 74 tackles last season with one sack, two interceptions, six pass breakups and two forced fumbles
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Where did undrafted Oregon Ducks sign as free agents?

 

The Oregon Ducks had two players selected in the 2023 NFL draft and several others will begin their professional careers as undrafted free agents.

 

Twelve players from the 2022 roster took part in Oregon’s pro day, including six who went to the NFL Combine, and T.J. Bass, Ryan Walk, Bennett Williams, Karsten Battles and Adam Barry went undrafted. Several other former Ducks who finished their careers elsewhere also went undrafted, including Travis Dye and Isaac Slade-Matautia.

 

Most of the undrafted former Ducks are expected to either sign or receive invites to mini camps.

 

The former Ducks who agreed to three-year contracts as undrafted free agents are as follows:

  • - T.J. Bass with the Dallas Cowboys, per league source.
  • - Bennett Williams with the Miami Dolphins, per league source.
  • - Travis Dye with the New York Jets, per league source.

 

WWW.OREGONLIVE.COM

Twelve players from the 2022 roster took part in Oregon’s pro day, including six who went to the NFL Combine, and T.J. Bass, Ryan Walk, Bennett Williams, Karsten Battles and Adam Barry went undrafted
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Chase Cota signs with Detroit Lions as UDFA

 

Now that the 2023 NFL draft has come to a close, some players that weren’t fortunate enough to have their names called in Kansas City will begin to sign with teams as undrafted free agents. One of those players is former Oregon Ducks wide receiver, Chase Cota, who is now a Detroit Lion.

 

Chase Cota surprised a lot of Oregon Ducks fans in 2022. After coming from UCLA as a 3-star transfer there wasn’t much expectation that he would have a large role in the team’s offense.

 

Last year Cota caught 36 passes for 497 yards receiving, which were the best marks of his career. In the fourth game last year against Washington State, Cota broke onto the scene as a high-caliber Ducks receiver. He caught 7 passes that game for 84 yards. His best game, however, came against Oregon State — something not a lot of players from last year’s team can say — grabbing nine passes for 136 yards and a touchdown.

 

DUCKSWIRE.USATODAY.COM

Chase Cota signs with Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent.
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Oregon OL TJ Bass signs with the Dallas Cowboys as UDFA

 

As expected, Oregon offensive lineman TJ Bass watched the NFL draft come and go without his name being called, but that didn’t deter him from signing with the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent.

 

The Cowboys perennially produce a good offensive line, and TJ Bass will be the newest member of that group. After a disappointing end to the season in 2022, the Dallas Cowboys parted ways with their former star running back,  Ezekiel Elliot. Next season, Dallas will be looking to reshape their offense and it will be interesting to see if Bass has a role to play in their 2023 system.

 

The 6-foot-4, 325-pounder from Deming, Wash. came to Oregon in 2020 Bass as a junior college transfer. He was a four-star recruit coming out of Butte College and was the No. 1 junior college offensive lineman in 2019.

 

Last season, the Ducks had one of the strongest O-lines in the PAC-12. Bass was a big part of that success and was named first-team All-PAC-12 and second-team All-American, for his efforts. Bass is proficient at both pass and run blocking which makes a desirable player at the guard position.

 

DUCKSWIRE.USATODAY.COM

Oregon OL TJ Bass signs with the Dallas Cowboys as UDFA

 

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Click to enlarge for easier reading

 

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The only team to join Oregon in the PAC with 5+ NFL draftees was........Stanford?

 

Not U$C or the Fuskies. This will likely change for the 2024 draft but I gotta agree with Jon J's post on another thread, it's a pretty sad state of affairs for the Conference of Champions. 

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Tracking where former Ducks signed UDFA deals

 

Saturday marked a successful day for the Ducks at the 2023 NFL Draft, as six players from last season's 10-3 team were selected.

Christian Gonzalez went first, finding a new home with the New England Patriots before D.J. Johnson (Carolina Panthers), Noah Sewell (Denver Broncos), Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu (Baltimore Ravens), Jordon Riley (New York Giants), and Alex Forsyth (Broncos).

 

"Both of our guys got drafted at the end of today, I'm excited for those guys," said head coach Dan Lanning on his draft experience on Thursday. "I'm sure we'll have a few more that will pop. You get to see guys living out their dreams so those guys are all deserving players, and they just need a shot somewhere. So excited to see them get a chance."

 

Despite the influx of talent officially drafted into the league, Oregon still had plenty of talent that signed UDFA deals with teams immediately following the seventh round.

 

Today, we'll go through where former Oregon athletes have signed as undrafted free agents.

 

This article gives a little more info than the previous ones regarding the UCFAs...

 

247SPORTS.COM

After seeing six players get drafted during the 2023 NFL Draft, Oregon's list of players entering the NFL didn't stop there.

 

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A quick recap of the draft order for our Ducks

 

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Ryan Walk accepts invite to rookie mini-camp with Jacksonville Jaguars

 

Former Ducks offensive lineman Ryan Walk was unable to sign with an NFL team as an undrafted free agent, but he did accept an invite to the rookie mini-camp for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

 

As a local kid who went to Sheldon High School, Walk joined the team as a walk-on player in 2017, utilizing his redshirt as a freshman. He played sparingly in 2018 and 2019 and then became a full-time starter at right guard in the 2020 season. Throughout 2021 and 2022, Walk was a main-stay on the offensive line for the Ducks, and was one of the leaders of a unit that was arguably the best in the nation last season.

 

At 6’3″ and 295 pounds, Walk may have some bulking up to do in order to play on the interior offensive line against NFL defensive linemen, but hopefully, he’s up to the task.

 

DUCKSWIRE.USATODAY.COM

Ryan Walk accepts invite to rookie mini-camp with Jacksonville Jaguars
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I am surprised TJ Bass was not drafted.  I believe he will make a roster...

Mr. FishDuck

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