AUBURN | For Auburn’s three drafted players, the battle to make an NFL 53-man roster will get underway in earnest May 9-11 with rookie minicamps.
Jarquez Hunter, a fourth-round pick of the Los Angeles Rams, joins a running back room with an established veteran in Kyren Williams, who totaled 2,443 rushing yards and 26 touchdowns the last two seasons.
But the Rams’ top two backups weren’t nearly as productive with rookie Blake Corum gaining 207 yards and Ronnie Rivers 99 yards last season.
With the Rams moving up 10 spots to draft Hunter, it’s clear they’re looking to upgrade their depth.
“He’s got the ability to run through you or away from you,” said Rams head coach Sean McVay. “You talk to a lot of coaches in that league that you have a lot of respect for, and the way that they spoke about Jarquez and going against him and what he meant to that football team and the competitiveness that he really displayed.
“He can hit home runs for you too. You give him a vertical seam, he’s got the ability to run away from you. Some of the metrics that we have on him are really impressive.”
KeAndre Lambert-Smith, a fifth round pick for the Los Angeles Chargers, is joining a wide receiver room going through a transition.
The Chargers were led in receiving by Ladd McConkey last season with 112 receptions for 1,149 yards and seven touchdowns. Second-year pro Quentin Johnston added 91 catches for 711 yards and eight touchdowns.
They added veteran Mike Williams, who spent his first seven seasons with the Chargers, in free agency, and drafted Tre Harris from Ole Miss in the second round.
Lambert-Smith was too talented for the Chargers to pass over in the fifth.
“You take a receiver in the second round and sometimes you wait to take another receiver even though that receiver is sitting up there,” said Chargers GM Joe Hortiz. “He fell to us and we’re excited about it. Very happy to get him. Fast, started at Penn State, had great success. And then goes to Auburn and continues it. Wins at al levels. Excellent speed. Big play-making ability.”
The Jacksonville Jaguars, who selected outside linebacker Jalen McLeod in the sixth round, were looking for more pass rushing after finishing 28th in the league last season with 34 sacks.
Third-year defensive end Travon Walker led the Jaguars with 10.5 sacks and sixth-year pro Josh Hines-Allen had eight, but the next highest was defensive tackle Maason Smith with three.
The Jaguars like McLeod’s pass rushing ability and his versatility to play multiple roles within a defense.
“The versatility. That’s something that really stands out for us,” said Jaguars GM James Gladstone. “We speak about being intangibly rich — his competitiveness, his play demeanor, his urgency is phenomenal. You take him, another that was deployed across the defensive front at Auburn, stood up off the ball.
“When a guy goes from a small school to a big school and you see production continue to pop, that is a meaningful element.”
A total of 12 former Auburn player signed free agent deals with NFL Teams including linebacker Eugene Asante (Miami), defensive lineman Isaiah Raikes (Tennessee), safety Jerrin Thompson (Tennessee), defensive lineman Philip Blidi (Tennessee), defensive lineman Jayson Jones (Baltimore), tight end Rivaldo Fairweather (Dallas), quarterback Payton Thorne (Cincinnati), punter Oscar Chapman (Minnesota), linebacker Austin Keys (Minnesota), linebacker Dorian Mausi (Minnesota), wide receiver Robert Lewis (Minnesota) and tight end Luke Deal (Detroit).
