NFL Draft 2014: Baylor Football Wrap-up

About 1:00 PM today, things were looking pretty bad for Baylor Football.  We were halfway through the Fifth Round with no draftees, and people were getting antsy.  Then the Buffalo Bills tabbed OL Cyril Richardson with the 153rd pick and we were off to the races.  Baylor finished with 5 draftees, the most in the Big 12 or the State of Texas, and now several more have joined the ranks of NFL-bound Bears as undrafted free agents.  The official release from Baylor.

Our draftees, in order, with a few thoughts on their individual situations:

Round 5 | Pick 153 | Buffalo Bills | OL Cyril Richardson

Immediately after the pick, Buffalo Director of Player Personnel Jim Monos told assembled reporters that they "don't draft guys to be backups," an indication, you'd think, that the Bills see Cyril as a potential contributor immediately.  With a young QB coming off injury, it seems reasonable to expect that Buffalo will run the ball quite a bit this coming season.  Cyril should excel in that role.  He was picked later than he probably expected-- a feeling he probably shares with all of our other draftees-- but he's in the NFL now.  A typically reserved guy from everything I've heard in the past, we've yet to see any reaction from Cyril about the pick.  I'm sure he's happy.

Buffalo SB Nation blog: Buffalo Rumblings

Round 6 | Pick 186 | Washington Redskins | RB Lache Seastrunk

I could not be happier for Lache to be reunited with Robert Griffin III in DC.  The situation there should be absolutely perfect; Washington already has a power back in Alfred Morris and will look to get the ball to Lache in space whenever possible.  This is a tremendous value pick for the Redskins as they attempt to surround their third-year QB with weapons, and the fact that there is already a connection with RGIII should make the NFL transition easier for Lache.  They're going to love Lache in DC, where he'll get the opportunity to live his dream.

Washington SB Nation blog: Hogs Haven

Round 6 | Pick 197 | Green Bay Packers | CB Demetri Goodson

Meech completed his journey from Gonzaga PG to NFL CB today, joining Lache in the sixth round as a pick of the Packers.  I don't know much about their depth chart or Goodson's chances to stick, but they're a well-run organization that should have as good a chance as any to win as long as Aaron Rodgers stays healthy.  So far, we've got a lot of guys headed north into areas with which they're probably not all that familiar!

Green Bay SB Nation blog: Acme Packing Company

Round 7 | Pick 240 | San Diego Chargers | WR Tevin Reese

Tevin is taking his relatively unique skillset to San Diego, where he'll catch passes from Phillip Rivers in Mike McCoy's offense.  Of everyone drafted today, I have to say that I'm most happy to see Tevin get the honor, even if it was in the seventh round, beyond the point where he probably hoped to go. I'll be very interested to see if San Diego uses Tevin on special teams, something he didn't do a whole lot of past his freshman year.

San Diego SB Nation blog: Bolts from the Blue

Round 7 | Pick 248 | Dallas Cowboys | S Ahmad Dixon

The biggest tearjerker of the day for me, personally, due simply to his emotional reaction to being drafted.  All jokes aside, that's what the Draft is all about: seeing guys that have worked for years reach their goals and get the opportunity to join the very select few of NFL players.

Other than Cyril, I actually feel best about Dixon's chance of making the roster and actually receiving significant playing time.  That comes from the fact that I know Dallas' safeties are just awful.  Dixon should get the chance immediately to show what he can do.  They'll need a strong centerfielder next to him to cover his deficiencies, but he's always been an NFL player in talent.  Now he's one in job description, as well.

You can see a video of Ahmad's reaction here.

Dallas SB Nation blog: Blogging the Boys

Undrafted Free Agents:

So far, a number of Baylor players have confirmed signings with teams as undrafted free agents.  The Cowboys seem to be pulling everyone they can find at this point.

DE Chris McAllister -- Houston Texans
DE Terrance Lloyd -- Houston Texans
OL Kelvin Palmer -- Arizona Cardinals
RB Glasco Martin -- Dallas Cowboys
TE Jordan Najvar -- Dallas Cowboys

All in all, I'd call it a good, not great, day for Baylor Football.  We didn't have any First Rounders like in 2009 (Jason Smith), 10 (Phil Taylor, Danny Watkins), or 11 (Griffin, Kendall Wright), and it was pretty touch-and-go for a while whether we'd have any picks at all.  Still, 10 Bears (so far) are going into the NFL after today, 5 as official draft picks.  5 draft picks is more than any other school in our state, and nearly a third of our conference's choices as a whole.  If we can keep that up, nobody will care where they go.

Congrats to everyone making the jump!  Keep living the dream and flinging your green and gold afar.