It’s an impressive feat when a pass rusher sets a school record in tackles for loss. As Adrian Hamilton and Antonio Coleman can demonstrate, however, not every player with excellent college stats instantly settles in with an NFL team. Today we’re looking at a player who had a big impact at a small school at the University of Wyoming. He’s still working to break into an NFL roster after entering the league last season.
Name: Eddie Yarbrough
# 75
Position: DE/OLB
Height/Weight: 6’3” / 259
Experience: 1
College: Wyoming
Draft: UDFA (2016)
Financial Situation (per Spotrac): Yarbrough is signed to a one-year, $465,000 deal, after he was waived from his initial three-year deal by the Denver Broncos. He carries no dead cap hit if the team cuts him.
2016 Recap: Yarbrough went undrafted out of the University of Wyoming in 2016, and signed with his hometown Denver Broncos as a rookie. He stuck with the team until the final cutdown on September 2nd, and didn’t sign with another team during the 2016 season.
Positional Outlook: The Bills have two starters at defensive end: Jerry Hughes and Shaq Lawson. They also have Lorenzo Alexander, but last year’s sack leader has mostly been schemed as a strong side linebacker for Sean McDermott’s defense. Ryan Davis is the next-highest paid player, but he’s only making $2.2 million over two years. Young prospects like Max Valles, Marquavius Lewis, and Ian Seau are the chief competition for Yarbrough.
2017 Offseason: The pass rusher signed his deal with the Bills on April 7th.
2017 Season Outlook: In college, Yarbrough was a valued member of his team. He was a three-time All-Mountain West selection, held the school record with 39 tackles for loss, and accumulated 256 tackles and 21.5 sacks in his career. While he’s a decent athlete, Yarbrough has a major battle ahead to make the 53-man roster. His best hope is that he can leverage his penchant for tackles to become understudy as a SAM linebacker and pass rusher.