Delaware takes on the NFL

Louis Mason
On day two of the NFL Draft last Friday, Chargers ex-Linebacker and three time Pro Bowler,
Shawne Merriman, announced the Los Angeles Chargers second round pick. With the 60th
overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, the Los Angeles Chargers selected…Delaware Safety Nasir
Adderley.
“It’s truly been a dream come true.” Adderley said in his introductory press conference. “Just to
get the call from the Chargers organization is just unbelievable.”
Adderley joins a short list of University of Delaware players to be drafted into the NFL. A list 29
names long, now including Adderley, has notable players such as Quarterbacks Joe Flacco and
Rich Gannon on it. Adderley is now the second earliest drafted Delaware player, behind Flacco’s
18th overall selection in 2008.

Nasir Adderley’s profile when drafted.

“We really loved his intelligence, his instinct, his range, and his playmaking ability on the
football. He’s a player that, the more we watched, the more we loved. We know he’s coming
from Delaware, but he stepped up and played very well in the senior bowl.” Chargers GM, Tom
Telesco, said in a NFL Network interview.
The Chargers have had a need at the Safety position for a few years now, addressing the issue by
drafting Safety Derwin James in the first round last year and now drafting Adderley in the
second of this year. Only three other Safeties were drafted ahead of Adderley this year, making
him the fourth picked safety.
“I don’t know if he is going to walk in as a starter, but he’ll come in and compete for the job and
take it as far as he can go.” Said Telesco.
According to Business Insider, the average pay for a second round selection in 2017 was around
5.1 million over four years. Even if Adderley signs a contract to be on the lower end of that
spectrum making 4 million in total, he will still make more yearly than any other entry-level
student graduating from UD will. This will make intercepting quarterbacks and tackling wide
receivers the most lucrative entry-level job of any Delaware graduate this year.
While Adderley was the only Delaware player drafted last week, he was not the only player to
get a shot to make an NFL roster. Tight end Charles Scarff signed an undrafted free agent deal
with the Baltimore Ravens, and Linebacker Troy Reeder signed an undrafted free agent deal with
the Los Angeles Rams as well. Reeder had an impressive Pro Day boasting an 11’2 broad jump
and a 37 1/2 inch vertical jump.

Joe Walker catches a pass against Cornell University.

Other players that have a chance to prove themselves with NFL teams through camp invites
include Joe Walker (WR) with the Chicago Bears, Vinny Papale Jr. (WR) with the Oakland
Raiders, Tenny Adewusi (DB) with the New York Giants and Noah Beh (OL) with the Kansas
City Chiefs. These players are not yet signed to a long-term contract, but are invited to practice
at team camps to prove their worth and earn a potential roster spot.
A familiar name on that list would be Papale at Wide receiver. His father, Vincent Papale Sr.
famously played a few seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles in the late 1970’s. The movie
Invincible, starring Mark Wahlberg, highlighted his efforts in trying out for the Eagles team
during publicly opened practices and making the team as a Special Teams player.
 Team celebrating a win.
All players, excluding Adderley, will have an uphill battle in trying to make the NFL’s
maximum 90 man roster, that will have to be cut down to only 53 players before the season starts
up in September. The difficult part of finding a team to invite or sign these young guys is now
over, but competing against skilled veterans and roster hungry rookies like themselves means
that there isn’t any time to celebrate just yet.