Great teams build their offensive and defensive lines before worrying about any other facet of their team. The Stallions are no different, and their ability to identify talent on both the offensive and defensive lines has never been more obvious than this offseason as they have watched seven different linemen or pass rushers have inked NFL contracts after first signing with the Stallions. Six of these players saw snaps with the Stallions in 2024, and the seventh signed with the Stallions after the 2024 season concluded.
Matt Kaskey OL, St. Louis Rams
Matt Kaskey has returned to the Rams 4 years after he first signed there as an undrafted free agent in 2019. While he did not make it past final cuts that year, he may have a better chance now.
Kaskey may have spent his first training camp in Los Angeles but much of his first three seasons ended up being spent with the Carolina Panthers. This meant he got to learn under long-time offensive line coach John Matsko who has been coaching offensive line since the mid 70’s at the college or professional level. He also worked with assistant OL coach and former NFL lineman Travelle Wharton. He even lived through the transition to Matt Rhule from Ron Rivera.
That meant in 2020 he would have a new offensive line coach. While not as versed in the position as Matsko, few are. Pat Meyer took over after 9 seasons as an offensive line coach at the college or professional level. He also had two years with Buffalo as an offensive assistant. His assistant in 2020 was Marcus Satterfield who was hired as an offensive coordinator at South Carolina after just 1 season with the Panthers. In 2021 they brought in Tony Sparano Jr. as the assistant offensive line coach a title he held with Jacksonville since 2017. During this stretch, he also got to watch Taylor Moton develop into one of the best tackles in the league.
Unfortunately, his three-season run came to an end in late December of 2021. This left him without a home for nearly a calendar year until Birmingham brought him in for the 2023 season. Before signing with the Stallions he had played just 135 snaps in the preseason in part due to Covid canceling the preseason in 2020. Sitting out in 2022 didn’t help his case either. Kaskey needed to play and prove he could do it at a high level.
After only 135 snaps in three years in the NFL, the Stallions gave him 516 offensive snaps in his first USFL season. Per Pff.com he graded out at a 73.4 overall, allowing just 1 sack and 12 pressures on 310 pass blocking snaps. He was not called for a single penalty on the year and showed versatility playing right guard and right tackle. This helped him find NFL interest once again signing with the Los Angeles Chargers as a swing tackle and saw 34 snaps split between left and right tackle in the preseason before he was let go in final cuts.
He opted to return to the Stallions but didn’t sign until November 23rd hoping he would find another NFL team before the year ended. He would go on to play 380 snaps for the Stallions. He allowed 10 pressures, 1 sack, and was called for 2 penalties leading to his overall grade dropping to 71.5. Serving as a 6th offensive lineman he played snaps at every position other than center. He was also used as an extra lineman on 8 snaps
Rams Depth Chart Ourlads.com
Looking at the depth chart on Ourlads.com the Rams have a lot of depth on the offensive line and specifically at tackle where Kaskey is listed as the 4th string right tackle. Also signed was Connor McDermott who is listed as the 4th string left tackle. McDermott has been bouncing around the AFC East since he was drafted in the 6th round of the 2017 NFL Draft. He could have a slight advantage in this competition. Since 2022 the Rams have spent 6 draft picks on the offensive line so this will be an uphill battle for both men coming in this late. We could very well see Kaskey return to the UFL even if he latches on with a practice squad in 2024.
Armani Taylor-Prioleau, Washington Commanders
Taylor has been signed by the Washington Commanders ironically replacing former USFL player Alex Akingbulu who was released the same day. Akingbulu played against the Stallions in the USFL Championship in 2022. Losing by 3 points but winning an NFL Contract that lasted for two years.
Armani, also known as Alex sighed with the Stallions after the 2023 NFL season having spent the previous four years bouncing around on the bottom end of a few NFL teams. Taylor was released by his 3rd NFL team the Dallas Cowboys after spending parts of two seasons with them. He wouldn’t spend long on the open market before deciding to sign with the Stallions. Released on October 23rd, he was signed by Birmingham on December 26th.
Alex Taylor made a calculated decision to try and elevate his stock in the NFL by going to the UFL, and it paid off after he played in 10 total games, seeing 525 snaps on offense and special teams, and winning a UFL Championship. Now he signs with his second NFC East team in two years with a bit more money in his pocket and a Championship ring on its way.
Taylor’s chances of making it on the Commanders’ practice squad will be determined entirely by his preseason play. Slotting in as the 3rd left tackle, it may not be a direct competition but there are two other tackles on the roster penciled in as depth on the right side with Braeden Daniels, and David Nwaogwugwu. He will have to likely beat them both out to get an opportunity.
Joshua Pryor, DL Cincinnati Bengals
Joshua Pryor is back in the NFL. One of many NFL bouncebacks from the Stallions, he is now the 11th total player to sign an NFL contract. Technically, Pryor was signed this offseason after the Stallions had already lost Dondrea Tillman to the Broncos. Looking to add a player who could step in and add depth or potentially compete for a starting job, instead, he will compete for an NFL roster spot before playing in the UFL.
Pryor spent most of 2023 with the Commanders. Signing as a priority free agent following the draft he spent camp with the Commanders, but was let go in final cuts. During the preseason he played in 34 snaps including 29 pass rush snaps. All of his snaps come at the outside defensive end. He had 1 solo tackle, 1 assist, and 1 missed tackle. He didn’t return to the practice squad until October before being called up for three games during the season. He did not see in-game snaps during the regular season according to pff.com.
Now Pryor gets another opportunity to try and stick with an NFL team knowing he will likely be welcomed back to the Stallions if he doesn’t secure a long-term roster spot. Pryor waited just over two months to sign a UFL contract after Washington let him go. Cincinnati has lost so many defensive linemen to injury as of late, that they have loaded up adding three defensive tackles just this week. Including Andre Carter, and Carlos Davis another Stallion.
Carlos Davis DT, Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals have now signed two defensive linemen from the Stallions’ projected 2025 roster. Will either return? Let’s hope they get a chance to stick long-term in the NFL. Given the injuries that are adding up in Cincinnati, they may have a chance of coexisting on the roster.
Trey Hendrickson, one of many banged-up defensive linemen just returned to practice yesterday, while another defender is listed as day-to-day. Cam Sample was placed on injured reserve and will likely miss the majority of the 2024 season. This prompted the Bengals to sign Andre Carter and Joshua Pryor. Now they have signed Carlos Davis as well. Davis was one of the most dominant defensive linemen in the UFL in 2024, and that’s as a 320-pound defensive tackle.
Able to play in a 3-4, or a 4-3 defense due to his size and athletic ability Davis mentioned he prefers to play in a 4-3 scheme where he is allowed to attack the offense and not used to eat up blocks. He was quick to reiterate that he can do either, but after his performance with the Stallions this season, it becomes clear he is a lot more productive when allowed to push the pocket and get into the backfield.
Playing 406 snaps he saw 286 pass rush snaps. He would produce 10 hurries, 8 sacks, and 6 QB hits. He batted down 1 pass, and forced a fumble. This included a 3 sack game early in the season. Not only can he play defense but he is capable of being a regular contributor on special teams seeing snaps on the field goal/extra point unit as a blocker, on the punt return/punt block unit as well as on the field goal blocking unit. He played 43 snaps on special teams being graded at 64.6 per PFF.com.
Davis is quality depth at this point in training camp and should prove to be an extremely valuable player for the Bengals during the preseason, and hopefully into the season. Davis and Pryor weren’t the only defensive linemen to be signed by the NFL this week. Jonathan Garvin another Stallions’ player has now inked an NFL Contract with the San Francisco 49ers.
Jonathan Garvin, DE San Francisco 49ers
Jonathan Garvin is a defensive end/linebacker who was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 7th round of the 2020 NFL Draft. He would spend parts of the next four years with the Packers before being let go before the 2023 NFL season. During his time with the Packers, he would be made active for 38 games over his first three seasons with the Packers. He was able to collect 32 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and 2 pass deflections. This however doesn’t tell the full story of his production. This picture becomes a lot more clear thanks to PFF.com.
Garvin played a total of 675 snaps for the Packers including 368 pass rushing, and 31 coverage snaps. On those 368 snaps as a pass rusher, he produced 25 hurries and 6 quarterback hits. On his 31 coverage snaps, he was targeted 4 times allowing 4 receptions. He also produced 10 stops in the run game as well. He was also utilized on the punt and kick return teams, as well as the field goal-blocking unit as well.
He was released late in July of 2023 and did not return to Green Bay again. He did however receive several workouts after being released including the Raiders, Browns, and Steelers but did not sign a contract with anyone before he opted to sign with the Stallions on March 14th, 2024. Playing for the Stallions, Garvin was used all over the defense seeing snaps as a defensive tackle, defensive end, and both right and left outside linebacker positions.
Garvin can be a valuable contributor for the 49ers after they placed Austin Bryant on injured reserve, as well as Drake Jackson and Dre Greenlaw on the physically unable-to-perform list. They had also released Raymond Johnson III back in early June without signing any other defensive linemen or linebackers since bringing in Shakel Brown back in early May. This bodes well for Garvin’s chances to at least make the practice squad to begin the 2024 season due to his versatility.
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