This is the second of my two-part look at every NFL team’s deepest position groups heading into training camp to see where top-level UFL talent may come from for the 2026 season. This is the NFC edition; the AFC edition can be found here.
This is the fourth year I’ve tackled this subject. In last year’s NFC column, players I mentioned that ended up in the UFL this past season include RB Jaden Shirden, LS Cameron Lyons and CB Keenan Isaac.
Arizona Cardinals
Offensive Line: There are question marks in the starting lineup for Arizona’s offensive line, where right guard and right tackle both may be up for grabs. Isaiah Adams is the early leader at RG with Jon Gaines, Royce Newman, and rookie Hayden Conner in the mix. At right tackle, Jonah Williams is coming off a season in which he played just six games due to injury. Christian Jones and Jake Curhan are depth at tackle, along with 35-year-old Kelvin Beachum. Further back on the depth chart are interesting names like Sincere Haynesworth, a College Draft pick of the San Antonio Brahmas last year; journeyman Nick Leverett; third-year player McClendon Curtis; and rookie free agent Josh Fryar from Ohio State.
Atlanta Falcons
Wide Receivers: Atlanta returns several of its top contributors at this spot from 2024, including their three starters. They added Jamal Agnew as a gadget player and to help in the return game. A host of players returning include KhaDarel Hodge, Casey Washington, Chris Blair and Dylan Drummond. They will likely have to make their mark on special teams to stick as backups. Then there are the new players signed this off-season like David Sills and Makai Polk who will try to make an impression this summer. Atlanta signed two rookie free agents worth mentioning: Nick Nash (San Jose State), who led the NCAA in receptions, receiving yardage and touchdowns in 2024; and Quincy Skinner, Jr. (Vanderbilt), a one-year starter for the Commodores.
Carolina Panthers
Linebackers: For the first time since 2014, Shaq Thompson does not appear on Carolina’s linebacker depth chart; After a decade with the Panthers, the 31-year-old was released and signed by the Buffalo Bills. Josey Jewell and Trevin Wallace were projected to be the new starters on the inside until Jewell was released on the eve of camp. He may return at some point this season. Until then, Christian Rozeboom will likely take his place, with a host of youngsters, including Claudin Cherelus, Jacoby Windmon and Jon Rhattigan vying for the third and fourth ILB spots. The pass rush was beefed up when Patrick Jones was signed as a free agent from Minnesota, and second and third round draft picks were spent on Nic Scourton and Princely Umanmielen. Amare Barno and Thomas Incoom are intriguing players at the back end of the OLB rotation, as is former Bills second round pick Boogie Basham.
Chicago Bears
Linebackers: T.J. Edwards and Tremaine Edmunds are entrenched as the starters at two linebacker spots. Surprise fourth round draft pick Ruben Hyppolite II, who many draftniks didn’t even have being drafted, will likely battle Noah Sewell for the third, “SAM” linebacker spot, though Chicago plays nickel so often their third LB will probably be on the field less than 50% of the time. What could potentially be the fifth and final linebacker spot will be decided among four players: Amen Ogbongbemiga, who played all 17 games as a special teamer last year; Carl Jones, Jr., a St. Louis Battlehawk College Draft pick from 2024; Swayze Bozeman, an undrafted free agent last year who spent much of the season on the practice squad of the Kansas City Chiefs; and Power Echols, an undersized but productive UDFA from North Carolina.
Dallas Cowboys
Tight Ends: The presence of fullback Hunter Luepke, who can double as a tight end, means Dallas could potentially keep just three tight ends this year. The clubhouse leaders to be the top three as camp opens are Jake Ferguson, Luke Schoonmaker and Brevyn Spann-Ford. While the first two are virtually locked in, Spann-Ford hasn’t produced so far like Dallas had hoped. He’ll have to beat out John Stephens, Jr. and Princeton Fant for the number three, and neither of those two have a deep track record of pro success though they’ve been able to hang around since both entered as UDFAs in 2023. Then there are two undrafted players from this year’s draft class in Tyler Neville and Rivaldo Fairweather. Neville set career-highs in receiving as a senior at Virginia in 2024 and Fairweather was an FIU transfer who finished out his playing days at Auburn.
Detroit Lions
Defensive Line: Success breeds instability in the NFL and nowhere was that more true this off-season than in Detroit. The team lost both its coordinators to head coaching jobs in 2025, meaning there will be a new defensive coordinator, as well as a new defensive line coach. Terrell Williams left to take a job under Mike Vrabel in New England. Enter Kacy Rodgers, longtime NFL D-Line coach who will work for new coordinator Kelvin Sheppard in Detroit this year. The Lions suffered major depth issues along the line last year and looked to solve that by adding two draft picks and two free agents. A couple of those players thrust into roles last season, like Myles Adams and Chris Smith, could be on the outside looking in this year. There’s some youth on the edge with guys like Nate Lynn, Mitchell Agude and Isaac Ukwu. A name to watch: Raequan Williams, a former terror at Michigan State who has struggled to find a consistent role in the NFL.
Green Bay Packers
Defensive Line: Green Bay’s defense improved significantly under first-year coordinator and former Boston College head coach Jeff Hafley. Right now, Green Bay employs a four-man base front and has 18 defensive linemen on the roster. There are several who may miss out on even practice squad spots, making them ripe for the UFL picking. Green Bay drafted Georgia’s Warren Brinson in the sixth round, then added his teammate Nazir Stackhouse as an undrafted free agent. Keith Randolph is a defensive tackle who might be fighting for a practice squad spot. Green Bay thinned out the herd here a little before camp opened, waiving two third-year tackles in Nesta Jade Silvera and Cameron Young. The ends are not as deep but there’s waiver pickup Arron Mosby and Deslin Alexandre who could be pushed out by 2025 draft picks.
Los Angeles Rams
Defensive Backs: Three undrafted free agents made the team in the defensive backfield alone last year in Los Angeles. That’s unlikely to happen again, and in fact none of those three are guaranteed roster spots this year. Working in their favor is that the Rams didn’t add any major free agents or spend any draft capital at corner or safety. Therefore, it’s a very “status quo” feel here. There are a couple of undrafted players in Malik Dixon-Williams and Nate Valcarcel, both at safety who could make things interesting. A.J. Green, Shaun Jolly, and Cam Lampkin were among the January futures signings at corner that will attempt to unseat some of the 2024 holdovers.
Minnesota Vikings
Quarterbacks: J.J. McCarthy was supposed to start as a rookie until a pre-season knee injury forced Minnesota to turn to Sam Darnold, who outperformed all expectations. The Vikings stuck to their original plan, not overpaying for Darnold and letting him walk in free agency, ready to go with McCarthy in 2025. They traded for Sam Howell to back McCarthy up. The number three QB will either be Brett Rypien or Max Brosmer. It could end up being one of the more fascinating competitions to watch in camp: Rypien is smart though athletically limited, playing 10 games in six years. He knows the system having been with the Vikings last year. Brosmer set FCS passing records while at New Hampshire before ending his college career at the University of Minnesota, so local fans will be rooting for him. He won’t be just a camp arm. He could also be on a UFL team’s College Draft radar.
New Orleans Saints
Special Teams: The Saints have two young specialists and both face competition in training camp. Blake Grupe heads into his third year as the team’s kicker and performed well last season. Northern Ireland’s Charlie Smyth, who was on the practice squad last season and is part of the NFL’s International Pathway Program, will have to have an exceptional camp to best Grupe for the job. We’ll see if he’s able to land on the practice squad for a second season. Matthew Hayball beat out Lou Hedley for the punting job last year and that job will be on the line again. Alabama’s James Burnip was signed after the draft to put some heat on Hayball. Burnip, an Australian, was also selected in the CFL’s Global Draft.
New York Giants
Wide Receivers: New York’s top receivers return from 2024, only this year, they’ll have Russell Wilson throwing to them. That should make the group appear better than they seemed last year when they had uneven at best quarterback play. The only signings in free agency were Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Zach Pascal, who will compete for back-end receiver jobs. It’s a key camp for 2023 third round pick Jalin Hyatt, whose roster spot could be in jeopardy after two subpar seasons. Pascal or Humphrey could be playing time beneficiaries if the Giants move on from Hyatt. There are five undrafted receivers in camp, with Da’Quan Felton being the biggest name. Beaux Collins and Juice Wells are two others who received big money guarantees to lure them to the Big Apple.
Philadelphia Eagles
Running Backs: It was a record-setting season for starter Saquon Barkley, who crossed over into superstardom amid Philadelphia’s championship run. A.J. Dillon and Will Shipley seem solidly entrenched as numbers two and three on the depth chart. It gets interesting after that. Avery Williams is likely to be the team’s prior punt and kick returner but is a non-factor from scrimmage. The team brought in former Jaguars draft pick Keilan Robinson, and his background is primarily as a returner, too. Lew Nichols has been on the periphery of the roster the last two seasons, but he was jettisoned off the roster in some recent shuffling. That makes it easier – not easy, but easier – for two undrafted free agents in ShunDerrick Powell, an FCS All-American who ran a 4.40 40-yard dash at his pro day, and equally fast Montrell Johnson, Jr., who averaged over five yards per carry in all four college seasons.
San Francisco 49ers
Defensive Backs: Robert Saleh is back for his second go-round leading San Francisco’s defense, returning after a failed stint as head coach of the New York Jets. The defensive backfield is being rebuilt, with four free agents and two draft picks being inserted into the 2025 mix. One of those free agent additions at safety, Jason Pinnock, is likely to start while Malik Mustapha recovers from January ACL surgery. Of those at risk of being left off the roster based on the new additions are 2023 fifth round pick Darrell Luter Jr. and special teams coverage maven George Odum (Odum, in fact, was released just before this column was published). Chase Lucas and Jaylen Mahoney are veterans vying for roles, joined by rookie UDFAs Derrick Canteen and Jakob Robinson.
Seattle Seahawks
Tight Ends: Pete Carroll is gone but the run-first attitude remains under second-year head coach Mike Macdonald. To that end, Seattle has converted two tight ends, Brady Russell and rookie Robbie Ouzts, to fullback. Even with them out of the picture, the tight end room is deep. Noah Fant, A.J. Barner and Elijah Arroyo are likely to be the top three at the position. If they keep a fourth, the clubhouse leader is Eric Saubert. That means two rookie free agents are competing for a practice squad spot. Perhaps not surprisingly, both are block-first players in Marshall Lang (48 career receptions in 47 college games) and Nick Kallerup (nine catches in seven starts as a senior). There has shown to be room on UFL rosters for tight ends with blocking prowess.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Defensive Line: Tampa operates out of a three-man base up front, and the three starting spots are secure. It’s a toss-up after that. Elijah Roberts was drafted in the fifth round, so he’s likely safe. Greg Gaines was the top backup last year and he returns. If the Bucs keep more than five, the sixth probably comes down to former Houston Roughneck C.J. Brewer, veteran Adam Gotsis, and a couple of inexperienced players in Mike Greene and Eric Banks. One or two may end up on the practice squad. As for rookie free agents, Tampa signed the 400+-pound Desmond Watson as well as Nebraska’s Nash Hutmacher, a country-strong battler with a high school wrestling background.
Washington Commanders
Running Backs: Washington kept three backs on its initial 53-man roster last year, and many prognosticators see the same number this year. If that’s the case, there will be some quality backs on the market. Brian Robinson, Jr. and Austin Ekeler are the top two but both have their warts: Ekeler suffered a severe concussion late last year and Robinson wore down as the season progressed. This makes the third back important, especially if they only keep three. Right now, that battle is between Jeremy McNichols, Chris Rodriguez, Jr. and rookie seventh rounder Jacory Croskey-Merritt. Croskey-Merritt seems a better bet for the practice squad, though a top performance in camp could change that calculus. Michael Wiley, a rookie last year drafted by the D.C. Defenders, was on the Commanders’ practice squad all season. He was cut on Tuesday. Another player with UFL ties, Demetric Felton (signed by Birmingham last November but ended up hanging around the NFL), seems like a longshot.