BC’s Top-Five Potential 2022 UDFAs

Do-it-all Boston College offensive lineman Zion Johnson is poised to become the Eagles’ 21st first-round pick Thursday. He’s the face of this BC draft class, no doubt.

Then there’s center Alec Lindstrom, whose older brother, Chris, was BC’s most recent first rounder. The younger Lindstrom is projected as an early Day Three selection.

If Johnson and Lindstrom are both drafted, it will mark the first time since 2015 that BC had two O-Linemen picked in the same year. Back then, both Ian Silberman and Andy Gallik heard their names called.

It would also be the eighth time in the last nine years that the Eagles had two NFL Draft selections. The lone exception in that span was 2020 when star running back AJ Dillon—picked in the second round by the Green Bay Packers—was BC’s only draftee.

Even though Johnson and Lindstrom have the best chances to get selected in this year’s draft, there are other capable Eagles who could find themselves on an active NFL roster this coming season.

It’s time to rank BC’s top-five potential undrafted free agents:

Graham-Mobley has a shot at landing somewhere on Day Three, but, most likely, he’ll end up somewhere as an undrafted free agent. While his college production paled in comparison to former BC linebacker Max Richardson, he’s more athletic and possesses similar, if not better, special teams versatility. After all, that’s where Graham-Mobley started his career at Temple. It was in that phase of the game that he recovered a Michael Walker kick return fumble for six at BC back in 2018. Graham-Mobley, who was hobbled by injuries in 2019 and 2020, transferred to BC after five years at Temple.

He stepped into Richardson’s role as the Eagles’ middle linebacker. Before he suffered a stinger, he was the team’s leading tackler. That injury cost him three games, except he returned for the final two outings and finished the season with 52 total tackles, including 34 solos, the fourth most on the team.

Barlow was arguably the Eagles’ biggest Pro Day winner. The six-year BC veteran quietly put together a nice “Super Senior” season in 2021. He shattered his career Pro Football Focus marks, logging a 76.7 defensive grade, an 86.8 run defense score and a 64.2 coverage grade. While Barlow didn’t generate noteworthy pass rush (0.5 sacks, 15 pressures), he proved to be a great run defender and even slid over to the tackle position for a career-high 34 snaps.

He posted an impressive 4.1% missed tackle rate and, on Pro Day, flashed great speed in the three-cone (7.16, unofficial) and 40-yard dash (4.84, unofficial). Don’t be surprised to see him as an outside linebacker at the next level trying to make the jump from practice squad to active roster.

Sebastian is the kind of player teams will take a flier on because of his quickness, ball skills and rich starting experience. But he’ll have to prove he belongs in the preseason. Sebastian showed out at the East-West Shrine Bowl, particularly during the practice week in 1-on-1 coverage drills. He also was tracked as the fastest player (20.97 miles per hour) in the all-star game this year.

Sebastian’s BC tape is filled with highlight-reel plays. Like when he picked off Virginia Tech’s Ryan Willis near the sideline in the second half of a “College GameDay”-clinching victory in 2018. Or when he returned a blocked field goal for a touchdown in the following year’s Birmingham Bowl. Or when he took a Travis Etienne fumble 97 yards to the end zone during BC’s upset bid at Clemson in 2020. And then there was his game-winning interception in overtime against Missouri this past season. You get the point. He’s a gamer.

But his PFF defensive and coverage grades went down practically every season. In 2021, he posted a career-worst 21.1% missed tackle rate and allowed a career-high 17.8 yards per reception. Greater consistency will be key for Sebastian in the NFL. He can’t rely on takeaways to mask his coverage deficiencies.

Vrabel was a three-year starter for BC, and he spent two of those years protecting the blind side. He was part of a veteran offensive line that started 34 games together. And with Johnson, Lindstrom and Ben Petrula on their way out, Vrabel decided it was time for him to take the next step, too, even though he had another year of eligibility remaining.

As a redshirt freshman, Vrabel didn’t allow a single sack. He was also part of an O-Line that paved the way for an eighth-ranked rushing attack that was piloted by the pairing of AJ Dillon and David Bailey.

A shoulder injury ahead of the 2020 campaign prompted then-offensive line coach Matt Applebaum to move Vrabel to right tackle. As a result, BC’s entire O-Line was jumbled up amid a switch to a zone blocking scheme. Although the unit went through serious growing pains, Vrabel ultimately posted the best PFF pass blocking grade (81.3) of his career that season. Vrabel moved back to left tackle for 2021, except his stock took a big hit as he gave up a career-worst five sacks and 17 pressures in 10 games, per PFF. Not only that, but he battled a knee injury and an upper-body injury.

The prospect of a healthy Vrabel will get a team to bite. The name can’t hurt, either.

Several months ago, Barry’s name would have been much higher on this list. Actually, it might not have been on here at all. Heading into the 2021 season, it appeared as if the FCS playmaker could be a Day Two draft selection, similar to former BC tight end Hunter Long. We’ll never know exactly what could have been because quarterback Phil Jurkovec suffered a season-threatening fracture to his throwing hand Week 2 at UMass that wound up affecting Barry’s numbers.

After piling up 100 career receptions at Jacksonville State in Alabama, Barry caught 21 balls as a BC grad transfer for 362 yards and four touchdowns. The thing is, Barry is a pass-catching tight end. Although his blocking improved while he was with the Eagles, it’s still a weak point in his game—he registered a 53.0 PFF run blocking grade in 2021. And, as eye-catching as his 6-foot-6, 244-pound frame is, his Pro Day stats left a lot to be desired.

Barry didn’t help his cause with a 25.5-inch vertical and a 4.90 40-yard dash (both unofficial).

Carlson started the 2021 season with a boom. After his Week 3 performance at Temple, he was crowned ACC Specialist of the Week. Against the Owls, he averaged 51.4 yards per punt, with a long of 62. At that point, Carlson was tied for first in the ACC with five punts of 50-plus yards.

The graduate punter hit a speedbump at the start of conference play, however. Most notably, he muffed a snap against North Carolina State that led to a game-changing scoop-and-score for the Wolfpack. The following week at Louisville, he shanked a 19-yard punt. Then, at Syracuse, he didn’t put enough hang time on a punt that resulted in a Courtney Jackson return to the house.

Still, Carlson finished the season fifth in the ACC in punt average (44.2 yards per boot), which was a significant improvement from two of the previous three years, in which he ranked in the bottom three of qualifying ACC punters in punt average. Also, he was tied for fourth in the league in 50-plus-yard punts (17) and tied for seventh in punts inside the 20-yard line (18). His hangtime dipped to 3.70 after hovering at a career-high 3.85 in 2020.