5 intriguing player-team fits with Utah ties in 2024 NFL draft class

brandon judd

Mon, Apr 29, 2024, 1:20 PM·11 min read

Utah Utes safety Cole Bishop participates in spring practice in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, March 21, 2023. Bishop was a second-round draft pick by the Buffalo Bills, where the former Utes star could start as a rookie. | Hunter Dyke, Utah Athletics

When it comes to the NFL draft, the organization that drafts a given prospect is almost as important — if not more so — as when they are drafted.

Team fit plays a critical role in how these young players develop in their professional careers.

In the 2024 NFL draft class, there are 29 rookies in total with Utah ties (and perhaps more on the way) who are getting an opportunity to find their role in the league.

These five players, in particular, find themselves in interesting situations where how they fit in will play out over the next several months leading up to their first season as a pro.

Cole Bishop, S, Utah

For a variety of reasons, Bishop heading to Buffalo is intriguing. The Bills drafted him with the 60th overall selection in the second round, a spot the talented former Ute had been linked to in a variety of mock drafts.

For starters, he’s reuniting with former Utah teammate Dalton Kincaid, a 2023 first-rounder who made a big impact as a rookie at tight end.

“I got to meet with them a couple of times during the combine … then having a couple Zooms throughout the process with my guy Dalton out there. I was always hoping that that would be a possibility. So super awesome when I got that call,” Bishop said during his introductory press conference.

The 6-foot-2 Bishop, like Kincaid, could be counted upon early with the Bills.

Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde, the 33-year-old multiyear starters in Buffalo, are both gone.

Poyer signed a one-year deal with the Miami Dolphins this offseason, while Hyde is still a free agent and could rejoin the team.

The two combined for over 200 starts during their seven years together in Buffalo, leaving a sizable hole in the Bills’ secondary.

Bishop brings youth and athleticism to Buffalo’s secondary, and he’ll compete with fellow safeties Taylor Rapp (who earned four starts last year and signed a three-year deal this offseason) and Mike Edwards for valuable reps.

“Without Poyer and possibly Hyde for the first time since (coach Sean) McDermott and (general manager) Brandon Beane arrived, the Bills desperately needed an infusion of a high-end safety prospect that could be a long-term starter. Bishop enters the equation with an opportunity to start as early as 2024,” The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia wrote.

“Showing explosiveness, athleticism, heady instincts and taking some aggressive playmaking chances, Bishop has the versatility the team covets and likely slots in as a baseline free safety early in his career. This is the highest pick Beane has made on a safety in his Bills tenure.”

Kingsley Suamataia, E'Maurion Banks — BYU offensive lineman Kingsley Suamataia, left, defends against Texas Tech defensive lineman E'Maurion Banks (98) during a game, Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023, in Provo, Utah. | Rick Bowmer

Kingsley Suamataia, OT, BYU and Orem High

Suamataia may have landed in the perfect spot for a former BYU lineman — with former Cougar lineman and now Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid.

It’s the first time since the three-time Super Bowl champion Reid took over as coach that the Chiefs have selected a BYU player in the draft. They traded up one spot to take him 63rd overall in the second round.

Suamataia is seen as a raw talent that could take some time to develop, and in that sense, going to Kansas City poses the potential for him to get thrown into the fire too early and struggle — CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso called him a “boom or bust prospect” while giving his selection a B grade.

Then again, there are likely to be valuable reps to be earned for the 6-foot-5, 326-pound Suamataia, who started his college career at Oregon.

While Jawaan Taylor is established as the Chiefs’ right tackle — he started all 17 games last season and is in the second year of a four-year contract — left tackle is open with last year’s starter, Donovan Smith, currently a free agent.

Suamataia will likely battle with second-year pro Wanya Morris for the starting left tackle position, or Kansas City could re-sign Smith if the youngsters’ development is coming along slowly.

ESPN’s Jordan Reid pegged Suamataia’s selection as his favorite pick of the draft, citing Kansas City’s ability to trust young offensive linemen to perform well early in their careers.

“I’m going with an under-the-radar move here. In the aforementioned deep offensive tackle class, Suamataia got a bit lost in the shuffle. But he ultimately landed in the perfect spot in Kansas City,” Reid wrote.

“The Chiefs have a huge need at left tackle, and they don’t shy away from playing offensive linemen early; they saw near-immediate success from Creed Humphrey and Trey Smith on the interior. So, Suamataia has the potential to contribute as a rookie. He has exciting traits, including lower-half suddenness, and certainly could develop into a dependable starter.”

Steven Jones
Jackson Powers-Johnson — Oregon offensive linemen Steven Jones, left, and Jackson Powers-Johnson, right, at the school's NFL pro day, Tuesday, March 12, 2024, in Eugene, Ore. | Amanda Loman

Jackson Powers-Johnson, IOL, Corner Canyon High

Powers-Johnson was an All-American center for Oregon last year and won the Rimington Trophy, given annually to the nation’s premier collegiate center, but he’s switching over to guard to start his NFL career after the Las Vegas Raiders took him with the 44th overall pick in the second round.

That’s because Las Vegas already has a veteran center — former Herriman High star Andre James signed a three-year, $24 million contract this offseason and has started the past three seasons for the Raiders after going undrafted in 2019.

Powers-Johnson could slide into the starting right tackle position that’s currently vacant, with last year’s starter — the 34-year-old Greg Van Roten — still a free agent. Jordan Meredith, who’s spent the past two seasons with Las Vegas after going undrafted, could also challenge for the job.

At left guard, third-year pro Dylan Parham has started every game in his first two seasons and is back.

It’s pretty clear, though, that Powers-Johnson is in a solid position to start as a rookie.

“This is a very, very tough football player and a guy who will advance the culture. Love this pick,” wrote The Athletic’s Nick Baumgardner.

Utah Utes defensive end Jonah Elliss (83) tries to block a pass by Oregon Ducks quarterback Bo Nix (10) in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023. Oregon won 35-6. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Jonah Elliss, Edge, Utah

Second-year Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton is familiar with the Elliss family after Jonah’s older brother Kaden played for Payton in New Orleans.

The Elliss clan, which has now produced four NFL-playing sons, started, of course, with former first-round draft pick and father, Luther Elliss, who played his final season in Denver and was the team’s chaplain for a time.

That gives Jonah Elliss some connections going into the Broncos organization, after the team used the 76th overall pick in the third round to select him.

He played defensive end at Utah, but with his 246-pound frame, Elliss projects more as an outside linebacker for the Broncos.

There is plenty of competition to be had among Denver’s top linebacking pass rushers — Jonathan Cooper (the team’s sack leader in 2023), Nik Bonitto and Baron Browning are all on their rookie contracts, as is inside linebacker Drew Sanders.

That could be both good and bad for Elliss, who had 12 sacks last season in 10 games, as he tries to establish a role early in his career with Denver; the Broncos finished tied for 21st in the league last season with 42 sacks as a team.

“Elliss is a supercharged edge rusher with untapped potential around the corner,” CBS Sports’ Trapasso said.

BYU quarterback Kedon Slovis passes the ball during the first half of a game against Kansas Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, in Lawrence, Kan. | Charlie Riedel, Associated Press

Kedon Slovis, QB, BYU

Slovis was one of the first names to show up in reports as an undrafted signee after he didn’t hear his name called in the draft, and according to NFL insider Aaron Wilson, he earned a $30,000 bonus in signing with the Indianapolis Colts.

Make no mistake: Slovis has an uphill battle just to make the practice squad in Indianapolis, after the former USC and Pittsburgh quarterback made his way to BYU for his final collegiate season. His dwindling numbers as his college career advanced do him no favors.

Slovis, though, enters a situation in Indianapolis where there are opportunities, just not likely at making the 53-man roster. Anthony Richardson, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2023 draft, is the team’s future at QB, while 39-year-old Joe Flacco joined the Colts on a one-year deal after filling in admirably for Cleveland last season.

The other quarterback on Indianapolis’ roster is Sam Ehlinger, a fourth-year pro who was a sixth-round pick in 2021. He started three games for the Colts during their trying 2022 season, which led to a coaching change.

If Slovis wants to have a chance to stick around as a probable practice squad guy, he’ll need to outperform Ehlinger, who has a year head start in coach Shane Steichen’s system.

Rookies with Utah ties getting NFL opportunities

There are 29 rookies in total with Utah ties — eight draft picks, 17 free agents and four mini-camp invites — that are getting a chance with an NFL team, according to various reports as of Monday morning.

Here’s the full list as it stands now: