The Las Vegas Raiders have signed former Kentucky nose tackle Marquan McCall to its practice squad, it was reported recently by Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report.
McCall was claimed by the New England Patriots in August but released a day later after failing a physical. He has not played in an NFL game this season after recording 15 total tackles and two tackles for loss for the Carolina Panthers after making the team as an undrafted free agent last season.
Listed at 379 pounds, McCall may be able to help bolster a Raiders run defense that ranks 23rd in the NFL.
McCall signed with Kentucky as a member of its 2018 signing class as a highly coveted recruit. Listed as an offensive guard, McCall was ranked the 196th best prospect in the nation, the sixth-best offensive guard and the third ranked player in the state of Michigan.
Primarily recruited by then UK defensive backs coach Steve Clinkscale, McCall chose Kentucky over offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee and several others.
Shifting his focus to the defensive side of the ball and the nose guard position, McCall was an instant contributor for the Wildcats as a freshman in 2018.
He played in eight games, making three tackles, a sack, 1.5 tackles for loss and a forced fumble. His sack was a strip sack against Murray State in a lopsided Wildcat win.
As a sophomore in 2019, McCall played in all 13 games. He recorded 21 total tackles, four tackles for loss, a fumble recovery, a quarterback hurry and a pass breakup.
He logged two tackles for loss, four total tackles and a quarterback hit against Tennessee-Martin, had a tackle for loss against both Florida and Louisville and recovered a Ty Chandler fumble against Tennessee.
During the COVID-shortened 2020 season, he played in 10 of the Wildcats’ 11 games and started three.
He made a single season career-high 22 tackles on the year, a tackle for loss, recovered a fumble and logged half a sack playing exclusively against SEC foes.
McCall logged a single-game career-high six tackles against Missouri in his first collegiate start, split a sack of Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral with JJ Weaver and recovered a Jarrett Guarantano fumble in Kentucky’s first win over Tennessee at Neyland Stadium since 1984.
Before his senior season of 2021, McCall worked on his body, dropping from 381 pounds to 344.
An ankle injury cost him four games, but he still managed to play nine games and start eight. On the year, he recorded nine total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and had two quarterback hurries.
He was invited to the East-West Shrine Bowl and, after going undrafted during the 2022 NFL Draft, signed as a free agent with the Carolina Panthers, who he will join for training camp this summer. There, he reunites with Phil Hoskins, who he played next to on Kentucky’s defensive line during the 2018 and 2020 seasons.
In total, McCall, a four-time bowl champion, recorded 57 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, three quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and one pass breakup in 40 games and 11 career starts as a Wildcat.
McCall was ranked by CatsPause.com‘s Aaron Gershon as the No. 62 Kentucky player in the Mark Stoops era.
Jim Harbaugh reportedly drawing NFL interest from Raiders, Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are interested in Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, joining the Las Vegas Raiders as NFL teams intrigued by the idea of landing the reigning Big Ten champion, according to CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora. Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, a Michigan alumnus and major donor, could try and lure Harbaugh to Miami if he’s interested, La Canfora reports through sources.
“Ross has long coveted Harbaugh and, at this stage of his life with a succession plan for ownership already in place, passing on Harbaugh might be difficult,” La Canfora wrote Saturday. “Harbaugh also played for the Bears and is well known at Halas Hall, with that franchise pondering sweeping changes and considering a multitude of former players for a multitude of roles.”
Reports surrounding the possibility of Harbaugh leaving Michigan for a return to the NFL continues to increase in the days following the Wolverines’ run to a Big Ten Championship and College Football Playoff appearance this season, the veteran coach’s best at the program.
Seemingly an annual talking point, the first reports linking Harbaugh to a possible return to the NFL with the Raiders came via The Athletic. Harbaugh restructured his contract at Michigan and took a pay-cut ahead of the 2021 season before taking the program to new heights with a memorable campaign.
According to The Michigan Insider, Harbaugh did not dodge the NFL question when asked by a recruit last month. The parents of the player told The Michigan Insider they had no choice but to respect Harbaugh for his honesty.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport joined The Rich Eisen Show on Friday, speculating that the rumors were more about Harbaugh seeking a pay raise, rather than having significant interest in leaving. The chatter began earlier this week, following Bruce Feldman’s report of potential interest in both the Raiders and Chicago Bears.
“I would say, to me, it seems like he’s in a similar situation as last year where, you know, is he interested in looking at the greener grass in the NFL? I think he probably would look,” Rapoport said. “It seems to me — and I don’t mean this in any way toward anything that was reported — but when someone takes a pay cut, and then gets to shove it where the sun no longer like to shine, it’s like we just said, usually it’s about money, right?
So, yes, he said all the very nice things about a pay cut, but is he using the leverage of the media to say, ‘Hey, I’d like a lot more money or I’ll go to the NFL.’ I’m not saying that’s what’s behind it, but I’m just saying, you know, that makes a lot of sense.”
