The Memphis Showboats are one of the eight teams that will be a part of the United Football League (UFL), which was born from the XFL-USFL merger. Last Friday, the first two phases of the dispersal draft were held. Each team was allowed to protect 42 players on their roster. In addition, the XFL teams were able to draft up to 20 players from the dissolving XFL teams. The same was done for the USFL teams. On Monday, the results of the dispersal draft were announced.
Memphis Showboats Dispersal Draft Results
Here are the players that the Memphis Showboats currently have on the roster after the first two phases of the dispersal draft.
Delrick Abrams Jr | CB | Colorado | |
Jonathan Adams | WR | Arkansas St | NO |
John Atkins Sr | NT | Georgia | |
Dee Anderson | WR | Alabama A&M | NO |
Clayton Bradley | OT | UNLV | |
Jordan Brailford | OLB | Oklahoma St | NO |
Kennedy Brooks | RB | Oklahoma | PHI |
Josiah Bronson | DE | Washington | |
Anthony Butler | ILB | Liberty | |
Connor Christian | DT | Jacksonville St | NO |
Case Cookus | QB | N. Arizona | PHI |
D.J. Daniel | CB | Georgia | NJ |
Rashard Davis | WR | James Madison | |
Daewood Davis | WR | W. Kentucky | |
Vontae Diggs | OLB | Connecticut | NO |
Derrick Dillon | WR | LSU | |
Jarey Elder | S | West Chester (Pa.) | NO |
Michael Ezeike | TE | UCLA | |
Dillon Faamatau | DT | Oklahoma | |
Jordan Ferguson | DE | Middle Tennessee St | |
T.J. Green | S | Clemson | |
P.J. Hall | DE | Sam Houston St | |
Kolin Hill | OLB | Texas Tech | NJ |
Tyran Hunt | OG | Old Dominion | |
Jarron Jones | OL | Notre Dame | |
Cole Kelley | QB | SE Louisiana | |
Kirk Kelley | OG | Troy | NO |
Alex Kessman | K | Pittsburgh | |
Malik Lawal | OLB | Tulane | |
Chance Lytle | OG | Duke | |
Daylon Mack | NT | Texas A&M | |
Jordan McCray | OC | UCF | |
Jeff McCulloch | EDGE | Texas | |
Ryan McDaniel | WR | N.C. Central | |
Lukayus McNeil | OT | Louisville | |
Lamont McPhatter II | FS | California (Pa.) | |
Quenton Meeks | CB | Stanford | |
John Mitchell | TE | Florida Atlantic | |
Dylan Moses | ILB | Alabama | |
Guy Myers | QB | Charleston (W. Va.) | |
TJ Neal | OLB | Auburn | |
Diondre Overton | WR | Clemson | PIT |
Vinny Papale | WR | Delaware | NO |
Darrin Paulo | OT | Utah | |
Terry Poole | OT | San Diego St | PIT |
Terronne Prescod | OT | North Carolina St | |
Greg Reaves | OLB | South Florida | |
Tyshun Render | Edge | Middle Tennessee St | NJ |
Shaheed Salmon | LB | Samford | NO |
Wes Saxton Jr | TE | South Alabama | NJ |
Nehemiah Shelton | CB | San Jose St | |
Sage Surratt | TE | Wake Forest | NO |
Jeremiah Valoaga | DE | UNLV | |
Darius Victor | RB | Towson | NJ |
Troy Warner | S | BYU | |
Sidney Wells | OT | UAB | NO |
Kerrith Whyte | RB | Florida Atlantic | |
Jordan Williams | DE | Virginia Tech | |
Ryan Willis | QB | Virginia Tech | |
Jay Jay Wilson | TE | Arizona St | |
Kyree Woods | S | San Diego St | |
Brandon Wright | P | Georgia St |
The third column signifies players whom the Showboats picked up in phase two of the dispersal draft and what team they came from.
3 Key Players From Phase 1
The best piece the Showboats protected was wide receiver and kick returner Derrick Dillon. He caught 28 passes for 340 yards and one touchdown but was dangerous in the return game. Dillon racked up 753 return yards, including one 90-yard house call. The fact that he was a multi-faceted player made him a must-protect. The Showboats kept their focus on special teams when they protected kicker Alex Kessman. While he only went 10/13 on the year, he was 4/4 from 50+, which is huge for a team that struggled to score points at times.
Memphis also kept the back end of the defense intact by protecting safety Kyree Woods. Woods was tied for the team lead with two interceptions. His tackling was also superb, as 15 of his 19 tackles were solo. If offensive players made it to that level, Woods made sure that they stopped there. The Showboats didn’t have any player that jumped off the page but simply had a lot of solid pieces. They kept a lot of those solid pieces for next season.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7E4gmBYwT8?si=Z7B8_8eQfwFfZ-m2
Key Player Added In Phase 2
The Showboats’ quarterback play left much to be desired. In phase two, they took former Philadelphia Stars quarterback Case Cookus. His stats won’t jump off the page as he only threw for 2,295 yards, 15 touchdowns, and nine interceptions. However, Cookus was sacked 28 times last season. Memphis may be hoping that if they can give Cookus a cleaner pocket, he will be able to limit the mistakes and be in a better position for success. There is nothing more devastating than a sack on offense. It makes it very hard for the quarterback and the offense to be successful.
The Memphis Showboats are hoping that they can find success in the UFL. They had lots of solid pieces but were never able to translate that into winning. They have another opportunity, if phase three, to find some hidden gems and compete in the spring.
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Matt has been following sports since he was a kid. While football is his main focus, Matt can talk about any sport at any time. He is currently a banker in Wisconsin and hosts two podcasts, Beers and Ears & Discontinued on Display. Follow him on Twitter at @sorcerermatt, and follow us @TotalApexSports. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest in ALL sports, click here!