According to reports, the Detroit Lions have signed undrafted free agent OT Ryan Pope out of San Diego State to a deal which includes a whopping $145,000 guaranteed along with a $20,000 signing bonus.
The #Lions signed San Diego St OT Ryan Pope to one of the highest guaranteed deals of the year, source said. He gets $145K base guaranteed along with a $20k signing bonus.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 28, 2019
As noted by Erik Schlitt of Lions Wire, that is more than double what the Lions gave out to any UDFA in 2018 and they likely assume he will make the team.
Woah … that’s a big number. A number which usually is a good indicator on if the Lions think he’ll make the team. That’s well over double the highest guaranteed they gave out last year to any UDFA https://t.co/7bVZuLodV6
— Erik Schlitt (@erikschlitt) April 28, 2019
From NFL.com:
Pope came into his own at right tackle for the Aztecs as a senior, garnering second-team All-Mountain West honors after starting all 13 games (the final three at left tackle due to the suspension of early draft entrant Tyler Roemer). He had also manned the right tackle spot for the first five games of the 2017 season, finishing with 11 starts in 13 games played despite a hand injury. Pope did not play the opening two games of his sophomore season because of a chest injury, then suited up for special teams duty in the final 12 games of the year. He began his collegiate career at Long Beach (Calif.) City College in 2014, and then redshirted the 2015 season after transferring to SDSU.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD9fiYjU_7c
