BJ Green II To Shine With Jacksonville Jaguars As Undrafted Rookie Free Agent?

Soon after drafting Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter, the Jacksonville Jaguars picked up another pair of former Colorado Buffaloes standouts on the rookie free agent market in defensive end BJ Green II and safety Cam'Ron Silmon-Craig. Both were leaders on CU's defense last year and are now looking to land an NFL roster spot with the Jags.

In a recent article by CBS Sports, Green was named the Jaguars' top undrafted free agent to watch during minicamp, training camp and the preseason. Green hasn't received a ton of buzz yet as OTAs roll on across the league, but that'll likely change once he gets an opportunity to rush opposing quarterbacks in preseason action.

Green, a former walk-on with the Arizona State Sun Devils, totaled 33 tackles, 13 quarterback hurries 12 TFLs and a team-high 7.5 sacks during his one season in Boulder.

Sep 14, 2024; Fort Collins, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes defensive end BJ Green II (35) celebrates his fumble recovery in the fourth quarter against the Colorado State Rams at Sonny Lubick Field at Canvas Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Madrid-Imagn Images | Michael Madrid-Imagn Images

CBS Sports' Chris Trapasso believes Green stands out in an overall underwhelming group of Jacksonville rookie free agent pickups.

Keeping it real — I didn't love the Jaguars undrafted free agent class. I did, however, like the flashes I witnessed while evaluating BJ Green II at Colorado in 2024. At a hair over 6-foot and 252 pounds, he's reasonably small for the EDGE position in the NFL. The 32-inch arms help mitigate some of the size concerns, and there's some serious juice when he fires off the ball, as evidenced by his 1.61-second 10-yard split.
Chris Trapasso

Green quickly became a favorite of Colorado quality control analyst and Pro Football Hall of Famer Warren Sapp, who was displeased when his top defensive end didn't receive an NFL scouting combine invite.

"BJ can rush the three, the five, the nine, any of it, both sides," Sapp said. "They wouldn't put him in the combine. I worked my butt off trying to get him in the combine."

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BJ Green, Big 12 Defensive Newcomer of the Year.@BJGreenII x #GoBuffs pic.twitter.com/fM01KbWeyp
— Colorado Buffaloes Football (@CUBuffsFootball) December 5, 2024

Green participated in Colorado's pro day on April 4 and showed well, recording a 4.59-second 40-yard dash and a 31.5-inch vertical leap with countless NFL scouts in attendance. Going undrafted may have only added fuel to Green's brightly lit fire.

“Being an underrated guy, having people thinking that they’ve overlooked me and some people don’t even know who I am, it’s a familiar burn,” Green said following CU's pro day. “It feels good, being able to have that burn on you again. It makes you feel alive. Shows you that, despite doing good this year, it’s nowhere near where I’m going to be. I can only improve as I’ve improved in college, throughout every single year that I’ve been in college."

Other notable undrafted players who signed with Jacksonville include defensive linemen Ethan Downs (Oklahoma) and Eli Mostaert (North Dakota State), running back Ja'Quinden Jackson (Arkansas) and wide receiver JJ Jones (North Carolina).

Jacksonville will close OTAs on Friday before holding its mandatory minicamp from June 10-12.