COLUMBUS, Ohio – Two more Ohio State Buckeyes were chosen on the final day of the NFL Draft, being held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City: defensive end/linebacker John Simon was selected in the fourth round with the 129th pick overall by the Baltimore Ravens; and offensive tackle Reid Fragel went in the seventh round with the 240th pick to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Simon, the Big Ten Conference defensive player and defensive lineman of the year and a second-team Associated Press All-American, was the fourth consecutive defensive player chosen by the defending Super Bowl champions.
Acccording to BaltimoreRavens.com, Simon says the Ravens are a hard-nosed team and that he will do whatever the Ravens need him to do to help the team succeed.
“They are just a tough, hard-nosed team, and I feel that’s how I play the game,” Simon said via a conference call. “I am just really excited to be a part of the organization and look forward to getting to practice.
“I am going to do whatever it takes to do the best I can and to help the team out in any way possible. Whatever that role is, I am going to just embrace it.”
Fragel, who is 6-8 and 308 pounds, played just one year of offensive tackle for the Buckeyes after spending three years as a tight end. He started all 12 games at right tackle this past season and earned honorable mention all-Big Ten honors.
Bengals coach Marvin Lewis likes Fragel’s potential.
“Reid Fragel is a really big, athletic player who made the transition from a couple positions offensively,” Lewis said in his post-draft comments. “He just kept growing and really was impressive strength-wise what he did at the combine.”
Bengals offensive line coach Paul Alexander visited Fragel last Monday and he, too, was impressed by the Ohio State senior.
“He’s a very well-respected guy up there,” Alexander said. “He has long arms, he’s tall, he benched 33 times, which is really strong. People were afraid of his experience (at tackle), but he’s really quick and athletic and has a great future.”
Simon and Fragel were preceded in the NFL Draft by defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins, who was a second-round pick (49th overall) by the New York Giants.
Seven Undrafted Free Agents
Multiple reports have seven additional Buckeyes heading to NFL teams via the undrafted free agent route.
FB Zach Boren – Houston Texans
DT Garrett Goebel – St. Louis Rams
CB Travis Howard – Houston Texans
S Orhian Johnson – Houston Texans
LB Etienne Sabino – New York Giants
TE Jake Stoneburner – Green Bay Packers
DE Nathan Williams – Minnesota Vikings
NFL teams are permitted to hold a mini camp for rookies and undrafted free agents on one of the first two weekends after the NFL Draft, so the former Buckeyes should all be getting their initial introductions to the ways of the National Football League in the next couple weeks.
