Fifth round of NFL draft sees two Hokies, two 'Hoos drafted by teams

The Washington Redskins picked up Virginia Tech defensive lineman Tim Settle in the fifth round.

Settle surprised many when he opted to declare for the draft, despite just one season of starting experience and two years of eligibility remaining. It isn’t hard to see what pro scouts see in the Manassas native.

He’s a rare blend of size and agility, checking in at 6-foot-3 and 330 pounds.

Settle recorded 36 tackles in 2017, 12.5 of them for losses, and had 4 sacks. In his two seasons with the Hokies, he showed his athleticism by blocking a pair of kicks. He wowed teammates in practices by returning interceptions and fumbles with surprising agility and even catching punts.

“He’s a great talent,” Virginia Tech coach Justin Fuente said before the draft. “They think he’s a guy they have a chance to bring in and develop and continue to improve his game and have a chance to be a player in the national football league.”

Virginia Tech also had offensive lineman Wyatt Teller selected by the Buffalo Bills.

 U.Va.'s Brown goes to Bengals, Kiser to the Rams

The Cavaliers had their first picks go off the board, with defensive end Andrew Brown being taken by the Cincinnati Bengals and linebacker Micah Kiser going to the Los Angeles Rams.

Brown, the Gatorade national player of the year as a senior at Oscar Smith High School in Chesapeake, lived up to his recruiting rankings in his final two seasons, matching his production to his unquestioned physical gifts.

After developing slowly under the previous coaching staff, Brown proved to be a perfect fit in Bronco Mendenhall’s 3-4 scheme when the new coach took over in 2016.

In two years starting for Mendenhall, the 6-foot-3, 296-pound Brown had 84 tackles and 9.5 sacks.

“I think his stock has actually climbed,” Senior Bowl executive director and former NFL general manager, Phil Savage said. “That interior pass rush is at a premium. I think that Andrew has a real chance, as an inside sub-rusher in certain situations, to be a factor, maybe even as soon as his rookie year. He does have quickness. He’s got very active hands. He has a nice swim move and then a rip move inside that was effective for him. I think he’s a player that is a bit untapped in terms of what he might be in the future.”

Kiser, despite playing through injuries, still led the ACC in tackles three straight seasons, and that kind of production didn’t go unnoticed by NFL scouts. Only Boston College’s Luke Kuechly had done that before.

The 6-foot, 238-pound Baltimore native finished his U.Va. career with 411 tackles, fifth most in program history.

A sore knee forced Kiser to leave the Senior Bowl week before the game, but he appeared healthy at the NFL scouting combine and his own pro day.

Senior Bowl executive director Phil Savage said he didn’t think Kiser’s draft status changed much once his senior season ended.

“I think the consensus thought was, you know exactly what you’re going to get,” Savage, a former NFL general manager, said. “Micah Kiser does not have ideal measurable but he has terrific instincts. He’s got eye control at the linebacker position. He’s a productive tackler. So, I think at worst, he’s a backup for somebody and may even emerge as a starter one day.”