As most NFL teams wrap up their OTA sessions this week, 15 former Mountaineers are vying for roster spots across the league. Read more: 15 Mountaineers battle for NFL roster spots as OTAs wrap up.
Organized Team Activities, or OTAs, are voluntary offseason workouts that allow teams to evaluate players and install schemes before training camp. During the 10 practices permitted by the league, teams conduct drills and scrimmage-like sessions, including 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 periods.
For the Mountaineers currently on rosters, this is an especially important time for many of them as it allows the opportunity to make a good impression in hopes of making the 53-man roster.
Get to know the players
Across the league, there are 10 teams that currently hold former WVU players on their roster. That includes teams like the Cleveland Browns and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who hold multiple.
Among the most recognizable names in the group is former WVU center Zach Frazier. Entering his third season with the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Fairmont native has quickly established himself as one of the NFL’s top centers.
Former WVU quarterback Geno Smith has also turned into a highly successful player in the NFL over the past couple seasons. The two-time Pro Bowler enters his first season of a second stint with the New York Jets after spending the 2025 season with the Las Vegas Raiders.
Colton McKivitz is another former Mountaineer who has carved out a starting role in the NFL. After being drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in 2020, McKivitz has started every game in the last three seasons.
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Dante Stills, another Fairmont native, is entering his fourth season with the Arizona Cardinals. He’s become a consistent rotational piece for Arizona’s defensive line.
Other notable players include former WVU quarterbacks Garrett Greene and Will Grier. Greene, now a wide receiver, is entering his second season with the Buccaneers, while Grier is entering his second stint with the Carolina Panthers.
Reid Carrico, Michael Coats Jr., and Rex Sunahara are all currently on the Browns. Carrico and Coats are both in their first year of the NFL, while Sunahara is entering his fourth season and second with the Browns.
Rounding out the list are Beanie Bishop (Saints), Austin Brinkman (Texans), Wyatt Milum (Jaguars), Doug Nester (Steelers), David Sills V (Buccaneers), and Chase Wilson (Jets).
Early odds for roster spots
Out of every former WVU player on NFL rosters, there are the obvious handful that are destined to make the 52-man roster for the 2026 season.
Players like Frazier, McKivitz, and Smith are all shoe-ins to continue their careers as starters for the upcoming season. Except for maybe McKivitz, who isn’t a bonafide starter in the league just yet, both Frazier and Smith could sit out of OTAs entirely and still be the starter at their respective positions.
Brinkman and Sunahara are both long snappers and the only ones on their teams, so it’s safe to say they will continue to be in line to be starters once OTAs are complete.
One player I’m keeping an eye on is Coats. The Browns signed him to an undrafted free agent contract, however, reports around the organization are noting he’s been “turning heads” throughout OTAs.
Check out this X post from a Cleveland Browns podcast page that shows Coats catching an interception at a recent practice.
Players like Bishop, Greene, and Milum who were all on practice squads last season will have to fight for official roster spots throughout the end of OTAs and the rest of the offseason. Bishop might be the most likely to achieve that feat after signing a one-year reserve/future contract with the Saints in January.
Stills is another former Mountaineer to watch this offseason and into the regular season. Entering the final year of his rookie contract, he’ll be looking to rebound in 2026 after finishing the 2025 season without a sack, in hopes of positioning himself for a new deal.
Both Grier and Sills are on new contracts with their respective teams, but they will have to fight in order to stay on the main roster this season.
More young guys
Besides Coats who looks like he might find himself on the Browns roster, both Carrico and Wilson are two other rookies who are competing at OTAs for roster spots.
While many of these players may not be weekly starters, a lot of them have already made a name for themselves in the NFL. With Frazier and Smith leading the way, West Virginia is starting to become heavily represented across the league.
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As for the younger players fighting for their spots, the offseason will continue to be vital in seeing where they all end up once the regular season starts in early September.
Stay up to date with all these players and their NFL journeys on wvsportsnation.com or the WV Sports Nation app.
