Three undrafted former Knights find homes as free agents

Former Rutgers linebacker Kevin Malast has a history of proving people wrong.
During his time with the Rutgers football team, Malast worked his way from being someone that was never expected to play to a two-year starter and team captain.
And now the working process starts all over again in the NFL.
After he was passed on 256 times last weekend in the NFL Draft, Malast signed with the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent despite offers from both the St. Louis Rams and Denver Broncos.
And now he has something to prove.
“It’s just my story,” Malast said. “I don’t get drafted, it’s not a problem for me. It’s just another mountain for me to climb and that’s just the way I do things. I’m going to go out to Chicago and make a name for myself just like I did at Rutgers … My life story is that I do what people don’t expect me to do. I came to Rutgers, and people probably didn’t think I was going to start here.”
Malast said he tried to avoid watching the draft because it was hard for him to watch players that he might be better than get picked while he sat idly by.
But then after the draft when the Bears called, Malast was ready to answer. Home in Manchester, N.J., for the night, Malast signed a faxed version of the contract and sent it right back to Chicago, making him an official Chicago Bear.
“When I was in Chicago, I felt very comfortable,” Malast said. “It reminded me of Rutgers again. [Head coach] Lovie Smith is a great coach, reminds me of [Rutgers football head] coach [Greg] Schiano … I just felt like it was a Rutgers away from Rutgers.”
Malast said he’s most excited for the people he will get to play with on the Bears, namely Pro Bowl linebacker Brian Urlacher.
“It’s going to be an unbelievable experience just because I grew up watching him, and he’s definitely one of my favorite linebackers, favorite players in the NFL so it’s going to be a great experience,” he said. “They also have another linebacker that’s going to be great to learn from and that’s Lance Briggs, he’s a Pro Bowler.
“They’re both older guys. It’s kind of like when I came [to Rutgers] with a lot of older guys in front of me. They could be great mentors, and I’m just excited to get out there and work to make a name for myself out there.”

With his bicep injury from last season healed, former Rutgers defensive end Jamaal Westerman is ready to make an impact at the NFL level.
Although Westerman did not get drafted over the weekend in New York, he will have the chance to play in New York with the Jets, who signed him as an undrafted free agent.
Westerman, who led the Scarlet Knights with six sacks last season, played through half of the season with a torn bicep muscle, but the Ontario native said that made him work even harder to earn a spot with an NFL team.
“It’s not really a surprise because I worked so hard after [the injury] happened,” Westerman said. “I worked hard to get myself back to where I had to be to go out there and compete and get back onto the field … I met with [head coach Rex Ryan], Mr. Tannenbaum and some of the other coaches and then I’ll meet a lot more people when I get up there and I’m just excited to get started.”
The Jets have a history of signing former Rutgers players as undrafted free agents in the last few years, most notably linebacker Brandon Renkart and safety Ron Girault.
“I talked to Renk a lot, and he just told me that [the Jets] are a classy organization and I just need to be ready to go out there and work hard,” Westerman said. “I’m just excited to go out there and really give it my all, go out there and compete, play on special teams, whatever they want me to do, I’m just excited and I can’t wait to get started.”

Former tight end Kevin Brock rounded out the Rutgers trio of undrafted free agents to sign with an NFL team. Brock, who had 300 yards on 26 catches last season, signed with the Carolina Panthers.
The Panthers, who struggle with depth at the tight end position, likely became interested in Brock after he clocked in at 4.60 seconds in the 40-yard dash and the Rutgers Pro Day.
All three free agents head to their respective cities tomorrow for rookie mini-camp before preparing for exams and organized team activities in May.
Malast will be joined in Chicago by former defensive tackle and team captain Pete Tverdov who will try out with the Bears during mini-camp.

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