Arizona State DL Nesta Jade Silvera accepts invitation to 2023 Senior Bowl
Jan 15, 2023, 9:29 AM | Updated: 9:35 am
(Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
Arizona State Sun Devils defensive lineman Nesta Jade Silvera on Saturday accepted his invitation to play in the 2023 Senior Bowl.
Silvera becomes the first Sun Devil to be playing in the exhibition game at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Alabama, on Feb. 4 in front of NFL scouts.
Officially Accepted! DL Nesta Jade Silvera @NJS_ERA from @ASUFootball is headed to the 2023 Senior Bowl #ForksUp #TheDraftStartsInMOBILE™️@JimNagy_SB @PaniniAmerica #RatedRookie pic.twitter.com/wR9mJ2b1zB
— Reese's Senior Bowl (@seniorbowl) January 14, 2023
The 6-foot-2, 315-pound defensive lineman announced his declaration for April’s draft in Kansas City on Dec. 13.
Silvera spent the first four years of his collegiate career as a Miami Hurricane before graduating and transferring to Arizona State for his lone season in Tempe.
In 10 games for the Sun Devils this past season, the graduate student totaled 51 tackles (18 solo), three tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks, two passes defensed and one forced fumble.
Silvera undoubtedly had the best year of his five-year college career at ASU, having accumulated 41 tackles (18 solo), 16 TFLs, 2.0 sacks, one forced fumble and one pass defensed over four seasons at Miami.
He is currently projected to be a Day-3 selection, meaning draft experts expect him to be picked somewhere between the fifth and seventh rounds.
Silvera was the first of six Sun Devils to declare for the 2023 NFL Draft and joins teammate linebackers Merlin Robertson and Kyle Soelle, running back Xazavian Valladay and offensive lineman LaDarius Henderson to have accepted invitations to either the East-West Shrine Bowl (Feb. 2) or Hula Bowl (Saturday) — or both in Soelle’s case.
However, Henderson has since announced his transfer to play his final year of eligibility for the Michigan Wolverines.