Former Pitt defensive end James Folston Jr. signs with Arizona Cardinals

Former Pitt defensive end James Folston Jr. was not selected during the NFL draft, but he signed as an undrafted free agent with the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday night. The defensive lineman played in 41 games and started in five during his college career.

While Folston was not a starter for the majority of his time at Pitt, the native of Cocoa, Florida, came up with 47 tackles, 3.5 tackles for losses and 1.5 sacks. He also came up with big plays on occasion, as he blocked a punt in Pitt’s 28-21 win over Youngstown State in September 2017. That was then recovered and returned 66 yards by Pitt safety Jazzee Stocker.

Folston is one of five Pitt products to land on an NFL team this weekend, as running back Qadree Ollison was selected by the Atlanta Falcons, running back Darrin Hall signed with the Cleveland Browns, fullback George Aston signed with the Denver Broncos and linebacker Elijah Zeise signed with the Los Angeles Chargers. Offensive lineman Alex Bookser will also get minicamp opportunities with the Detroit Lions and the San Francisco 49ers.

The Cardinals are a team in dire need of answers defensively, as they finished with a league-worst 3-13 record and gave up the third-most points in the NFC last season. If Folston is able to earn a place on the Cardinals roster, he will be the third Pitt alum to do so, joining punter Andy Lee and receiver Larry Fitzgerald.