San Francisco 49ers Sign Birmingham Stallions CB Nate Brooks
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Birmingham Stallions Sign Four Players For 2024 USFL Season

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The Birmingham Stallions added four players this past week. Two of the players were re-signings, and three of them were offensive linemen. All were significant pickups in the quest to three-peat.

CB Nate Brooks

One of the Stallions’ biggest needs is cornerback. As of a week ago, they only had two on the roster: Brian Allen and Bryan Mills. General Manager Zach Potter made a big splash this past week when he was able to re-sign cornerback Nate Brooks.

Brooks was one of the Stallions’ best defensive players in 2023. He finished the season with 55 tackles (second-most on the team), a fumble recovery, two interceptions (tied for most with Allen), and eight pass deflections (most).

After winning the USFL Championship, Brooks signed with the San Francisco 49ers. However, he was released at the conclusion of the preseason. The Stallions will be very happy to have him back in 2024.

C Cohl Cabral

Another need for the Stallions was center. Before the team recently re-signed Cole Schneider, they did not have a single center on the roster. However, the good news for Birmingham is that their 2023 starting center plans to be back in 2024.

Cohl Cabral started all 12 games for the Stallions in 2023 and was quietly one of the best linemen in the league. According to PFF, he was top 10 in the league in pressure rate and knockdown rate. That led to him being signed by the Arizona Cardinals late in the preseason.

Cabral was released after preseason and now re-signs with the Stallions. He saw more playing time than any other Stallions offensive lineman in 2023 and projects to be their starting center again in 2024.

C Isaac Weaver

In addition to Cabral, the Stallions signed another center last week: Isaac Weaver (6’6, 300). Weaver played college football at Old Dominion, graduating in 2022. He was a four-year starter at ODU, earning Conference USA Honorable Mention honors three of those years. After college, he signed with the Los Angeles Chargers as an undrafted free agent. He spent one season in L.A. but was recently released.

Weaver is a nice pickup for the Stallions. He actually started his career at ODU as a left tackle before moving to center. He even started one game at guard as well. That sort of versatility is very nice to have in a spring league. Expect the Stallions to find a spot for him in the offensive line rotation.

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OT Christian DiLauro

The Birmingham Stallions also signed a more veteran figure this past week: offensive tackle Christian DiLauro (6’6. 300). DiLauro played collegiately at Illinois where he, like Weaver, was a four-year starter. He graduated in 2018 and signed with the Cleveland Browns as an undrafted free agent. He has since spent six seasons in the NFL, mostly on practice squads—although he did make the Denver Broncos active roster in 2022.

DiLauro has also spent time with the 49ers, Texans, Steelers, Titans, Commanders, and, most recently, the Minnesota Vikings. After bouncing around between so many NFL teams, DiLauro gets a shot to settle down and show what he can do in Birmingham. Expect him to compete for a starting tackle position in camp.

More to Come

The Birmingham Stallions still have nine remaining roster spots left to fill. If they do not re-sign all their players whose contracts are set to expire, they will need to sign even more in the weeks ahead.

Expect them to continue making moves this offseason. Especially watch out for movement in early October as that is when several USFL players will become free agents.

What are your thoughts on the Birmingham Stallions re-signing Nate Brooks and Cohl Cabral? How will new additions Christian DiLauro and Isaac Weaver impact the team? Let us know down in the comments below, or join the conversation on Discord!