UFL Draft sees Virginia Tech standout selected after being waived by NFL team

NFL training camps will kick off in the next week and just ahead of camps, one former Virginia Tech player, Pheldarius Payne, was injury-waived by the Houston Texans.

Signed after going undrafted in April's NFL Draft in Detroit, Payne impressed during Houston's minicamp in May, but it's unclear what his injury is that caused Houston to move on from him in mid-July. Despite being waived, Payne has an option to fall back on to continue his football career should he not catch on with another NFL team this summer.

Pheldarius Payne selected by St. Louis in UFL Draft

Payne was selected in the third round of the UFL Draft by the St. Louis Battlehawks. Per Yahoo Sports, "The players in the UFL draft pool are those who were eligible for the 2024 NFL Draft but were not selected back in April. Players must be at least three years removed from playing high school football. Effectively, it’s undrafted free-agent rookies. The UFL teams will hold exclusive rights to the drafted players, though all players will have an “NFL Out” clause that allows them to sign with the NFL, but only during the NFL regular season."

Last season for Virginia Tech, Payne played in all 13 games as the Hokies went 7-6 and he made 31 tackles, 10 for a loss, four sacks, a forced fumble, and five quarterback hurries. What does being selected by the Battlehawks mean for Payne? Well, if doesn't catch on with another NFL team, he could decide to pursue a UFL career with St. Louis in March as the UFL just finished its first season after a merger with the USFL and XFL. The Battlehawks went 7-3 this past season and lost in the XFL Championship Game to the San Antonio Brahams, falling one game short of the Championship Game.