2014 NFL Draft - Pro Football Rumors

NFC Rumors: Glennon, Hardy, Cowboys, Bears

May 13th, 2014 at 10:26pm CST by Zachary Links

Buccaneers coach Lovie Smith reaffirmed that Mike Glennon is the team’s quarterback of the future, but that doesn’t mean he’ll be the QB of the present, writes Roy Cummings of The Tampa Tribune.

“I made it clear right away that Josh McCown is our starter, which he is,” Smith said during an interview on WDAE (620 AM). “And hopefully for quite a few years he will be. And I said I really like Mike Glennon. Mike’s a young player coming up. In an ideal situation you don’t want young players to have to come in and start right away, you want them to be around an established veteran.”

Glennon was believed to be a trade candidate earlier this offseason but Smith’s kind words have put that talk to rest. More from around the NFL:

With this week’s legal run-in, Greg Hardy has seriously jeopardized his future with the Panthers, writes David Newton of ESPN.com. The Panthers guaranteed the Pro Bowl player $13.1MM in 2014 not just because he collected a team-best 15 sacks last season, but because he appeared to have matured past the mistakes he made early in his NFL career and at Ole Miss. The club was considering locking Hardy up long-term this year, but that seems unlikely today.
What would the Cowboys have done in the draft if they hadn’t traded up to get Demarcus Lawrence early in the second round? Cowboys COO Stephen Jones told season ticket holders on a conference call today that Missouri defensive end Kony Ealy would have been the selection at No. 47 followed by LSU guard Trai Turner in the third round, according to Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News.
In today’s mailbag, a reader asks Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune if there’s any chance the Bears could swing a trade for help in the secondary. Biggs says that while many would like to see a blockbuster like a deal for Chiefs safety Eric Berry, that type of thing won’t be in the cards thanks to his sizable salary.
Bears sixth-round pick David Fales appears to be a good fit for the team, writes Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune. Fales last season threw for 4,189 yards, 33 touchdowns, 13 interceptions and completed 64.1 percent of his passes in 12 games.
Released running back Bradley Randle says the Vikings might end up bringing him back, writes Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press.

Bears Sign Second Round Pick Ego Ferguson

May 13th, 2014 at 7:22pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bears announced that they have agreed to terms with second round pick Ego Ferguson (via Twitter). Chicago has also struck a deal with sixth-rounder Pat O’Donnell.

Ferguson, a defensive tackle out of LSU, was viewed by many as a serious reach, according to CBSSports.com’s Jason La Canfora. Regardless of what anybody else things, the Bears believe that they did well for themselves at the No. 51 overall pick. At nearly 6’3″ and 315 pounds, Ferguson is a big, athletic three-technique tackle, but a very green prospect. He could develop into a strong pass rusher, but the general feeling is that it will take some time for him to get there.

O’Donnell, a punter out of Miami, was a first-team All-ACC pick in 2013 and named the team’s special teams MVP.

AFC North Notes: Bridgewater, Steelers, Ravens

May 13th, 2014 at 11:16am CST by Luke Adams

Let’s round up the latest out of the AFC North….

Appearing on the Dan Patrick Show today, new Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater revealed that he knew he could land with the Browns during last week’s draft, but told his agent “that’s not the place I wanted to be.” Andrew Krammer of ESPN 1500 Twin Cities has the details and quotes from Bridgewater.
Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review conducted a Q&A with Steelers GM Kevin Colbert, discussing the team’s draft preparation, its first-round pick (Ryan Shazier), and the apparent focus on adding speed to the roster.
One of a handful of undrafted free agents who reportedly agreed to terms with a team and then didn’t land with that club, Texas Tech linebacker Terrance Bullitt saw a shoulder issue scuttle his deal with the Ravens, which would have included a $5.5K signing bonus, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
UNLV wideout Jerry Rice Jr., the son of the Hall of Fame receiver, wasn’t among the Ravens’ UDFA signings, but he’ll participate in the club’s rookie minicamp in the hopes of earning a contract, a source tells Wilson.

NFC East Notes: Cousins, Colledge, Eagles

May 13th, 2014 at 10:01am CST by Luke Adams

Redskins backup quarterback Kirk Cousins reportedly drew renewed trade interest during last week’s draft, but GM Bruce Allen confirmed yesterday that the club never came close to moving Cousins over the past few days. With Cousins appearing likely to stay put in Washington, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweets that the Browns’ previous efforts to acquire Cousins were rebuffed by the ‘Skins. Although many involved parties, including Cousins and starting QB Robert Griffin III, would welcome a deal that sent the No. 2 elsewhere, Allen doesn’t seem inclined to make such a move anytime soon, as La Canfora tweets.

Here’s more from around the NFC East:

Free agent offensive lineman Daryn Colledge will pay a visit to Philadelphia to meet with the Eagles this week, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The Eagles didn’t select an offensive lineman in the draft despite planning to do so, so a veteran player like Colledge could provide some depth.
Peter King of TheMMQB.com takes a behind-the-scenes look at the draft’s No. 22 pick, which the Eagles essentially put up for auction after a few of their top targets came off the board. While the Browns beat out the Vikings to land the pick, Philadelphia had two more “solid” offers from unknown teams, and one of those clubs was actually the leader until Cleveland swooped in and sweetened its offer. Had that mystery team acquired the pick, it would have drafted a player besides Johnny Manziel, says King.
The Redskins made a pair of cuts yesterday, waiving kicker Jake Rogers and wide receiver David Gettis, tweets Zac Boyer of the Washington Times.
Washington is the only NFC East team that has yet to announce its undrafted free agent signings. Earlier today we passed along the Cowboys‘ list, while we heard about the Giants‘ signings yesterday and the Eagles‘ additions over the weekend.

Extra Points: Gordon, Draft, Cousins

May 12th, 2014 at 10:44pm CST by Rob DiRe

Josh Gordon‘s suspension may have been a surprise to the coaching staff, but the front office was prepared going into the draft that they would be down a receiver in 2014. Browns‘ owner Jimmy Haslam made it clear that they did not draft a receiver because they are still committed to Gordon, reports Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com.

“All of us have made mistakes when we were that age,” said Haslam. “We’re counting on Josh being a good football player for the Browns for a long time to come.”

Here are some more notes from around the NFL:

Redskins‘ general manager Bruce Allen said the team did not come close to trading backup quarterback Kirk Cousins during the draft, reports Tarik El-Bashir of CSNWashington.com (via Twitter).
Offensive tackle was an area of need for the Ravens heading into the draft, but based on the way the board fell, the team missed out on some potential tackles and didn’t want to “reach down” just to add one, as general manager Ozzie Newsome tells Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
Vikings‘ general manager Rick Spielman had Johnny Manziel and Teddy Bridgewater as the number one and two quarterbacks in the draft, reports Albert Breer of NFL.com. If they were unable to draft either of those two players, they could have targeted Jimmy Garoppolo early in round two or Tom Savage in round three.

Bears Agree To Deals With Vereen, Fales

May 12th, 2014 at 8:37pm CST by Rob DiRe

Brock Vereen and David Fales are the first two draft picks to sign their rookie contracts, as both have signed with the Bears according to the team’s official Twitter account.

Both players have agreed to terms on four-year deals.

The safety Vereen was a fourth-round pick, who has a chance to see the field early on a team which had a major weakness in the defensive backfield. Fales was picked in the sixth round, and will likely serve as Jay Cutler‘s backup for the next few years.

49ers Sign Seven UDFAs, Cut Three Players

May 12th, 2014 at 7:33pm CST by Rob DiRe

The 49ers have signed seven rookie free agents to contracts, according to the teams official website. They released three players to make room for the additions.

The three players released were linebacker Darius Fleming, cornerback Dax Swanson, and receiver DeMarco Sampson.

Here’s the full list of the team’s UDFA signings:

Morgan Breslin, LB, USC ($5K bonus and $2.5K in other guarantees, per Matt Maiocco)
Asante Cleveland, TE, Miami
Dillon Farrell, C, New Mexico ($5K bonus)
Kory Faulkner, QB, Southern Illinois ($3K bonus)
Fou Fonoti, OT, Michigan State ($5K bonus)
L.J. McCray, S, Catawba ($6K bonus)
Shayne Skov, LB, Stanford ($7.5K bonus and $2.5K in other guarantees)

Cardinals Announce 15 UDFA Signings

May 12th, 2014 at 6:49pm CST by Rob DiRe

The Cardinals have signed 15 undrafted free agents, reports Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com.

Here are all of the Cardinals’ signings:

Zach Bauman, RB, Northern Arizona
Jonathan Brown, LB, Illinois (9K bonus, per Aaron Wilson)
Glenn Carson, LB, Penn State
Chandler Catanzaro, K, Clemson
Tim Cornett, RB, UNLV
Bruce Gaston, DT, Purdue
Kelvin Palmer, OT, Baylor
Kelsey Pope, WR, Samford
Justin Renfrow, DT, Miami
Brandon Sermons, CB, UCLA
Kevin Smith, WR, Washington
Anthony Steen, OG, Alabama ($12K bonus, per Wilson)
Corey Washington, WR, Newberry
Todd Washington, CB, Southeastern Louisiana
Kadeem Williams, OT, Albany

West Notes: Raiders, Bailey, Seahawks

May 12th, 2014 at 4:30pm CST by Luke Adams

Asked whether he gave any consideration to trading back into the first round to land Johnny Manziel or Teddy Bridgewater last week, Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie told Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle (Sulia link) that he didn’t want to give up additional picks, and that he was happy to select the best player available when Oakland’s turn came up. Here are a few more odds and ends from around the league’s two West divisions:

Rams receiver Stedman Bailey will be suspended for four games for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing substances, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Rapoport adds in a second tweet that St. Louis has known the suspension was coming for quite some time and chose not to draft a receiver this weekend.
Making an appearance on KJR-AM in Seattle, Seahawks GM John Schneider discussed a number of draft- and roster-related topics, notably admitting that the only disappointment during the draft was when a seventh-round target was taken “three or four picks” before Seattle could nab him. Schneider didn’t name the player, but Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times speculates that perhaps it was Wisconsin’s Beau Allen or Georgia Tech’s Brandon Watts.
ESPN.com’s Eric Williams passes along the names of the undrafted free agents who received invites to the Chargers‘ rookie minicamp in a series of tweets. Unlike the 17 UDFAs the Chargers signed this weekend, these 10 players aren’t under contract with the club.

La Canfora On Draft, Browns, Jags, Easley

May 12th, 2014 at 2:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Based on what Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com was hearing during and after the draft, he believes the Browns traded down from No. 4 to No. 9 in the first round in the hopes that Texas A&M receiver Mike Evans would still be on the board. When Evans was snapped up by the Buccaneers seventh overall, Cleveland went another direction and never did address the receiver position in the draft. Here’s more from La Canfora, with a focus on draft-related what-ifs:

The Jaguars “resisted several opportunities” to move out of the No. 3 overall slot and trade down with teams who were hoping to land Khalil Mack or Sammy Watkins, says La Canfora. We heard this morning that Jacksonville also considered trading with the Falcons, who were targeting Jake Matthews.
Before they traded up to No. 22, the Browns were close to making deals with the Titans at No. 11 and the Cowboys at No. 16.
If the Patriots hadn’t selected Florida’s Dominique Easley with their first-round pick, the Seahawks likely would have kept their first-rounder and used it on Easley rather than moving down. Similarly, the Cardinals would have selected Ryan Shazier if he was there at No. 20, but began attempts to trade down once he came off the board, ultimately swinging a deal with the Saints.
Offensive tackle Ju’Wuan James likely would’ve been selected by the Panthers at No. 28 if the Dolphins hadn’t drafted him 19th overall.
La Canfora continues to hear from sources that at this point rumors of a Ryan Mallett trade between the Patriots and Texans are just that — rumors.
Defensive tackle Ego Ferguson, who was selected by the Bears in the second round, has been frequently identified by evaluators as one of the draft’s biggest reaches, says La Canfora.

2014 NFL Draft News & Rumors