2014 May - Pro Football Rumors

West Rumors: Beckham, 49ers, Seahawks

May 9th, 2014 at 9:08am CST by Zachary Links

Odell Beckham Jr. was viewed as a potential target for the 49ers, but trading up for him just wasn’t in the cards, as GM Trent Baalke explained to Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle (Sulia link): “We certainly liked him as a football player, no doubt about it. But… the price of doing business when you’re trying to move from [No. 30] up into the top 10 or close to the top 10 becomes pretty stiff. And you’re giving up a lot of football players to go get one football player. And if you look at history, a lot of time it works against you,” said the GM.

The Seahawks had their eye on defensive tackle Dominique Easley before the Patriots drafted him at No. 29, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. When the Florida product was off the board, they traded out to the Vikings, who selected Teddy Bridgwater. Seattle had a connection with Easley: defensive coordinator Dan Quinn recruited him at UF.
Chiefs General Manager John Dorsey declined to say whether he had real interest in drafting Johnny Manziel, but he did infer that the Browns called to try and trade for their pick before they ultimately struck a deal with the Eagles, writes Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star.
The Chiefs’ pick of Auburn defensive end Dee Ford at No. 23 raised a few eyebrows, but Dorsey told reporters, including Adam Teicher of ESPN.com (Twitter link), that the team viewed Ford as the second-best pass rusher in the draft.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Lions Notes: Ebron, Watkins, Mayhew

May 9th, 2014 at 8:31am CST by Zachary Links

After the Lions drafted North Carolina tight end Eric Ebron with the No. 10 pick, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com passes along some numbers to help put it all in perspective. Ebron is now just the third tight end to go in the top 20 picks in the last ten drafts. The other two? Vernon Davis and fellow Lions pick Brandon Pettigrew. There’s also a number the Lions desperately would like to forget: 10. That’s the number of times they’ve picked in the top 10 since 2000. More from Detroit..

If Sammy Watkins had fallen to No. 5, the Lions feel they would have been able to trade for him, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Instead, the Bills beat them to the punch by moving to No. 4 and taking the Clemson star.
The Lions were busy last night and tried to trade both up and down, General Manager Martin Mayhew told reporters (video link via the Detroit Free Press). Detroit didn’t wind up moving, however. The team stayed an No. 10 and grabbed Ebron, whom Mayhew says he expects immediate results from.
The Lions got themselves a nice weapon in Ebron, but Mitch Albom of the Detroit Free Press wonders why they didn’t look at guys who could help bolster the defense or offensive line. Michigan tackle Taylor Lewan and Virginia Tech cornerback Kyle Fuller were both on the table when Detroit picked at No. 10.

Poll: Best Trade Up In First Round?

May 8th, 2014 at 11:40pm CST by Luke Adams

While the Texans stayed put at No. 1, and many teams frequently mentioned as possible traders – including the Lions, Cowboys, Dolphins, and 49ers – also stood pat, there were a handful of intriguing moves in tonight’s first round. Five teams made deals that saw them move up in the first round, as follows:

The Bills acquired the No. 4 overall pick from the Browns in exchange for the No. 9 pick, a 2015 first-rounder, and a 2015 fourth-rounder. Drafted wide receiver Sammy Watkins.
The Browns acquired the No. 8 overall pick from the Vikings in exchange for the No. 9 pick and the No. 145 pick. Drafted cornerback Justin Gilbert.
The Saints acquired the No. 20 overall pick from the Cardinals in exchange for the No. 27 pick and the No. 91 pick. Drafted wide receiver Brandin Cooks.
The Browns acquired the No. 22 overall pick from the Eagles in exchange for the No. 26 pick and the No. 83 pick. Drafted quarterback Johnny Manziel.
The Vikings acquired the No. 32 overall pick from the Seahawks in exchange for the No. 40 pick and the No. 108 pick. Drafted quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.

Taking into account how far each team moved up, the price they had to pay to do so, and the player they ultimately landed, which trade up do you think represents the best deal of the night?

NFC Notes: Bridgewater, Cowboys, Falcons

May 8th, 2014 at 11:24pm CST by Zachary Links

The Vikings ended the first night of the draft with a bang by trading into the first round to snag Teddy Bridgewater, and in his presser with reporters, GM Rick Spielman confirmed that the fifth-year option was a consideration in the trade-up for Bridgewater, tweets Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune. Here’s more on that pick, along with a few more draft-night leftovers….

The Vikings had a private workout with Bridgewater in Florida and it seems that was what ultimately sold them. Spielman told reporters, including Ben Goessling of ESPN.com (on Twitter) that Bridgewater looked “totally different” than he did at his Pro Day and his performance in the workout matched his game tape. Meanwhile, the quarterback himself said Minnesota showed more pre-draft interest in him than any other team, according to Alex Marvez of Fox Sports (via Twitter).
According to Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, his team was targeting four players at No. 16 — Anthony Barr, Aaron Donald, Ryan Shazier, and Zack Martin (Twitter link via Matt Mosley of ESPN 103.3). The first three players were off the board, but the Cowboys grabbed Martin.
The Falcons made an effort to pick up a second first-round pick, and made calls to try to land a pick in the early 20s, according to GM Thomas Dimitroff (Twitter links via ESPN.com’s Vaughn McClure). Dimitroff didn’t specify a target, but D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets that the club was eyeing Shazier and Dee Ford.
Looking ahead to the second round, Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune (on Twitter) says that guards Xavier Su’a-Filo and Trai Turner are guys to keep an eye on for the Buccaneers. Tampa Bay is in serious need of an offensive guard.

Vikings Acquire No. 32 Pick From Seahawks

May 8th, 2014 at 10:43pm CST by Zachary Links

The Vikings have acquired the No. 32 pick in the draft, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (on Twitter). In exchange for the No. 32, the Seahawks will receive the No. 40 and No. 108 picks in this year’s draft, tweets Mike Sando of ESPN.com.

The Vikings made the move to draft quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, tweets Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. The Louisville product has been hailed by some as the most NFL-ready QB of any available in this draft though his draft stock has sunk over the last few weeks. It remains to be seen whether Bridgewater can hit the ground running in Minnesota, but he’ll have weapons around him to help make the transition a lot easier. In addition to former MVP Adrian Peterson, Bridgewater has a potentially devastating weapon at his disposal in Cordarrelle Patterson.

By making the trade, the Vikings got their man and also got some additional flexibility down the line. Since Bridgewater was a first round pick rather than their second round pick, they set themselves up to hold a fifth-year option on his contract. Recently, our own Rob DiRe profiled Bridgewater and stacked him up against the other top QBs in this year’s draft.

Vikings, Browns Could Trade For 1st Rd Pick

May 8th, 2014 at 9:56pm CST by Zachary Links

10:05pm: The chances of the Browns trading out of the first round have increased, according to Mike Klis of the Denver Post (on Twitter), so they could be a trade partner for the Browns or Vikings. Denver picks at No. 31.

10:02pm: The Vikings could wind up moving back into the first round if the price is right, tweets Albert Breer of NFL Network. That move could be to land a quarterback.

9:56pm: The Browns still may not be done trading tonight. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (on Twitter) hears they are talking about trading back into the first round. They could be possibly targeting a receiver, Rapoport said on the NFL Network’s broadcast.

The Browns have a ton of picks to work with if they choose to consolidate and get themselves another first round pick. Cleveland also owns the No. 35, No. 71, No. 106, No. 127, No. 145, No. 180, and No. 218 picks in this year’s draft. They also have a couple of extra picks in the 2015 draft.

Cleveland has been extremely active in tonight’s draft, not unlike their activity in the major motion picture Draft Day. Hopefully for the Browns, this performance won’t be panned as heavily as the movie was. The Browns traded down from No. 4 to No. 9 before coming back up to No. 8 to get Oklahoma State cornerback Justin Gilbert. Of course, the Browns struck again later, maneuvering to the No. 22 to pick to tap Johnny Manziel.

Browns Acquire No. 22, Draft Johnny Manziel

May 8th, 2014 at 9:41pm CST by Zachary Links

The Eagles have traded their No. 22 pick to the Browns, according to Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer (on Twitter). The Browns will take Johnny Manziel with the pick, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). In exchange for the No. 22 pick, the Eagles will get the Browns’ No. 26 as well as the No. 83 overall pick, tweets Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL.com.

While Manziel is an exciting addition for the Browns, Cleveland fans should remember that both Brady Quinn and Brandon Weeden were also taken with the 22nd overall pick. The Browns were far from alone in their affinity for Johnny Football and Jay Glazer of FOX Sports tweets that the Vikings were also trying to trade up for him.

The Browns were known to be high on Manziel, but both coach Mike Pettine and GM Ray Farmer told reporters that the big question was value. While they liked the Texas A&M product, they didn’t feel that he would be their best use of the No. 4 pick. It turns out they were right – Manziel took a serious slide and the Browns were able to get him in the back third of the first round.

Draft Rumors: Manziel, Cowboys, Rams

May 8th, 2014 at 9:33pm CST by Zachary Links

The latest from NYC..

The Cowboys talked about Johnny Manziel in their draft room but Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (on Twitter) hears that owner Jerry Jones did not campaign much for him. The Cowboys had “thoughtful discussion” about the polarizing QB with Jones but ultimately, he listened to his scouts (link).
Rams GM Les Snead said he had interest from the Bills for the No. 2 pick but things didn’t get serious enough for him to consider moving back that far, tweets Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com.
Meanwhile, Rams coach Jeff Fisher said after the Aaron Donald pick at No. 13 that they tried to trade back up with the Ravens for offensive tackle Zack Martin, tweets Tony Softli of ESPN Radio.

Saints Acquire Cards’ No. 20 Pick

May 8th, 2014 at 9:21pm CST by Zachary Links

The Saints have moved up to acquire the Cardinals’ No. 20 pick, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). With the No. 20, the Saints will select wide receiver Brandin Cooks, La Canfora adds (on Twitter). The 49ers and other clubs had their eye on the Oregon State star, so it was a prudent move by New Orleans to get their desired target.

The Cardinals will move down to No. 27 and also add the Saints’ third round pick (No. 91 overall), tweets Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com. Many saw the Cards going after a quarterback with their first round pick but with several quality signal callers left on the board, Arizona could be banking on their target sliding down seven picks. Alternatively, the Cards could go with a different position at No. 27 and get their QB later on.

Giants Could Trade Back Into First Round

May 8th, 2014 at 8:47pm CST by Zachary Links

Giants fans, stay tuned. GM Jerry Reese says there’s a possibility that he’ll trade back into the first round, according to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News (on Twitter).

The Giants already added a serious weapon earlier tonight when they selected LSU wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. at No. 12. Beckham, who boasts a sub-4.4 second 40-yard-dash time, was viewed by many as the best speed receiver in the draft outside of Sammy Watkins. If things pan out with Beckham, it may come back to haunt the Meadowlands’ other tenants. The Jets have not-so-secretly coveted Beckham for the last month or so.