There were indications earlier today that the Cowboys were exploring a possible move up to No. 32, but it doesn’t appear that will happen. The team’s executive VP, Stephen Jones, told reporters, including Todd Archer of ESPN.com, that Dallas isn’t moving up from No. 34 — the club will either stand pat or move down.
Assuming they stay at No. 34, the Cowboys will be targeting a defensive player, tweets Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. According to David Moore of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link), there are two players left on the team’s board with first-round grades, so perhaps the Cowboys will move down if those two players are selected by the teams ahead of them. Moore adds (via Twitter) that Jones expects the remainder of Dallas’ draft to be heavy on defense, with perhaps a quarterback and an interior offensive lineman mixed in.
Here’s more from around the NFC:
- Quarterback Sam Bradford has not responded to anyone from the Eagles organization, including the team’s coaches, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter link via 97.5 The Fanatic). The Eagles’ brass has indicated it won’t honor Bradford’s trade request, so the two sides may have to mend some fences at some point.
- According to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link), the 49ers currently have no plans to release quarterback Colin Kaepernick, whose odds of being traded took a significant hit when Denver drafted Paxton Lynch on Thursday. While San Francisco may prefer not to pay Kaepernick’s full salary, the team appears willing to do so, with no pay cut imminent. Considering the Niners still have $50MM+ in cap room for 2016, they can certainly afford to carry Kaepernick’s contract.
- The Lions believe that Taylor Decker was one of the most versatile tackles in this year’s class, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com writes. “We’re going to put him in the mix with the rest of the tackles on the roster and see who the players are at the right position,” GM Bob Quinn said. “We’re not going to pinpoint him now or until we’re ready to play a game, at what position, what side of the ball. He is a tackle, so he’ll either be right tackle or left tackle and that’s really to be determined.”
Zach Links contributed to this post.