HEADLINES

2017 NFL Draft News & Rumors

Draft Notes: Trubisky, Mahomes, Steelers

March 31st, 2017 at 8:49pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

North Carolina quarterback Mitch Trubisky figures to go early in this year’s draft, though Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians is concerned that he only started one year with the Tar Heels. “A really talented player,” Arians said of Trubisky (via Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com). “The growth potential is obviously there. The question is why wasn’t all that talent starting for the last three years? That’s always bugging me. So you have to go and answer those questions with him, with his coach, but the physical talent is there.” Arians isn’t the only talent evaluator around the NFL who’s leery that Trubisky was a backup prior to 2016, as another one told Cabot he has similar concerns.

More on the upcoming draft…

  • Cognizant that Ben Roethlisberger isn’t going to be around forever, the Steelers have made it known that they’ll consider drafting a potential long-term successor this year. That could be Texas Tech’s Patrick Mahomes, whom the Steelers observed Friday at his pro day. Pittsburgh sent “at least one” representative to watch Mahomes, writes Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com.
  • The Browns worked out Florida cornerback Teez Tabor on Friday, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. It’s unclear how early Tabor might go in the draft – while Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com places him 35th overall among prospects, Matt Miller of Bleacher Report could see the defender lasting until Day 3. Tabor’s stock seems to be dropping on account of subpar 40-yard dash times.
  • Wisconsin’s T.J. Watt, brother of Texans superstar J.J. Watt, is drawing interest from a bevy of teams and getting looks at various front seven positions. The younger Watt has lined up at outside linebacker, inside linebacker and along the defensive line in recent workouts. Watt told Jeremy Bergman of NFL.com that he has worked out for the Cowboys, Lions and Patriots in the past week. He’s scheduled to work out for the Panthers, too, and will visit the Cowboys’ and Redskins’ facilities soon.

Miller’s Latest: Panthers, 49ers, Saints, Mixon, Webb, Mahomes, Chiefs, Tabor

March 31st, 2017 at 6:55pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Panthers, who own the eighth pick in the draft, are interested in trading up to No. 2, Matt Miller of Bleacher Report hears. If they were to swing a deal to acquire the 49ers’ selection, the Panthers would draft either LSU running back Leonard Fournette or Stanford defensive end Solomon Thomas. Panthers head coach Ron Rivera will attend Fournette’s pro day April 5, and he attended Thomas’ last week. San Francisco, meanwhile, has expressed a willingness to move down, and Miller notes that the Panthers could use the second-rounder they received from New England in the Kony Ealy swap (No. 64) to help facilitate a trade. The 49ers would hope to land Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster at No. 8.

Here’s more from Miller:

  • At least five teams won’t consider drafting controversial Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon, per Miller, who notes that “many” others “are digging in hard” on the 20-year-old. The Saints are among the latter clubs, with Miller reporting they could reel in Mixon in Round 2 (No. 42). Head coach Sean Payton said earlier this week that the Saints plan to meet with Mixon soon.
  • Count Miller among the latest pundits who expects Cal quarterback Davis Webb to come off the board in the opening round – in the late 20s, to be specific. Someone could trade up from the second round to draft Webb in order to get his rights for an extra year, Miller adds.
  • Texas Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes has visited with the Chiefs, according to Miller. Kansas City is set to pick 27th overall, when Mahomes still might be available. The second-round-graded Mahomes has drawn plenty of interest from around the league.
  • Florida cornerback Teez Tabor gave an interview at the combine that was “the worst we had all year,” one scout told Miller. Between that and his poor 40 times, it’s possible Tabor will be a Day 3 selection, writes Miller. That would be a notable drop for a player who entered the season as a prospective first-rounder.

East Notes: Jets, Giants, Cowboys, Eagles

March 31st, 2017 at 4:54pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Jets did not make a real effort to re-sign Geno Smith, as NJ.com’s Connor Hughes writes. When asked whether he had any contact with the quarterback during free agency, coach Todd Bowles replied, “No. I would have been happy to have him back. But things don’t work out like that all the time.” Smith will now look for a fresh start with the other tenant of the Meadowlands.

More from the East Coast:

  • With Smith on hand, the Big Blue QB depth chart could get crowded as the team is open to taking a signal-caller early in the draft. The Giants had scouts at the pro days for Clemson’s Deshaun Watson and Miami’s Brad Kaaya, tweets James Kratch of NJ.com. Kaaya had an encouraging showing at his pro day, per Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). He would seemingly be a more realistic target for the Giants than Watson, who could be off the board when the Giants’ first-round pick (No. 23) comes up. Kaaya might have to wait until Day 3 to come off the board.
  • The Cowboys had two big-time defensive end prospects, Michigan’s Taco Charlton and UCLA’s Takkarist McKinley, in for visits, according to the Dallas Morning News. Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com ranks both players among his top 25, though McKinley could be on the shelf until late in the summer after undergoing shoulder surgery. Dallas is also looking at Washington cornerback Kevin King, whom it worked out, relays Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). King has the makings of a Day 1 pick, so he could be a possibility for the Cowboys at No. 28.
  • Eagles defensive back Ron Brooks took a pay cut Friday, reports Field Yates of ESPN (via Twitter). He’s now slated to make $1MM in 2017, down from the $1.85MM he had been scheduled to collect. The Eagles also changed 2018 into an option season for Brooks, whom they signed to a three-year, $6MM deal last March. Brooks missed most of last season with a ruptured quad, appearing in six games and picking up five starts.
  • Defensive end Chris Long‘s two-year contract with the Eagles is worth $4.5MM plus incentives, per Ben Volin of the Boston Globe (Twitter link).

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Jets Have Strong Interest In Mahomes

March 31st, 2017 at 11:33am CST by Zachary Links

The Jets are showing strong interest in Texas Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes, according to Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com. Mahomes also met with the 49ers on Thursday night and spent a good amount of time with the Giants, Pauline adds. Giants coach Ben McAdoo, 49ers GM John Lynch, and Seahawks GM John Schneider were all at Texas Tech’s pro day to watch Mahomes throw (Twitter link via Andrew Groover of the NFL Network). It should be noted that McAdoo doesn’t usually attend pro days, so this could be a sign that the Giants’ interest in Mahomes is also at an advanced level.Patrick Mahomes (Vertical)

The stock of Mahomes has been on the rise for the last couple of months. In February, the NFL’s College Advisory Committee gave the quarterback a second-round grade. Meanwhile, with an overall underwhelming crop of quarterback’s in this year’s class, it’s not hard to see Mahomes going somewhere in his first round. Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com previously estimated that his floor could be No. 25 overall when the Texans are scheduled to be on the clock. His ceiling, according to JLC, could be as high as top three overall.

The Jets signed Josh McCown this offseason and while he could be the team’s starter in 2017, they haven’t committed to anything of that nature just yet. Gang Green also has Bryce Petty and Christian Hackenberg on the roster, but it’s not likely that any of those QBs would preclude the Jets from drafting a high-end guy if they felt strongly about him.

The Jets own the No. 6 overall pick in this year’s draft and it seems possible that Mahomes might be a consideration there. It’s also possible that the Niners could beat them to the punch or another intensely-interested club could trade up to nab him. With roughly one month to go before the draft, it’s clear that Mahomes is a player to watch, but his possibly range is still murky.

Extra Points: Kaepernick, 49ers, Bears

March 30th, 2017 at 10:09pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

After talking with general managers at the league meetings, Tom Pelissero of USA Today doesn’t sense that free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick‘s political beliefs have stopped him from landing a contract. The problem isn’t Kaepernick’s asking price, either; rather, it’s that he needs a specific type of offense to fit his style as a mobile signal-caller who has issues with accuracy and struggles when he has to stay in the pocket. Notably, the 49ers’ new head coach, Kyle Shanahan, indicated to Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle that they’re not bringing Kaepernick back because he’s not right for their scheme. “I think Colin has a certain skill set that you can put a specific offense to it that he can be very successful in,” said Shanahan. “When we first looked at it … that wasn’t necessarily the direction I wanted to go.”

More from around the NFL:

  • The Bears swung and missed in attempts to reel in high-profile free agents earlier this month, but chairman George McCaskey is hardly holding that against general manager Ryan Pace. “I’ve been very impressed with [Pace] as a leader, as an evaluator of talent,” McCaskey told John Mullin of CSN Chicago. “And one of the things I’ve been most impressed by with him is the discipline he’s shown just as recently as this free agency period. He didn’t want to overpay guys. Too often, I think, you overpay guys who don’t come through for you and then you have a big hole in your salary cap and you’re behind the 8-ball. So I like the discipline he has shown, the restraint he has shown in free agency.”
  • North Carolina State safety Josh Jones visited the Ravens on Thursday, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Jones ranks 48th on the board of Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com, so he could be a candidate for Baltimore’s second-round pick (No. 47).
  • “Most signs point to” the Redskins retaining safety DeAngelo Hall on a reworked contract, writes JP Finlay of CSN Mid-Atlantic. The 33-year-old is slated to take up over $5MM in cap space next season, though the Redskins would save most of that ($4.25MM) by releasing him. Hall hasn’t stayed healthy in recent years, having missed 31 of 48 regular-season games since 2014, so he wouldn’t have much leverage if the Redskins were to insist on a pay cut.

Draft Rumors: Browns, 49ers, Bears, Pack

March 30th, 2017 at 7:05pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Browns will host Ohio State safety Malik Hooker for a pre-draft visit Friday, reports Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com. The club is “very high on” Hooker and is considering taking him in the first round, adds Cabot, who notes that it might not be in position to land him. The Browns are likely to take Texas A&M edge rusher Myles Garrett first overall, and Hooker could be off the board when their second selection (No. 12) arrives. Hooker underwent surgeries to repair a sports hernia and a torn labrum Jan. 31, causing him to miss the combine, but he’s still likely to come off the board in the first 10 picks.

In advance of its meeting with Hooker, Cleveland ran Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson through a private workout on the road Thursday, according to Cabot. Watson may well be the Browns’ pick at No. 12.

More of the latest draft notes:

  • Garrett has upcoming visits with the 49ers and Bears, as Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle tweets. The Niners pick at No. 2 and the Bears are at No. 3, so it’s doubtful either will land Garrett. But it seems the 49ers would jump at the chance of selecting him, as 49ers general manager John Lynch said Thursday at Garrett’s pro day that he “checks all of the boxes” (via Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area).
  • Add the Packers to the list of teams at least considering drafting Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon. The Pack brought Mixon in for a visit earlier this week, relays Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (Twitter link). At least two teams – the Patriots and Dolphins – have already ruled out a Mixon selection.
  • The Panthers recently worked out Alabama outside linebacker Ryan Anderson, a source told Matt Zenitz of AL.com (via Twitter). Anderson could be a second-round target for the Panthers, who own the 40th pick.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

AFC Notes: Fins, Jets, Bills, Colts

March 30th, 2017 at 4:47pm CST by Zachary Links

The Dolphins intend to keep core offensive players together through 2020, as Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald writes. That group includes quarterback Ryan Tannehill and starting receivers Kenny Stills, Jarvis Landry, and DeVante Parker. The Dolphins already have Tannehill and Stills locked down and they can effectively say the same for Parker thanks to his fifth-year option and the franchise tag. That just leaves Landry, who is scheduled to reach free agency after the 2017 season.

More from the AFC:

  • The Jets are holding a private workout Thursday for North Carolina quarterback Mitch Trubisky, a league source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Gang Green has three quarterbacks on its roster – Josh McCown, Christian Hackenberg and Bryce Petty – but head coach Todd Bowles indicated Wednesday that the club could select one with the sixth pick. Trubisky might come into play there.
  • The idea that the Bills are preparing to part with general manager Doug Whaley is “erroneous,” owner Terry Pegula told reporters Wednesday (via Sal Maiorana of the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle). Pegula also dismissed the notion that there’s discord between Whaley and rookie head coach Sean McDermott, pointing to their mutual decision to keep quarterback Tyrod Taylor as evidence that they’re in lockstep. “That was Doug and Sean working very diligently, digging up everything, directions we could go and what not and the decision was unanimous that we bring Tyrod back with the new contract and we’re all happy with that,” he said.
  • At its core, the Dwayne Allen trade was about accountability for the Colts, Stephen Holder of the Indy Star writes, but there was more to it. Allen didn’t always live up to his contract, but beyond that, dealing him to the Patriots was also about creating more opportunities for tight ends Jack Doyle and Erik Swoope. “Look, Dwayne Allen was a great pro and a good guy,” GM Chris Ballard said. “That was a really hard decision to make because he’s a great person. But sometimes to let a player take another step, you have to move on from a guy. And I think Swoope’s got a lot of talent. We’ll see. I thought we saw signs of progression last year that were exciting to see. He’s got to take another step. And we’ll see if he does it or not.”
  • Speaking of the Colts, they “will not be timid about moving around in the draft,” according to Ballard, who doesn’t believe the team has enough picks. The Colts are slated to pick seven times, including 15th overall, and “wouldn’t hesitate to trade down” because “that would be something that we think could really benefit us,” Ballard told Kevin Bowen of the team’s website.

Connor Byrne contributed to this post.

Extra Points: Hardy, Giants, Kizer

March 30th, 2017 at 11:35am CST by Zachary Links

An Indoor Football League team held a fan vote to determine whether it would sign Greg Hardy and the results are in. Fans of Salt Lake Screaming Eagles have voted against signing the controversial defensive end, as ESPN.com’s Darren Rovell writes. The vote barely went against Hardy with 50.1% of fans voting against him, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Charlotte Observer tweets.

If the vote went through, the 28-year-old would have been in uniform for Friday night’s game against the Colorado Crush. As far as we know, the upcoming Spring League will be Hardy’s next stop in football. If that doesn’t work out, he can always shift his attention back towards MMA.

Here’s more from the NFL, as well as news on the Spring League:

  • Giants offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan attended Notre Dame’s pro day to get a look at quarterback DeShone Kizer, James Kratch of NJ.com writes. Drafting Kizer would be an opportunity for the Giants to reprise Green Bay’s Brett Favre/Aaron Rodgers scenario, meaning that they would forge ahead with Eli Manning as the starter while taking their time to groom his successor. The Giants are slated to pick at No. 23 and again at No. 55 in the second round. Kizer could be available at No. 23 but odds are he won’t be there near the backend of the second round.
  • The coaching staffs for the upcoming Spring League will include Donnie Henderson, Terry Shea, Steve Fairchild, and Denny Creehan, as Mike Florio of PFT writes. Henderson previously served as the defensive coordinator of the Jets and Lions and most recently was with the Bills’ coaching staff. Shea, a former offensive coordinator for the Bears and quarterbacks coach for the Chiefs, Dolphins, and Rams, has not coached high-level football in nearly a decade.
  • If you’re not doing so already, click here to follow Pro Football Rumors on Instagram.

NFC South Rumors: Saints, Butler, Mixon

March 29th, 2017 at 12:16pm CST by Zachary Links

Saints GM Mickey Loomis tried to play it cool when asked about his team’s pursuit of Patriots restricted free agent cornerback Malcolm Butler (via Larry Holder of The Times Picayune).

“There’s not a lot I can say. We’re kicking the tires I guess,” Loomis said. “That’s the way to describe that. We’ll see how that process works.”

The Saints have presented the corner with a contract offer, but not an offer sheet. The Saints would like to work out a trade with the Patriots in which they can land Butler without forfeiting the No. 11 overall pick, but so far the Patriots are acting as though they will not play ball.

Here’s more on Butler and other news from the NFC South:

  • Saints coach Sean Payton termed the Butler situation as “an exploratory mission,” (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com). Payton, from Rapoport’s perspective, seemed to indicate that the team has hit pause on a potential deal.
  • When asked about the possibility of signing Butler to an offer sheet and giving up the No. 11 overall pick, per the terms of the first-round tender, Payton said, “I know we’re not going to do that.” (Twitter link via Phil Perry of CSNNE.com).
  • Saints head coach Sean Payton says the team will meet with Joe Mixon during the draft process (Twitter link via Holder). New Orleans previously met with Mixon in early March. This week, we learned that the Patriots and Dolphins have both ruled out the controversial Oklahoma running back.
  • Panthers coach Ron Rivera said he’ll be at Leonard Fournette‘s LSU Pro Day and added that no spot is “too high” to take a running back (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com). Recently, Panthers GM Dave Gettleman indicated that the team’s recent extension for Jonathan Stewart will not preclude the team from taking a running back early on in the draft. The Panthers own the No. 8 overall pick.

Patriots Rule Out Drafting Joe Mixon

March 29th, 2017 at 9:24am CST by Zachary Links

Now we have two teams that reportedly won’t go near Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon. The Patriots will not even consider drafting him, according to a source who spoke with Jeff Howe of The Boston Herald. Joe Mixon (vertical)

[RELATED: Patriots Rumors: Brady, Butler, Garoppolo]

Earlier this week, we learned that the Dolphins have also removed Mixon from consideration. Of course, it’s easy to take Mixon off the board when you already have talent at the running back position and that’s the case for both AFC East clubs. The Dolphins have Jay Ajayi and Kenyan Drake on the depth chart while the Patriots have plenty of depth with free agent pickup Rex Burkhead, James White, Dion Lewis, and DJ Foster.

For other teams looking for an impact player in the backfield, the moral conundrum isn’t quite as easy to sort out. Mixon, despite his red flags and potential for a PR nightmare, is one of the most talented running backs in this year’s class. The Sooners star could be available after Leonard Fournette, D’Onta Foreman, Dalvin Cook, and Christian McCaffrey are all off the board. In terms of talent, one could argue that he offers higher upside than at least two of those well-regarded backs.

When asked about Mixon this week, Patriots owner Robert Kraft declined to speak specifically about him, but he did reiterate his stance against domestic violence.

“While I believe in second chances and giving players an opportunity for redemption, I also believe that playing in the NFL is a privilege, not a right,” Kraft said. “For me, personally, I believe that privilege is lost for men who have a history of abusing women.”

Load More Posts