HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Jets Trade #125 To Rams

April 29th, 2017 at 12:04pm CST by Ben Levine

The Jets are no longer on the clock at #125, reports SNY’s Ralph Vacchiano (via Twitter). The Rams have taken their place, implying that the two teams have made a trade. That is indeed the case, as Vacchiano tweets that New York has acquired pick #141 from Los Angeles. The Jets also added a sixth-rounder (#197) in order to move down 16 spots.

The Rams used the pick to select linebacker Samson Ebukam. The Washington product was named to the First Team All-Big Sky Conference this past season after being named to the second team in 2014 and 2015. In 38 career NCAA games, Ebukam compiled 188 tackles, 44 tackles for loss, and 24 sacks.

49ers Acquire Pick 121 From Colts

April 29th, 2017 at 11:56am CST by Ben Levine

The 49ers have traded up in the fourth round. Matt Barrows of The Sacramento Bee tweets that the team has acquired the 121st pick from the Colts. NFL Network is reporting that Indy will be receiving a fourth-rounder (#143) and a fifth-rounder (#161) in the trade (via Twitter of IndySportsCentral.com’s Mike Chappell).

The 49ers ultimately used the pick to select Utah running back Joe Williams. 2016 was a breakout season for the senior, as he ran for 1,407 yards and ten touchdowns. He also added another nine receptions for 107 yards. Williams had one of his best outings during the Foster Farms Bowl, running for 222 yards and one touchdown on 26 carries.

Keenan Lewis Visits Steelers

April 29th, 2017 at 11:36am CST by Ben Levine

Could Keenan Lewis be returning to Pittsburgh? According to Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (via Twitter), the Steelers are “taking a look” at their former cornerback. The 31-year-old was reportedly seen at the team’s facility this morning.

Dec 2, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Pittsburgh

Lewis, a 2009 third-round pick, spent the first four seasons of his career in Pittsburgh. After serving as a reserve through his first few seasons, he started all 16 games for the Steelers in 2012, compiling 71 tackles and one forced fumble. He ended up signing a five-year, $26.3MM deal with New Orleans during the 2013 offseason, and he started all 32 games for the Saints in 2013 and 2014. However, over the past two seasons, he’s only appeared in six games.

If Lewis does indeed rejoin the Steelers, he’ll be joining a cornerback corps that includes Ross Cockrell, Artie Burns, William Gay, Senquez Golson, Cameron Sutton, Coty Sensabaugh, and Al-Hajj Shabazz.

49ers Acquire 177th Pick From Broncos

April 29th, 2017 at 11:27am CST by Ben Levine

The 49ers have made yet another draft trade. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter), San Francisco has acquired pick #177 from the Broncos. Running back Kapri Bibbs will also be headed to the 49ers. In return, Denver will be receiving a 2018 fourth-rounder from the 49ers.

Bibbs, a former undrafted free agent out of Colorado State, spent the past three seasons in Denver. In 13 career games, the running back rushed for 129 yards on 29 carries. He also added another two receptions for 75 yards and one touchdown.

Chiefs Acquire 183rd Pick From Patriots

April 29th, 2017 at 10:46am CST by Ben Levine

Kansas City has gotten their hands on a third fifth-round pick. The Chiefs have acquired the 183rd pick from the Patriots, the team announced on Twitter. In exchange, New England will be receiving the 216th pick and tight end James O’Shaughnessy.

O’Shaughnessy, a 2015 fifth-round pick, has spent his entire career in the Chiefs organization. The Illinois State product has 23 NFL games under his belt, having compiled eight receptions for 86 yards. The 6-foot-4 tight end also has eight career tackles. He’ll be joining a Patriots tight ends corps that already features Rob Gronkowski and Dwayne Allen.

AFC Draft Notes: Mixon, Raiders, Dolphins

April 29th, 2017 at 10:33am CST by Ben Levine

Some assorted draft notes from around the AFC…

  • Half the league didn’t have embattled running back Joe Mixon on their draft board, tweets NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. Meanwhile, other evaluators believe he was the best overall running back if they were only evaluating on-field skills. ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter adds that only four teams said they would consider drafting Mixon. We can assume that one of those four organizations was the Bengals, who selected the running back in the second round.
  • The Raiders selected UConn safety Obi Melifonwu in the second round, although Rapoport tweets that the organization was close to selecting the defensive back in the first.
  • The Dolphins ultimately selected defensive end Charles Harris with the 22nd pick on Thursday night. However, if the Missouri product hadn’t been available, the Miami Herald’s Armando Salguero says (via Twitter) that the team would have selected Michigan defensive end Taco Charlton.
  • The Broncos were rather committed to selecting Florida State defensive end DeMarcus Walker. In fact, general manager John Elway revealed that he was willing to trade up if he needed to. “We made a lot of attempts to get up in (second round) to trade for Walker,” Elway told Troy Renck of Denver7 (Twitter link). “Things worked out.” Walker was selected by the Broncos with the 51st overall pick.
  • Good news out of Houston: Rapoport tweets that the Texans don’t believe running back D’Onta Foreman needs surgery on the stress fracture in his foot. The team found “no progressions in the injury at rechecks,” which apparently made them comfortable enough to select him in the third round.

Cowboys Shopping Orlando Scandrick?

April 29th, 2017 at 10:29am CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Cowboys are shopping cornerback Orlando Scandrick, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. The asking price is a third-round pick.

Orlando Scandrick

Franchise owner Jerry Jones, however, pushed back against reports of a possible Scandrick trade. “Absolutely not,” said Jones when asked if Scandrick would be dealt (Twitter link via Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News). “I don’t know who started that. He’s a valued member of our team.”

Another Cowboys source, meanwhile, tells Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter link) that while Dallas isn’t actively shopping Scandrick, other teams have called on him, and the Cowboys are willing to listen. Scandrick himself also “believes” talks are occurring, per Anderson.

Scandrick perhaps became superfluous to Dallas after it selected Colorado corner Chidobe Awuzie, a four-year starter with the Buffaloes, toward the end of the second round. However, with Morris Claiborne and Brandon Carr having departed in free agency, the 30-year-old Scandrick stands alongside offseason pickup Nolan Carroll as one of the Cowboys’ most established corners. The club also has Anthony Brown, who started in 10 of 16 appearances as a sixth-round rookie last season.

Scandrick has spent his entire career with the Cowboys since they selected him in the fifth round of the 2008 draft. During his nine-year tenure, he has started 58 times – including in 10 of 12 games last season. Scandrick totaled 46 tackles, two sacks and an interception, ranking an impressive 27th in performance among Pro Football Focus’ 111 qualified corners. He’s signed through the 2019 season at cap hits ranging from $5.28MM to 5.6MM.

Patriots Exercise Brandin Cooks’ Option

April 29th, 2017 at 10:05am CST by Ben Levine

Not much of a surprise, but Brandin Cooks will be sticking around New England through at least the 2018 season. According to ESPN’s Field Yates (via Twitter), the Patriots have picked up the wideout’s fifth-year option.

Brandin Cooks (vertical)Cooks is in line to make a very-affordable $1.56MM this offseason, but his fifth-year option is likely to be valued around $8.5MM. As our own Connor Byrne previously noted, the Patriots are likely to see what Cooks does in their offense before they hand him a lucrative extension. Either way, the 23-year-old should expect to make at least $10MM annually on his next contract.

The Patriots were left out of the fun on Thursday night after having dealt the 32nd pick (along with pick #103) to New Orleans for Cooks (and pick #118) earlier this offseason. The 23-year-old will provide Tom Brady with another talented target, joining a receiving corps that already features Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell, and tight end Rob Gronkowski. Over the past two seasons, Cooks has averaged 81 receptions for 1,155 yards and more than eight touchdowns.

There are still several 2013 first-rounders who are awaiting decisions on their fifth-year option, including Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles and Bills receiver Sammy Watkins.

NFC Draft Notes: Bears, 49ers, Saints, Lions

April 29th, 2017 at 9:02am CST by Ben Levine

Reports emerged last night that Bears head coach John Fox was unaware of his club’s intention to draft North Carolina quarterback Mitch Trubisky until a “couple hours” before the draft. GM Ryan Pace subsequently denied those reports, saying his head coach is involved in all of the team’s decisions.

“That stuff is so false,” Pace said (via Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com). “There’s consistency in everything we do, so we all work arm-in-arm and that’s the way it is and that’s the way it should be.

“John is involved in every decision deeply. The respect I have for John is enormous, especially his experience and all of the players that he’s been with. I think if you look back — and we talked about this — I think a lot of it was kept secret I thought we did a good job keeping this thing pretty under wraps, it’s so sensitive. But if you go back to the private workouts that we had, I mean John and I — it’s pretty hard to hide him — but we’re traveling to Chapel Hill and having dinners and workouts with Mitch, so he’s been deeply involved from the very beginning.”

Let’s check out some other draft notes from around the NFC…

  • The Vikings reportedly approached the 49ers about trading for the 104th pick, according to Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area (via Twitter). However, San Francisco wanted to guarantee that they’d get Iowa quarterback C.J. Beathard, so they rebuffed Minnesota’s advances. Ironically, Minnesota was previously in possession of that pick.
  • The Saints were fans of Texas Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes, general manager Mickey Loomis told Larry Holder of NOLA.com (Twitter link). However, with Ohio State cornerback Marshon Lattimore still being on the board, New Orleans wasn’t too interested in moving up for the signal-caller. Mahomes was ultimately reelected 10th overall by the Chiefs.
  • UCLA cornerback Fabian Moreau‘s pectoral muscle is “looking great,” tweets NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. This reassurance probably convinced the Redskins to take the defensive back with the 81st-overall pick.
  • The Lions selected cornerback Teez Tabor with the 53rd pick, despite the fact he suffered a hamstring injury during his workout with the team. Rapoport tweets that the Florida product didn’t end up working out for any other teams.
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