Draft Rumors: Allen, Cardinals, Broncos

Josh Allen‘s camp has been doing damage control on Thursday morning, and it seems to be working thus far. Allen and his representatives have been on the phone with possible destination teams today, and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (video link) these old tweets being unearthed is not believed to be an occurrence that will cause his stock to tumble. Allen has told teams these tweets were either references to a Rick Ross song or to movies and TV shows, with Rapoport adding some were tweets to friends. Teams are hesitant to judge the Wyoming- and central California-developed quarterback based on tweets from high school, per Rapoport (on Twitter).

Here’s the latest from the draft:

• Maybe a team representing Allen’s floor, the Cardinals are considering moving up for the right price, Mike Jurecki of ArizonaSports.com tweets. This is the latest out of Arizona, which has been linked to trade-up rumors this week. The Cardinals are in need of a long-term quarterback answer, and it’s possible none of the top four will be there when their No. 15 window opens.
• The Browns taking Baker Mayfield at No. 1 would be a surprise and could change the Broncos‘ draft outlook. Of the big four, Mayfield and Sam Darnold are the only ones the Broncos take if they’re still on the board at No. 5, Troy Renck of Denver7 tweets. If Mayfield does go to the Browns, Darnold would be a consideration for the Giants — if they stick at No. 2 — and the Jets’ interest in the USC passer hasn’t been much of a secret. And it’s possible the Bills could move up to the No. 4 spot as well, so the Broncos could be set to go with a non-QB at No. 5 or trade back with a quarterback-seeking team.
• While this offseason produced little to indicate the Browns would go with Mayfield, NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein tweets we are hours away from that scenario unfolding. Zierlein tweets Mayfield-to-Cleveland “is happening.” He adds the Giants don’t love any of these quarterbacks, perhaps explaining the massive Saquon Barkley-to-New York buzz. Big Blue has now been connected to a trade-down scenario when it did not look like that would be the case for weeks now.
• Derrius Guice indicated a team asked inappropriate questions to him at the Combine, but on Thursday, an investigation concluded that no proof of this emerged, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The questions ranged from if the running back prospect liked men or whether or not his mother was a prostitute. “The investigation did not confirm that any club made the reported inquiries,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said. The LSU product is considered a late-first-round prospect.