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Derek Carr

AFC Notes: Pats, Browns, Sam, Chargers

April 16th, 2014 at 11:27am CST by Luke Adams

Let’s round up a few Wednesday updates from across the AFC….

  • Within his latest piece at Bleacher Report, Mike Freeman writes that the Patriots are considering adding a receiver earlier in the draft and that the Browns “really love” Derek Carr, who is a strong candidate for the club’s second first-round pick.
  • The Browns aren’t set on Carr yet though — Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter) that the club is privately working out Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron today, and Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer adds (via Twitter) that McCarron will also have a formal visit with the Browns next week.
  • Five of the six teams that have expressed the most interest in Missouri’s Michael Sam are AFC clubs, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun, who identifies the Ravens, Patriots, Colts, Browns, Jets, and Falcons as suitors for the edge defender.
  • Meanwhile, in a piece for the National Football Post, Wilson reports that Illinois State defensive end Colton Underwood has visited the Chargers and Chiefs, and also worked out for the Patriots.
  • After having visited the Cowboys yesterday, Oregon State defensive end Scott Crichton is visiting the Broncos today and the Chargers tomorrow, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
  • The Chargers are hosting Indiana wideout Cody Latimer and Montana linebacker Brock Coyle today, according to Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter links). Coyle will visit the Seahawks next, Gehlken notes.
  • Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk attempts to discern what we can learn from the Alex Mack saga when it comes to future offer sheets for transition players.

Rapoport On Clowney, Carr, Verrett

April 11th, 2014 at 10:13am CST by Luke Adams

NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport has passed along a handful of updates on notable pre-draft visits this morning, including a note on a likely top-five pick, and a couple more on potential first-rounders. Let’s check out what Rapoport has for us (all link go to Twitter)….

  • The Rams, who hold the No. 2 pick, are hosting defensive end Jadeveon Clowney for a pre-draft visit today, according to Rapoport. It’d be a surprise if St. Louis drafted Clowney, considering the club has a strong defensive line already and has more pressing needs at other positions. Still, the Rams will do their homework on the player considered by many pundits to be the top prospect in the 2014 class.
  • Fresno State quarterback Derek Carr will visit the Buccaneers on Wednesday and the Browns the following week, says Rapoport. The Cleveland visit is particularly noteworthy, since the Browns already privately worked out Carr.
  • TCU cornerback Jason Verrett recently worked out for the Panthers and is visiting the Falcons today, a source tells Rapoport. Verrett visited the Cardinals earlier this week, and reportedly met with the Steelers and Jets recently as well.

Pre-Draft Visits: Jaguars, Beckham, Raiders

April 9th, 2014 at 5:50pm CST by Rob DiRe

The Jaguars have been bringing in a number of notable prospects, including some of the draft’s top quarterbacks. Tomorrow they will add Alabama’s A.J. McCarron, LSU’s Zach Mettenberger, Fresno State’s Derek Carr, and UCF’s Blake Bortles, reports Albert Breer of the NFL Network (via Twitter).

Here are some other visits from across the NFL:

  • LSU wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has a visit scheduled with the Bills for Thursday, reports Sirius NFL XM Radio (via Twitter). Beckham met with the 49ers and Steelers earlier this week.
  • Clemson defensive back Bashaud Breeland met with the Raiders on Tuesday, writes Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. Breeland has played both safety and cornerback, and has already met with the Bills.
  • Nevada offensive lineman Joel Bitonio had his visit with the Rams today, reports Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post Dispatch (via Twitter). Thomas writes that Bitonio could be drafted somewhere as high as the late first round.

Extra Points: Carr, Johnson, Bailey, Bills

April 9th, 2014 at 2:12pm CST by Luke Adams

Although multiple reports have suggested that free agent signal-caller David Carr would like to end up on the team that drafts his brother Derek Carr, perhaps serving as Derek’s backup, that’s not necessarily the case, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Schefter tweets that the two brothers’ destinations aren’t related, and that David intends to sign with a club prior to draft day.

As the elder Carr continues to search for a new home, let’s round up a handful of updates from around the NFL….

  • Free agent running back Chris Johnson could theoretically try out for teams in private, without those workouts needing to be reported, but he doesn’t intend to do so, a league source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. As Florio notes, it’s possible that Johnson could reach an agreement with a new team without even visiting that club, since the veteran is a known commodity at this point.
  • All NFL 32 teams were in attendance at LSU’s Pro Day today, including several general managers and head coaches, tweets Albert Breer of the NFL Network.
  • The details of Champ Bailey‘s two-year contract with the Saints have surfaced, and Joel Corry of CBSSports.com provides the breakdown (Twitter links): The base value is $3.75MM, though it can be worth up to $6.75MM with incentives and escalators. It’s guaranteed for $500K and includes a $250K roster bonus if Bailey is on the team for six games in 2014.
  • The Bills announced today that Texas A&M offensive tackle Jake Matthews and Louisville linebacker Preston Brown were in town to meet with the team.
  • Top cornerback prospect Justin Gilbert of Oklahoma State will visit the Titans on Friday, according to Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean (via Twitter).
  • Boise State wide receiver Geraldo Boldewijn, who was in New England today for a private workout, will visit the Cardinals on April 15, reports Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). The Cards are also hosting Memphis safety Lonnie Ballentine today, tweets James Walker of ESPN.com.
  • The Packers will host Washington State offensive lineman John Fullington for an official pre-draft visit next week, tweets agent Collin Roberts.

Jaguars To Host Bridgewater, Carr, Others

April 8th, 2014 at 8:44am CST by Luke Adams

8:44am: Rapoport and Schefter pass along word of a few more pre-draft visits for the Jaguars, with Rapoport tweeting that linebacker Anthony Barr will be in town tomorrow, while Schefter reports (via Twitter) that quarterbacks Teddy Bridgewater and Jimmy Garoppolo are also on the schedule.

8:37am: As we noted last night, one of 2014’s top quarterback prospects, Johnny Manziel, is set to pay the Jaguars a visit this week, but he won’t be the only notable prospect in town over the next couple days. Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com reports that quarterback Derek Carr will also meet with the Jags, while Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets that linebacker Khalil Mack will visit the team, and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com says (via Twitter) offensive tackle Greg Robinson will also be in Jacksonville.

The Jaguars hold the No. 3 overall pick in next month’s draft and appear to be considering a variety of players and positions. Manziel and Robinson are perhaps the more likely members of this group to be top-three picks, but Mack is viewed as the best linebacker available, and Carr is, at worst, considered the best signal-caller available outside of the top three of Manziel, Blake Bortles, and Teddy Bridgewater.

Schefter adds that Mack will travel on to St. Louis to meet with the Rams following his visit with the Jaguars.

Titans Notes: Nwaneri, Olsen, FAs, Carr

April 2nd, 2014 at 10:50am CST by Luke Adams

Let’s take a quick look at a few updates relating to 2013’s AFC South runner-up…

Extra Points: Manning, Draft, Bush, Carr

March 31st, 2014 at 10:48pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Some assorted notes to close out the evening:

  • The Bengals will meet with safety Danieal Manning on Tuesday and Wednesday, tweets Mark Berman of Fox 26 in Houston. Manning was released by the Texans earlier today.
  • NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock has updated his position rankings for draft prospects, and the most notable change is his moving Johnny Manziel up to the No. 1 quarterback slot, followed by Blake Bortles and Teddy Bridgewater. One wonders if this might be an overreaction to a good Pro Day (Manziel) versus a poor one (Bridgewater).
  • Running back Michael Bush will visit with the Patriots, who recently lost LeGarrette Blount to the Steelers, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
  • On a related note, Tom Curran of CSNNE.com wonders if the Patriots let Blount get away too easily, citing both his low cost and the fact that Stevan Ridley and Shane Vereen are in the last year of their respective contracts.
  • Fresno State quarterback Derek Carr says his private workout with the Browns “went exactly how [he] wanted it to,” writes Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com. Grossi also tweets that Carr dined with the Browns general manager Ray Farmer and the Cleveland offensive staff on Sunday night. Carr could be an option for the Browns at pick No. 26.
  • Ohio State cornerback Bradley Roby told Sirius XM NFL that he has visits set up with the Chargers, Steelers, Titans, Bills, and Jets, as well as three additional teams (Twitter link).

North Notes: Carr, Ravens, Bears, Flynn

March 28th, 2014 at 3:30pm CST by Luke Adams

On a busy Friday for NFL signings (Maurice Jones-Drew, LeGarrette Blount) and cuts (DeSean Jackson), let’s check out some of the latest headlines from around the league’s two North divisions….

  • Derek Carr‘s private workout with the Browns is scheduled for Monday, a source tells Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com.
  • In a round-up of Ravens notes, Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun says he gets the sense from talking to people around the team that Corey Graham was the toughest free agent departure this month. Zrebiec also writes that that if Baltimore doesn’t draft a quarterback, the club could wait until after the draft to see if a team that does take a QB jettisons one of its veterans.
  • As Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune details, Bears head coach Marc Trestman has a number of traits he’s looking for in a No. 2 quarterback.
  • It appears likely that the Packers will ultimately end up re-signing Matt Flynn to compete with Scott Tolzien for the team’s backup job, writes Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com.
  • As Nick Fairley heads into the 2014 season without the security of the Lions picking up his fifth-year option for 2015, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com says the team shouldn’t reward Fairley with a lucrative contract next year even if he has a strong ’14.
  • Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com has the details on a pair of new contracts: Vlad Ducasse inked a one-year, minimum salary benefit deal with the Vikings that includes a $65K signing bonus, while Domata Peko‘s two-year extension with the Bengals includes a $4.4MM roster bonus for 2014 and is worth $9MM in total.

49ers Notes: Harbaugh, Gerhart, WR, Gore

March 26th, 2014 at 8:39am CST by Luke Adams

Jim Harbaugh was one of 16 NFC head coaches to meet with reporters in Orlando this morning, and few have had more eventful offseasons so far than the 49ers coach, who was linked to the Browns’ coaching job in February. Today, Harbaugh made it clear “that opportunity existed in someone else’s mind, not mine,” according to Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (via Twitter). The Niners head coach added that he wants to be in San Francisco for a “very long time,” and that the Browns had “zero opportunity” to acquire him, in his view (Twitter link via Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal).

After discussing his own future, Harbaugh also touched on a handful of Niners-related topics, so let’s round up a few of his comments….

  • Harbaugh confirmed that the Niners spoke to free agent running back Toby Gerhart before he signed with the Jaguars, tweets Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com.
  • The Niners like Quinton Patton, but still would like to add a potential No. 3 receiver, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, who says Harbaugh made it clear the team is looking to augment the position. San Francisco has been linked to Julian Edelman and Emmanuel Sanders this offseason, among others.
  • Frank Gore is entering the final year of his contract, and the running back’s future with the Niners beyond that is uncertain. Said Harbaugh: “I really think Frank has three more good years. I truly believe that. But we’re in a game of taking it one year at a time, so…”
  • Harbaugh is checking out a few quarterbacks in this year’s draft class, says Barrows. The Niners coach has already looked at Eastern Illinois’ quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and Virginia Tech’s Logan Thomas, and also wants to get a chance to see San Jose State’s David Fales and Fresno State’s Derek Carr.

NFC North Notes: Bears, Lions, Vikings

March 22nd, 2014 at 4:34pm CST by Rob DiRe

The Bears added three safeties during free agency, but aren’t yet finished at the position, writes Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com. While Ryan Mundy could be in a position to compete for a starting job, M.D. Jennings and Danny McCray are more likely depth signings who will see time on special teams. The team could still look to add another safety in the draft, or in free agency closer to the season.

Here are some other notes from around the NFC North:

  • The Lions will likely be looking to draft the best player available in the first round, which likely means they will not be drafting an offensive lineman, writes Mike Rothstein of ESPN.com. With the top two offensive linemen in Greg Robinson of Auburn and Jake Matthews of Texas A&M likely off the board, Rothstein does not see the team reaching for the next tackle at that pick.
  • Rothstein also writes that he does not expect the Lions to rely on the draft to fill all the needs in the secondary. Specifically, he envisions the team signing one of the three safeties who recently visited, in James Ihedigbo, Chris Clemons, and Thomas DeCoud. Signing one of those players would not preclude the team from using the first-round pick on a defensive back.
  • The Vikings are in the market for a quarterback in this draft, writes Ben Goessling of ESPN.com, but may not get a chance to draft one early in the first round. The team is exploring other options, appearing at Fresno State’s pro day to watch Derek Carr, and to heading to San Jose State’s pro day to scout David Fales.
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