HEADLINES

Markus Wheaton

Extra Points: Collins, Staley, McKinnon

July 7th, 2014 at 7:59pm CST by Matt Feminis

Let’s round up a few Monday odds and ends from around the NFL….

  • Patriots second-year linebacker Jamie Collins‘ arrow is pointing up following a terrific rookie season in which he showcased unique athleticism and versatility. In Collins, “Bill Belichick has found a new sort of prototype,” says NFL.com’s Gregg Rosenthal, who profiles Collins as a breakout player deserving of 900 snaps this season. For perspective, Dont’a Hightower‘s 870 snaps led Patriots linebackers in 2013.
  • Joe Staley has four years remaining on a six-year, $43.2MM contract with the 49ers, but many consider the outstanding left tackle underpaid, says ESPN’s Bill Williamson, who tweets the team could consider giving Staley a new deal. Either way, Staley isn’t expected to hold out. That’s not the case for Alex Boone, however, tweets Williamson.
  • The Steelers need second-year man Markus Wheaton to step up, says ESPN’s Scott Brown in his preview of the team’s receivers.
  • In a rundown of AFC South depth chart notes, Pro Football Focus’ Gordon McGuiness says he doesn’t expect Jaguars free-agent acquisition Toby Gerhart to be any better than average.
  • Meanwhile, Vikings rookie Jerick McKinnon is vying to replace Gerhart as Adrian Peterson‘s backup. A third-round pick out of Georgia Southern, McKinnon is making a strong first impression on Peterson: “He’s pretty impressive and there’s not too many guys who impress me like that, especially rookies coming in,” Peterson told Master Tesfatsion of the Star Tribune.
  • Despite a recent ESPN poll (Insider required) of league executives that ranked Jets quarterback Geno Smith the NFL’s worst starter, NewYorkJets.com editor-in-chief Randy Lange tries to make a case Smith’s rookie season was “better than some observers seem to think.”
  • If the season started today, the Raiders would be the worst team in football, according to Pro Football Talk.

Extra Points: Wheaton, Wilson, Ravens

April 6th, 2014 at 12:44pm CST by Rory Parks

Although the Steelers were prepared to lose WR Emmanuel Sanders in free agency, they did not expect to lose Jerricho Cotchery as well, according to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gaztte. Although the team replaced Cotchery with the similarly-reliable Lance Moore, Pittsburgh is still looking to add a big-bodied receiver in the draft.

The Steelers, like many teams, would like to draft Texas A&M WR Mike Evans, but Evans’ strong combine performance might have put him out of reach for Pittsburgh, who hold the N0. 15 overall selection. So, even though they are still likely to take a receiver early in the draft–perhaps with that No. 15 pick–the development of second-year player Markus Wheaton will be critical to the Steelers’ offensive success.

Wheaton dazzled in training camp last year but was primarily a special teams contributor during the regular season, appearing in 11 games and catching 6 passes for 64 yards. He will have ample opportunity to show Steelers coaches what he can do this summer, but he will likely have at least one high-ceiling rookie nipping at his heels.

Some more notes from around the league:

  • Mike Wells of ESPN.com examines whether recently-released S Adrian Wilson could be a fit for the Colts. He writes that while GM Ryan Grigson will explore all options, the Colts already have two players in the secondary who could not stay healthy last season–LaRon Landry and Greg Toler–and do not need to add another. Free agent safety Kurt Coleman visited the team last week, and safeties Jimmie Ward and Terrence Brooks are possibilities in the second round of the draft.
  • Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean, just as he did yesterday, takes a look at some more impacts of Chris Johnson‘s departure on the Titans, noting that the team is likely to take a running back-by-committee approach.
  • Although inside linebacker has not been discussed as a major position of need for the Ravens after the re-signing of Daryl Smith and the expected emergence of second-year man Arthur Brown, head coach John Harbaugh would like to add one or two inside linebackers to the roster, according to Ryan Mink of BaltimoreRavens.com. Harbaugh made no mention of Rolando McClain, whose rights the team still holds.