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West Draft Rumors: Cardinals, Murray, 49ers, Broncos

April 21st, 2019 at 7:30pm CST by Micah Powell

On Saturday, Arizona State receiver and local product N’Keal Harry visited the Cardinals for a private visit, NFL Network’s Ian Rappoport tweets.

Possessing the size, strength and speed of a prototypical outside receiver, Harry could be an option for Arizona should he still be on the board when the team is on the clock at No. 33. Harry should fully be in play there, as the Cardinals reportedly like the value of going receiver with their second-round pick, Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller tweets.

Should the team go with Harry, it would pair him with another local standout in Christian Kirk, who impressed as a rookie before missing time with an injury down the stretch. The pair of young wideouts would join veteran and future Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald in a potentially loaded receiver corps for either Josh Rosen or Kyler Murray, should the team go with the Oklahoma product as expected a week before the draft.

Here’s more draft talk from around the league:

  • Sticking with the Cardinals, though the team has been heavily linked to Murray, Kent Somer of the Arizona Republic believes the team should pass on the reigning Heisman Trophy winner. He thinks the team should stick with Rosen, attempt to trade down to pick up more picks, and, if that option is not possible, take either Quinnen Williams or Nick Bosa.
  • Speaking of Williams, many NFL executives reportedly prefer the Alabama defensive lineman to Ohio State’s Bosa as the draft’s top overall prospect, Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk writes. In a poll of 14 personnel members by Bob McGinn, six chose Williams as the top picks, twice as many as Bosa, who received the second most. Also receiving votes were Josh Allen, Kyler Murray, Dwayne Haskins and Jeffery Simmons.
  • The Broncos have been heavily tied to quarterback’s heading into this week’s draft. Helping pick that signal-caller, if they do indeed go that route, is new offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello, who learned how to pick the position from 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, the Denver Post’s Ryan O’Halloran writes. “Kyle had a lot of success (evaluating quarterbacks) and (he) showed me some things that I use in the evaluation process,” Scangarello said. “It’s a tough position to evaluate. You just get them in (the meeting room) and you try and find out what you can about them.” Denver has been linked with Drew Lock, but Daniel Jones, Murray and Dwayne Haskins could all fit the bill at No. 10 if everything falls right.
  • The 49ers have been heavily tied to either Bosa or Williams with the No. 2 pick on Thursday, but the team is looking to the skill positions for their Round 2 pick, NBC Sports’ Matt Maiocco writes. At the top of the list is wide receiver, where they are looking to find a starter-level pass catcher to complement second-year wideout Dante Pettis and veteran Marquise Goodwin. Maiocco notes the receivers who have been in for a visit include Harry, A.J. Brown, Hakeem Butler, Jalen Hurd and Deebo Samuel.

 

 

Latest On 49ers’ Draft Plans

April 20th, 2019 at 10:52am CST by Ben Levine

Assuming the Cardinals select quarterback Kyler Murray with the first-overall pick, it’s expected that the 49ers would subsequently take Ohio State pass rusher Nick Bosa with the second-overall pick. However, Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com writes that this perception could be the 49ers’ way of throwing rival teams off their trail.

Florio says that “some in league circles believe that the extent to which the 49ers are allowing that perception to exist unchallenged could mean, in reality, that the 49ers are planning to do something else.” If this is truly the case, and the 49ers aren’t 100-percent focused on selecting Bosa with the second pick, then this could vicariously lead to a pair of draft scenarios.

For starters, the 49ers could simply be eying Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen Williams. If the organization is looking for an Aaron Donald-type player who they could easily throw in to the interior of their defensive line, then Williams would seemingly be the perfect choice. Of course, this wouldn’t necessarily explain why the 49ers aren’t doing anything to decrease the Bosa-to-San Francisco talk. If the team intends to take Williams with the second pick, they could just publicly refute the Bosa rumors. On the flip side, perhaps they’re keeping their mouths shut until they get clarity on Arizona’s pick.

The other scenario revolves around a trade. As Florio points out, it was only two years ago that the 49ers acquired an extra pair of third-rounders and an extra fourth-rounder for simply moving down one spot in the draft. If, say, the Jets are particularly enamored with Bosa, the 49ers could use their own “interest” in the Ohio State standout to get more out of a trade. Either way, if the 49ers are hoping to make a trade and draft Williams, they probably won’t be able to drop much further than fourth-overall; the majority of mock drafts have some combination of Murray, Bosa, Williams, and Kentucky edge defense Josh Allen in their top-four.

AFC East Notes: Brady, Bosa, Bills, Dolphins

April 16th, 2019 at 8:08pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Patriots began their their sixth offseason program as a defending Super Bowl champion team on Monday, but the player most associated with those titles was not with them. Tom Brady was not present when the Patriots opened their 2019 workouts, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. This is not a surprise, with the 41-year-old quarterback’s plan of staying away until the Pats’ June minicamp again appearing to be in place. Brady set his schedule this way last year. However, Brady might have made one tweak to his offseason regimen. He may report to the Patriots a bit bigger than he did a year ago, with Rapoport adding the 20th-year veteran might be planning to put on some weight this offseason. Brady’s weight has rarely come up during his legendary run. The well-known fitness buff is listed at 6-foot-4, 225 pounds.

Here is the latest from the AFC East, moving to some teams’ potential draft strategies:

  • If the Cardinals and 49ers pass on Nick Bosa, the Jets are going to take him, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News offers. If both Bosa and Josh Allen remained on the board at No. 3, Mehta writes the Jets will take the Ohio State product. Although the Jets have been linked to trade-down scenarios, entering the draft without a second-round pick, Bosa would be the kind of impact pass rusher the team may not be able to pass up. The Jets are not believed to have used one of their 30 pre-draft visits on Bosa, but it’s not like a team that tried to spend $15MM per year to convert an off-ball linebacker into a pass rusher would not have interest in a player viewed by many as the best prospect in the draft.
  • In going with Ryan Fitzpatrick and two backups (Jake Rudock and Luke Falk) who have combined to throw five NFL passes, the Dolphins probably have the thinnest quarterback depth chart in football. They plan to augment the group soon, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald notes. Miami is targeting a quarterback in this draft, but it’s not known if the team wants a first-round passer. The Dolphins have met with Dwayne Haskins, Drew Lock and Daniel Jones. However, if the team most linked to a wait-until-2020 strategy regarding a starting quarterback passes on one in this draft, it is “definitely” eyeing one who could be a backup, Salguero adds. So, Miami could be a mid-round player for one of this draft’s second-tier passers.
  • Eli Harold will line up as a defensive end in Buffalo, Bills GM Brandon Beane said (Twitter link). Harold has worked as an outside linebacker in 3-4 and 4-3 schemes, doing so in San Francisco and Detroit, while also used on the line at times. The Bills have Jerry Hughes and Trent Murphy aligned as their starting ends, with perpetual trade candidate Shaq Lawson residing there as well.

Draft Rumors: Bucs, Bills, DL, Saints, Harry

April 8th, 2019 at 9:52pm CST by Sam Robinson

A fifth team emerged on Nick Bosa‘s pre-draft schedule. The Buccaneers will host the impact edge rusher prospect, according to Albert Breer of SI.com. Bosa will have dinner with Bucs representatives on Sunday night and stay in Tampa for a Monday visit. The Ohio State-honed defender met with the Cardinals and Giants last week and has 49ers and Raiders meetings on his agenda. But a Florida trip will follow. It appears next to impossible Bosa falls to the Bucs at No. 5, so the only way Tampa Bay likely would be in position to land him would be through a trade-up scenario.

Here is the latest from the draft, staying with the Bucs:

  • Having visited with LSU linebacker Devin White, the Bucs’ interest has appeared to have increased. The Bucs “love” White, Breer adds, and the off-ball ‘backer has been rumored to have climbed into potential top-five consideration. No non-rush linebacker has gone off the board in the top five since Aaron Curry 10 years ago. Tampa Bay saw Kwon Alexander defect to San Francisco, creating a need here. But No. 5 overall is quite the perch to take an off-ball linebacker.
  • A sixth team scheduled a Montez Sweat summit. The Bengals brought in the Mississippi State-developed defensive end on Monday night, Alex Marvez of Sirius XM Radio tweets. He has already met with or is scheduled to visit the 49ers, Raiders, Bills, Packers and Bucs. Sweat blazed to a 4.41-second 40-yard dash at the Combine and seems likely to go off the board in the top 10.
  • Staying on the subject of draft-eligible ends, Jaylon Ferguson‘s extensive April tour of NFL cities continues. Among the teams on his reported 22-visit tour: the Bills, Giants, Colts, Eagles, Cowboys, Titans and Rams, per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). Ferguson met with the Bills on Monday; he will head southeast for his Giants powwow next. His visits with the Colts and Eagles are on tap for this week, with the Cowboys, Titans and Rams meetings are slated for next week. The Bucs and Bengals were already on the Louisiana Tech-produced pass rusher’s docket.
  • This year’s wide receiver hierarchy has not produced a clear-cut favorite, D.K. Metcalf‘s take-notice measurables notwithstanding. One of the top pass-catching prospects, N’Keal Harry, joined Ferguson in meeting with the Bills on Monday, Pelissero tweets. Upcoming for the Arizona State alum this week: visits with the Eagles, Patriots and Saints. Harry rates as the No. 4 receiver prospect — behind Marquise Brown, Metcalf and A.J. Brown — per NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah. Harry met with the Seahawks last week.
  • One of the second-tier defensive tackle prospects, Jerry Tillery remains in recovery from shoulder labrum surgery. But he traveled to New Orleans on Monday for a pre-draft Saints visit, Pelissero adds (via Twitter). The Notre Dame product is not expected to participate in OTAs but may be on track for training camp. The 6-foot-7, 305-pound prospect profiles as late-Day 1/early-Day 2 pick. By virtue of 2018 trades, the Saints hold just one pick in the first four rounds — No. 62 overall.
  • The Jets also parted with extensive draft capital in 2018, in order to land Sam Darnold. As a result, they continue to be mentioned as a team ready to trade down. Gang Green “badly” wants to trade out of the No. 3 slot, Breer notes. The Jets surrendered what became the No. 34 overall pick to the Colts last year, and the Mike Maccagnan-led front office wants to collect a second-round pick via trade.

Nick Bosa To Visit 4 Teams

April 1st, 2019 at 6:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

Nick Bosa is not expected to have to wait long to hear his name called during the first round of the upcoming draft, in the event the Cardinals indeed pass on him. Teams with a combination of a high pick and an edge-rushing need are going to bring in the Ohio State standout.

The Cardinals and Giants will bring in Bosa this week, Albert Breer of SI.com reports, adding that Bay Area trips — to meet with both the 49ers and Raiders — are on tap next week.

Bosa has already had dinner with both Cardinals and 49ers representatives, but official visits to the teams holding the top picks in this draft are on tap. Nearly all mock drafts have Bosa going to one of these two NFC West franchises, most now sending him to San Francisco given the Kyler Murray-Cardinals noise.

The Giants are not believed to be interested in packaging their two first-round picks to move up. The team operating this way would almost certainly prevent landing Bosa. The Raiders hold three first-round picks, but with teams ahead of them linked to Bosa, moving up might be difficult. Oakland finishing last season with just 13 sacks — the lowest team total since the 2008 Chiefs — may further drive the franchise toward addressing this need early in Round 1, however.

Nick Bosa did not boast Joey Bosa–caliber stats while with the Buckeyes, registering 17.5 sacks and 29 tackles for loss in his three-season run in Columbus. But he has been universally regarded as a top-tier prospect, as his brother was three years ago.

Extra Points: Bosa, Cardinals, Mount, CBA

March 29th, 2019 at 8:40pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

For a long time toward the end of the college season, Ohio State pass-rusher Nick Bosa was the favorite to go first overall in the 2019 draft. But ever since Kliff Kingsbury got the head coaching job with the Cardinals, momentum has steadily shifted toward Kyler Murray. The current conventional wisdom is that Arizona is leaning toward taking Murray with the first pick, and shopping Josh Rosen. But they won’t admit it publicly, and there are reasons to believe they haven’t actually made up their minds yet.

The Cardinals are having dinner with Bosa tonight, a source told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Bosa, the younger brother of Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa, dominated in the Big Ten. The Cardinals have been not so subtle with their interest in Murray, but it’s still possible that it’s all been a smokescreen to try and distract from their true intentions with the pick. If the Cardinals pass on him, Bosa is still a lock to go within the first couple of picks. We heard earlier this week that the 49ers were targeting him at second overall.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Free agent linebacker Deiontrez Mount has been accused of assaulting an Uber driver, as Stephanie Butzer of The Denver Channel writes. The incident, which took place early Sunday morning, left Mount with a bloodied nose when the Uber driver fought back. Mount was cited for simple assault and released, but this may not bode well for his stock on the open market. Mount missed the entire 2018 season with a torn Achilles and has just 12 career appearances to his credit between the Broncos, Colts and Titans.
  • Another day, more confirmation that we could be headed for a work stoppage or prolonged battle when a new CBA needs to be negotiated between the league and the NFLPA. There are “plenty of issues that will need to be resolved before a new labor deal can be finalized,” a source told Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com, who writes that it’s “highly unlikely” there will be a quick deal. In addition to the widely-known issues about contracts and player compensation, Florio writes that there are other more under the radar issues that will be sticking points, like “the extent to which the NFL wants to expand stadium credits under the current league-union revenue split, with the new Rams’ stadium expected to be” hotly debated. Florio also thinks it’ll be the owners, not necessarily the players, wielding the threat of a lockout in order to try and get a better deal.
  • In case you missed it, Bill Belichick could take over as the Patriots’ defensive coordinator after Greg Schiano stepped down.

West Notes: 49ers, Draft, Bosa, Broncos

March 24th, 2019 at 9:15pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The 49ers are in the midst of a pivotal offseason. They dealt with a mountain of injuries last year which excused their poor record, but with Jimmy Garoppolo back healthy next season expectations will be very high. Fortunately for San Francisco, they have the second overall pick at their disposal. For a long time, Ohio State pass-rusher Nick Bosa was the favorite to go first overall to the Cardinals. But with many now expecting Arizona to take Kyler Murray, Bosa could fall into San Francisco’s lap.

To that end, the “consensus opinion at this stage appears to be that Bosa will end up with the 49ers,” writes Matt Maioccio of NBC Sports. One NFL front office member told Maioccio at a recent pro day that the 49ers were going to take Bosa. The 49ers are in desperate need of outside pass-rush, so Bosa makes a lot of sense if he’s available. He would provide a massive boost to Kyle Shanahan’s defense.

Here’s more from the league’s western divisions:

  • The 49ers were expected to be players for Earl Thomas, but ultimately didn’t end up signing any of the big name safeties available. Safety was seemingly a position of need, but the 49ers opted not to make any splashes there. In a recent interview, 49ers GM John Lynch elaborated on the decision to more or less stay pat. “We feel good about our free safety depth. We feel we’re pretty well stocked there,” Lynch said, per Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports. Lynch did leave the door open for a future acquisition, saying “it’s not to say, if an opportunity presents itself, that we won’t go there, but we feel pretty good at our free safety spot.”
  • The Broncos may have traded for Joe Flacco, but that isn’t going to preclude them from looking for a quarterback of the future in the draft. Denver will host Kyler Murray, Drew Lock, Dwayne Haskins, and Daniel Jones on visits before next month’s draft, according to Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic (Twitter link). The Broncos have the tenth pick in the draft and seem to be seriously considering taking a signal-caller then, although Murray and Haskins are likely to be off the board by the time they’re scheduled to pick.
  • The Broncos didn’t pick up their option on linebacker Brandon Marshall, and as such might need to add an inside linebacker to replace him. New head coach Vic Fangio said earlier today that “we like the guys we have but we’re always looking to add guys to all the personnel positions. … I do like Josey and Todd, but we’re always looking to get better” referring to second-year UDFA Josey Jewell and veteran Todd Davis, per Mike Klis of Denver 9News (Twitter link). The Broncos’ run defense has been very inconsistent the past couple of years, so it wouldn’t be surprising at all to see them add a run-stuffing linebacker either in free agency or through the draft.

49ers To Meet With Nick Bosa

March 20th, 2019 at 12:41pm CST by Zachary Links

The 49ers are set to have a dinner date with defensive end Nick Bosa on Wednesday night, according to Albert Breer of The MMQB (Twitter link). With the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, the Niners may be in position to snag Bosa, who is regarded by many as the best overall talent in this year’s class. 

Of course, the Niners’ chances of having Bosa on the board hinges on the Cardinals’ plans at No. 1 . It has been widely reported that the Cardinals have set their sights on Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray, though their plans could still be in flux with five weeks to go before taking the podium.

The Niners already made major upgrades to their defense by acquiring edge rusher Dee Ford and Kwon Alexander earlier this month. Putting Bosa at one of the bookends would give the 49ers a massively improved front seven and a D to be reckoned with.

Despite playing in only three games last year, Bosa looks the part of a game-changer in the NFL, similar to older brother Joey Bosa. As a sophomore, Bosa registered 8.5 sacks and 16 total tackles for a loss and was named a unanimous First Team All-Big Ten selection. Even in his injury-shortened junior season, Bosa managed four sacks and six tackles for a loss.

Ohio State’s Nick Bosa To Participate In Combine Drills

February 25th, 2019 at 1:31pm CST by Zachary Links

Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa will participate in all drills at the NFL Draft combine, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (video link). Bosa’s final season was mostly lost to a core muscle injury, but he’s been healthy enough to practice for the past month, Rapoport hears. 

Bosa, of course, is in the mix to be the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. Despite playing in only three games last year, many believe that Bosa has the potential be a game-changer in the NFL, similar to older brother Joey Bosa. As a sophomore, Bosa registered 8.5 sacks and 16 total tackles for a loss and was named a unanimous First Team All-Big Ten selection. Even in his injury-shortened junior season, Bosa managed four sacks and six tackles for a loss in just three games.

At 6’4″ and 263 pounds, Bosa already has the size to compete at the next level. The Cardinals have other holes to address, but he could be the first player selected in April since Arizona could use some additional pass rushing ammo outside of Chandler Jones. If he can prove his health in Indianapolis, it’s hard to see Bosa slipping outside of the top 5.

The Cardinals, 49ers, Jets, Raiders, and Buccaneers are scheduled to be the first five teams up when the draft commences on Thursday, April 25.

Nick Bosa To Focus On Draft

October 16th, 2018 at 12:51pm CST by Zachary Links

Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa will not try to return to his team after rehabbing from a core muscle injury, the school announced on Tuesday. It’s a smart business decision from Bosa, who is widely projected as the top prospect in the 2019 NFL Draft. 

“I was hopeful that Nick would be able to return to play again for us,” head coach Urban Meyer said in a statement released by the school. “I know this was an extremely difficult and emotional decision for Nick and his family, and I wish him well as he moves on to get himself 100 percent healthy and ready for his next chapter. I want to thank Nick for the remarkable efforts he gave for this program. He is a first-class young man who we have been honored to coach.”

Bosa suffered the injury on Sept. 15 and had surgery less than a week later. In three games this year, Bosa had four sacks, six tackles for a loss, and was leading the Buckeyes in tackles overall.

Older brother Joey Bosa took a business-first stand with the Chargers as a rookie and wound up missing nearly all of the club’s offseason activities in the process. With that in mind, it’s not a surprise to hear that Nick playing it safe when it comes to his future prospects.