Sam Darnold - Pro Football Rumors

Draft Notes: Broncos, Davenport, Giants

April 14th, 2018 at 4:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

If the Broncos do not see the quarterback they prefer still on the board by the time their No. 5 pick rolls around, Albert Breer of SI.com hears the team is a prime candidate to trade down. Breer mentions Quenton Nelson or Denzel Ward as names connected to the Broncos. If Denver were to move down and target one of these players, however, they could be vulnerable to another team selecting either. The Bears, who hold the eighth pick, have met with both of these prospects. Nelson would slide in as the highest-ceiling O-line prospect the Broncos have had in many years, likely being a Day 1 starter at left guard, while Ward would be thrust into the pipeline behind Chris Harris and Bradley Roby. The Broncos signed Tramaine Brock in March, but the cornerback’s deal is only for one year.

Here’s more from Denver and the latest from the draft world:

As for the quarterback the Broncos may be eyeing, Mike Klis of 9News writes Case Keenum‘s honeymoon would be short-lived if Baker Mayfield were still on the board at No. 5. The Broncos brass “loved” Mayfield’s playmaking ability before they proceeded to spend extensive time with him in the pre-draft process. With a dinner and official visit set up for Monday and Tuesday of next week, the Broncos will have met with Mayfield four times this offseason — coaching him at the Senior Bowl, conducing a Combine interview and sending representatives to his pro day.
While a report earlier this offseason pegged Josh Rosen as the Broncos’ preferred quarterback prospect, Klis writes that if the UCLA talent is still there at No. 5, that may trigger a trade-down sequence. Rosen being viewed as a player who could start early in his rookie year may not line up with the Broncos’ timeline, with the team guaranteeing Keenum $25MM, per Klis.
The other team that’s possibly eyeing a quarterback but isn’t certain to select one with its top-five pick, the Giants may have a bit of a divide about which one they prefer. They’ve been connected to Sam Darnold for weeks, and Breer notes Dave Gettleman is indeed high on the 20-year-old USC product. But he adds Giants coaches have expressed support for Josh Allen. While running back might not be the best investment with a No. 2 overall choice, Breer notes the Giants’ coaching staff and front office contingents are sold on Saquon Barkley. The Penn State standout visited the Giants earlier this week.
Marcus Davenport worked out for the 49ers recently, Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee reports. San Francisco is doing extensive work researching the defensive end prospects in this draft. While Bradley Chubb is not expected to be on the board by the time the 49ers pick at No. 9, they spent multiple days with Arden Key this week. They also worked out Florida State defensive end Josh Sweat, with Barrows writing the 49ers “would love” to add an outside rusher and are examining several prospects closely at this spot.
A source close to John Dorsey informed Breer that it is looking like a Darnold-or-Allen debate for the Browns at No. 1. Said source indicated Dorsey is high on Darnold but also is intrigued by Allen’s upside. And he has a history as an exec of taking potential over production.

Latest On Jets’ QB Decision

April 14th, 2018 at 2:39pm CST by Sam Robinson

While the Giants and Broncos provide unique variables in the top five, the Browns and Jets are essentially committed to drafting a quarterback. And the latter’s preference hierarchy appears to have evolved since the start of the pre-draft process.

When the Jets traded up from No. 6 to No. 3, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv notes the common line of thinking was there was “no way” Sam Darnold would potentially be available to them. Now, the Jets are planning to visit with Darnold after previously holding off on doing so.

Mike Maccagnan said he’d be open to trading up, but Vacchiano hears the Browns are not expected to be interested in a trade at No. 1 and the Giants — despite being in a different conference — “absolutely” won’t accommodate the Jets in a high-stakes trade like this. While the Giants have been linked to Darnold for a bit now, the Jets would probably take the USC-developed passer if he fell to No. 3, per Vacchiano.

At this research period’s outset, the Jets held Josh Rosen in higher regard than they did Baker Mayfield. Now, Vacchiano notes the team has warmed up to the Oklahoma statistical dynamo and points out the buzz has the Jets favoring Mayfield over Rosen.

Plenty of indications in recent weeks support the Jets being thorough about Mayfield, while Rosen has probably been the least discussed quarterback out of the big four. Vacchiano writes the Jets have still spent plenty of time studying Rosen, the building momentum surrounding Mayfield notwithstanding. They visited with the UCLA alum this week. However, if the Jets do end up choosing Rosen over Mayfield, this will qualify as an incredibly successful smokescreen operation.

Jets To Work Out Sam Darnold

April 10th, 2018 at 1:19pm CST by Zachary Links

The Jets will bring USC quarterback Sam Darnold in for a top 30 visit in the coming days, Albert Breer of The MMQB tweets. Darnold was not listed on the Jets’ schedule as of a couple of weeks ago, but they now have a meeting lined up.

The Jets hold the third overall pick in the draft, but it would be a surprise if he slipped past the Browns (No. 1) and Giants (No. 2). If the Jets are really sold on Darnold, they could conceivably ponder another trade up to get within range for him. Alternatively, they could just be doing their due diligence in the event of a draft day surprise.

The Jets already sacrificed three second-round picks in order to vault up from No. 6 to No. 3 a move up to the top pick would cost them at least one future first-round choice. The Jets also didn’t engage the Giants in trade talks before swapping spots with the Colts, so it’s not likely that they’d be willing to make that move now.

The Bills, who have the necessary ammo to move into the top five, watched Darnold throw last week. The Giants and Browns have also auditioned the USC signal caller.

East Notes: Giants, Jets, Gronk, Maclin

April 9th, 2018 at 9:29pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Giants are doing their due diligence with the top quarterbacks in the draft, and that included a Josh Rosen summit on Monday, per Peter King of SI.com. However, they may not be that interested in the UCLA alum. An NFL scout continued the building Sam Darnold/Giants buzz by indicating he’s the Los Angeles-based quarterback the team wants, rather than Rosen.

“If Darnold is available, they’re taking Darnold,” the anonymous evaluator said, via Matt Lombardo of NJ.com. “They don’t like Rosen.”

This follows DraftAnalyst.com reporter Tony Pauline’s assessment of the Giants only being particularly interested in Darnold, among the quarterbacks, and more anonymous execs saying Darnold would be the Giants’ choice at No. 2 if he slipped past the Browns. If Darnold is unavailable, a Bradley Chubb–Saquon Barkley debate will transpire, the evaluator said, via Lombardo.

Seven teams have appeared on Rosen’s itinerary, and he will be on the east coast for much of this week. His Jets summit is set for Tuesday, with the Bills powwow occurring Wednesday, King reports. He’ll meet with the Chargers in a non-30 visit later this week. Longtime NFL exec-turned-analyst Gil Brandt rated the UCLA passer as his No. 1 quarterback in the draft, but it now looks like both the Browns — connected mostly to Darnold and Josh Allen — and the Giants will pass on him.

Here’s more from the Eastern divisions:

Jeremy Maclin is without a team for the second time in two years. One of the wide receiver’s former employers did some work on him recently, however. The Eagles inquired on the nine-year veteran, per Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (on Twitter), adding the Cowboys did the same. However, both have signed other wideouts. The Eagles added Mike Wallace, and the Cowboys signed both Allen Hurns and Deonte Thompson. Maclin played for the Eagles from 2009-14 before signing with the Chiefs. The Chiefs and Ravens cut him in consecutive offseasons. He will turn 30 next month. Anderson adds Maclin is currently training in Baltimore and Philadelphia.
Bill Belichick may have an issue with Rob Gronkowski being a TB12 client. Early last season, the Patriots coach chastised Gronk in front of other players for working out at the Alex Guererro-headed facility, Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald reports. Nevertheless, Gronkowski remains a TB12 client and is now below his ideal playing weight, coming in at around 260 pounds presently, per Guregian.
More for the burgeoning Jets/Baker Mayfield file: team CEO Christopher Johnson was part of the contingent that met with the reigning Heisman winner on Monday, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com notes. Johnson was part of the Jets‘ contingent that spoke with the top four quarterbacks at the Combine, but Cimini writes he didn’t ask any questions. He was believed to have been more involved today.
In the pros-and-cons debate surrounding Josh Allen, the Jets have done perhaps the most research. Cimini writes team brass loves the Wyoming prodigy’s arm strength but has “legitimate concerns” about his accuracy.
South Dakota State-developed tight end Dallas Goedert will have spent plenty of time with the Dolphins by the time draft weekend arrives. He’s already worked out for Dolphins brass in South Dakota and will visit Miami this week, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports. One of the top tight ends in the draft, Goedert has also visited the Vikings. The Dolphins are in need of a tight end, having cut Julius Thomas and submitted an unsuccessful waiver claim for Clive Walford.

NFC East Notes: Giants, Cowboys, Sutton

April 9th, 2018 at 5:32pm CST by Sam Robinson

Ereck Flowers has not lived up to expectations since being a 2015 first-round pick, but the Giants are planning to move him to his initial NFL position. Flowers is set to shift to right tackle, where he was in his first NFL offseason before a Will Beatty injury moved him to the left side — where he played for three seasons — but meetings between Flowers and the Giants will have to wait. Flowers was the team’s only no-show for Day 1 of the Pat Shurmur regime, per Art Stapleton of NorthJersey.com (on Twitter). These workouts are voluntary, but considering Flowers was the only no-show, this is notable. The Giants were not briefed about a Flowers absence, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv reports. The Giants had issues with Flowers’ attitude last season, and it’s reasonable the team will pass on his fifth-year option. Dave Gettleman has made it clear at about every turn this offseason he wanted to overhaul the Giants’ offensive line, and Flowers being a first-round pick in the Jerry Reese era might not grant him much leeway anymore.

Here’s the latest from the NFC East, continuing with a player who may or may not be changing positions up front.

Jason Garrett emphasized a preference for getting his best five linemen on the field and praised La’el Collins‘ versatility. With Cameron Fleming now in the fold for the Cowboys, this line of thinking would seemingly point to Collins returning to left guard. But he said Sunday he would prefer to stay at right tackle. “One of the things we want to do is always try to play our five best guys,” Garrett said, via Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “A big part of that beyond just who are the best is try to put them in the best place for them individually and the best place for them collectively. His versatility is going to help us.” Hill adds that Fleming, who played right tackle for the Patriots, will also get a look at guard. But he has less guard experience than Collins, who was an interior lineman from 2015-16.
With the Browns likely taking a quarterback at No. 1, the Giants are going to have their pick of the other sought-after members of this passer class and the best non-QB in the draft. However, how the Browns proceed may affect the Giants’ desire to invest their No. 2 overall pick in an Eli Manning successor. Sam Darnold is the only quarterback the Giants are believed to covet, Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com writes. A previous report indicated the Giants would not be expected to pass on Darnold if he’s there.
If the Browns take the USC-honed QB, they may either be open for business at 2 or be ready to pull the trigger on Bradley Chubb. Chubb/Giants chatter has increased in recent days, per James Palmer of NFL.com (video link). James Bettcher said Chubb’s past in a 4-3 set would not preclude the Giants from plugging him into their new 3-4 alignment, even though the N.C. State edge defender is a bit large for a typical outside linebacker.
Courtland Sutton has already visited the Cowboys and will add another NFC East team to his meetings itinerary Tuesday. The SMU wide receiver will meet with the Eagles in Philadelphia, Geoff Mosher of 97.5 The Fan reports (on Twitter). New Eagles WRs coach Gunter Brewer spent time with Sutton at the Mustangs’ pro day, Mosher tweets.

Bills To Work Out Sam Darnold

April 9th, 2018 at 12:26pm CST by Sam Robinson

Bills representatives will travel to Los Angeles to work out Sam Darnold this week, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter).

Darnold will throw for this contingent on Friday, per Rapoport. He’s a virtual certainty to go in the top five and probably in the top two, but the Bills have been widely reported to pursuing a path into the top five for the purposes of landing a quarterback.

Darnold has already visited the Browns, who have been the team most connected to him, and spent the most recent Friday working out for Broncos reps. He has a visit planned with the Giants, who are not certain to select a quarterback but are rumored to be Darnold fans to the point they wouldn’t pass on him at No. 2 if the Browns let him get there, and has a non-30 visit with the Chargers lined up.

The Bills have A.J. McCarron penciled in as their 2018 starter, but he’s viewed as a bridge passer while the Brandon Beane-run franchise targets a longer-term solution.

NFL Draft Rumors: Broncos, Darnold, Vea

April 6th, 2018 at 3:27pm CST by Zachary Links

The Broncos sent GM John Elway, coach Vance Joseph, and other top executives to watch Sam Darnold work out in Los Angeles on Friday morning, Mike Klis of 9News tweets. Darnold, the youngest of this year’s top quarterback prospects, appears to be a strong candidate to go No. 1 overall. It could be a longshot for the Broncos to land him at No. 5, but stranger things have happened and there’s also the possibility of Denver moving up in the order. As a redshirt sophomore, the USC product completed 63.1% of his passes for 4,143 yards and 26 touchdowns.

Here’s more NFL Draft news:

The Redskins will meet with USC running back Ronald Jones on Monday, John Keim of ESPN.com tweets. Team president Bruce Allen attended Jones’ pro day earlier this week and apparently came away impressed. Most believe that the Redskins will target a defensive player at No. 13 overall, so Jones might not be in the cards for Washington unless they trade down or acquire an additional pick in the back half of the first round. Jones, who has garnered comparisons to Jamaal Charles for his running style, is among this year’s top players at the position.
LSU cornerback Donte Jackson has upcoming visits with the Broncos, Bills, Buccaneers, Panthers, and Packers (Twitter link via Jared Tokarz). Jackson ranks 28th on the top 50 list of NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah and impressed with a 4.32 second 40-yard-dash at the draft combine.
Washington defensive tackle Vita Vea will visit with the Bengals on Sunday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.

Chargers Meeting With Top QBs In Draft

April 4th, 2018 at 2:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Chargers have not needed to worry about a starting quarterback for most of this century, and Philip Rivers has not given indications he’s eyeing near-future retirement. But the team is going to continue to look at passing prospects.

Having already been linked to a Josh Rosen meeting, the Chargers have already met with — or are planning to visit with — the top five quarterbacks in this draft. Per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter), the Bolts are planning visits for Rosen and Sam Darnold, which won’t count toward their 30 prospect summits because they are Los Angeles-based.

Los Angeles, per Rapoport (on Twitter), also recently worked out or met with the other three — Josh Allen, Baker Mayfield and Lamar Jackson. But quarterback meetings took place between Bolts brass and recent drafts’ higher-end passing prospects in the past, only for the Rivers-Kellen Clemens setup to remain in place for years. Now, the Chargers are going with Geno Smith behind Rivers. With only Cardale Jones also in the picture, the team does not have an obvious succession plan.

But the Chargers aren’t exactly in position to select one of the top four passers, and Jackson and Rivers possess wildly disparate skill sets. And with the 36-year-old Rivers possibly set to play out his through-2019 contract and pursue another extension, it’s possible these visits will continue the recent pattern. The Chargers hold the No. 17 pick in the first round.

Jets Divided On Rookie QB Class

April 4th, 2018 at 1:15pm CST by Sam Robinson

The 2018 draft will bring one of the more unique quarterback pools in memory, with four passers likely going in the top 10 and possibly all coming off the board in the top five. Only with less than a month until the draft, the pecking order remains wildly uncertain.

One team with a decision to make will be the Jets, and they’re divided about this quarterback class at the current juncture, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News writes. They are not the only team going through the deliberation process, with the Browns — who are visiting with all four of the top prospects this week — finalizing their preference as well.

But Gang Green surrendered a bounty of picks to move up to the No. 3 spot, so some pressure is on Mike Maccagnan to get this pick right. Mehta notes that when the team made the move from No. 6 to No. 3, Baker Mayfield lagged behind the three other high-profile passers. Now, there’s been plenty of buzz about the Jets being ready to pull the trigger on the Oklahoma product.

Several Jets officials “love” Josh Allen‘s skill set, and the team has been connected to the Wyoming signal-caller since before its draft standing was established. The Jets were believed to have done the most work on Allen as of last season. Others in the organization, per Mehta, aren’t certain the Mountain West quarterback is right for New York.

Mayfield’s intangibles continue to impress many Jets officials, but his 6-foot frame and smaller hands are providing concerns, Mehta writes, adding that Mayfield’s footwork has even drawn scrutiny for some. Others point to his dominance in college — 70.8 completion percentage from 2016-17 — as reasons the footwork won’t be an issue. A consensus of sorts, though, points to the Jets preferring Sam Darnold over Mayfield. Although, Darnold is not expected to make it past both the Browns and Giants. Execs expect the Giants, who are not certain to take a quarterback, to pull the trigger on Darnold if the Browns go with Allen.

Additionally, Mehta notes the Patriots are fans of Mayfield. And after their Brandin Cooks trade, they have a major additional resource — the Rams’ No. 23 overall pick — to attempt a possible trade-up to acquire a quarterback. Said passer, investment-wise, would be the franchise’s most significant effort to appoint a Tom Brady successor. Mehta adds the Bills remain in hot pursuit of a trade into the franchise-quarterback sector of the draft. And Buffalo’s stockpile of picks may be enough to outflank the Patriots, whom Mehta does not expect to be able to strike a deal with the Giants for the No. 2 selection.

Giants Schedule Pre-Draft Visits With QBs, RB Saquon Barkley

April 4th, 2018 at 11:42am CST by Dallas Robinson

The Giants plan to meet with the draft’s top four quarterbacks — USC’s Sam Darnold, UCLA’s Josh Rosen, Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield, and Wyoming’s Josh Allen — next week, according to Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com (Twitter link). Meanwhile, New York will also used one of its 30 allotted pre-draft visits on Penn State running back Saquon Barkley, tweets Dianna Russini of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Provided the Browns select a quarterback with the No. 1 overall pick, the Giants will have their choice of three signal-callers, Barkley, offensive lineman Quenton Nelson, or edge rusher Bradley Chubb with the second pick. While New York intends to deploy veteran Eli Manning as its starting quarterback once again in 2018, the club could use this opportunity to find its passer of the future.

But Barkley would likely give the Giants a better chance to win in the near-term, as Big Blue’s running back depth chart is currently uninspiring. At present, New York has veteran Jonathan Stewart, plus recent draft picks Wayne Gallman and Paul Perkins, at running back, but Barkley would immediately take over as the club’s starter if drafted.