- Missouri defensive end Charles Harris‘ stock has risen so much that he could come off the board before Tennessee DE Derek Barnett, per Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Jeremiah places Harris 21st in his rankings and Barnett 13th, and PFR’s Dallas Robinson currently has the former going 26th overall and the latter ninth. Harris recently worked out for the Falcons, as he tells Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com.
- Offensive tackle Cam Robinson, who was teammates with Foster at Alabama, is drawing significant interest from the Texans. Houston worked out Robinson earlier this month, and he’s now in town for a two-day visit that will include another workout, according to Rapoport (Twitter link). The tackle-needy Texans are in line to pick 25th overall, but Robinson could be gone by then. The Bengals, owners of the ninth overall selection, met with Robinson over the weekend, Rapoport adds. In the event Robinson falls to the end of the first round, the Falcons (No. 31) will be a team to keep an eye on, writes Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com.
- The Falcons put Kansas State defensive end Jordan Willis through a workout last week, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com. Atlanta’s defensive line improved in 2016, but the club could still use another edge rusher to pair with Vic Beasley, as the rest of the Falcons’ defensive end rotation is made up of Adrian Clayborn, Brooks Reed, Derrick Shelby, Courtney Upshaw, and Jack Crawford. In 13 games last season, Willis posted 11.5 sacks and 17.5 tackles for loss.
Texas A&M Justin Evans has a strong chance of being selected in the back end of the first round of the draft, according to Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com, and the Cowboys, Falcons, and Buccaneers are among the NFL teams with the most interest in the defensive back prospect.
Evans has met with both Dallas and Atlanta, per Pauline. The Cowboys saw a high percentage of their defensive secondary leave during the free agent period, and two of their top three safeties — Barry Church and J.J. Wilcox — signed multi-year deals with rival clubs. The Falcons, meanwhile, may view Evans as an improvement over incumbent defender Ricardo Allen, as Evans would give head coach Dan Quinn an Earl Thomas-esque defender, per Pauline. Dallas and Atlanta hold the No. 28 and No. 31 picks, respectively.
The Buccaneers, meanwhile, likely won’t let Evans get past them in second round, where they own the No. 50 selection. Tampa Bay inked Wilcox last month, but could still use more depth in a safety group that was among the league’s worst in 2016. Chris Conte, Keith Tandy, and Ryan Smith comprise the remainder of the Bucs’ safety depth chart.
Evans has also met with the Dolphins during the predraft process.
- O.J. Howard has the Falcons slotted as his final pre-draft visit, Conor Orr of NFL.com tweets. The Alabama tight end would seem to require a near-Julio Jones-level trade from the Falcons if they were to select him, being presently stationed in the No. 31 position. PFR’s Dallas Robinson has the pass-catcher going off the board to the Jaguars at No. 4.
Longtime Falcons wide receiver Roddy White indicated in February that his NFL career had ended. The 35-year-old made it official Friday, announcing on Twitter that he has retired. White also thanked the Falcons “for a great 11 years.”
The 2015 season will go down as the last for White, who didn’t sign with another team last year after the Falcons released him in March. White wanted to continue his career in 2016, and he nearly inked a deal with the Patriots, who went on to knock off the Falcons in Super Bowl LI. However, they opted to sign Nate Washington instead.
White will go down as a rare long-tenured veteran who spent his entire career with one team. The former Alabama-Birmingham standout proved to be a steal for the Falcons, who chose him 27th overall in the 2005 draft. White now holds franchise records in catches (808), receiving yards (10,863) and receiving touchdowns (63). The 6-foot-1, 201-pounder posted seven 80-catch seasons and earned four Pro Bowl nods, including during his best year – 2010 – in which he amassed 115 receptions, 1,389 yards and 10 scores.
Thanks to his consistently stellar output, White currently ranks 33rd on the all-time receptions list, in company with notables like Steve Largent, Shannon Sharpe, Keyshawn Johnson, Henry Ellard, Chad Johnson, James Lofton, Charlie Joiner and Michael Irvin. As he begins his post-NFL life, White will join the coaching staff at Johns Creek High School in Georgia, where he’ll focus on developing receivers.
- The Falcons hosted Houston edge rusher Tyus Bowser on Tuesday, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com. In his senior season with the Cougars, Bowser registered 8.5 sacks, 12 tackles for loss, and four passes defensed. He ranks as the 36th overall prospect in the draft, in the estimation of Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com, who lauds Bowser’s “tremendous play speed” and ability to match up against opposing tight ends. Atlanta’s current pass-rushing group consists of Vic Beasley and an amalgamation of average to below-average players: Adrian Clayborn, Brooks Reed, Courtney Upshaw, Derrick Shelby, and Jack Crawford.
- UCLA edge rusher Takkarist McKinley met with two NFC South clubs — the Panthers and Falcons — this week, per Rapoport (Twitter link), who adds McKinley will visit with four more unidentified teams next week. Both Carolina and Atlanta could use youthful reinforcements on the edge, and McKinley stock has vacillated enough that he could conceivably be selected at No. 8 (Panthers) or No. 31 (Falcons). For what it’s worth, I sent McKinley to Atlanta in PFR’s first mock draft of 2017. Following shoulder surgery, McKinley may miss part or all of an NFL training camp and preseason.
The Falcons expect to lock up Devonta Freeman with an extension in the coming months, but the running back told Sporting News’ Alex Marvez he won’t skip the team’s offseason football activities if a new deal doesn’t come. “I’m doing everything,” said Freeman. “I love these guys. I love football.” Freeman was planning to seek “elite” money as of January, though it’s unclear if that remains the case. For now, he’s in line to make just under $1.8MM next season – the final year of his rookie contract – after combining for 2,100-plus rushing yards, 27 touchdowns (22 on the ground, five receiving) and 127 catches from 2015-16.
- The Redskins are meeting with Washington safety Budda Baker today, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Baker will subsequently meet with the Falcons later in the week. Although he’s small in stature (195 pounds), Baker “screams off the edge as a blitzer,” says Lance Zeirlein of NFL.com, who compares Baker to former NFL defensive MVP Bob Sanders. Baker will likely be a late first-round or early second-round pick.
There seems to be a difference of opinions on the top quarterbacks in this year’s draft. When asked about the 2017 crop, ESPN analyst Ron Jaworski said, “I wouldn’t take any of these guys in the first round,” (Twitter link).
Early on, UNC QB Mitch Trubisky was regarded as a candidate for the No. 1 overall pick. Now, it seems much more likely that the Browns will select Myles Garrett and it’s not a given that Trubisky will even be the first QB to come off of the board. Deshaun Watson could instead be the first signal caller drafted and DeShone Kizer and Patrick Mahomes seem to be strong candidates for round one.
Of course, the draft isn’t a meritocracy – it’s about team needs and, often, team desperation. Several teams, including the Jets at No. 6, have a clear need for a young QB and there is no realistic scenario in which there isn’t a QB taken in the first round.
Here’s the latest draft news:
- Clemson wide receiver Mike Williams is with the Titans today on a top 30 visit, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Rapoport adds that the Titans have done extensive work on Williams, which makes sense given their clear WR need. Our mock draft has Williams going to Tennessee at No. 18 overall.
- Alabama defensive end Jonathan Allen visited with the Titans and has the Chargers and 49ers on deck, Rapoport tweets.
- Former LSU running back Leonard Fournette will visit the Bengals today (Tuesday), according to Kat Terrell of ESPN (on Twitter). The Bengals have hosted multiple running backs on visits this year and that could be tied to Jeremy Hill‘s contractual status. Hill is eligible for free agency following the 2017 season.
- The Dolphins are hosting Florida cornerback Jalen Tabor and Miami tight end David Njoku on visits this week, Rapoport tweets.
- Tennessee defensive end Derek Barnett did a personal workout for the Falcons, a source tells Rapoport (on Twitter).