Latest On Eagles’ Plans For QB Jalen Hurts
The Eagles had the most surprising pick of last night’s portion of the draft, selecting Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts with the No. 53 pick. While Eagles fans were rooting for something other than a backup to Carson Wentz, it sounds like Hurts could be doing more than holding a clipboard during his rookie year.
Head coach Doug Pederson told reports that the Eagles will explore using Hurts similarly to how the Saints use quarterback Taysom Hill.
“I think this player, obviously with Jalen Hurts, he has a unique skillset and you see what Taysom Hill has done in New Orleans,” Pederson said (via Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia). “And now he and Drew Brees have a connection there and a bond there. You look at with (Joe) Flacco and Lamar (Jackson) in Baltimore in the short period of time, how they gelled together. It’s just something we’re going to explore.
“I want to make a point here: First and foremost, Jalen Hurts is a good quarterback. He was drafted as a quarterback and he was a quarterback first. But he has a unique skillset. He’s a great runner, obviously. He throws well on the run. He has a unique set of skills that we’re going to take a look at as well as we keep developing this offseason and this advancement as we get ready for training camp.”
Hurts has the talent in the open field to match Hill’s seven total touchdowns from 2019. During his lone season at Oklahoma, Hurts ran for 1,298 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns on 233 carries. He also had five receptions during his collegiate career, including two for 25 yards and a score during the 2019 campaign.
NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport also provided some insight into the Eagles’ thinking with the pick. Garafolo notes that while fans may be clamoring for help at other positions, this selection may actually help in that pursuit. Instead of spending significant money on a backup for the injury-prone Wentz, the team now has the ability to trust their inexpensive second quarterback. This vicariously allows the organization to go out and spend money elsewhere.
Further, while fans may want a player with more upside than Taysom Hill in the second round, Rapoport notes that the comparison implies the best-case scenario for the Eagles. If Hurts indeed turns into a Swiss Army Knife on offense, that means Wentz managed to stay healthy and/or have playoff success. Alternative scenarios see Hurts emerging as a starter in place of an injured Wentz or the Eagles dealing Hurts down the road (à la Patriots and Jimmy Garoppolo).
Lions Deny Backing Out Of Texans Trade
It wouldn’t be a true NFL Draft if there wasn’t a bit of drama between two teams. John McClain of the Houston Chronicle tweets that Texans head coach/general manager Bill O’Brien was “furious” at the Lions for backing out of a trade.
According to McClain, the Texans “had a deal” to send the No. 90 pick to the Lions. Detroit ended up backing out at the “last instant,” and cameras caught O’Brien’s visible frustration. Houston ultimately kept the pick and settled for Florida linebacker Jonathan Greenard.
Predictably, Lions general manager Bob Quinn has already said that he was never close to a trade with the Texans.
“Listen, we talk to a lot of teams,” Quinn told Kyle Meinke of MLive.com (via Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com). “When we’re not on the clock, we talk to a bunch of teams, and it’s not just myself. We’ve got four or five people that make calls, so I’m not sure what that was about. But we didn’t have a trade.”
As Smith points out, Quinn and O’Brien were both on the Patriots staff between 2007 and 2011.
Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com writes that the NFL makes it abundantly clear that a trade isn’t finalized until it’s made official. Trade talks are currently made even tougher thanks to the unconventional draft setup.
Trent Williams Nixed Redskins/Vikings Trade
It sounds like the Trent Williams saga almost came to an end last night, but the offensive lineman ended up squashing the trade. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the Redskins and Vikings were close to a deal, but Williams made it clear that he didn’t want to play for Minnesota.
“At some point over the course of today, Williams made it known he would rather not go to the Minnesota Vikings,” Rapoport said (via ProFootballTalk.com’s Charean Williams). “Essentially, that ended the trade right there.”
Any hope for reconciliation was quieted towards the end of the second round. The Vikings ended up satisfying their need for a lineman by taking Boise State offensive tackle Ezra Cleveland with the No. 58 pick.
Williams denied the rumors on Saturday:
“No, that’s not true,” Williams told ESPN’s John Keim and Courtney Cronin.
Just because the Washington/Minnesota trade didn’t happen, it doesn’t necessarily mean Williams won’t be dealt. Keim reports that several teams remain interested in the lineman, including the 49ers. However, San Francisco’s interest is tied to the status of Joe Staley, who’s flirting with retirement. Keim notes that the Rams could also be a team to watch, as head coach Sean McVay previously worked with Williams in Washington.
We’ve also heard this week that a number of teams haven’t pursued the offensive lineman, including the Eagles and Buccaneers.
Williams, 31, has one year and a $12.5MM base salary remaining on his current contract. While some reports have indicated he wants to become the NFL’s highest-paid tackle with a new deal that averages something near $20MM annually, Williams’ agent has denied those claims.
Vikings Trade No. 105 To Saints
Another late-night trade to pass along. ESPN’s Field Yates reported (via Twitter) that the Vikings and Saints made the following swap:
Saints acquire:
- No. 105
Vikings acquire
- No. 130
- No. 169
- No. 203
- No. 244
New Orleans used the third round’s penultimate pick on Dayton tight end Adam Trautman.
Barring a trade, that could be the Saints’ final pick of the weekend; after drafting three players through the first three rounds, New Orleans is now tapped out of picks. As NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets, this could be the first time the Saints come away with three or fewer draft picks since 1999, when they traded that infamous haul for Ricky Williams.
On the flip side, after making four selections through the first three rounds, the Vikings still have 13 picks remaining. The team could certainly make a handful of trades, but Pelissero tweets that Minny is approaching history. The most picks by a team in the seven-round draft era is 14 by the 1997 Jets and 2016 Browns. The 1968 Bengals selected 17 players in the first seven rounds of the 17-round draft.
Jets Trade No. 101 To Patriots
There were a handful of trades last night after we signed off, and one of them included two division rivals. ESPN’s Field Yates reported (via Twitter) that the Jets and Patriots made the following swap:
Patriots acquire:
- No. 101
Jets acquire:
- No. 125
- No. 129
- 2021 6th Round Pick
The Patriots ended up using their newfound third-rounder on Virginia Tech tight end Dalton Keene.
This was actually the second time on Friday that New England traded up to take a tight end. Earlier in the night, they acquire No. 91 from the Raiders and took UCLA’s Devin Asiasi. As many pundits have pointed out, this is the first time the Patriots have taken a pair of tight ends in one draft since selecting Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez back in 2010.
Ryan Izzo and Matt LaCosse are currently the only veteran tight ends on New England’s roster, so there’s a good chance the two rookies will see plenty of targets from Jarrett Stidham next season.
Raiders “Really Like” WR CeeDee Lamb
Could CeeDee Lamb be heading to Las Vegas? ESPN’s Josina Anderson reports (via Twitter) that the Raiders “really like” the Oklahoma wide receiver.
Lamb told Anderson that he had a difficult time reading into the Raiders’ interest in him during pre-draft interviews.
“Coach Gruden & Mayock were as serious as possible,” Lamb said. “I mean Gruden is a jokester, that’s my dog…but he and I have great vision in open space to the movement in front of me. That’s what helps me. My reaction time is very fast. That’s guaranteed.”
Still, Anderson’s source “reaffirms” the organization’s interest in the wideout, and the reporter heard similar rumblings last week. This isn’t the first time we’ve heard the Raiders connected to a receiver prospect; yesterday, we heard that the organization was interested in Henry Ruggs.
Lamb, a consensus All-American in 2019, should be one of the first (if not the first) receiver off the board in tonight’s first round. The 6-foot-2, 191-pound wideout finished last season with 62 receptions for 1,327 yards and 14 touchdowns. That was Lamb’s second-straight season with at least 1,000 yards and 10+ touchdowns.
The Raiders are currently sitting with a pair of first-rounders in No. 12 and No. 19.
Jaguars Eyeing Tua Tagovailoa, Talking Trade With Lions
Could Jacksonville move up the board? ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets that Jaguars’ general manager Dave Caldwell “just” called Lions’ general manager Bob Quinn about tonight’s pick.
Jacksonville is currently in possession of picks No. 9 and No. 20, although that might not be enough to get Detroit to sacrifice the No. 3 pick. We heard earlier today that the Lions would only surrender the third-overall pick if they received a top-five pick in return.
Regardless of compensation, it appears that the Jaguars’ trade inquiries are part of an effort to select Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Talks of the signal-caller getting selected by the Jaguars continue to “linger,” writes ProFootballTalk.com’s Mike Florio. The reporter notes that Jacksonville has been mentioned as a suitor for the quarterback for several days.
Of course, it’s uncertain if the Jaguars would really select a player at that position before fully evaluating whether Gardner Minshew can be their franchise quarterback. On the flip side, as Florio notes, the organization passed on both Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson because of the presence of Blake Bortles. Ownership may be looking to avoid that mistake a second time.
If the Jaguars have their way, this might not be the only trade they pull off today. The organization has been shopping running back Leonard Fournette or defensive end Yannick Ngakoue, but they’ve yet to find a favorable trade.
Jets, Saints, Packers Looking To Move Up
There are a number of teams pushing to move up in the first round. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the Falcons, Jets, Saints, and Packers are among the teams “who have made some noise about potentially moving up.” We previously heard that Atlanta was looking to make a deal.
Rapoport notes that the Jets are “presumably” looking to move up to take an offensive tackle. Gang Green currently has the 11th-overall pick, meaning they should get their hands on one of Tristan Wirfs, Jedrick Wills Jr., Andrew Thomas, and Mekhi Becton. However, if there is a sudden run of lineman, the Jets may be required to make a move.
It might be tough for the Saints to make a trade considering their limited draft capital. New Orleans is currently in possession of only five picks, and the only have a pair of selections in the first three rounds (No. 24 and No. 88).
On the flip side, the Packers are loaded with draft picks, as they’re currently armed with 10 selections. Of course, it’s worth noting that six of those selections are in the fifth round or later. The Packers have the No. 30 pick in the first round. Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst discussed the team’s trade prospects earlier this week.
Jets Put LB Avery Williamson On The Trade Block
A pair of Jets defenders could find themselves on new teams by the end of the weekend. Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reports (via Twitter) that Avery Williamson is available for trade. The reporter also notes that defensive end Henry Anderson is “[a]nother name to monitor.”
After spending four seasons with the Titans, Williamson joined the Jets back in 2018. He had a productive first season in New York, compiling a career-high 120 tackles to go along with three sacks and two forced fumbles. Unfortunately, he missed the entire 2019 campaign thanks to a torn ACL.
Williamson is in the final year of a three-year, $22.5MM deal (including $16MM guaranteed). It was only a year ago that he rated as a top-20 linebacker per Pro Football Focus, so it wouldn’t be shocking if the Jets find a taker for the 28-year-old.
Anderson joined the Jets via trade back in 2018. The lineman had a career-high seven sacks during his first season in New York, and he finished the 2019 campaign have made a career-high 13 starts.
Cowboys Not Targeting Centers?
Don’t expect the Cowboys to find their replacement for Travis Frederick in the draft. Coach Mike McCarthy told reporters that he’s optimistic about his current options at center, including Joe Looney, Connor McGovern, and Connor Williams.
“I think Travis is a player that’s had a great career,” McCarthy said (via Michael Gehlken of DallasNews.com). “Obviously, he’s to be commended on that. But when we look at our current depth with the offensive line, you start off with Joe Looney and the two Connors. I think we’ve got great competition, great depth. We’ve got Marcus Henry there, also Adam Redmond.
“We have some really good flexibility, some really good numbers. So the fact that we’re able to get started and just start going through the language and how we’re going to call things, I think the fact that we have that much experience with the veteran group that we have here, I feel very good about moving forward.”
That probably takes the Cowboys out of the running for Michigan’s Cesar Ruiz, although the team could shift their focus to LSU’s Lloyd Cushenberry, Wisconsin’s Tyler Biadasz and Temple’s Matt Hennessy. After the 17th-overall selection, the Cowboys won’t be picking again until No. 51.
After seven years with the organization, Frederick announced his retirement last month.