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2017 NFL Draft Order Set

February 6th, 2017 at 7:28am CST by Zachary Links

With the Super Bowl in the rear view mirror, the offseason is officially underway for all 32 teams. We now have the complete draft order for the entire first round, with one exception which is noted below.

The Patriots, of course, will have the honor of having the last pick. The Falcons, after losing in heartbreaking fashion, will have the penultimate selection in the first round.

Here is the complete order, via ESPN.com’s Field Yates (Twitter links):

1. Browns

2. 49ers

3. Bears

4. Jaguars

5. Titans

6. Jets

7. Chargers

8. Panthers

9. Bengals

10. Bills

11. Saints

12. Browns

13. Cardinals

T-14. Eagles (via the Vikings)

T-14. Colts (Note: The Vikings and Colts have identical records and the same strength of schedule. The tie will be broke by coin flip with the winner getting pick No. 14 and the other team getting the No. 15 pick.)

16. Ravens

17. Redskins

18. Titans

19. Buccaneers

20. Broncos

21. Lions

22. Dolphins

23. Giants

24. Raiders

25. Texans

26. Seahawks

27. Chiefs

28. Cowboys

29. Packers

30. Steelers

31. Falcons

32. Patriots

Tyrod Taylor Aims To Stay With Bills

February 4th, 2017 at 3:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

Tyrod Taylor wants to stay with the Bills, the quarterback said during Super Bowl week radio interview on WGR 550 (via Nick Shook of NFL.com) but acknowledges it’s a “sitting and waiting” game now. Having signed a deal that becomes a long-term commitment if he’s still on the Bills’ roster by March 11, Taylor wanting to stay in Buffalo is natural. This offseason, the run-based quarterback’s status has shuffled from being likely gone to a candidate to stay after the hire of Taylor fan Rick Dennison as OC. Doug Whaley indicated his sports hernia injury won’t have any bearing on whether or not he stays. Of course, Taylor not being able to pass a physical by March 11 would ensure it.

Cards Eyeing Deshaun Watson, Tyrod Taylor

February 2nd, 2017 at 7:49pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Cardinals are “very high” on Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson and are willing to trade up in the draft in order to select him, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. If Arizona fails to land Watson, the club could instead target Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor, who’s expected to hit the free agent market.

Arizona, of course, already has an incumbent signal-caller in Carson Palmer, but he’s reportedly considering retirement and the Cardinals are unsure if he plans to play in 2017. Given that wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald announced that he’ll play at least one more season in the desert, Palmer may be more apt to return, too, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who adds that Palmer and Fitzgerald are “tied at the hip.”

Watson could still make sense for the Cardinals even if Palmer does continue his career, as the latter is now 37 years old and nearing the end of his NFL run. Long projected as a first-round pick, Watson has a chance to be selected within the top-10, and may not get past the Browns at pick No. 12. Arizona sits one pick later at No. 13, and could need to move up in order to find its long-term franchise quarterback, an area of focus I pointed to when assessing the Cardinals’ top offseason needs.

Taylor, on the other hand, probably isn’t a fit for Arizona unless Palmer hangs up his cleats, as Taylor is unlikely to accept an offer to become a backup quarterback. Buffalo is expected to decline an option on Taylor that would guarantee him north of $30MM, and instead allow him to reach the open market. Over the past two seasons, Taylor has completed 62.6% of his passes while averaging 18 touchdowns and six interceptions per year, adding more than 1,000 yards on the ground during that span.

Bills Hire Four Coaches

February 2nd, 2017 at 6:57pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Bills announced they’ve hired John Egorugwu (defensive quality control), Marc Lubik (offensive quality control/assistant QB), Matt Smiley (assistant special teams), and Bill Teerlinck (assistant defensive line). Buffalo also confirmed the previously-reported hiring of former East Carolina wide receivers coach Phil McGeoghan to the same role.

Bills Interested In Tony Romo

February 2nd, 2017 at 5:37pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Bills have “significant” interest in Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com, although Buffalo is still eyeing a future with incumbent QB Tyrod Taylor, albeit on a cheaper contract than the his current option-based deal, which would guarantee him north of $30MM.

Romo, meanwhile, unsurprisingly prefers to land with a contending team, and it’s not clear that he views the Bills in such a light. Instead, Romo’s list of favored destinations includes the Broncos, Texans, Cardinals, and Chiefs, per La Canfora. Denver has been tossed out as a suitor for Romo before, but the general manager John Elway & Co. are reportedly more likely to target Romo as a free agent than as an acquirable asset. Houston, too, doesn’t appear to be in the running, as the Texans are more likely to draft a quarterback than pursue a veteran option.

Barriers block a potential path between Romo and Arizona/Kansas City, as well. Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer has reportedly been contemplating retirement, but the chances of his return could be buoyed by wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald‘s announcement that he’ll continue his career in 2017. The Chiefs, meanwhile, have Alex Smith under contract for the next two seasons, but could theoretically release him with a post-June 1 designation, and take on dead money charges of $3.6MM in 2017 and 2018.

Romo, hypothetically, would be a solid fit in new Buffalo offensive coordinator Rick Dennsion‘s scheme, which utilizes many of the same zone-blocking concepts deployed by the Cowboys. The Bills ranked first in rushing DVOA last season but just 19th in passing DVOA.

Rex Ryan Remains Interested In Coaching

January 31st, 2017 at 12:02pm CST by Zachary Links

When Rex Ryan was hired as the coach of the Bills, he said that Buffalo would be his final stop as a head coach. Two years later, he’s out of a job, but he’s not necessarily ruling out a return to a head coaching gig if he gets the right opportunity, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News writes.

“The one thing about (being on TV) is that you don’t lose,” Ryan said. “You’ll remember every damn loss. But the wins? You don’t necessarily remember. So, it takes a lot out of you. I’m tired of getting f—ked. Unless it’s a real situation, there’s no sense of getting into it again.”

After being discarded by Buffalo, Ryan appears to be a better defensive coordinator candidate than a head coaching possibility. Despite that, Ryan says he is not interested “at all” in a DC job “at this time.”

Interestingly, Ryan says that he would not close the door on someday returning to the Jets in some capacity. Coach Todd Bowles has been retained for a third season, but as Mehta notes, there’s no telling what Woody Johnson could do in 2017 if things do not go according to plan.

In the meantime, Ryan says he’ll do some television work. His next assignment will have him serving as a panelist on ESPN for Super Bowl weekend.

Bills To Hire Phil McGeoghan As WRs Coach

January 30th, 2017 at 9:08pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Bills will hire Phil McGeoghan to coach their receivers, relays ESPN’s Adam Caplan (Twitter link). McGeoghan, who was the Dolphins’ assistant receivers coach from 2012-15, spent last season coaching East Carolina’s wideouts.

New QB Coach David Culley Still Wants To Be Head Coach

January 29th, 2017 at 12:09pm CST by Rory Parks

David Culley, who worked as Andy Reid‘s wide receivers coach with the Eagles and Chiefs, agreed to become the Bills‘ new quarterbacks coach last week. Per Reid, the 60-year-old Culley still harbors aspirations of becoming a head coach, so he did not want to block his longtime assistant from moving up the coaching ladder (article via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star).

Bills Have Reached Out To Lorenzo Alexander

January 28th, 2017 at 12:45pm CST by Ben Levine

Lorenzo Alexander signed a one-year deal with the Bills last offseason, and the outside linebacker thanked the organization by having his best NFL season. The 33-year-old finished the campaign with 76 tackles and 12.5 sacks, both career-highs.

Despite the fact that the Bills gave the veteran an opportunity this past season, the Pro Bowler told Alex Marvez of The Sporting News that he hasn’t decided whether he’ll return for a second season in Buffalo.

“[The Bills] have reached out to me. They want me to be back … I’m waiting to see what all the offers are on the table,” he said. “My wife and I will sit down and make the best decision for ourselves.”

[SOURCE LINK]

Running back LeSean McCoy is a big fan of new Bills head coach Sean McDermott. The two previously worked together with the Eagles when McDermott was the team’s defensive coordinator. “He’s tough, he’s honest and he’s fair,” McCoy told Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News. “I think he’s the right guy for the job. The guys in Buffalo, we need somebody we can believe in and we can trust.”

Bills Re-Sign Colt Anderson

January 27th, 2017 at 10:48am CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Bills have re-signed safety Colt Anderson, per a team announcement. Anderson was among the Bills’ 24 soon-to-be unrestricted free agents before agreeing to a new contract.

The 31-year-old Anderson, a former Eagle and Colt (fittingly), joined the Bills last April on a minimum salary benefit. He’ll once again be a minimum salary benefit player on his 2017 deal, according to Mike Rodak of ESPN.com (Twitter link). In his first year with the Bills, Anderson appeared in just two games before landing on injured reserve with a hand ailment in early October.

Anderson, primarily a special teamer, has totaled 79 appearances and seven starts since going undrafted out of Montana in 2009. The lion’s share of those starts (four) came in 2012, when Anderson tallied a personal-best 33 tackles and also picked up the only interception of his career as a member of the Eagles.

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