2020 NFL Draft Capital By Team
Every NFL team automatically gets seven draft picks per season, but thanks to lots of trades and the compensatory pick process, many clubs end up with more (or less) than their original seven selections. After running down the NFL Draft round-by-round, let’s take a look at how much draft capital each club has amassed:
Updated: 4-16-20 (6:00pm CT)
14 picks
- Miami Dolphins
12 picks
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Minnesota Vikings
- New England Patriots
10 picks
- Denver Broncos
- Green Bay Packers
- New York Giants
9 picks
- Baltimore Ravens
- Detroit Lions
8 picks
- Carolina Panthers
- New York Jets
- Philadelphia Eagles
7 picks
- Buffalo Bills
- Chicago Bears
- Cincinnati Bengals
- Cleveland Browns
- Dallas Cowboys
- Houston Texans
- Indianapolis Colts
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Los Angeles Chargers
- Los Angeles Rams
- Seattle Seahawks
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- San Francisco 49ers
- Washington Redskins
6 picks
- Arizona Cardinals
- Atlanta Falcons
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Tennessee Titans
5 picks
- Kansas City Chiefs
- New Orleans Saints
Latest On NFL Draft’s Top WRs
The Cardinals have themselves a star wide receiver after trading for DeAndre Hopkins, but this year’s WR class is talented enough to tempt every team. Even though the Cardinals may like Kyler Murray‘s one-time teammate CeeDee Lamb and other WR talents, they’re not expected to use their No. 8 pick on a receiver, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears. 
With Hopkins installed as the Cardinals’ new WR1, Arizona will likely address larger needs with that pick – perhaps a stud defensive player or an offensive lineman. Then, somewhere around Nos. 11 or 12, where the Jets and Raiders pick, Rapoport expects the WR run to take flight. In that scenario, CeeDee Lamb and Jerry Jeudy stand out as likely candidates – they’re the consensus top receivers in this wildly talented crop, Rapoport hears.
Further down the board, the Eagles have been heavily connected to LSU wide receiver Justin Jefferson. But, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter) cautions that several teams could jump ahead of the Birds at No. 21 to land him. The Vikings (Nos. 22 and 25), Patriots (No. 23), and the Saints (No. 24) are all lurking, and they could make a play for a big-time WR like Jefferson.
Raiders’ Nicholas Morrow Signs RFA Tender
Nicholas Morrow made the jump from undrafted free agency to receiving a second-round RFA tender this year. He is officially back with the Raiders after signing that tender Monday, Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets.
The fourth-year linebacker will see a salary bump from $645K to 3.26MM. The Raiders cut Tahir Whitehead but made multiple moves at linebacker, signaling a likely shift in Morrow’s role.
Morrow’s 730 snaps last season (second among Raider linebackers) ranked in the top 50 among off-ball linebackers, but the Raiders signed both Cory Littleton and Nick Kwiatkoski early in free agency. The contracts given to those two point to them being the odds-on favorites to be Las Vegas’ two three-down ‘backers. The Raiders’ top three linebackers will combine to count more than $20MM against their 2020 cap. Littleton is attached to an $11.75MM cap figure; Kwiatkoski’s cap number comes in at $7MM.
The Raiders started Morrow in eight games last season; his role increased after Vontaze Burfict‘s season-ending suspension. Morrow made a career-high 73 tackles and intercepted the first pass of his career last season. He is in line to be an unrestricted free agent in 2021.
2020 NFL Cap Room By Team
The biggest names in NFL free agency might be off the board, but there are still plenty of noteworthy players on the board and high-profile cuts on the way. And, while some teams did their spending early, others are still sitting on lots of cash.
The latest cap figures from OverTheCap show that several teams are poised to pounce in the latter waves of free agency, starting with the Browns. The numbers also show that teams like the Rams still have work to do in order to sign their upcoming draft class. Also, the Eagles’ 2020 figure doesn’t quite tell the whole story – thanks to high-priced multi-year deals including Darius Slay’s new contract, they’re already overcommitted on dollars for 2021.
Here’s the complete rundown for all 32 teams, in descending order of cap space:
- Browns – $40.2MM
- Lions – $29.5MM
- Eagles – $27.1MM
- Colts – $24MM
- Dolphins – $23.9MM
- Redskins – $23.8MM
- Chargers – $22.3MM
- Titans – $21.5MM
- Bills – $20.9MM
- Texans – $18.6MM
- Broncos – $17.5MM
- Giants – $17.1MM
- Jets – $15.5MM
- Jaguars – $14.6MM
- Cowboys – $13.6MM
- Buccaneers – $13.5MM
- 49ers – $13.4MM
- Seahawks – $12.6MM
- Vikings – $12.3MM
- Ravens – $11.3MM
- Packers – $11.08MM
- Bears – $11.03MM
- Panthers – $9.4MM
- Raiders – $8.8MM
- Bengals – $7.3MM
- Steelers – $7.2MM
- Cardinals – $7MM
- Saints – $5.3MM
- Chiefs – $2.9MM
- Falcons – $2.4MM
- Patriots – $1.2MM
- Rams – (-$5.3MM)
Raiders Explored Darius Slay Trade
Not only were the Raiders in on just about every big-name free agent cornerback, they pursued a Darius Slay deal as well. In addition to offers for Byron Jones and Chris Harris, and what turned out to be a failed deal with Eli Apple, the Raiders kicked the tires on a Slay trade with the Lions, Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area notes. A trade target of multiple teams before the 2019 deadline, Slay ended up going to the Eagles for just third- and fifth-round picks. Of course, it also cost the Eagles $30MM fully guaranteed — third-most among corners.
The Raiders’ pursuit of 2020’s group of available corners points to them giving strong consideration to adding one with one of their two first-round picks, and Bair adds there is a “strong belief” corner is a high Raider priority entering the draft. As it stands now, Las Vegas is understaffed at the position.
FIU QB James Morgan Drawing Interest
FIU quarterback James Morgan is starting to generate some buzz as we get closer to draft day, as Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle writes. Morgan made his way onto our site for the first time today, when we wrote that the Patriots have shown some interest, and New England is not the only team sniffing around.
Per Wilson, a number of clubs are closely vetting Morgan, though COVID-19 restrictions obviously mean that he can’t visit teams or work out privately for them. Wilson’s sources say that in addition to the Patriots, the Packers, Bears, Colts, Raiders, Giants, Bills, Jets, and Dolphins are among the teams intrigued by Morgan.
It is not surprising to see most of the teams on that list. New England, of course, is in the market for a collegiate passer after watching Tom Brady sign with the Buccaneers, and the Dolphins have long been connected to this year’s top rookie QBs. The Raiders, Bears, and Colts have varying degrees of long-term uncertainty at the quarterback position, and the Packers had planned to host the best QB prospects before pre-draft visits were cancelled (Morgan is actually a Green Bay native, and the Packers may be starting to prepare for life without Aaron Rodgers).
Meanwhile, all three New York outfits seem to have a long-term solution under center already, although none of their incumbents are sure things at the moment. And given that Morgan is a mid- to late-round prospect, it couldn’t hurt for those teams to at least have a look.
Morgan performed well at this year’s scouting combine and at the East-West Shrine Game, and a Southeast Area NFL scout said Morgan has one of the three strongest arms in the draft, along with the intelligence and leadership qualities that teams covet. After an uneven tenure at Bowling Green, Morgan transferred to FIU in 2018 and earned Conference USA Newcomer of the Year honors by completing over 65% of his passes for 26 TDs and seven interceptions.
His 2019 effort was not quite as strong, but he has put together enough quality tape to start rising up draft boards.
Rams-Chargers Stadium May Not Be Ready For Season
The Rams and Chargers may need contingency plans soon. Expected to open in July, SoFi Stadium is less certain to be ready for Week 1. Rams CEO Kevin Demoff is no longer committing to the site being ready by that time.
“Our stadium, and I believe the Raiders’ stadium as well, will both be amazing when they are finished and when they will begin play, which will certainly happen in the near future, whether that’s in July, August, September, in 2021,” Demoff said, via Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times. “I don’t think you can look at either of these stadiums as short-term projects to finish but rather long-term beacons for the franchises and for the NFL.”
One of the workers on the Inglewood, Calif., site tested positive for COVID-19. Another is presumed to have the coronavirus, Farmer adds. The $5 billion project has long been scheduled to be completed in time for the 2020 season, but COVID-19 — as it’s done to many aspects of American life — has made this timeline less certain.
“This is not the time you want to be finishing a stadium, in this environment as you prepare,” Demoff said. “Because it’s when you need to be all hands on deck, walking through the building every day, meeting with your staff, working out the kinks and planning for it. So when you’ve been building something for a few years, you would love an optimal environment to finish it.”
While the Rams playing at the Los Angeles Coliseum and the Chargers at Dignity Health Park would seemingly be the L.A. teams’ contingency plans, bigger issues loom. Earlier Saturday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said he does not envision a scenario in which California stadiums and arenas will be able to host fans. The NFL’s current stance is for fans to be allowed in stadiums and the season to start on schedule, though the league’s chief medical officer, Dr. Allen Sills, walked that back a bit.
Interestingly, Jeff Pash, general counsel to the NFL, said that not only do the Chargers and Rams have contingency plans in the event their stadium is not ready but that the Raiders do as well. The Raiders recently declined an option to play the 2020 season in Oakland and years ago UNLV’s Sam Boyd Stadium was deemed a non-starter. It is not clear what the Raiders’ alternate-site option is at this point.
Raiders To Sign Damarious Randall
Damarious Randall is headed to Las Vegas. On Friday, the safety agreed to a one-year deal to join up with Jon Gruden & Co., according to ESPN.com’s Josina Anderson (Twitter link). Ian Rapoport of NFL.com adds that the pact will be worth up to $3.25MM (Twitter link).
[RELATED: Raiders Call Off Deal With Eli Apple]
Randall, 28 in August, spent the first three years of his career with the Packers before moving on to the Browns in 2018. Last year, he was limited to just eleven games, though he still managed 2.5 sacks, 61 total stops, and six passes defensed. All in all, he’s got 56 career starts and 14 interceptions to his credit across five NFL seasons.
Randall clashed with head coach Freddie Kitchens at times last year, but he wasn’t the only player in Cleveland to get into it with the since-fired coach. Besides, Gruden likes to see a little bit of fire in his veteran players.
The Redskins and Seahawks also expressed interest in Randall in March, but the Raiders stayed patient and landed him on a short-term deal in April. Luckily for them, Randall was still available to help fortify the secondary after their deal with Eli Apple fell through.
One way or another, the Raiders will have to improve their pass defense in order to contend in 2020. Last year, they surrendered 256.7 passing yards per game, the eighth-highest total in the league.
Raiders’ Deal With Eli Apple Falls Through
The Raiders agreed to a one-year, $6MM deal with cornerback Eli Apple during the first wave of the free agent period, but that agreement has since fallen through, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
While Schefter doesn’t indicate exactly why Apple’s deal with Las Vegas is being nixed, Apple does have a recent injury history that theoretically could have played a role. An ankle injury forced the 24-year-old to miss the Saints’ final regular season game and Divisional Round contest against the Vikings. Given the COVID-19 crisis, players aren’t able to conduct normal physicals with team medical staffs, so it’s possible Apple’s ankle issue was a factor in the undoing of his pact.
Apple, a first-round pick in the 2016 draft, spent the first two years and change of his career with the Giants before being dealt to New Orleans ahead of the 2018 trade deadline. He went on to start 20 total games with the Saints, and his performance was something close to average, as Pro Football Focus graded him as the league’s No. 61 corner among 112 qualifiers in 2019.
Apple immediately becomes one of the best cornerbacks available on the open market, while the Raiders are now once again hunting for a new defensive back to play alongside fellow corners Trayvon Mullen and Nevin Lawson. Aside from Apple, other free agent options include Darqueze Dennard (who, like Apple, had an agreed-to deal canceled), Dre Kirkpatrick, Aqib Talib, Johnathan Joseph, and Ross Cockrell.
Raiders To Re-Sign G Jordan Devey
The Raiders are bringing one of their key backups to Vegas. They reached an agreement to re-sign Jordan Devey on Thursday, Mike Garafolo tweets.
Devey agreed to a one-year, $880K deal to head to Oakland last year. Coming off a season marred by a torn pectoral muscle, Devey likely agreed to similar terms with the now-Las Vegas Raiders.
Starting for the injured Gabe Jackson in each of the Raiders’ four September games, Devey went down in Week 4 and missed the rest of the season. Devey, 32, played 17 games with the Chiefs from 2016-18. His most notable starting experience came with the 2015 49ers, who used him as a starter in nine games.
This will be another continuity-based step for the Raiders. They are set to bring back their entire starting offensive line — a unit that ranked sixth both in Football Outsiders’ adjusted line yards and adjusted sack rate — and now will have Devey back in the fold as a swing man. Fellow backup interior lineman Denzelle Good remains on the team as well, being signed through 2020.