NFC Notes: Panthers, Redskins, Finley, Eagles
The latest news and notes from the National Football Conference:
- Panthers GM Dave Gettleman says the team had a first-round grade on defensive end Kony Ealy, whom Carolina selected with the No. 60 pick, tweets ESPN.com’s David Newton.
- Gettleman also hopes to draft a corner on Day 3, according to Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer (via Twitter). Along with offensive line and receiver, both of which were addressed, defensive back was considered a strong need for the Panthers.
- The Redskins, having missed out on Charles Sims, were hoping that running back Tre Mason would be available at pick No. 78, but he went No. 75 to the Rams, says Chris Russell of ESPN 980 in Washington (Twitter link).
- Packers general manager Ted Thompson doesn’t rule out a return to Green Bay for tight end Jermichael Finley simply because the team selected Richard Rodgers. “I don’t necessarily think the two are tied at all,” said Thompson (via Jason Wilde of ESPN.com on Twitter).
- The Eagles might want to draft some “redshirt” players on Day 3 (i.e. injured prospects who may miss most of their first year in the league), and Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets that Philadelphia could be interested in Oklahoma cornerback Aaron Colvin, who tore his ACL during Senior Bowl practice in January.
- Nothing is official, but veteran offensive guard Brian Waters probably won’t return to the Cowboys in 2014, according to ESPN.com’s Todd Archer (via Twitter), who notes that Waters still has not had surgery on his torn triceps.
East Notes: Manziel, Patriots, Cowboys
Here’s the latest from out of the NFL’s two East divisions:
- ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reports that the Patriots were considering taking Johnny Manziel at pick No. 29 (via the Boston Globe’s Ben Volin on Twitter). This report clashes with a leaked Pats scouting report on Manziel, which painted the quarterback in a largely negative light.
- Cowboys owner Jerry Jones conceded that Manziel was the highest player left on Dallas’ board when it picked at No. 16, but noted that the team simply has too much invested in Tony Romo, according to Charean Williams of the Fort-Worth Start Telegram (via Twitter).
- The Dolphins’ selection of Jarvis Landry could mean the team parts ways with Brian Hartline after the 2014 season, tweets Andrew Abramson of the Palm Beach Post. Miami could save a little over $6MM by cutting Hartline after the coming season.
- Jace Amaro, taken by the Jets in the second round (No. 49), thought New York might select him in the first round, according to SiriusXM NFL Radio (Twitter link).
- Eagles coach Chip Kelly agrees with the sentiment that this draft is exceptionally deep, tweets Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com. “There are guys right now still on the board that we have rated in the third round that will be there tomorrow,” said Kelly.
Cowboys Acquire Redskins’ No. 34 Pick
The Cowboys have traded up from the No. 47 pick in the second round, tweets Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post. Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (on Twitter) has the details: Dallas sent their No. 47 and No. 78 picks to the Redskins for the No. 34 pick in the second round.
We heard earlier tonight that the Cowboys were working hard to jump ahead of the Falcons (No. 37) to land Boise State edge rusher Demarcus Lawrence. As long as the Texans go in a different direction – and it’s expected that they will – the Cowboys will have Lawrence all to themselves. Meanwhile, the Redskins have tacked on a third round choice in exchange for falling back 13 spots in the second round. It’s potentially good value for Washington, but they might be kicking themselves if Lawrence (or whoever the Cowboys select) turns out to be a star within their division.
Cowboys Trying To Move Up From No. 47
6:07pm: In addition to the Cowboys, the Jets and Titans are also looking to move up in the second round, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
5:37pm: Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported earlier this afternoon (via Twitter), that the Cowboys are trying to make a “big move up” in the second round to secure help for their front seven. Now, Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (via Twitter) provides more details on that report, tweeting that he’s hearing the Cowboys are trying to jump ahead of the Falcons (No. 37) to land Boise State edge rusher Demarcus Lawrence.
The Cowboys had been expected to select a defender in the first round last night, but when a number of their targets came off the board before No. 16, they switched gears and nabbed offensive tackle Zack Martin. A move up into the top four picks of the second round would be tricky for the Cowboys, who are currently at No. 47. As our list of draft picks by team shows, only a handful of clubs have more picks to work with than Dallas, but six of the club’s remaining 10 picks for 2014 are seventh-rounders.
NFC East Rumors: Cowboys, Redskins, Kouandjio
The Cowboys are looking to make a big move up the second draft board to secure help for their front seven, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network (on Twitter) hears. The latest out of the NFC East..
- The Redskins were not a part of last night’s festivities but they could be open to moving their No. 34 pick tonight, a league source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. General Manager Bruce Allen is listening to calls from teams interested in moving up for a quarterback or a receiver with the second pick in round two but he’s being patient, realizing that the deals will get better, not worse, as Friday unfolds. The GM could even wait until Washington is on the clock to start weighing offers.
- The Redskins are a team to watch for Alabama offensive lineman Cyrus Kouandjio, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Washington would have taken him in the first round if they had a pick there so they’d gladly grab him in the second tonight. The bruising offensive lineman has local ties too as a product of Maryland’s DeMatha Catholic High School.
- The Eagles passing on Johnny Manziel at No. 22 is a ringing endorsement of quarterback Nick Foles, writes CSNPhilly.com’s Reuben Frank. Foles looked like a superstar in the second half of 2013 and it seems like coach Chip Kelly & Co. are confident that it was more than good luck.
NFC East Notes: Eagles, Cowboys, Redskins
Although Chip Kelly has had nothing but good things to say about Johnny Manziel publicly, it seems clear that the Eagles never really thought about taking him with the 22nd pick, writes Sheil Kapadia of Philadelphia Magazine. “I love him,” Kelly said. “I think he’s a dynamic quarterback. I also think we have a very, very good quarterback situation – not only with Nick [Foles], but you add Mark Sanchez and Matt Barkley – we think quarterback is a strength for us right now. We felt like the pass-rusher who we had rated higher was the guy we were gonna take.”
- “Best player available” is used ad nauseam during the draft. However, it’s the Eagles‘ philosophy and they’re adamant about it, as evidenced by the quotes from GM Howie Roseman and elly in a column by Philadelphia Daily News writer Paul Domowitch following the (surprise) selection of Marcus Smith.
- And then there’s the Cowboys, who did not stick to their board, according to ESPN’s Todd Archer (via Twitter). When the Cowboys lost out on their top three draft targets last night — all defensive players — they opted for a relatively safe choice in offensive lineman Zack Martin even though they had Manziel graded higher.
- Consequently, rounds two and three have become more important for the Cowboys, says Brandon George of the Dallas Morning News. After fielding a historically bad defense in 2013 and losing DeMarcus Ware, the team has plenty of holes to fill, especially on the defensive line. George mentions four defensive lineman who could be on the team’s radar tonight: Boise State’s Demarcus Lawrence, Missouri’s Kony Ealy, Oregon State’s Scott Crichton and Florida State’s Timmy Jernigan, all of whom made predraft visits to Dallas.
- The Giants‘ selection of wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. at No. 12 puts them on track to fix their broken offense, writes Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News. The LSU star caught 59 passes for 1,152 yards and eight touchdowns last season. Giants wide receiver Reuben Randle, who played with Beckham at LSU, described him as a “DeSean Jackson type,” writes Ebenezer Samuel of the Daily News.
- The Redskins were not part of Thursday night’s festivities, but they’re up at No. 34 tonight, and USA Today’s Steven Ruiz takes a look at their options. Most speculation centers around the team selecting an offensive lineman, perhaps Alabama’s Cyrus Kouandijo, Virginia’s Morgan Moses or UCLA’s Xavier Su’a-Filo.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
NFC Notes: Bridgewater, Cowboys, Falcons
The Vikings ended the first night of the draft with a bang by trading into the first round to snag Teddy Bridgewater, and in his presser with reporters, GM Rick Spielman confirmed that the fifth-year option was a consideration in the trade-up for Bridgewater, tweets Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune. Here’s more on that pick, along with a few more draft-night leftovers….
- The Vikings had a private workout with Bridgewater in Florida and it seems that was what ultimately sold them. Spielman told reporters, including Ben Goessling of ESPN.com (on Twitter) that Bridgewater looked “totally different” than he did at his Pro Day and his performance in the workout matched his game tape. Meanwhile, the quarterback himself said Minnesota showed more pre-draft interest in him than any other team, according to Alex Marvez of Fox Sports (via Twitter).
- According to Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, his team was targeting four players at No. 16 — Anthony Barr, Aaron Donald, Ryan Shazier, and Zack Martin (Twitter link via Matt Mosley of ESPN 103.3). The first three players were off the board, but the Cowboys grabbed Martin.
- The Falcons made an effort to pick up a second first-round pick, and made calls to try to land a pick in the early 20s, according to GM Thomas Dimitroff (Twitter links via ESPN.com’s Vaughn McClure). Dimitroff didn’t specify a target, but D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets that the club was eyeing Shazier and Dee Ford.
- Looking ahead to the second round, Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune (on Twitter) says that guards Xavier Su’a-Filo and Trai Turner are guys to keep an eye on for the Buccaneers. Tampa Bay is in serious need of an offensive guard.
Draft Rumors: Manziel, Cowboys, Rams
The latest from NYC..
- The Cowboys talked about Johnny Manziel in their draft room but Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (on Twitter) hears that owner Jerry Jones did not campaign much for him. The Cowboys had “thoughtful discussion” about the polarizing QB with Jones but ultimately, he listened to his scouts (link).
- Rams GM Les Snead said he had interest from the Bills for the No. 2 pick but things didn’t get serious enough for him to consider moving back that far, tweets Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com.
- Meanwhile, Rams coach Jeff Fisher said after the Aaron Donald pick at No. 13 that they tried to trade back up with the Ravens for offensive tackle Zack Martin, tweets Tony Softli of ESPN Radio.
Draft Rumors: Panthers, Moses, Jets, Cowboys
Don’t look for the Buccaneers to go after a quarterback early in this draft. Coach Lovie Smith tells Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune (on Twitter) that Mike Glennon is the team’s QB of the future. The latest out of Radio City Music Hall..
- Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer (on Twitter) heard from a league source today that the Panthers are not interested in Morgan Moses.
- The Jets are sending out signals that they have interest in a quarterback in the first couple rounds, tweets Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. Mehta adds that he would be surprised if that happens and we’re inclined to agree, seeing as how they have Michael Vick and Geno Smith under contract.
- David Moore of The Dallas Morning News (on Twitter) hears the Cowboys have targeted three defensive players at No. 16. If they’re all gone, Moore says to look for them to go offense.
- Peter King of Sports Illustrated (on Twitter) doesn’t believe any team was ever close to dealing for the Texans‘ No. 1 overall pick.
QB Rumors: Manziel, Bortles, Vikings, Browns
It seems as if Jay Glazer of Fox Sports has spent a good chunk of this week ruling out potential destinations for Johnny Manziel. After reporting on Tuesday that the Browns wouldn’t pick Manziel at No. 4 and the Raiders would pass at No. 5, Glazer says today (via Twitter) that the Buccaneers won’t draft the Texas A&M signal-caller at No. 7.
Here are a few more QB-related notes, as the start of the 2014 draft inches closer….
- There are mixed reports on which quarterback is No. 1 on the Cowboys‘ draft board. After ESPN.com’s Todd McShay and Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report (Twitter link) suggested earlier today that Manziel is the team’s top choice, Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported (via Twitter) that Manziel is actually behind another QB on Dallas’ board, while Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link) and David Moore of the Dallas Morning News said the Cowboys’ top signal-caller is Blake Bortles.
- Assuming Manziel is still on the board at No. 8, he remains a possibility for the Vikings, according to Rapoport, who tweets that the team’s owners are flying in for a late pre-draft meeting to make a final decision on Minnesota’s first-round pick. Albert Breer of the NFL Network adds (via Twitter) that the club also likes Teddy Bridgewater, though probably not at eighth overall.
- If the Vikings do select a quarterback with a top-10 pick, it would be a first for the franchise, writes Mark Craig of the Star Tribune.
- According to Sal Paolantonio of ESPN (via Pro Football Talk), the Browns commissioned a $100K study of quarterbacks, in an effort to better understand the qualities necessary to succeed at the position. The study, which was started under former team president Joe Banner and was only recently completed, concluded that Bridgewater is the top signal-caller in this year’s class.