Jordan Love - Pro Football Rumors

Latest On Jake Fromm, Jordan Love

April 14th, 2020 at 10:47am CST by Zachary Links

At this stage, it’s hard to peg where this year’s top quarterbacks will land in the draft. Right now, Utah State’s Jordan Love is one of the draft’s biggest wildcards at the position, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The feeling is that Love could go anywhere between No. 5 (where the Dolphins pick) and No. 25, per RapSheet.

At least six teams have done extensive research on Love and his seamless throwing mechanics, including the Packers and Patriots. That might mean that Love could land in the Top 15, though the latest word from NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo threw cold water on that idea. Ultimately, because there’s so much information and, potentially, misinformation, flying around about Love, no one’s exactly sure where he’ll go.

There’s been increasing chatter about the Dolphins taking Justin Herbert over Tua Tagovailoa at No. 5, but little discussion about Love being the pick. If the Dolphins do see Love as their QB of the future, they’d probably be able to trade down, add to their already substantial stockpile, and still land him.

Meanwhile, Georgia signal caller Jake Fromm is “buzzing” thanks to strong interviews and praise from NFL quarterback coaches, Rapoport reports. Fromm was once viewed as a potential No. 1 overall pick, but he took himself out of the running with an iffy 2019. Last year, Fromm completed just 60.8% of his throws, the lowest rate of his collegiate career. Still, many evaluators see the potential in Fromm, who led the Bulldogs to the National Championship Game as a true frosh in 2017.

Latest On Jordan Love’s Stock

April 13th, 2020 at 8:15pm CST by Zachary Links

Lately, there’s been chatter about Utah State quarterback Jordan Love finding his way into the upper half of the first round. But, from what Mike Garafolo and Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com (via Twitter) are hearing, it sounds like Love not hear his name called until the back end of Round 1.

Garafolo cautions that talk of “rising” and “falling” stocks are often misguided in the buildup to the draft, and he’s right. But, still, Garafolo doesn’t get the sense that Love has wowed evaluators during the process like Patrick Mahomes a few years back (Granted, Love has had to conduct most of his conversations via phone and video conference, which is always awkward.)

Recently, we heard that the Packers, Patriots, Saints, Dolphins, Chargers, and Redskins have all been doing their homework on Love. Thanks to his pure throwing motion, Love has put himself into the QB mix, somewhere behind presumptive No. 1 pick Joe Burrow. However, it doesn’t sound like he’s leapfrogged the rest of the field – he’ll probably have to wait until Tua Tagovailoa, Justin Herbert, and many non-QBs are taken before he’s picked.

Love turned in a 20-17 TD-INT ratio last season, a big drop-off from his 32-6 mark as a sophomore in 2018. That hasn’t stopped a number of head coaches from reaching out to Texas Tech coach Matt Wells — the former Utah State head coach — to learn more about Love, but it might keep him from being a top 15 or even top 32 choice.

Patriots, Saints, Packers, Others Doing Homework On Jordan Love

April 11th, 2020 at 2:04pm CST by Sam Robinson

Although the rules leading up to the virtual draft make it more difficult to determine teams’ interest in prospects, franchises are doing their homework in different ways. And several teams are doing extensive research on Jordan Love.

The Utah State-developed quarterback prospect has drawn interest from teams with varying levels of quarterback needs. Among the teams doing homework on Love: the Saints, Patriots and Packers, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com notes. The Dolphins, Chargers and Redskins are also examining the intriguing passer.

With Joe Burrow, Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert expected to be the first three quarterbacks drafted, that places Love in an interesting spot. Following the Bengals, Dolphins and Bolts in the top six, there are not many teams with an immediate quarterback need. The Patriots, though, do qualify. Picking at No. 23, the Pats have not used a first-round pick on a quarterback since Drew Bledsoe 27 years ago and last picked one in Round 2 in 2014 (Jimmy Garoppolo). The Pats are believed to be prepared to give Jarrett Stidham a genuine shot to succeed Tom Brady, but it certainly would not surprise if they either drafted a quarterback early or signed one of the high-profile free agents.

Some scouts view Love as the draft’s best pure thrower, but Fowler adds others see him as a Day 2 pick. He finished last season with a 20-17 TD-INT ratio, well off the prolific pace he set as a sophomore (32-6) in 2018. Texas Tech coach Matt Wells — the former Utah State head coach — said seven NFL HCs have contacted him about Love in the past five days, per Fowler.

The Saints and Packers have been previously linked to the 6-foot-4 passer and have spoken with him leading up to the draft. New Orleans placed a first-round tender on Taysom Hill, but the former UDFA has 13 career pass attempts and will soon turn 30. The Packers have Aaron Rodgers under contract through 2023, and the 36-year-old star has indicated he wants to play into his 40s.

The Dolphins got in a meeting with Love before the NFL nixed the in-person components of the pre-draft process due to COVID-19. While Miami has been most closely connected to Tagovailoa, the organization has been mentioned as being interested in Love going back to February. In addition to their No. 5 overall pick, the Dolphins hold picks 18 and 26 in this draft.

Latest On QB Jordan Love

April 1st, 2020 at 12:23pm CST by Rory Parks

It is difficult to pinpoint exactly where Utah State QB Jordan Love will land in this month’s draft, and as such, he is generating interest from plenty of teams. Kevin Patra of NFL.com says that the Saints, Packers, Chargers, Raiders, Dolphins, and Colts have all been in contact with Love via FaceTime and other virtual means.

Despite an uneven 2019 season, Love possesses all the physical tools that a team could want in a signal-caller and showed enough of his ability at the scouting combine to create some buzz. So while teams like the Chargers and Dolphins have more immediate needs at quarterback, it’s not surprising that clubs like the Colts and the Packers would be taking a look as well, as they could have Love learn from their current starters while he continues to refine his game. Indeed, Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Green Bay had planned to host Love and most of this year’s top QB prospects at its facility before pre-draft visits were cancelled (Twitter link). Of course, the Packers drafted Aaron Rodgers when Brett Favre was still playing at a high level, so if Love falls to them, perhaps they could make a similar move.

The Saints’ involvement is somewhat surprising since we heard last month that New Orleans was not interested in Love. But while the team holds Taysom Hill in high regard and views him as the heir to Drew Brees, the fact remains that Hill will be 30 in August and has thrown 13 passes in his professional career, so a little due diligence couldn’t hurt.

The Dolphins, meanwhile, are reportedly very high on Love. While Miami’s dream scenario remains one in which it acquires the No. 1 overall pick from Cincinnati to select Joe Burrow, the ‘Fins will definitely walk away from the draft with a high-end signal-caller in tow.

Love looked like such a player in 2018 by throwing 32 touchdowns against six interceptions. Unfortunately, his arm strength and stature didn’t yield the same results last year, as he had 20 TDs against 17 INTs while playing with a lesser supporting cast. But plenty of QBs have had disappointing final seasons in college and have gone on to do big things in the pros, and apparently a number of teams believe Love can do just that.

NFL Cancels Pre-Draft Visits

March 13th, 2020 at 2:01pm CST by Sam Robinson

After the other major American sports made historic changes to their schedules this week, the NFL will follow suit. The league canceled further pre-draft visits, per an announcement.

Teams are no longer permitted to host prospects at their facilities or on campus sites. This will halt teams from venturing to prospects’ pro days leading up to the 2020 draft. That process had barely begun, with few reported visits and workouts having taken place. But teams now must make major adjustments.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, NFL teams were steadily taking coaches and scouts off the road. More than 20 did so by Friday afternoon. The Dolphins, however, hosted Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins at their facility and brought in Utah State quarterback Jordan Love in for a last-minute visit well, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). Just as the Dolphins moved up their Dobbins summit by a month, they moved up Love’s visit.

These will be the last meetings of this sort leading up to this draft, as the NFL becomes the latest major sports league to make coronavirus-related changes.

Teams will still be permitted to speak with prospects, but they must do so via phone calls and video conferences. These calls cannot last more than an hour, and no team can contact a prospect more than three times in one week. Violations of this rule change will be subject to league discipline.

This will obviously transform the pre-draft process. As of now, the draft remains scheduled to start April 23 in Las Vegas. But the league is considering changes. Given that hundreds of thousands of fans have flocked to this event since it was moved out of Radio City Music Hall and into other NFL markets, such an environment taking place this year may be a non-starter. But no firm announcement has been made regarding the draft or a delay to the free agency window. However, the league is considering adjusting that part of its calendar as well.

QB Rumors: Stafford, Dalton, Saints

March 1st, 2020 at 9:13pm CST by Sam Robinson

A rumor surfaced recently indicating the Lions discussed a Matthew Stafford trade. GM Bob Quinn denied this, and multiple key parties were quick to state the 11-year veteran quarterback does not want to leave Detroit. Stafford’s agent, Tom Condon, informed NFL.com’s Michael Silver his client does not want a trade (Twitter link). The quarterback’s wife, Kelly Stafford, shared on her Instagram (Twitter links via the Detroit Free Press’ Dave Birkett) they are not angling for a new NFL city. Matthew Stafford, 32, is under contract for three more seasons.

Here is the latest from the quarterback realm, moving to a passer who very much is available for trade:

Despite the Saints set to start a 41-year-old Drew Brees and apply a high tender to intriguing gadget player/backup Taysom Hill, they may not be prepared to draft a passer this year. Although some mock drafts have the Saints taking Utah State’s Jordan Love, Larry Holder of The Athletic notes (subscription required) the Saints do not appear to be interested. The Saints hold the No. 24 pick in the draft, and it might now be a surprise to see Love still on the board at that point.
Brees-Hill 2020 looks like the Saints’ plan. Combine buzz centered around Bridgewater’s next team, with Holder speaking to no NFL decision-maker who expected Brees’ backup of the past two years to return. Sean Payton said it would be unrealistic for the Saints to bring back all three, and Bridgewater is expected to receive interest as a starter in free agency. The Bears, Buccaneers, Chargers, Panthers and Patriots may possess some interest, Holder hears. Though, unlike Tom Brady and Philip Rivers, no team has been connected to Bridgewater yet.
Like Brady and Rivers, Andy Dalton has also been connected to a team. The Bears discussed a trade with the Bengals but may have to battle other teams for the nine-year veteran starter. Dalton’s agent has been working with the Bengals on potential Dalton deals, and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com names the Colts and Patriots — in addition to the Bears — as teams who could potentially have interest in the contract-year passer (video link). The Colts have been connected to Rivers at multiple junctures this week, while some around the league have indeed viewed New England as a landing spot for Dalton if Brady does decide to defect in free agency. Cincinnati and New England have made multiple trades involving high-profile Bengals, and the same two decision-makers — Mike Brown and Bill Belichick — remain in place from when Corey Dillon and Chad Johnson were dealt to New England in 2004 and 2011, respectively.

Dolphins High On QB Jordan Love

February 28th, 2020 at 11:23am CST by Zachary Links

Feb. 28: The Dolphins’ infatuation with Love is only intensifying, as Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald writes. However, Love’s stock appears to be rising around the league and the belief is that Miami will not be able to wait until the No. 18 overall pick to grab him. The organization thinks that a QB-needy team like the Chargers or Panthers are gearing up to jump the Dolphins’ No. 5 selection in order to take Tagovailoa, which would likely leave the ‘Fins with their choice of Herbert or Love. If that’s the case, it’s looking more like a toss-up between those two passers, though Herbert was very impressive during his throwing drills at the combine while Love had more of a mixed performance.

The Dolphins, with a number of holes to fill, do not want to part with their own hard-earned draft capital in order to guarantee themselves a shot at Tagovailoa. If the Bengals’ No. 1 choice — and therefore Burrow — were up for grabs, it may be a different story, but the team seems content with either Herbert or Love at this point.

Feb. 26: The Dolphins have been heavily connected to Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert in recent weeks, but they’re taking all of this year’s top quarterbacks in this year’s draft. One player they’re particularly intrigued by is Utah State standout Jordan Love, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald hears.

Love isn’t as high on the mock draft boards and he’s probably not a candidate for the No. 5 overall pick (though, we’ve been surprised before, particularly when it comes to QBs). The Dolphins, in theory, could target Love with one of their later picks – No. 18 or No. 26 overall – and strengthen up another area with their top choice.

At 6’4″ and 225 pounds, Love has great size for the position. He also looked the part of a top-end QB in 2018 by throwing 32 touchdowns against six interceptions. Unfortunately, his arm strength and stature didn’t yield the same results last year – he had 20 TDs against 17 INTs. That performance hurt his draft stock, but teams like the Dolphins may see this as a value opportunity.

Besides, LSU’s Joe Burrow probably won’t be there for the Dolphins at No. 5 overall and the other top signal callers in this year’s crop come with their own question marks. Tagovailoa, of course, is recovering from a major hip injury. And many are quick to point out Herbert’s accuracy issues, even when praising his cannon.

As Salguero notes, we’ve plenty of QBs struggle as seniors and succeed in the NFL, including Matt Ryan and Dan Marino. Love, too, could rebound from his rocky year, and he might get to do it in South Beach.

Latest On Top QB Prospects

January 25th, 2020 at 11:00am CST by Ben Levine

A long list of teams have question marks at the quarterback position heading into the offseason. Well, one executive believes many of the organizations will solve their predicament via the draft. Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller talked to a personnel executive who believes five quarterbacks will be selected in the top-15 of this year’s draft.

This might not sound all that shocking; among the teams with top-15 picks, only five of those organizations have used first-round capital at the position in the past two drafts. You could easily talk yourself into one of the other 10 teams selecting a quarterback, and a team outside the top-15 could easily trade up. However, it is notable that the executive was willing to speak so definitively.

As Miller explains, there’s a pretty clear pecking order atop the quarterback draft board: Joe Burrow (LSU), Tua Tagovailoa (Alabama), some combo of Jordan Love (Utah State) and Justin Herbert (Oregon), Jacob Eason (Washington), and Jake Fromm (Georgia). Miller notes that the Chargers, who are selecting sixth-overall, are particularly interested in Love.

Miller himself believes six quarterbacks will be selected in the top-50, and he notes that part of the urgency to select a signal-caller could be attributed to the falloff after the top-six options. The next-best prospect, Oklahoma’s Jalen Hurts, struggled during Senior Bowl practice this week, and Hawaii’s Cole McDonald projects as more of a fifth- or sixth-rounder.

Joe Burrow Declines Senior Bowl Invite

January 18th, 2020 at 2:52pm CST by Sam Robinson

With Joe Burrow becoming one of college football’s all-time rising stocks, NFL evaluators will not see the LSU star in pads again before the draft. Burrow will pass on the Senior Bowl, according to the game’s director, Jim Nagy (on Twitter).

Burrow’s record-setting 60-touchdown pass season rocketed him from later-round NFL prospect to near-surefire No. 1 overall pick. The Bengals have praised the Ohio native’s abilities and are likely to bring him aboard as their next quarterback.

The former Ohio State talent debuted as LSU’s starter in 2018 but threw for only 2,894 yards and 16 touchdown passes as a junior. Working with new Panthers offensive coordinator Joe Brady this past season, Burrow got to 5,671 yards and more than tripled his TD output. It seems unlikely his stock will climb higher by working out in Mobile next week.

The next opportunity teams will have to see Burrow in action will be at the Combine. However, his absence in Mobile, Ala., will open the door to Justin Herbert commanding the spotlight at college football’s top all-star game. The Oregon product bypassed the draft last year to play his senior season and will suit up at the Senior Bowl. So will Utah State’s Jordan Love. Michigan’s Shea Patterson, Oklahoma’s Jalen Hurts, Washington State’s Anthony Gordon and Colorado’s Steven Montez will join them.

With Tua Tagovailoa out, Herbert has a chance to potentially snare the position of second quarterback drafted. While the Dolphins have been linked to Tagovailoa at No. 5, they also did extensive work on Herbert when he was a possible top-10 pick in the 2019 draft. The Redskins, Lions and Giants (Nos. 2-4) are almost certain to be out of the quarterback market and could double as trade-down candidates for teams looking to invest in either Herbert or Tagovailoa.

QB Notes: Dak, Brissett, Steelers, Love

December 18th, 2019 at 8:30pm CST by Sam Robinson

Dak Prescott went through an MRI on his injury shoulder Wednesday, Todd Archer of ESPN.com notes. The Cowboys quarterback did not throw in the team’s opening practice this week due to what Ezekiel Elliott said was an AC join sprain. Jason Garrett did not confirm that prognosis but said it was “hard for (Prescott) to function right now.” The fourth-year passer suffered the injury on a scramble against the Rams. Prescott, who has not missed a game in his NFL career, is also dealing with a sprained right wrist and sprained right index finger. The Cowboys have former UDFA Cooper Rush (three NFL pass attempts) as Prescott’s backup, though it would be surprising if the starter missed any time.

Here is the latest from various quarterback situations:

The Colts have seen Jacoby Brissett‘s play decline as the season’s gone along, but Frank Reich reaffirmed his commitment to the fourth-year passer as his starter. Reich shot down the notion Chad Kelly would be given significant reps in the final two weeks of regular-season practices, per Mike Chappell of Fox 59. The two-year, $30MM deal the Colts gave Brissett following Andrew Luck‘s retirement guarantees him $7MM via 2020 roster bonus. It would not be a surprise if the Colts added a quarterback in the offseason, per Stephen Holder of The Athletic (subscription required). Brian Hoyer is under contract through 2021 and would bring just a $2MM dead-money hit if released. The Colts are again projected to hold the most cap space in the NFL. There are plenty of impact names set to be free agents, but very few will actually reach the market.
Chris Ballard‘s regime has focused primarily on building through the draft, and Joel Erickson of the Indianapolis Star tweets the Colts should be ready to closely examine passing prospects. Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert and perhaps Tua Tagovailoa will be gone by the time Indianapolis’ mid-first-round selection window opens.
The Steelers announced they are sticking with Devlin Hodges against the Jets, despite his four-interception performance. Hodges has posted a 38.4 QBR figure, which betters Mason Rudolph‘s league-worst 31.9 mark. The Steelers have not thrown for 200 yards in their past five games.
Jordan Love recently declared for the draft. The Utah State prospect was arrested for marijuana possession, according to Will Feelright of the Cache Valley Daily. Police were called to an off-campus apartment complex and arrested two other players for marijuana possession. Love is still on track to play in Friday’s Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl.