Sam Darnold

NFL Draft Rumors: Darnold, Giants, Chubb

March 22nd, 2018 at 2:34pm CST by Zachary Links

Wednesday’s rainy weather in Southern California isn’t ideal for local residents, but it may have done a favor for quarterback Sam Darnold at USC’s pro day, as Matt Miller of Bleacher Report tweets. The early word from Darnold’s audition indicates that he looked “very, very good” despite the conditions. That could be a major plus for Darnold as he looks to separate himself from other top quarterbacks like Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield, Wyoming’s Josh Allen, and UCLA’s Josh Rosen. Rosen also threw in inclement weather at UCLA’s pro day earlier this month and threw well, despite heavy gusts of wind.

Here’s more NFL Draft news:

The Giants already had a private workout with North Carolina State defensive end Bradley Chubb and he’ll visit the facility in a few weeks, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The Giants need a defensive end after trading Jason Pierre-Paul to the Buccaneers, opening up the possibility of taking Chubb at No. 2 overall.
The Texans hosted a private workout yesterday for Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson, Rapoport tweets. Jackson, is expected to come off the board in the first two rounds, would not be an obvious fit for Houston, but they want to be “prepared for any and all scenarios on draft week,” Rapoport says. However, if Jackson falls, he could be an interesting insurance policy for them in the unlikely event that Deshaun Watson is not ready for the start of the season.
During the University of San Diego’s pro day, former Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel auditioned for the NFL scouts in attendance and reportedly put on a good show.

AFC East Notes: Pouncey, Jets, Draft

March 18th, 2018 at 6:07pm CST by Micah Powell

The Dolphins are overhauling their roster this offseason, looking to improve the culture of the club. A move that wasn’t motivated by the locker room, however, was the release of veteran center Mike Pouncey, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets.

Rapoport notes the All-Pro center received rave reviews for his leadership skills and toughness, but was simply cut because the Dolphins invested more money in the signing of Josh Sitton and the trade for Daniel Kilgore. Pouncey, who had three years left on his current deal, asked and was granted his release earlier this week after declining to take a pay cut. The Dolphins saved $7MM against the cap with the move.

Despite playing in all 16 games, Pouncey struggled through a hip injury in 2017. Pro Football Focus noted his down year, grading Pouncey as just the No. 27 center in the NFL. It’s possible Pouncey will require hip replacement surgery down the road, while at least one doctor has reportedly recommended that Pouncey retire, but he’s rejected that advice tho this point.

Since the trade deadline in 2017, the Dolphins have now parted ways with top producers like Jarvis Landry, Ndamukong Suh and Jay Ajayi, while also releasing veterans Lawrence Timmons and Julius Thomas.

Here’s more from around the AFC East:

Sticking with Pouncey, it was reported earlier in the week that he would take his first visit to meet with the Chargers on Sunday. That meeting is expected to be an extended one that will last through Monday and include a physical, CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora tweets. The Buccaneers and Colts have also shown interest in the center, but Tampa Bay could be more content now after signing Ryan Jensen to the richest deal for a center in NFL history.
After acquiring the No. 3 pick in the upcoming draft from the Colts, the Jets have not ruled out moving up even further, ESPN’s Rich Cimini writes. Cimini thinks that if they have one or two quarterbacks markedly ahead of the rest of the pack, New York could swing a deal for the Giants’ No. 2 pick or Cleveland’s No. 1. He does not that it is unlikely and would probably be “too rich for the Jets’ blood.”
Cimini also thinks the Jets prefer Josh Allen, Sam Darnold and Josh Rosen to Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield. He notes general manager Mike Maccagnan typically prefers prototypical signal-callers, rather than the undersized Mayfield. “My hunch is that Maccagnan and coach Todd Bowles wouldn’t be fans of the Mayfield sideshow.”

Jets Acquire No. 3 Pick From Colts

March 17th, 2018 at 9:52am CST by Ben Levine

The Jets are moving up. The team has acquired the third-overall pick from the Colts (via Indy’s Twitter). In exchange, the Jets have sent Indy their first-rounder (No. 6) a pair of upcoming seconds (No. 37 and No. 49), and a 2019 second-round pick.

NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the Jets “explored all options,” including the possibility of adding the top-overall pick from the Browns. Meanwhile, the Colts heard offers from several teams, but they ultimately felt good about the package they received from the Jets.

The general consensus seems to be that the Jets will ultimately use their new pick to take a quarterback. By acquiring the selection, the organization is assuring that they can take one of the top prospects in the draft, a list that includes Sam Darnold, Josh Allen, Josh Rosen, and Baker Mayfield. Of course, choosing a quarterback with the third pick will only complicate the Jets’ quarterback plans heading into 2018.

Assuming they take a quarterback in the draft, the team will clearly be leaning on the youngster to lead the organization in the future. However, for at least next season, the Jets would likely turn to veteran Josh McCown for the starting gig. After re-signing McCown earlier this week, the organization reportedly told the signal-caller that he’ll be their starter next season. The Jets also added Teddy Bridgewater, and they’re rostering Bryce Petty, Christian Hackenberg, and Joel Stave. At least two of those latter three quarterbacks will be let go prior to the season.

In recent years, we’ve seen several teams trade into a top-three selection in the draft. Last season, the Bears moved up to No. 2 and sent San Francisco No. 3, No. 67, and No. 111. In 2017, the Titans traded the No. 1 pick (along with No. 113 and No. 177) to the Rams for No. 15, No. 43, No. 45, and No. 76 (along with a first- and third-rounder in 2017). That same year, the Browns traded No. 2 (and a conditional fifth-rounder) to Philly for No. 8, No. 77, No. 100, a 2017 first-rounder, and a 2018 second-rounder.

What does this all mean? Well, it seems like both teams could justify the haul they gave up/received. According to ProFootballTalk.com’s “Draft Trade Chart,” Indy received solid value for the No. 3 pick. That selection was given a value of 2,200, and their new 2018 selections equal out to a 2,540 value (that also doesn’t account for the 2019 second-rounder). From that perspective, you could argue that the Colts won the trade. However, when you consider the trades from previous seasons, the Jets did an admirable job of not including an additional first-rounder in the package.

Peter King On Browns, McCarron, Tannehill

March 5th, 2018 at 11:01am CST by Zachary Links

Here’s the latest from Peter King of The MMQB:

The Browns have four picks in the top 35 of this year’s draft, but coach Hue Jackson is still pushing for the team to acquire A.J. McCarron, King hears. If the team does go for McCarron in March, the plan would be for the team to also draft a rookie quarterback to be groomed behind him. The Browns, of course, nearly landed McCarron before last year’s trade deadline before a paperwork snag tanked the deal. One has to wonder if McCarron would be skeptical about the Browns’ level of commitment to him in such a scenario, particularly after seeing how Mike Glennon‘s arrangement worked out with the Bears. Then again, McCarron might be faced with a similar scenario with any team that shows interest him.
It has been said that the Dolphins are committed to Ryan Tannehill at quarterback, but King is not convinced after speaking with executives at the combine. Miami is look at QBs at No. 11 overall and several people who spoke with King believe they’ll select a signal caller there. Tannehill has missed the last 19 Dolphins games with back-to-back ACL tears.
After speaking with several GMs, scouts, and coaches, this is King’s rough consensus for the top ten player’s in the draft: Penn State running back Saquon Barkley, USC quarterback Sam Darnold, North Carolina State edge rusher Bradley Chubb, Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen, Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield, UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen, Notre Dame guard Quenton Nelson, Alabama defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick, Ohio State cornerback Denzel Ward, and Georgia linebacker Roquan Smith.

QB Notes: Vikings, Rosen, Hackenberg

March 4th, 2018 at 10:22am CST by Rory Parks

The Vikings might be the current leaders in the Kirk Cousins sweepstakes, and if the Vikes can land the coveted signal-caller, all three of their 2017 QBs — Case Keenum, Sam Bradford, and Teddy Bridgewater — will likely be suiting up elsewhere in 2018. Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets that at least a handful of teams have expressed interest in Bridgewater as a potential starting quarterback, so he does have a market, despite some reports that the Vikings themselves view Bridgewater as a pedestrian QB.

Now let’s take a look at a few more rumors surrounding some of the draft’s top QBs, as well as veteran signal-callers that could be on the move:

If the Vikings cannot land Cousins, Andrew Krammer of the Star Tribune suggests that Eagles QB (and Super Bowl LII MVP) Nick Foles could be on the team’s radar. The Eagles have suggested they are open to trading Foles, and Minnesota just hired former Philadelphia QBs coach John DeFilippo as its new offensive coordinator. Of course, the two sides previously completed a QB trade when the Eagles shipped Bradford to the Vikings prior to the 2016 campaign.
Paul Schwartz of the New York Post wonders if Giants head coach Pat Shurmur‘s recent unsolicited comments about Eli Manning‘s enviable durability — and Shurmur’s statement that players who get injured a lot continue to get injured a lot — are an indication that Big Blue is concerned about Josh Rosen‘s injury history. The UCLA quarterback has suffered two concussions, and he also underwent surgery on his throwing shoulder in 2016. Nonetheless, Schwartz writes that Rosen has looked as good as advertised at the combine, so aside from health concerns, he appears to be a viable target for the Giants, who hold the No. 2 overall selection.
Rich Cimini of ESPN.com says it would be a “minor upset” if Christian Hackenberg is still on the Jets in 2018, and Hackenberg’s fate could be tied to the Cousins sweepstakes. If New York does not land Cousins, it will look to acquire another veteran QB or two — Cimini names Bridgewater as one possibility — and then draft a rookie signal-caller. If the Jets do sign Cousins, Hackenberg could theoretically stick as a backup, but even in that scenario, Gang Green would likely try to sign a more accomplished No. 2, and the club may still pick up a rookie in the later rounds of the draft, which would force Hackenberg out of the picture. For his part, Cimini believes it’s time to move on, and it appears head coach Todd Bowles feels similarly. Interestingly, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe says he has watched videos of Hackenberg’s offseason workouts, and he reports the former Penn State star’s mechanics look terrific.
Sam Darnold‘s throwing motion is a little longer than some scouts would like, but he has no plans to change it, per Chase Goodbread of NFL.com. Darnold is not throwing at this year’s combine, though teams will have a chance to further evaluate his mechanics at USC’s pro day on March 21.

Sam Darnold Won’t Throw At NFL Combine

February 27th, 2018 at 6:28pm CST by Micah Powell

In a crowded quarterback class, don’t expect USC’s Sam Darnold to cement himself as the No. 1 pick at the 2018 NFL Combine. The star quarterback will not throw at the event, which begins Wednesday, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link).

Though he will not take part in the throwing drills, Darnold will partake in athletic testing and interview with teams. Schefter notes that he does plan on throwing at USC’s Pro Day, which takes place on March 21. Other notable projected first-round signal-callers — Josh Rosen, Baker Mayfield and Josh Allen — all plan on throwing.

Top quarterbacks not throwing at the NFL Combine is nothing new. In 2012, both Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III did not participate in the drill and both were selected with the top two picks in the draft. Other notable QBs to not throw include Sam Bradford, JaMarcus Russell, Matthew Stafford, Johnny Manziel, Teddy Bridgewater and Matt Ryan.

Since his breakout performance in the 2017 Rose Bowl vs. Penn State, Darnold has been considered among the draft’s top prospects at the quarterback position, along with Rosen. Despite a disappointing redshirt sophomore season, the USC star still amassed 4,143 yards and 26 touchdowns while leading the Trojans to the Cotton Bowl.

Darnold has been pegged in most mock drafts to the Browns (No. 1 and No. 4), Giants (No. 2), Broncos (No. 5) or Jets (No. 6).

Giants Notes: Darnold, Richburg, Pugh

February 26th, 2018 at 3:23pm CST by Sam Robinson

Dave Gettleman fired Marc Ross shortly after he took over as Giants GM, but the longtime Big Blue VP of player evaluation may have shed some light as to which players previous Giants scouts were high on and whom the franchise could target with its No. 2 pick. Of the quarterbacks, Ross singled out Sam Darnold during an appearance on NFL Live (via Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com). He identified Saquon Barkley as well and even pointed to Notre Dame guard phenom Quenton Nelson.

“You have to look at a quarterback, ut it has to be the right guy. You can’t just force a guy,” said Ross, who interviewed to be the Giants’ GM in December. “The right guy for them, on and off the field, I would think would be Sam Darnold. He’s ultra-talented, he’s a playmaker, he’s a winner. And he’s also very clean off the field. What I mean by that: no issues, great leader, great teammate, great person.”

Darnold would have a chance to develop while Eli Manning — whom the current regime immediately took off the trade market, judging by everything that’s been said thus far this offseason. Ross’ stance on Nelson mostly comes from Gettleman’s comments regarding the franchise being desperate for offensive line upgrades, and it would be unusual for a guard to go this high. But he did seem to echo a theme he’d heard while in his previous post with the Giants.

“All the years of talking about, ‘The Giants need O-line; the Giants need O-line,’” Ross said, “they may even go that route.”

Here’s more Giants news prior to the team’s trip to Indianapolis.

Weston Richburg will likely leave as a free agent, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv notes, but the Giants will probably gauge his price at the Combine. Raanan reports multiple teams view the longtime Giants center as a quality starter despite the concussion that cost Richburg 12 games last season. A 2014 second-round pick, Richburg performed better in 2015 and ’16.
The Giants will also likely examine Justin Pugh‘s interest in coming back at the Combine, Vacchiano writes. Pugh’s 2017 injury-marred season will not deter the Giants from re-signing him, Raanan reports. A back injury cost Pugh eight games last season, but it looks like the 2013 first-rounder will be a higher priority to retain than Richburg. Pugh did not undergo surgery and said he would like to be back with the Giants next season. It won’t be cheap, however, and Raanan listed the Jaguars — who have Pugh’s college coach (Doug Marrone) and former NFL coach (Tom Coughlin) as key organizational pillars — as an obvious fit if the guard/tackle leaves the Big Apple.
Ross is high on Baker Mayfield but doesn’t see an obvious fit in New York. The Giants had a meeting scheduled with Mayfield at the Senior Bowl that didn’t end up taking place, and the Heisman Trophy winner has said a job learning behind Manning would be ideal for him.
Orleans Darkwa could be a candidate to return on a low-cost deal, Raanan and Vacchiano note. Raanan expects the running back to have suitors on the market. New York will probably be looking to upgrade at running back after struggling on the ground again last season, but Darkwa would make sense as a complementary back. He led the Giants with 751 rushing yards last season and averaged 4.4 per carry.
While technically forbidden because of tampering, Vacchiano notes the Giants will “absolutely” know where they stand with UFA guard Andrew Norwell. The former Gettleman UDFA find with the Panthers has been linked to the Giants, but considering the issues teams have had finding and developing linemen this decade, Norwell could potentially eclipse Kevin Zeitler‘s record guard deal come March.

North Notes: Browns, Bears, Mosley, Cooter

January 27th, 2018 at 4:58pm CST by Sam Robinson

Having already been connected to Josh Rosen, Josh Allen and Sam Darnold, the Browns are midway through an all-hands-on-deck offseason when it comes to their quarterback choice. However, Charles Robinson of Yahoo.com reports the Browns may not be dismissing a Baker Mayfield pick. Multiple evaluators informed Robinson that the Browns are going to be down to Darnold or Mayfield.

“A lot of what he is as a player fits with the mentality of John Dorsey,” one source told Robinson from the Senior Bowl. “Just his mental makeup as a player, John believes in building around those kinds of guys. … I think he’s a strong candidate [for the top pick] after this week.”

The 6-foot passer has been mentioned the least among the top quarterbacks as being a viable option at No. 1 at this point in the pre-draft process, but Dorsey said this week there could be “four or five” prospects the team could target atop the draft. While Mayfield’s character issues are still cropping up this week, it’s looking clear he will be picked in the top half of the first round. Robinson notes former Redskins GM Scot McCloughan serves as one of Dorsey’s top sounding boards, and McCloughan’s been pro-Mayfield for a while. Another source noted Dorsey’s past with the Packers during the Brett Favre era could apply here, given Mayfield’s gunslinger style and sometimes difficult off-field persona. Nevertheless, it would quite the leap for Mayfield to rise to the top of the draft over passers who have long been viewed as better prospects.

Here’s the latest from the North divisions:

C.J. Mosley has no designs on leaving Baltimore. One of numerous 2014 first-round picks to be stuck in fifth-year option limbo, Mosley is eyeing a career that ends with him being ranked as the second-best linebacker in Ravens history, he said (via Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com). The Pro Bowl inside ‘backer expects something to get done regarding an extension. Mosley is set to make $8.718MM next season.
The Lions are going to have an entirely new defensive staff under Matt Patricia and already parted ways with quarterbacks coach Brian Callahan, who became a coveted commodity this week. But the expectation remains Patricia will retain OC Jim Bob Cooter, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com notes. While the Lions have struggled on the ground under Cooter, finishing 32nd twice during his two-plus-year tenure running the offense, Matthew Stafford‘s had his best run of seasons during Cooter’s time in Detroit.
An internal debate’s being waged at Bears headquarters as to whether Cody Whitehair will function better as a center or guard, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune notes, adding this process will impact whether the team picks up Josh Sitton‘s 2018 option. Whitehair has played both spots, receiving most of his work at center, while Sitton is a pure guard. The soon-to-be 32-year-old blocker is due to count $8.57MM against the Bears’ 2018 cap if the team picks up his option.
Another possible factor working in Sitton’s favor for a third Bears year is the Kyle Long‘s suddenly injury-prone status. Biggs reports Long will undergo multiple surgeries this offseason. Long played in 10 games this past season after an extensive rehab process didn’t end until after the 2017 campaign began.

Sam Darnold Enters The 2018 NFL Draft

January 3rd, 2018 at 6:34pm CST by GregGoldstein

Minutes after fellow top quarterback prospect Josh Rosen announced his intentions to leave for the NFL, USC signal caller Sam Darnold has revealed that he will also declare for the 2018 NFL Draft in a video posted on his Instagram page.

Always thought of as one of the consensus top two quarterbacks in this draft class, there seemed to at least some hesitation from around the league whether the redshirt sophomore quarterback would decide to go pro after this season. While Darnold has tremendous arm talent, there was some clear holes that were exposed in his game this season, especially in his tendency to turn the ball over. The USC Trojan threw 13 interceptions in 2017, four more than in the previous season. He also was coming off a poor last effort against a talented Ohio State defense in the Cotton Bowl.

Nevertheless, Darnold is betting on himself and is set to be a top pick in about three months time. Even after a rough season, the redshirt sophomore still has great raw ability and was posting better numbers as the 2017 season wore on. Also, with the number of teams needing quarterbacks to build around, Darnold will almost assuredly be taken in the top ten picks with there being a great chance that he goes even higher than that, possibly number one to the Browns.

Cleveland has passed on taking quarterbacks in the first round in the last two drafts, but still look to be in a prime decision to take either Darnold or Rosen this April. While Rosen has been a little more unsure of the idea of going to the Browns, Darnold has stated publicly that it would “be so special” to be taken number one overall, according to Doug Lesmirises of Cleveland.com.

However, there should be no jumping to conclusions as many things could change in the months ahead regarding who will be the first quarterback selected. The important thing is that we now know teams will have a chance to draft Darnold in just a few months.

Draft Rumors: Darnold, Browns, Nelson, Jackson, Allen

December 27th, 2017 at 4:52pm CST by Sam Robinson

While Josh Rosen made headlines with his comments about a preference to land with a better team that held a lower pick rather than a bad one holding a high draft choice, Sam Darnold took the more diplomatic route. The USC quarterback — who has not yet made a decision about forgoing his final two years of eligibility to enter the 2018 draft — said Wednesday (via ESPN) he’d be “honored to play for any team.” This could be key regarding the top of the draft, where both Darnold and Rosen are expected to come off the board if they declare. A report that emerged Sunday revealed Rosen is higher on the Giants than the Browns, who will hold the No. 1 pick, and may reconsider staying in school if the Browns are to pick him. Of course, a similar report surfaced about Darnold last month. Darnold denied that rumor today, however. This interesting leverage game remains in a holding pattern with both passers having yet to announce they’re going to enter the draft.

Here’s more 2018 draft buzz.

Lamar Jackson is not expected to threaten Rosen or Darnold’s spots atop the draft, and the former Heisman Trophy winner may be put through an interesting process by some interested teams if/when he declares. Various scouts told ESPN.com’s Mel Kiper Jr. they believe some teams will ask the Louisville phenom to work out as both a quarterback and wide receiver, with the goal being to see if Jackson could transition if he didn’t work as a passer. This is not the first time this has come up regarding Jackson, who has rushed for a staggering 3,974 yards and 49 touchdowns in three Cardinals seasons, nor is it the first time a run-heavy quarterback has been mentioned as a wideout at the next level.
Quenton Nelson‘s stock appears to be rising, and SI.com’s Albert Breer spoke with an NFL exec who said the Notre Dame guard is a better prospect than Zack Martin was when he came out of South Bend three years ago. Breer tabs Nelson as a top-three overall prospect. Martin went 16th to the Cowboys in 2014 and became the first rookie offensive lineman to land on the top All-Pro team in 57 years. No pure guard has gone in the top 10 since Jonathan Cooper in 2013, but the Redskins moved 2015’s No. 5 overall pick (Brandon Scherff) to guard immediately.
The sense in the scouting community is Josh Allen will fall toward the middle of the first round while the two Pac-12 passers go off the board at the draft’s outset, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com notes. Allen remains viewed as a less pro-ready prospect than the other two despite possessing possibly greater physical upside. However, smaller-program passers have done well for themselves in recent drafts. Carson Wentz rocketed up the 2016 board to No. 2, and Blake Bortles (Central Florida) went No. 3 in 2014. The Jets have done extensive homework on Allen, and the Broncos are getting to work on the Wyoming talent as well.

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