Los Angeles Chargers Rumors & News - Pro Football Rumors

NFC South Notes: Winston, Bucs, Saints

April 29th, 2015 at 9:25pm CST by Zachary Links

Ed Werder of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears that the Buccaneers will not inform the player they’re picking of their decision until they’re on the clock Thursday night. Get ready for some nail biting from this year’s top two prospects. Here’s more from the NFC South..

There’s a rumor that Buccaneers players have been told that Jameis Winston will be the pick, but Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) hears that’s false based on conversations with four Tampa Bay players.
The Saints worked out quarterback Garrett Grayson on Monday, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (on Twitter). Today was the final allowable day for workouts of draft prospects. The Saints have been previously linked to Grayson.
Texas A&M corner Deshazor Everett worked out for the Buccaneers, according to Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post. The speedster also auditioned for the Chargers, Bengals, Dolphins, and Jets.

AFC West Notes: Manning, Wilkerson, Bolts

April 28th, 2015 at 8:30pm CST by Zachary Links

Earlier today, the Chiefs announced that president Mark Donovan has signed a long-term contract extension to remain in Kansas City. Donovan doesn’t deal much with the football side of things, but he is in charge of the fan experience at Arrowhead Stadium. Recently, Arrowhead has come under fire for its subpar concessions and one can only hope that Donovan will turn things around. Here’s more from the AFC West..

Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning is 39, but he’s not thinking about calling it quits, Mike Klis of 9 News writes. “I wouldn’t call it that,” Manning said when asked about a possible farewell tour. “That’s not how I see it.” Manning is under contract with Denver through 2016.
At least two teams have called the Jets about a potential trade for defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson. Those teams have not been named but Bill Williamson of ESPN.com thinks the Raiders should get in on the defensive end if they haven’t already. Defensive end is one of Oakland’s primary need areas and Wilkerson is a standout in his prime. The Raiders, who have about $20MM in salary-cap space, could easily give Wilkerson the new deal he seeks.
Mock drafts are all about projecting who teams will take, but Greg A. Bedard of The MMQB ran down the players that each team should pick. For the Raiders at No. 4, Bedard says the easy and obvious choice is USC defensive tackle Leonard Williams, if he’s available. Further down in the draft, he recommends Washington nose tackle Danny Shelton for the Chargers. Bedard argues that he makes sense for the Bolts since they don’t have anybody of substance on the defensive line beyond Corey Liuget.

AFC Notes: Bengals, Rivers, Mercilus, Browns

April 28th, 2015 at 4:59pm CST by Luke Adams

Multiple reports and mock drafts in recent weeks have suggested the Bengals could use their first-round pick to add a young tackle, perhaps envisioning that player as an eventual replacement for Andrew Whitworth. As he tells Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer though, the idea of the team adding his potential replacement doesn’t worry Whitworth.

“I’ve always had the opposite mentality,” Whitworth said. “Mess up and draft somebody at my position because you are going to sit around and watch him sit the bench. That’s always been my mentality. I see it as a challenge.”

While we wait to see which direction the Bengals decide to go on Thursday, let’s check out a few more notes from around the AFC….

The Chargers met with Philip Rivers‘ agent in person last week and are still focused on extending the quarterback’s contract, tweets Mike Garafolo of Fox Sports. If Rivers is still a Charger on Sunday, it should signal that the team is relatively confident it can get something done.
Speaking today to reporters, including John McClain of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter links), Texans general manager Rick Smith said he and the club are still deciding whether to pick up the fifth-year option on Whitney Mercilus. “Whether we pick it up or not, we want him around long time,” Smith said of the outside linebacker. For his part, McClain doesn’t expect the team to exercise its 2016 option.
On the heels of ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reporting that Sam Bradford wants to play for the Eagles, and Philadelphia is unlikely to trade him, Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com says the Browns would still like to acquire the former first overall pick — however, it’s not likely to happen.
Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com ranks the Raiders‘ top five draft needs, and according to Bair, the No. 1 priority is finding a pass rusher that can take some of the heat off of Khalil Mack. Oakland could use a defensive end and they could very well use the No. 4 pick to shore up that spot. Bud Dupree, Leonard Williams, and Dante Fowler Jr. are candidates to end up in Oakland next season, Bair writes.
Chiefs president Mark Donovan has signed a long-term contract extension to remain in Kansas City, the team announced today in a press release.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Philip Rivers/Titans Rumors: Monday

April 27th, 2015 at 5:08pm CST by Luke Adams

As recently as Saturday, Peter King of TheMMQB.com suggested that there was something to the Philip Rivers-to-the-Titans rumors, but his latest Monday Morning Quarterback column throws a bit of cold water on that idea. Here’s the latest on Rivers, the Chargers, the Titans, and the No. 2 overall pick:

As of now, the Chargers have yet to have conversations with any team regarding a trade of Rivers, Alex Flanagan of NBC Sports tweets.
After making many calls over the weekend, King doesn’t believe the Chargers will trade Rivers. While he’s not ready to lock that in, he writes that San Diego “definitely does not want to trade Rivers.” Additionally, the Titans would want more than just Rivers for the second overall pick, and the Chargers probably wouldn’t be willing to offer more than that.
If the Titans don’t get a good offer for that No. 2 pick from the Chargers or another team, they’ll likely select Mariota, writes King, adding that while “they feel good about Zach Mettenberger, [they] would feel better about Mariota.
An Oregon source tells King that no team scouted Mariota more fervently during and after the college football season than the Titans.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, the Browns, Rams, and Chargers are the most likely candidates to make a deal with the Titans. However, Rapoport agrees that San Diego doesn’t appear to be interested in dealing Rivers, who would have to sign a contract extension and take a physical to finalize a trade — neither of those things is in motion at this point.
Rapoport adds that the Browns and Rams may find it more difficult to match up with the Titans, since neither team could send Tennessee an established quarterback like Rivers in a trade.

Draft Rumors: Falcons, Gurley, Cowboys

April 27th, 2015 at 10:16am CST by Luke Adams

The Falcons have long coveted a standout pass rusher, and the club could get the opportunity to draft one this year. The team currently has the No. 8 pick, but according to D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal Constitution, GM Thomas Dimitroff will consider the possibility of moving up a few spots to land Florida edge rusher Dante Fowler Jr. It would cost Atlanta an extra pick or two to trade up for Fowler, who is widely considered the top pass rusher in the draft, but the club hasn’t hesitated to make that sort of move in the past, most notably moving up to snag Julio Jones in 2011.

Here are a few more notes and rumors from around the NFL, as draft night approaches:

With his ACL healing well, Todd Gurley now appears likely to be a top-20 pick, tweets Albert Breer of the NFL Network. According to Breer, when he called around this weekend, the Browns (Nos. 12, 19), Dolphins (No. 14), and Chargers (No. 17) were all linked to the Georgia running back.
The Browns may be considering Gurley with one of their two first-round picks, but the team figures to take a long look at receivers as well. Per Pro Football Talk (Twitter link), UCF wideout Breshad Perriman dined last night with Cleveland GM Ray Farmer and other team executives.
While a consensus is forming for a few picks near the top of the draft, it’s not clear where USC defensive lineman Leonard Williams – viewed by many as 2015’s best prospect – will land, writes Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. As badly as the Raiders may need a wide receiver, I’d be surprised if Oakland passed on Williams at No. 4, assuming he’s available there.
The Cowboys will have a hard time passing up Washington’s Marcus Peters or Wake Forest’s Kevin Johnson in the first round if either cornerback is still on the board at No. 27, says Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net (via Twitter).
Colts owner Jim Irsay isn’t ruling out any possibility for his team on Thursday, suggesting that the Colts could easily trade up or down from No. 29, writes Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star.

Sunday Roundup: Draft, Weddle, J. Houston

April 26th, 2015 at 12:48pm CST by Rory Parks

Let’s take a look at some notes from around the league on this Sunday afternoon, including one note on the first overall pick in Thursday’s first round:

Multiple teams have reached out to the Buccaneers recently to determine what it would take to move up to the No. 1 overall pick, according to Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). However, Getlin adds in a second tweet that although the Bucs have listened, no offer has been strong enough for the team to seriously consider trading down just yet.
Similarly, Conor Orr of NFL.com writes that Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie has fielded calls on Oakland’s No. 4 overall selection.
In a separate piece, Orr writes that the Chiefs are keeping the lines of communication open with star outside linebacker Justin Houston, who was slapped with the franchise tag in March. Kansas City has a little under three months to work out a long-term deal with Houston, and the fact that talks are still ongoing and are still progressing is a good sign that something will get done.
Paola Boivin of The Arizona Republic believes Wisconsin RB Melvin Gordon would be the perfect first-round choice for the Cardinals, who hold the No. 24 overall pick.
Troy E. Renck of The Denver Post feels the Broncos should take an offensive tackle in the first round, even if they have to trade up a couple of spots to do it. Renck goes on to examine some of the prospects that could be available when Denver is on the board.
Chargers safety Eric Weddle feels “highly disrespected” by the team’s refusal to engage in contract talks despite his desire to retire with the organization, but Matt Calkins of U-T San Diego believes the Chargers are taking the right approach.
Given that the Jaguars feel better about their roster than they have in the past two seasons, Ryan O’Halloran of The Florida Times-Union would not be surprised if the team traded a couple of picks to move into the back of round 1 or up in rounds 2-3.
Continuing a theme among NFL beat writers, Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean looks at the offensive side of the Titans‘ roster heading into the draft and offers his predictions as to what the team will do to address its deficiencies on that side of the ball during draft weekend.
Washington GM Scot McCloughan‘s history suggests he will select an edge rusher with his top pick in this year’s draft, writes Rich Tandler of CSNWashington.com. Although Tandler says Randy Gregory‘s red flags will probably keep him off McCloughan’s board, Vic Beasley and Dante Fowler, Jr. would both be good bets.

Latest On Titans, Philip Rivers

April 25th, 2015 at 7:33pm CST by Zachary Links

Alex Flanagan of NBC Sports (on Twitter) is hearing from more and more people who believe the Philip Rivers trade rumors have legitimate legs. Peter King of Sports Illustrated (Twitter link), meanwhile, seems to be sensing the same thing, though he says nothing is certain regarding the No. 2 pick at this time.

As Flanagan tweets, the Titans have a clear need for Rivers and the Chargers could get out of their financial obligation to him with a trade. Meanwhile, Marcus Mariota would be marketable in Los Angeles, if the Bolts do wind up moving there. Meanwhile, Flanagan (link) isn’t so sure that the Buccaneers won’t want Mariota, which would throw a wrench into things. For his part, King (link) still sees Jameis Winston going No. 1.

All eyes will be on the Titans and their No. 2 pick heading into the draft on April 30th. Mike Mayock of NFL Network believes that it will be hard for any team to pry that selection away from Tennessee unless they’re offering an established veteran quarterback like Rivers. All in all, the discussions have been shrouded in relative secrecy despite the level of speculation going on. Earlier this week, a source told Michael Gehlken of U-T San Diego that the two sides have yet to be in contact with one another. At this stage, however, it’d be surprising if that were still the case.

AFC West Notes: L.A., Broncos, Crabtree

April 23rd, 2015 at 7:29pm CST by Zachary Links

There’s a new coach in Oakland and a new vibe in Raiders camp, Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com writes. “It’s very intense,” defensive end Justin Tuck said. “That’s fine. We need some intensity around here.” Del Rio’s staff has been demanding from the get-go of the team’s voluntary program in hopes of turning things around for one of the league’s worst teams in 2014. Here’s more from the AFC West..

Two months after unveiling plans and renderings for a stadium in Carson, California, the Chargers and Raiders have completely overhauled their design for the $1.7-billion project, as Sam Farmer and Nathan Fenno of the Los Angeles Times write. Although the original renderings were created with input from only the Chargers, the new design is the result of almost two months of collaboration between the franchises. The revised plans, detailed in the article, show a futuristic open-air venue with a peristyle intentionally reminiscent of the one at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum.
Tight end no longer exists as a top priority for the Broncos after re-signing Virgil Green and obtaining free agents Owen Daniels and James Casey. However, Denver could still take a long look at University of Minnesota tight end Maxx Williams, Troy E. Renck of The Denver Post writes. ESPN analyst Todd McShay told Renck that Williams could very well be the first tight end off the board in this year’s draft.
Raiders wide receiver Michael Crabtree is glad to be wanted and needed in Oakland and “can’t wait to go play,” Jerry McDonald of the Bay Area News Group writes. Crabtree signed for a lot less than he envisioned this offseason but he says he’s eager to show what he’s capable of and wants to shed the diva reputation that has followed him for some time.

Draft Notes: Ray, Scherff, Peters, Williams

April 23rd, 2015 at 5:08pm CST by Luke Adams

There was some concern that Missouri pass rusher Shane Ray, who is expected to come off the board early in the draft next Thursday night, would require surgery on a troublesome foot injury. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links), Ray’s injury – which is similar to turf toe – was discovered during a team visit and prompted a visit to a foot specialist, who recommended rest rather than a surgical procedure, good news for the young edge defender.

Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net (Twitter link) hears that the Cowboys flagged Ray as needing surgery, but not all teams – and not all doctors, apparently – were convinced it was required.

Let’s check in on a few more Thursday draft updates….

Iowa tackle Brandon Scherff is drawing “heavy interest” from teams drafting between the fifth and ninth spots in the first round, a source tells Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (Twitter link). The clubs currently in those spots? Washington, the Jets, the Bears, the Falcons, and the Giants.
In addition to making 17 pre-draft visits to teams, Washington cornerback Marcus Peters had individual workouts for the Falcons, Panthers, Buccaneers, and Dolphins, tweets Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Speaking to Maggie Gray on SI Now, Florida State cornerback P.J. Williams said that most teams are telling him his DUI incident shouldn’t have a huge impact on his draft stock.
Montana edge defender Zack Wagenmann, who is projected as a mid- to late-round pick, broke his foot recently during a private workout with an NFL team, writes Adam Caplan of ESPN.com. Wagenmann won’t be able to participate in football-related activities for eight weeks, but is aiming to be ready for training camp.
Caplan also passes along an update on Hobart offensive lineman Ali Marpet, reporting (via Twitter) that Marpet visited the Chargers earlier this week, and has worked out for the Cardinals, Bengals, and Texans.
Besides confirming some of his previously-reported visits, T.J. Clemmings‘ draft diary for USA Today (via Tom Pelissero) added some new teams to his list of possible suitors. According to the Pittsburgh tackle himself, he visited the Bears and had a private workout with the Panthers. Clemmings will also privately work out for the Dolphins tomorrow.
Florida linebacker Neiron Ball has made pre-draft visits with the Patriots, Broncos, Buccaneers, and Texans, writes Wilson. Ball has also worked out privately for the Falcons, Rams, Steelers, Cardinals, and Texans.

Pauline’s Latest: Mariota, Saints, Mannion

April 23rd, 2015 at 12:47pm CST by Luke Adams

Earlier this week, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk suggested that a three-way trade between the Browns, the Eagles, and a team in the top five could be mutually beneficial, with Cleveland landing Sam Bradford, Philadelphia getting Marcus Mariota, and the third team stockpiling extra draft picks.

The piece sounded like informed speculation, but Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net hears that both the Eagles and Chargers have explored the possibility of moving up for Mariota through the Browns, and have had conversations about the idea. A league source tells Pauline that if the Titans decide to deal that No. 2 overall pick, Cleveland is in the best spot, since the Browns hold two top-20 picks, and could either move up for Mariota themselves or get involved in another team’s deal.

Here’s more from Pauline, with the draft just one week away:

According to Pauline, the Saints (the other team with two first-round picks), will consider trading up if they feel like they have a chance to land pass rusher Vic Beasley, whose potential DC Rob Ryan loves.
Oregon State quarterback Sean Mannion, who recently worked out for the Rams and Cowboys, ranks as the third-best quarterback available on more than a dozen teams’ boards, per Pauline.
Pauline hears that the Seahawks would “love to grab” wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham if he’s available at No. 63, but the team expects him to come off the board in the first round, or within the first 15 picks of round two.
Michigan State’s Marcus Rush will be drafted earlier than originally predicted, having “blown teams away” during the interview process, says Pauline, adding that the defensive end could be a fifth-round pick.
Speaking of Michigan State players, a number of teams view former Spartans outside linebacker Taiwan Jones as a potential “gem,” and grade him as a third-round pick, according to Pauline.
The Raiders, Chiefs, and Patriots are expressing interest in Villanova offensive lineman Vince Kowalski, who could be a late-round gamble or an undrafted free agent, tweets Pauline.

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