National Football League

[Nomad]

When Fields was still on the board I thought they would grab him. It's worked out well for the Bears as they got Fields and didn't spend much on Dalton. This was the team that offered a ton for Russell Wilson and got refused and were also looking at Watson.

Jones to the Patriots also worked out for the Patriots as they didn't have to trade up when the 49ers passed on Jones. Dolphins and Colts are building nice rosters. Steelers got Najee Harris which they needed. Not a draft of surprises in the first round. The best WRs and CBs went early as predicted.

I was surprised the 49ers selected Lance over both Fields & Jones. Shanahan must see something really special in the kid from the FCS Big Sky conference. The 49ers have great talent on offensive and are just a QB way from winning it all. Now they have their franchise QB - so anything less than a SB title would be a failure, IMO:

Weiterleitungshinweis

www.google.com

How many times have we heard this before? Come mid-season and the team is not winning and JG is struggling - Shanahan would continue to sit his franchise QB and 3rd OA pick?

Kyle Shanahan: It's going to be very hard for Trey Lance to beat out Jimmy Garoppolo - ProFootballTalk

Despite trading three first-round picks to acquire quarterback Trey Lance, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said after Thursday night’s first round that Jimmy Garoppolo remains the starting quarterback, and it would be tough for Lance to beat him out.Shanahan referred to Lance as “a very good backup”...

www.google.com

 

[Koronin]

I'm fine with the Steelers picking Najee Harris. On the other hand, we really need some office line help.

 

[jmdirt]

I'm fine with the Steelers picking Najee Harris. On the other hand, we really need some office line help.

Najee doesn't need anyone to block for him!

 

[Koronin]

Well we've (Steelers) have added a TE and OL with our second and third round picks. So far, I'm happy with the Steeler's draft.

 

[movingtarget]

As I've said before, I can't deny AR's abilities, but other than some funny stuff with PMc, AR is an ars hat! LAME stunt yesterday! Even if GB trades him, he will keep complaining.

Think it works a little both ways. Just wins MVP and they extend him by one season but he gets no guaranteed money ! Can see why Rodgers is frustrated to get to so many NFC finals but only the one SB win. If he was going to move it would have already happened. Next destination for him might be Jeopardy......................but if Love doesn't show up after Rodgers is retired or gone, GB is going to look a little silly.

 

[SHAD0W93]

Think it works a little both ways. Just wins MVP and they extend him by one season but he gets no guaranteed money ! Can see why Rodgers is frustrated to get to so many NFC finals but only the one SB win. If he was going to move it would have already happened. Next destination for him might be Jeopardy......................but if Love doesn't show up after Rodgers is retired or gone, GB is going to look a little silly.

It'd be funny if they tried trading him to a trash team and he threatens or actually retires.

 

[movingtarget]

It'd be funny if they tried trading him to a trash team and he threatens or actually retires.

Yes Love is obviously no Mahomes or he would have already started but the Packers have announced that they are starting Rodgers again this season. There have been rumors of trade offers from other teams but the Packers have denied it all saying its just media talk. One rumor is that Rodgers asked to be traded to the 49ers after an offer from them. The Packers deny it and the 49ers have stayed slient. Also the Bears who were turned down for Wilson were also supposed to have shown interest. I think the 49ers rumor is believable as they were also interested in Brady last season. No one doubts that Trey Lance has talent but he's still a project who played one game last season and he's only 20 years of age.

 

[SHAD0W93]

Yes Love is obviously no Mahomes or he would have already started but the Packers have announced that they are starting Rodgers again this season. There have been rumors of trade offers from other teams but the Packers have denied it all saying its just media talk. One rumor is that Rodgers asked to be traded to the 49ers after an offer from them. The Packers deny it and the 49ers have stayed slient. Also the Bears who were turned down for Wilson were also supposed to have shown interest. I think the 49ers rumor is believable as they were also interested in Brady last season. No one doubts that Trey Lance has talent but he's still a project who played one game last season and he's only 20 years of age.

I think and he himself seems to agree, that sitting that year behind Smith was instrumental in Mahomes growth and development. He could have been very worse off like other quarterbacks drafted early to bad organizations and never have a chance to grow. To be tossed at the wayside.
I've seen a trade to Broncos, threatening to retire, is staying but not happy, and will hold out. That would be a sight and an one up from Favre being traded to a rival and not choosing to go their after the fact. Imagine Packer Nation seeing Rodgers in a Bears uniform. The riots would be crazy.

 

[movingtarget]

I think and he himself seems to agree, that sitting that year behind Smith was instrumental in Mahomes growth and development. He could have been very worse off like other quarterbacks drafted early to bad organizations and never have a chance to grow. To be tossed at the wayside.
I've seen a trade to Broncos, threatening to retire, is staying but not happy, and will hold out. That would be a sight and an one up from Favre being traded to a rival and not choosing to go their after the fact. Imagine Packer Nation seeing Rodgers in a Bears uniform. The riots would be crazy.

I agree but it looks like Love will be sitting for a second season if Rodgers returns. He is coming off an MVP season so its hard to see him deteriorating to the point where Loves replaces him but if Rodgers gets injured of course all that flies out the window. I thought the Packers looked better last season and expected them to win the NFC . I thought the Bucs could make the playoffs but I never saw them winning the SB. Did not expect that at all but they certainly clicked when it mattered and the SB win was a great performance especially by the coaching staff. I guess GB only extended Rodgers for a season cause they think Love will be ready to go by then and Rodgers will be 39 even though like Brady and Brees as of now he looks like he could play past 40 if he wanted to while Big Ben is struggling more now and looks ready to retire soon. He said himself its probably only one more season.

 

[SHAD0W93]

I agree but it looks like Love will be sitting for a second season if Rodgers returns. He is coming off an MVP season so its hard to see him deteriorating to the point where Loves replaces him but if Rodgers gets injured of course all that flies out the window. I thought the Packers looked better last season and expected them to win the NFC . I thought the Bucs could make the playoffs but I never saw them winning the SB. Did not expect that at all but they certainly clicked when it mattered and the SB win was a great performance especially by the coaching staff. I guess GB only extended Rodgers for a season cause they think Love will be ready to go by then and Rodgers will be 39 even though like Brady and Brees as of now he looks like he could play past 40 if he wanted to while Big Ben is struggling more now and looks ready to retire soon. He said himself its probably only one more season.

Bucs just had to get in sync and stop with 100% no risk it, no biscuit. That's what killed the Chiefs, the big plays weren't working and they didn't adapt to the short and intermediate game. The Bucs needed the way Brady normally plays with the big splash plays there when the defense allows and to be on the same page with his receivers. One of the reasons the Patriots struggled in 2019. They should have never let Amendola go or cut AB. I'll say again, they roll out with 3 wr, 1 TE, 1 RB, 2 wr, 2 te, 1 rb, or 1 wr, 3 te, 1 rb. Who are you covering? Playing run, pass, deep, short, or intermediate? Honestly if Brady's play doesn't drop they could and just might repeat.

The issue with Ben is he took far more punishment to earn Big Ben, more injured, and less taking care of his body like the other 3. Rodgers sat for what, 3 years? Grappolo 3 I think but almost always injured. If Love plays this season at any point and is bad, Packers front office has massive egg on their face.

 

[saganftw]

packers have to ride it out with Love anyway, next year is bad QB draft so even if he is bad they wont get a replacement, maybe just another project at best...i never believed rumours of rodgers to denver anyway, why would anyone want to go into a division with mahomes and herbert when you can play dalton,goff and cousins - its the easiest way into playoffs even if front office doesnt want draft more offensive guys

 

[jmdirt]

Think it works a little both ways. Just wins MVP and they extend him by one season but he gets no guaranteed money ! Can see why Rodgers is frustrated to get to so many NFC finals but only the one SB win. If he was going to move it would have already happened. Next destination for him might be Jeopardy......................but if Love doesn't show up after Rodgers is retired or gone, GB is going to look a little silly.

He and GB can argue all they want, but AR's timing was about 'ME, ME, ME', look at ME. LAME to make himself part of draft day. He can also argue all he wants about he front office not doing what they should/could, but does he take responsibility for his part? I'm with shadow, I'd love to see AR go to the Jets.

 

[jmdirt]

If I read correctly, the experts aren't as expert as they (or we) thought.

McShay 12 out of 32
King 9
Kiper 6

Granted I was using their discussions, plus a few others, and I only guessed the top 10, but I got 6 out of 10 without being able to talk with the teams. Maybe they aren't really that great at what they do if they can't guess better than me!

If I had to pick the entire first round I might still only have 6 because who knows what happens with the picks after 10 (too many factors). 6 still ties me with Kiper who makes WAY more money than me!

 

[Koronin]

As a Steeler fan, I'm overall happy with our draft. Not really anything to criticize about it. We filled some needs with players who should be solid. From posts on faceback it appears Steeler nation is overall happy with our draft.

 

[Nomad]

Too funny:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1387952674604257280

View: https://mobile.twitter.com/NOTSportsCenter/status/1387952674604257280

 

[saganftw]

If I read correctly, the experts aren't as expert as they (or we) thought.

McShay 12 out of 32
King 9
Kiper 6

Granted I was using their discussions, plus a few others, and I only guessed the top 10, but I got 6 out of 10 without being able to talk with the teams. Maybe they aren't really that great at what they do if they can't guess better than me!

If I had to pick the entire first round I might still only have 6 because who knows what happens with the picks after 10 (too many factors). 6 still ties me with Kiper who makes WAY more money than me!

after first 7 picks its practically impossible to predict whats gonna happen, nobody expected panthers and broncos to take a corner (especially with Fields available), some teams overdrafting (raiders, jets), washington doing nothing??? (i guess its fitzmagic for 2021), also nobody thought bears would trade up for Fields even tho in hindsight its one team that was scarred by trubisky over watson so much they kinda had to do it, patriots not doing anything and still somehow ended up with a great draft

i would have gotten first 7 right, that was easy, after that i had parsons to dallas but in their original spot, i also thought it was gonna be washington jumping in for Fields at 8, and kyle trask at 32 to bucs

 

[movingtarget]

after first 7 picks its practically impossible to predict whats gonna happen, nobody expected panthers and broncos to take a corner (especially with Fields available), some teams overdrafting (raiders, jets), washington doing nothing??? (i guess its fitzmagic for 2021), also nobody thought bears would trade up for Fields even tho in hindsight its one team that was scarred by trubisky over watson so much they kinda had to do it, patriots not doing anything and still somehow ended up with a great draft

i would have gotten first 7 right, that was easy, after that i had parsons to dallas but in their original spot, i also thought it was gonna be washington jumping in for Fields at 8, and kyle trask at 32 to bucs

Predicting who is going to be a bust out of the top 20 is harder. Bound to be a more than a few. I always think the hysteria about the draft is over the top. Reviewing the top 20 draft picks every five years puts things in perspective..................

 

[Oldermanish]

Predicting who is going to be a bust out of the top 20 is harder. Bound to be a more than a few. I always think the hysteria about the draft is over the top. Reviewing the top 20 draft picks every five years puts things in perspective..................

And Seattle, with 3 picks are considered the big failure of the draft. Do they get a pass because they didn't pick until waaayyy after number 20?

 

[saganftw]

And Seattle, with 3 picks are considered the big failure of the draft. Do they get a pass because they didn't pick until waaayyy after number 20?

they dont get a pass because they traded too much for adams

 

[movingtarget]

And Seattle, with 3 picks are considered the big failure of the draft. Do they get a pass because they didn't pick until waaayyy after number 20?

They're in the NFC West which is only getting harder. Picking who will finish last in the division will be hard enough. Some people are picking the Bucs to go back to back, Many said the same about the Chiefs. Not easy to do in the NFL. The Hawks should be competive but do I see them getting to the final four ? At the moment no. They looked good early last season even with a leaky defense but when the defense improved the offense stalled. I thought they might have made a coaching change by now but Pete keeps getting extended. The owner seems to be happy making the playoffs regularly but I didn't see them as a SB hope last season especially leading into the playoffs. Should be a very interesting season on the way especially with the new QB class arriving on the scene and teams like the Colts and the Rams with new QBs.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

Now that the draft is over, here are a few of my thoughts:

Once again teams reached for QB's, thinking they are going to save their franchise. I'm sure Lawrence can start and play well immediately, though Jax is not a deep team. Zach Wilson may be the next Sam Darnold - think back, what's the difference between the two coming out of college? Wilson may have a slightly stronger arm. Darnold reportedly (at the time) had better decision making ability. Who drafts a QB third in the draft, and expects him to sit a season? Or is SF just assuming Garappolo will get hurt and when that happens, Lance will step in...and save the team? Houston took Davis Mills with their 3rd pick? The only other QB pick that made sense to me was Fields falling to Chicago. They need a QB who can play soon, and he might be able to do it.

To me, a real questionable pick was Cincinnati taking Ja'Marr Chase instead of Penei Sewell. Chase was taken for emotional reasons, to re-unite him with Joe Burrow, and hope, pray, that this same magic will return to the Bengals. Yet, Burrow got hurt last year, Sewell was the one sure fire OT in the draft, able to play both tackle spots, and they passed him over. They did grab Carmon in R2, and had a total of 10 picks, three in R4, which helps.

Not to be too outdone, Houston, after taking Mills, traded away several picks in a draft considered deep, especially at WR, to take Nico Collins, a total head scratcher, and a pick SB Nation said is tantamount to a handful of magic beans. In this draft Houston, who badly needs help in many positions, walked away with just six picks, none in the first 2 rounds.

Teams I thought did really well are Carolina, who is already deeper than people realize, getting Jaycee Horn, then some solid picks behind. If Marshall can stay healthy, he's a better WR than Chase. Now, can Sam Darnold really be a quality QB here?

Cleveland also had a really good draft. They're already good, fairly young, and where they needed help most, they got it. Owusu-Koramoah falling to them in the 2nd round, a LB who can cover, was a steal because other teams didn't know if he should play OLB, Safety or what. This looks like a Bill Belichick type genius pick. Tommy Togiai, who I don't know much about, other than he was a monster at Ohio State, projected by some to go as high as R2, fell all the way to the Browns in R4.

Chicago looks to have had a very good draft too.

If I read correctly, the experts aren't as expert as they (or we) thought.

McShay 12 out of 32
King 9
Kiper 6

I'm now convinced Kiper only keeps his job so people can make themselves feel good laughing at him, at how bad he is, which keeps people watching.

 

[Oldermanish]

They're in the NFC West which is only getting harder. Picking who will finish last in the division will be hard enough. Some people are picking the Bucs to go back to back, Many said the same about the Chiefs. Not easy to do in the NFL. The Hawks should be competive but do I see them getting to the final four ? At the moment no. They looked good early last season even with a leaky defense but when the defense improved the offense stalled. I thought they might have made a coaching change by now but Pete keeps getting extended. The owner seems to be happy making the playoffs regularly but I didn't see them as a SB hope last season especially leading into the playoffs. Should be a very interesting season on the way especially with the new QB class arriving on the scene and teams like the Colts and the Rams with new QBs.

I do think the Adams move using draft choices Paid Well. He's under contract and should be more productive than any two first rounders could have provided. He also motivates teammates well.
As for their playoff run it was obvious that they didn't change up their game while everyone else knew exactly what to expect from Metcalf and others. That is the coaching issue and the OF coordinator "responsible" is gone. What happens next better be a more flexible attack and , adding the wide receiver they picked up could help.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

The Raiders, my favorite team, get their own post for what I believe is yet another bust of a draft. Jon Gruden came back to the NFL supposedly a scouting wizard. PFF had Alex Leatherwood the 9th best tackle in this draft, and the Raiders took him with the 17th pick. It was mentioned more than once that Leatherwood played with great players around him, in a great program at Alabama, bloating his apparent value, but the Raiders didn't seem to notice that. The Raiders also seem to have a real memory problem. Last year they took Ruggs with their top pick, a "star" from Alabama. Last year he caught a paltry 26 passes for the team. I can't seem to recall a single impressive catch he made or game he had.

Let's not also forget in that same draft the Raiders took Ruggs, they took Bryan Edwards, another WR hyped by Gruden... who caught a total of 11 passes last season in 12 games. Both were outplayed by Lynn Bowden, taken in the 3rd round as a receiving RB the year before, then traded to Miami, where he's played quite well in the slot, backfield, or motion.

Going back to 2019, if you type in Clelin Ferrell, the Raiders top pick (which again puzzled experts when he was taken), Google's next word it auto-fills in for your search after his name is "bust". An Edge rusher taken with the 4th overall pick, in 2019 he had 4.5 sacks, and last year, a measly 2. And it's not like he morphed into a great tackling machine. Last year he could muster only 27 tackles. An "afterthought" 4th round pick from that season, Maxx Crosby has completely outplayed him, so it's not just a bad Raiders defense to blame.

Last year they took Damon Arnette, a pick that baffled experts at the time. He was repeatedly injured, was either terribly coached or just made some really bad plays, and a minimal stat sheet, including getting burned on maybe the worst play of the season. Good read on Arnette's bust rookie year. How significant was it that the Raiders took Arnette? He was the top pick resulting from the trade to get rid of Kahlil Mack.

Leatherwood is yet another in a long line of Raider picks that make me believe Gruden and Maycock arrogantly think they are the smartest guys in the room, but outside of Josh Jacobs, with all the draft capital they've had, who else can anyone name really stands out? Crosby has over-performed, sure. Jonathan Abram, when healthy, has shown value, Trayvon Mullen has done well. And...who else? From the great evaluator of talent, Gruden?

The Raiders look like they headed for another 7-9 season. Starting out with a good wins, but then fading away and losing games they had chances to win where a collective dearth of talent, and coaching are exposed. When he came back Gruden said he'd leave if he couldn't get it done. Well, with his second career looking a lot like results Jeff Fisher would be happy with, if the Raiders don't somehow, some way, pull something off this season, he should be good on his word and leave. And take Maycock with him.

Is it too late to apologize to Oakland native Jack Del Rio?

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

...AR's timing was about 'ME, ME, ME', look at ME. LAME to make himself part of draft day. He can also argue all he wants about he front office not doing what they should/could, but does he take responsibility for his part? I'm with shadow, I'd love to see AR go to the Jets.

I like him and have always been impressed with him, who hasn't? But I have to agree with you. I think GB may have made a mistake taking Love when they did, when perhaps more OL or receiving tools could have gotten them past TB in the playoffs. But we don't know that either. Look at some of the receivers the Raiders drafted.

So, Rodgers wants out of GB. And there's again talk he's going to Denver. This must conjure up images of John Elway making that great move to get Peyton Manning to Denver and bringing them another Super Bowl. Isn't that what everyone is dreaming? It happened before, it must happen again! Right?

Except there's a huge difference between the 2012 Broncos, and the 2020 Broncos. The Denver team from 2012 had just drafted Von Miller, they had a stout defense that was improving, they finished 8-8 and made the playoffs with Tim Tebow at QB. This was a very logical team for Manning to head to and close out his career, if he wasn't going to do it in Indy.

The 2020 Broncos finished 5-11. They ranked 25th in points allowed, 21st in yards. There's really little indication that Rodgers will just up and "save" them, especially in the same division as Kansas City.

 

[jmdirt]

Now that the draft is over, here are a few of my thoughts:

Once again teams reached for QB's, thinking they are going to save their franchise. I'm sure Lawrence can start and play well immediately, though Jax is not a deep team. Zach Wilson may be the next Sam Darnold - think back, what's the difference between the two coming out of college? Wilson may have a slightly stronger arm. Darnold reportedly (at the time) had better decision making ability. Who drafts a QB third in the draft, and expects him to sit a season? Or is SF just assuming Garappolo will get hurt and when that happens, Lance will step in...and save the team? Houston took Davis Mills with their 3rd pick? The only other QB pick that made sense to me was Fields falling to Chicago. They need a QB who can play soon, and he might be able to do it.

To me, a real questionable pick was Cincinnati taking Ja'Marr Chase instead of Penei Sewell. Chase was taken for emotional reasons, to re-unite him with Joe Burrow, and hope, pray, that this same magic will return to the Bengals. Yet, Burrow got hurt last year, Sewell was the one sure fire OT in the draft, able to play both tackle spots, and they passed him over. They did grab Carmon in R2, and had a total of 10 picks, three in R4, which helps.

Not to be too outdone, Houston, after taking Mills, traded away several picks in a draft considered deep, especially at WR, to take Nico Collins, a total head scratcher, and a pick SB Nation said is tantamount to a handful of magic beans. In this draft Houston, who badly needs help in many positions, walked away with just six picks, none in the first 2 rounds.

Teams I thought did really well are Carolina, who is already deeper than people realize, getting Jaycee Horn, then some solid picks behind. If Marshall can stay healthy, he's a better WR than Chase. Now, can Sam Darnold really be a quality QB here?

Cleveland also had a really good draft. They're already good, fairly young, and where they needed help most, they got it. Owusu-Koramoah falling to them in the 2nd round, a LB who can cover, was a steal because other teams didn't know if he should play OLB, Safety or what. This looks like a Bill Belichick type genius pick. Tommy Togiai, who I don't know much about, other than he was a monster at Ohio State, projected by some to go as high as R2, fell all the way to the Browns in R4.

Chicago looks to have had a very good draft too.


I'm now convinced Kiper only keeps his job so people can make themselves feel good laughing at him, at how bad he is, which keeps people watching.

I agree with what you typed, but will stress how good CLE was going in, and how they are even better coming out.