Pro Football Talk

ProFootballTalk -

Marty Hurney says Panthers will not be trading next year’s first-round pick again - 2018-04-26T03:33:43+00:00
In his previous stint as General Manager of the Carolina Panthers, Marty Hurney twice traded a first-round pick in the following year’s NFL Draft to make sizable leaps up in the draft order. Back in the G.M. seat again, Hurney swears that he will not make that mistake again. “I can tell you right now [more]

Baker Mayfield recreates iconic Brett Favre draft day photo - 2018-04-26T03:05:11+00:00
Twenty-seven years ago, Brett Favre took the call advising him that the Falcons had made him a second-round draft pick while lounging on his bed, family surrounding him and resplendent in jorts. The night before the draft that will see Baker Mayfield picked in round one, he has recreated the photo. All the way down [more]

Aaron Rodgers tells Josh Rosen to “practice uncomfortable situations” - 2018-04-26T02:44:55+00:00
As former UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen prepares for the NFL, former Cal quarterback Aaron Rodgers has been advising the rookie. “Just how to carry yourself,” Rosen told PFT Live regarding the advice he has gotten from Rodgers. “How to be the best version of yourself for your teammates, for coaches, for executives. He’s been a [more]

Saints to leave empty chair in draft room as tribute to Tom Benson - 2018-04-26T02:43:45+00:00
The Saints will hold a draft for the first time anyone can remember without owner Tom Benson in the room. Benson died in March at the age of 90. The Saints believe he will be with them in spirit. “We’ll have an empty chair for him, and we’ll be thinking about him for sure,” Saints [more]

Leighton Vander Esch dismisses concern about neck as “somebody trying to get clicks” - 2018-04-26T01:49:06+00:00
Boise State linebacker Leighton Vander Esch lost track of the number of visits he took over the last month. He likely has enough frequently flier miles for a free flight, though, after “like 12 or 13 visits.” “I really thoroughly enjoyed every single one of them,” Vander Esch said Wednesday during pre-draft availability at AT&T [more]

Source: John Dorsey has told Hue Jackson who the Browns will take at No. 1 - 2018-04-26T00:46:33+00:00
The information has yet to be leaked by Browns coach Hue Jackson, but the information is in his possession. Per a league source, Browns G.M. Johh Dorsey has told Jackson who the Browns will take with the first overall pick in the draft. Dorsey has been keeping the information extremely close to the vest, primarily [more]

Reuben Foster’s accuser retracts claim of domestic violence - 2018-04-26T00:17:23+00:00
San Francisco linebacker Reuben Foster is currently facing three felony charges in connection with a domestic violence accusation. But now the accuser has said through her lawyer that she lied to the police when she made a claim that Foster attacked her. The lawyer, Stephanie Rickard, told the Sacramento Bee that Foster’s ex-girlfriend was actually [more]

PFT’s one and only 2018 mock draft - 2018-04-26T00:15:04+00:00
[Editor’s note: I’ve had very little to do with this mock draft. So don’t blame me if you hate it. If you like it, I’ll take the credit. The mock draft was largely with input from people who have experience drafting players, including one person whose name would be instantly recognizable and would prompt you [more]

Eli Manning: “Thirty-seven is not old” - 2018-04-25T23:40:27+00:00
Several times already, new Giants coach Pat Shurmur has noted Eli Manning‘s age. In quarterback years, 37 might seem old to some, but not to Manning. “Thirty-seven is not old,” Manning said, via Tom Rock of Newsday. “I think 37 is young, so it’s all perspective.” The Giants named Manning the starter for 2018, but [more]

NFL concludes Derrius Guice case with no finding of impropriety - 2018-04-25T23:35:31+00:00
On multiple past occasions, NFL teams have asked grossly inappropriate questions to incoming players. In the most recent example of the phenomenon, the NFL concluded it didn’t happen. The NFL has now officially concluded the investigation launched after former LSU running back Derrius Guice said during a SiriusXM NFL Radio interview that he was asked during [more]

Report: Gabe Martin ruptures Achilles during offseason workouts - 2018-04-25T23:11:33+00:00
Cardinals linebacker Gabe Martin ruptured his Achilles during offseason workouts, Mike Jurecki reports. Martin, 25, played 45 snaps on special teams and none on defense last season, appearing in three games. He played in eight games in 2016 before landing on injured reserve with a season-ending knee injury. Martin originally signed with the Cardinals as [more]

Gronk is feeling “super, super pliable” - 2018-04-25T22:58:47+00:00
Alex Guerrero has won another battle in his broader Bill Belichick war. The trainer who has been working closely with Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, and who has been essentially frozen out of the Patriots organization by Belichick, has found another discipline in Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski. A day after Gronkowski told Belichick that the [more]

Report: Teddy Bridgewater not guaranteed a roster spot - 2018-04-25T22:55:38+00:00
In just over 24 hours from now, the Jets likely have a new franchise quarterback. So what does that mean for the four quarterbacks currently on the team’s roster? Christian Hackenberg and Bryce Petty become trade/release candidates, Mike Garafolo of NFL Media reports. But Teddy Bridgewater isn’t guaranteed a roster spot “at least until he [more]

Wednesday’s #PFTPM has Minkah Fitzpatrick and much more - 2018-04-25T22:20:48+00:00
A day before the draft, the ProFootballTalk.com/PFT Live/#PFTPM/@PFTPMPosse mock draft is coming. The first pick in the mock draft is disclosed during Wednesday’s edition of the #PFTPM podcast. The episode also includes a full explanation of the manner in which the mock draft was created (I had little to do with it, so I’ll take [more]

Ryan Grigson admits lack of communication as Colts G.M. - 2018-04-25T22:19:47+00:00
Ryan Grigson admits mistakes during his five seasons as the Colts General Manager, including a relationship with head coach Chuck Pagano that turned so toxic that owner Jim Irsay hired counselors. “What I really think that I wasn’t able to ever do in that time I was there was really get to be a human [more]

Bradley Chubb would love to play with Myles Garrett but is the feeling mutual? - 2018-04-25T21:49:02+00:00
Bradley Chubb has never met Myles Garrett, but he would find it “cool” to play on the other side of last year’s No. 1 overall pick. “He’s a great player,” Chubb said Wednesday at a pre-draft press conference at AT&T Stadium. “That whole team is, I feel like, on the uprise, so being part of [more]

Report: Packers “plotting” move up from No. 14 in first round - 2018-04-25T21:12:12+00:00
Much has been made of the changes to the way the Packers personnel department is doing business this offseason with Brian Gutekunst taking over the General Manager job from Ted Thompson and the team could add more fuel to that fire in the first round of the draft. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that [more]

Lamar Jackson wouldn’t mind being the next Jimmy Garoppolo - 2018-04-25T21:10:30+00:00
Lamar Jackson knows it worked out pretty well for Jimmy Garoppolo sitting most of his first four seasons behind Tom Brady. The Patriots traded Garoppolo to the 49ers at the trade deadline last October, and Brady’s former understudy now ranks as one of the highest-paid players in football. “Oh, definitely it worked out,” Jackson said [more]

Mike Maccagnan expects to expand Jets’ use of analytics - 2018-04-25T20:48:51+00:00
After the unabashedly pro-analytics Eagles won the Super Bowl, other teams are talking up the usefulness of statistical analysis. One of those teams may be taking a look at analytics in determining which quarterback prospect in this year’s draft is the best. Jets General Manager Mike Maccagnan said the Jets are already using analytics and [more]

Sam Darnold wants to go to the team that most wants him - 2018-04-25T20:34:23+00:00
Sam Darnold still wants to go No. 1 overall, but mostly, the USC quarterback wants to go to the team that most wants him. “I think going back to Pop Warner, high school, college, everyone wants to be No. 1,” Darnold said at a pre-draft press conference outside AT&T Stadium on Wednesday. “There’s always that [more]

Falcons exercise Vic Beasley’s fifth-year option - 2018-04-25T20:08:03+00:00
It was back in February when Falcons General Manager Thomas Dimitroff said that the team intended to exercise its option on Vic Beasley‘s contract for the 2019 season and the team got around to making it official on Wednesday. The move comes ahead of the May 3 deadline for teams to pick up their options, [more]

Josh Rosen is getting a little irritated with questions about who will be drafted when - 2018-04-25T20:04:25+00:00
Everyone is ready for the draft to finally get here already. Including the players to be drafted. UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen seemed to bristle a bit on Wednesday when asked as part of the pre-draft car wash about the manner in which the quarterbacks will emerge from the board. “You guys have got to stop [more]

Jerry Jones, Roger Goodell seem to have mended fences - 2018-04-25T19:48:04+00:00
Neither Jerry Jones nor Roger Goodell talked to the media after a joint appearance for the NFL Draft Legacy Project. But the Cowboys owner and the NFL Commissioner seem to have moved on from Jones’ attempts to block Goodell’s contract extension after Ezekiel Elliott‘s suspension. The two sat side by side, whispered during the event [more]

Billy Price’s doctor says he’ll be cleared by training camp - 2018-04-25T19:46:18+00:00
Ohio State center Billy Price said this week he was well. Now teams have a second opinion. Via Adam Schefter of ESPN, Price’s doctor has sent a letter to NFL teams saying his surgically repaired left shoulder is recovering well “with no deformity” and that he should be cleared in time to participate in training [more]

Mickey Loomis: Draft approach the same as last year - 2018-04-25T19:01:58+00:00
At this point last year the Saints were coming off of three straight 7-9 seasons that had some thinking it would be time to shake up the organization if things remained the same in 2017. Things didn’t remain the same. The Saints went 11-5, won the NFC South and won a playoff game for the [more]

Report: Dez Bryant turned down Ravens multi-year offer - 2018-04-25T18:44:25+00:00
Dez Bryant is apparently willing to wait, and he’s willing to turn down a bird in the hand. According to Dallas-based former ESPN reporter Ed Werder, the former Cowboys wide receiver turned down a multi-year offer from the Ravens. Bryant apparently prefers to bet on himself with a one-year deal, giving himself a chance at [more]

Report: Eight teams have shown interest in C.J. Anderson - 2018-04-25T18:28:38+00:00
Running back C.J. Anderson was released by the Broncos last week and there haven’t been any reports of visits with other teams since he hit the open market. That may change at some point in the near future. Mike Klis of KUSA reports that eight teams have expressed interest in signing Anderson as a free [more]

Antonio Callaway admits smoking marijuana before Scouting Combine - 2018-04-25T17:54:17+00:00
Reports on Tuesday indicated that former University of Florida wide receiver Antonio Callaway tested positive for marijuana during a test at the NFL Scouting Combine, but Callaway’s agent said that the result was caused by a diluted sample. Callaway’s own comments point to something other than over-hydration being the cause, however. Callaway told Ian Rapoport [more]

2012 quarterback class a cautionary tale for 2018 - 2018-04-25T17:45:19+00:00
At least four quarterbacks will go in the first round of the NFL draft tomorrow night, making this year’s a particularly strong quarterback class. But the last draft class with four first-round quarterbacks serves as a cautionary tale. That was in 2012, a draft class that was strong at the quarterback position — just not [more]

Patriots interest in Lamar Jackson appears to be genuine - 2018-04-25T17:23:03+00:00
At this point, it seems well-established that the Patriots are in the market for a quarterback, and may have a particular interest in Louisville’s Lamar Jackson. But as we get closer to the draft, there are more signs that they did a deep dive on the former Heisman Trophy winner. Jackson told reporters in Dallas [more]