2016 NFL Draft Eve Rumor Mill Tidbits
Updated April 27, 2016
By Charlie Campbell. Follow Charlie on Twitter
@draftcampbell.
With the 2016 NFL Draft hours away, here are some rumor mill tidbits I’ve picked up from speaking with team sources.
The Redskins had to shake up their draft plans after signing Josh Norman last week. From what I hear, the Redskins are now zeroing in on a player from Alabama with cornerback no longer being a need. They have a trio of Crimson Tide standouts who are finalists for their pick. Those players are defensive tackle Jarran Reed, defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson, and center Ryan Kelly. Of the defensive linemen, it sounds like Reed is rated higher, but the team feels Robinson offers more versatility. Kelly would finish off their offensive line and give Washington one of the best young offensive lines in the NFL.
From what I’m hearing, the Jaguars’ Plan A in the first round is Ohio State defensive end Joey Bosa. If Bosa is off the board, UCLA linebacker Myles Jack is the likely Plan B. Even if they land Bosa in the first round, the Jaguars could target more pass rush on Day 2. If Noah Spence gets to their second-round pick, I think the Jaguars will double up on edge rushers to give them a talented young trio including 2015’s third-overall pick Dante Fowler Jr. The 2016 draft should be heavy on defensive players for Jacksonville.
A lot of mock drafts have projected the Buffalo Bills to take Ole Miss defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche. In speaking with sources, the Bills have ruled out Nkemdiche, and he isn’t a finalist for their first-round pick. Buffalo is keying in on a defender for the front seven in the first round. The priority to add more defensive talent will carry over into the second night as well.
I don’t have it definitely from sources, but I get the impression the Titans are seriously interested in trading up in the first round. If Laremy Tunsil falls, that could motivate Tennessee to give up some of the second-day picks they acquired in their trade with the Rams.
Cal quarterback Jared Goff and North Dakota State quarterback Carson Wentz share the same agent from Rep 1 sports. In conversations with NFL teams, they’ve said some interesting things about their clients. Regarding Goff, they’ve told teams that he is a laid back California kid and wouldn’t be a good fit for the pressure of landing with a team like Cleveland, or one of the New York teams. Thus, Los Angeles is perfect for Goff. They’ve also told NFL teams that Wentz is better suited to handle a pressurized situation of some teams on the East Coast like Philadelphia, Cleveland, or one of the New York teams.
Some teams in the NFL think that there was serious collusion going on with the Rams and Eagles. Other teams are certain that the Eagles were tipped off by the Rams on whom Los Angeles planned on taking with the first pick. Without that knowledge, Philadelphia wouldn’t have made its trade with Cleveland to get up for the second-overall pick. The two teams also did the Sam Bradford-Nick Foles trade last year, so the working relationship is there between the two front offices. Teams think that the Rams-Eagles had some collusion, the NFL’s version of insider trading, with information that was withheld from others playing by the rules.
The league is trying to crack down on teams breaking rules as three teams have had draft picks taken from this year for breaking league rules: the Patriots, Falcons, and Chiefs. Don’t be surprised if some teams are urging the league to look into what has gone on in the lead-up to the draft regarding the Rams and Eagles with information exchanged relating to their trades to the top of the draft.
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