NFL Hot Press: Senior Bowl 2022 Rumors Wednesday

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Senior Bowl 2022 Rumors Wednesday

Updated Feb. 2, 2022
By Charlie Campbell. Follow Charlie on Twitter @draftcampbell.

With all the general managers, coaches and scouts in attendance for the Senior Bowl, there is a lot of chatter going around. Here are some of the highlights from around the league on Day 3 of the 2022 Senior Bowl week.

Rebuilding NFL teams often get a lot of phone calls and trade offers for good players on their roster. A year ago, it was clear that the Detroit Lions were in store for a massive rebuilding project after Bob Quinn and Matt Patricia decimated the organization’s roster of talent. With aging starter Matthew Stafford not wanting to live through another rebuildwith the Lions, he requested a trade, and the Lions fulfilled his request with the Rams the just after Senior Bowl week.

Stafford is not the only player teams were trying to pry away from Detroit, as NFL sources say the Lions were getting steady and consistent phone calls inquiring about veteran left tackle Taylor Decker. The Lions were not interested in trading Decker and rebuffed those inquiries. Detroit has one of the best young offensive lines in the NFL with Decker (27), new Pro Bowl guard Jonah Jackson (24), center Frank Ragnow (25) and standout rookie Penei Sewell (21). The offensive line is the building block for the Lions’ rebuild, so don’t expect their stance on Decker to change and them to entertain the trade offers.

There is a lot of praise around the league for the new hires by different teams. Scouts have spoken well of the new Bears general manager Ryan Poles and feel the Giants made good moves with their new general manager and head coach. The Raiders, on the other hand, have received a lot of criticism from scouts with other teams. Scouts feel that Las Vegas winning 10 games was a superb job of coaching by Rich Bisaccia and the coordinators of Greg Olson and Gus Bradley. Ten victories was remarkable considering the litany of adversity that started with Jon Gruden being forced out, Henry Ruggs being arrest and released, Damon Arnette being released, and losing the team losing its best player, tight end Darren Waller, to injury for the majority of the second half of the season. Sources say letting go of the coaching staff was a mistake compounded by what many see as a bad hire in former Patriots assistant Josh McDaniels.

“[The Raiders] are such a bad organization. It’s so hard to win 10 games when things are going right,” said one team’s pro personnel director. “To ask Derek Carr to learn a whole new system when he’s been so successful under that one is BS. Let’s not forget [McDaniels] drafted Tebow in the first round and Denver was terrible under him. Then he finished last in offense with the Rams before Belichick and Brady rescued him.”

The track record for Belichick assistants with other teams has been awful. McDaniels gets another opportunity to change that history, but sources from around the league think Raiders owner Mark Davis made a mistake in switching out coaching staffs and bringing in McDaniels.

On Monday in the Senior Bowl Hot Press, we discussed how the Saints were strongly considering making a big move to trade for a star veteran quarterback prior to head coach Sean Payton stepping down. Sources with New Orleans feel the team is ready to win now led by a talented defense that kept the Saints in the playoff hunt despite playing with backup quarterbacks. In speaking to sources, offensive tackle is a position that New Orleans could target in the 2022 NFL Draft if Terron Armstead leaves this offseason. With the 18th-overall pick in the first round, the Saints could have some good tackle options available, like N.C. State’s Ikem Ekonwu, Mississippi State’s Charles Cross, Northern Iowa’s Trevor Penning and Tulsa’s Tyler Smith. Saints sources say they really like the skill set and upside, with Ekonwu and Smith in particular.

In yesterday’s Hot Press, we shared some insight into some sources feeling that Kayvon Thibodeaux was overrated and there were teams picking in the top 10 that were not in love with Thibodeaux. To a lesser degree, the same could apply to Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson. Teams like Hutchinson and think he is a safe pick to turn into a quality starter, but they do not believe he is as good of a prospect as other high first-round defensive ends like Myles Garrett, Chase Young or the Bosa brothers. Some sources are concerned that Hutchinson could end up being a Sam Hubbard-type end and tops out as a 10-12 sack player in the NFL. While they view him as safe to turn a solid player, they are concerned he lacks the upside to be an elite rusher. If Hutchinson posts good numbers in the pre-draft workouts, that could help convince teams that he has more athletic upside.

Yesterday in the Senior Bowl Hot Press, we reported how the Dolphins shopped veteran wide out DeVante Parker prior to the trade deadline last season. In following up with NFL sources, another veteran receiver who was available was Atlanta’s Calvin Ridley. Sources say that while the Falcons did not shop him seeking out a trade, they made teams aware that Ridley was available. After Week 7 last season, Ridley stepped away from the Falcons because of mental health issues, and he did not return to the team in 2021. With Ridley entering the last year of his contract, it could be difficult for the Falcons to get a good return for him. Ridley has yet to announce his plans for next season and whether he is ready to return to the NFL.

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