Category: NFL Draft (Page 17 of 101)

Bengals discussing Kevin Kolb internally?

April 5, 2011 / Anthony Stalter

Even though they can’t make any trades until the CBA is signed, the Bengals have reportedly “floated the idea” of trading for Kevin Kolb internally according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

“Make no mistake about it,” said Schefter. “The Bengals know they need to move on without Carson Palmer.”

Schefter also notes that Cincinnati may strongly consider drafting a quarterback No. 4 overall, which would therefore make trading for Kolb a moot point. The team is in a tough position because if they don’t address their need at quarterback during the draft, there’s no guarantee that they’ll be able to trade for Kolb after the draft. And then what? They try to convince Palmer to change his mind or go into the season with Jordan Palmer as their starter? Yikes.

The other problem is that the Bengals have been awfully conservative in the past when it comes to trades. With the Cardinals, Titans, 49ers and Vikings all in the market for a quarterback as well, they probably would be willing to give up more in a trade than Cincinnati would. And then what? The Bengals try to convince Palmer to change his mind or go into the season with Jordan Palmer as their starter? Yiiiiikes.

The most logical scenario is that the Bengals will draft a quarterback in one of the first two rounds and bypass the idea of trading for Kolb. It’s not the ideal way to look at things because hey, if you like Kolb and think he gives you the best chance to win, then trade for him. But these are extraordinary times that call for extraordinary measures for teams like the Bengals.

External Sports, NFL, NFL Draft

2011 NFL Draft Carson Palmer Kevin Kolb

Building through the draft clearly the best way to win in the NFL

April 4, 2011 / Anthony Stalter

If you’re one of the few people who still think the best way to build a team in the NFL is to sign a bunch of high-priced free agents during the offseason, check out CSNBayArea.com’s Matt Maiocco’s latest column and see if you change your mind.

Maiocco examined the past five NFL drafts (2006-2010) and ranked every team based on how their selections panned out. At the top were none other than the Packers and Saints, who each won a Super Bowl the last two years.

The Colts, who have made the playoffs every year over the past five seasons and won the 2006 Super Bowl, were third, while the Jets, who played in the last two AFC title games, were fourth. The defending NFC South champion Falcons were fifth, while the Ravens (who have made the playoffs the last three years) were sixth. The Vikings, Steelers, Patriots and Bucs rounded out the top 10.

Every team in Maiocco’s top 10 has made the playoffs at least once in the last two years outside of Tampa Bay, which had a winning season in 2010 and should be a contender again in 2011 (if there’s a season, of course). In other words, the teams that have drafted well over the last five years have built a roster that can contend.

On the flip side, the Cowboys (28), Cardinals (29), Bengals (30), Redskins (31) and Bills (32) rounded out the bottom five. Granted, Dallas and Cincinnati won their respective divisions in 2009 and went to the playoffs, but both teams collapsed in 2010 and proved that their success was short-lived. And while Arizona nearly won the Super Bowl three years ago, the Cards are feeling the effects of drafting Matt Leinart with the 10th overall pick in 2006.

External Sports, NFL, NFL Draft

2011 NFL Draft Green Bay Packers Ted Thompson

Panthers’ GM defends Cam Newton after scathing PFW scouting report

April 2, 2011 / Anthony Stalter

While appearing on CBS Radio in Charlotte on Friday, Carolina GM Marty Hurney defended future Panther Cam Newton against Pro Football Weekly draft analyst Nolan Nawrocki, who had not-so-nice things to say about the 2010 Heisman winner in his annual scouting report.

“I don’t pay much attention,” said Hurney. “(Nolan Nawrocki) has never met Cam Newton. So who’s he talked to? He says he’s talking to decision makers. We have the No. 1 pick. He hasn’t talked to me.”

That’s a fair point by Hurney, although in Nawrocki’s defense he probably can’t get access to the Panthers’ GM either. Hurney did note that Nawrocki did his job, which is “selling books.”

I was half-kidding about the “future Panther Cam Newton” remark, but it is interesting to see Hurney defend a player that many people will be the Panthers pick at No. 1. Not that that means they will draft him, but I only imagine that the Newton-to-Carolina sentiment will grow following Hurney’s comments. (Even if he was just answering a question honestly and wasn’t intending to give a hint as to whom he’ll take with the first pick at the end of the month.)

External Sports, NFL, NFL Draft

2011 NFL Draft Cam Newton cam newton scouting report

Report: Bowers “really struggled” at Pro Day

April 1, 2011 / Anthony Stalter

We knew that Da’Quan Bowers’ Pro Day on Friday was important after several reports have come out this month indicating that teams are worried about his knee. Unfortunately for Bowers, it doesn’t appear as though he put those concerns to rest.

According to Pro Football Weekly, Bowers “really struggled” at his workout on Friday.

He clearly looked fatigued, and left evaluators strongly questioning whether he will be ready in his first season. One evaluator in attendance estimated that Bowers’ knee appeared to be 70 percent healthy, at best.
“If he falls to us, we would have to discuss it,” said one evaluator, whose team holds a pick in the back half of the first round, “and I’m not sure we would pull the trigger. We’ll listen to our doctors. He had a real difficult time bending. I question whether he will be ready.”
Another evaluator added: “He’s not ready. He was hobbling around out there. The shuttles were bad. There’s no way to sugarcoat it. He cost himself millions of dollars.”

Ouch. Once regarded as a top-5 pick, it appears as though he’ll fall considerably at the end of the month. There’s always a chance that teams are sending out negative vibes about him in hopes that he’ll fall, but there hasn’t been one positive report about his knee since he had it scoped following the 2010 season.

Making matters worse for Bowers is that this year’s defensive end class is deep. North Carolina’s Robert Quinn, Missouri’s Aldon Smith, Cal’s Cameron Jordan, Iowa’s Adrian Clayborn, Ohio State’s Cameron Heyward, Wisconsin’s J.J. Watt, Georgia’s Justin Houston (considered to be a “tweener”) and Purdue’s Ryan Kerrigan are all regarded as first round picks. It would be easy for a defensive end-needy team to simply move Bowers down and one of those prospects up, causing Bowers to fall. Of course, depending on how far he drops, he could also be considered a major bargain. (Assuming his knee does eventually heal, of course.)

We’ll see. There’s still a month before the draft and that means a month of recovery more of recovery for Bowers. This news is certainly disappointing but who knows what teams are thinking at this point? His draft fate will be decided soon enough.

External Sports, NFL, NFL Draft

2011 NFL Draft da'quan bowers da'quan bowers knee da'quan bowers pro day NFL Draft NFL Draft rumors

Moon on perceived racial bias towards Newton: “Unless u have been black, u have no idea!”

April 1, 2011 / Anthony Stalter

Warren Moon spoke out this week about what he perceives as a racial bias against Auburn quarterback Cam Newton.

From CBSSports.com:

“A lot of the criticism he’s receiving is unfortunate and racially based,” Moon said. “I thought we were all past this. I don’t see other quarterbacks in the draft being criticized by the media or fans about their smile or called a phony. He’s being held to different standards from white quarterbacks. I thought we were past all this stuff about African-American quarterbacks, but I guess we’re not.
“Of course there is racism in every walk of society. We’ve made a lot of progress in this country. But racism is still there. I just thought in the sports arena we were beyond it. I think the way Cam is being treated shows we’re not.”
Moon added: “The thing that makes me laugh is the question of can he [Newton] come out of the spread offense? Can he run a pro offense? Colt McCoy came out of the spread offense and very few people raised that issue about him. So did Sam Bradford. Same thing. Very few questions asking if Bradford could run a pro offense. Some of these questions about Cam are more about his intellect. It’s blatant racism, some of it.

Is Moon serious about McCoy and Bradford? Whether or not they could run a pro-style offense was the biggest question surrounding both quarterbacks last year. And it’s always going to be a question when a QB prospect ran the spread in college, so Moon has no basis for saying “very few people raised” concerns about McCoy and Bradford running the spread.

Moon has received plenty of backlash from his comments, but didn’t back down via Twitter on Friday morning:

College Football, External Sports, NFL, NFL Draft

2011 NFL Draft Cam Newton cam newton racism warren moon cam newton warren moon racism comments

Category: NFL Draft (Page 17 of 101)

Bengals discussing Kevin Kolb internally?

Building through the draft clearly the best way to win in the NFL

Panthers’ GM defends Cam Newton after scathing PFW scouting report

Report: Bowers “really struggled” at Pro Day

Moon on perceived racial bias towards Newton: “Unless u have been black, u have no idea!”

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