Al's Hot NFL News and Rumor Blog
Highlights from some of Al's entries
04/27...Cleveland Browns GM Phil Savage has gone on record and stated that his team isn't downgrading Adrian Peterson despite the recent report of Peterson reinjuring his collarbone...the Browns own the third pick in the Draft and Peterson is one of a few prospects that has been linked to the Browns pick at #3...I've had Brady Quinn going to the Browns in My Mock since February and Peterson's injury (despite what Savage has stated) further enhances my belief that he won't be the pick for the Browns...keep in mind...On Draft day every GM has to "sell" his Owner on why he believes the player they are taking is the right pick for their team...a team picking in the top part of the Draft will be dishing out a boatload of guaranteed money and that teams GM has to convince his owner that he's 100% sold on this prospect and there should be no doubts or negatives attached to this pick...I love Adrian Peterson because he has a chance to be a special player...but...he has three things working against him - his previous injury history, his up-right running style which makes him susceptible to taking hits and the fact that he has already broken his collarbone which is an injury that has a tendency to re-occur especially the way Peterson will take a pounding in the NFL...those factors would make it hard for me to convince my Owner that Peterson is the right pick for my team that high in the Draft and that he comes with no strings attached.
04/26...(09:00 pm)...I pointed out in my 04/25 column that Ted Ginn Jr. is picking up steam heading into the Draft and the reason the Rams traded for Dante Hall was because they knew that Ginn wouldn't be on the board at their pick...the latest rumors have Ginn Jr. linked to the Dolphins pick at #9....our 2008 NFL Draft page is up.
04/26...(11:45 am)...Add OT Joe Staley and CB Darrelle Revis to the list of players that are picking up steam just two days before the Draft...the latest word is Staley won't make it past the Patriots pick at #24... I've had Staley going to the Giants pick at #20 since late last week...as for Revis...he's replaced Leon Hall as the top CB in the Draft according to two league sources and could be taken as high as the Texans pick at #10.
04/26...(2:30 pm)...Quick Hits...Look for QB Josh McCown to be dealt by the Lions sometime this weekend...the Lions are looking for a second day pick in the fifth round range in return.
04/25...(1:00 pm)...The St.Louis Rams acquired KR/WR Dante Hall from the Chiefs today to fill the void that they had on special teams in their return game...my take on this trade is this...the Rams have done their pre-draft homework and have stacked their board, but they (like every team) have gone through their own mock draft and scenarios in which a player like WR/KR Tedd Ginn Jr. would be available to them at pick #13...reading between the lines in this trade tells me that Rams feel that Ginn will already be off the board before they pick, so they made the deal with the Chiefs today for a 5th round pick...had the Rams waited until Draft day, the Chiefs could have upped their asking price for Hall had Ginn been taken before the Rams had picked...Ginn has been picking up steam this week and has been linked to at least three teams picking in the top 11 picks of the Draft.
04/24...(6:00 pm)...Mississippi LB Patrick Willis is really picking up steam this week heading into the Draft...I've had Willis pegged as the Bills first round selection in My Mock for nearly two months now...but...the possibility that Willis will be on the board when the Bills pick at #12 is growing smaller by the day...these are the two scenarios in which Willis will make it into the Top 10 of the Draft...#1 - Patrick Willis will become a Lion if the Lions deal the second overall pick in the Draft to the Falcons because DE Gaines Adams (their first preference) will already be off the board at pick #8...#2 - I pointed out in My 04/18 column that the Texans and Broncos could become trade partners on Saturday because the Texans want to move down to recoup picks that they dealt in the Matt Schaub trade...the Broncos on the other hand want to move up to land a top-flight DE with their pick...however...the latest steam has the Broncos being interested in replacing Al Wilson with Patrick Willis in the middle of the their defense and a trade with the Texans picking at #10 would accomplish just that if the Lions don't move down and take Willis themselves...and last but not least...the Niners picking before Buffalo could take Patrick Willis with their pick at #11.
04/24...(7:30 am)...Add the Steelers pick at #15 to the mix of desireable slots in which teams are targeting to move up to in the Draft because some if not all of the top CB's will still be on the board along with the only TE worthy of a first round pick...I mentioned earlier that the Packers slot at #16 is also drawing interest.
04/23...(11:30 am)....Don't be surprised if the San Francisco 49'ers make an attempt to move up into the first round from their pick in the second round (pick#42) in an attempt to land one of the players they are targeting in the Draft...the latest buzz has the Niners leaning toward OT Levi Brown with their first pick (#11) in the Draft and moving up for a top rated WR later in the round...the Niners are said to covet Tennessee's Robert Meachum and have more than enough ammunition (10 picks in the first 4 rounds) to make such a move.
04/23...We're less than a week away from the Draft and several rumors are beginning to float around the league
...the first being the ridiculous rumor that the Chiefs have Larry Johnson on the block...lets see...last time I checked L.J. was the teams Bell-Cow and the lone weapon (sorry Tony Gonzalez) on a Chiefs offense that no longer scares people to begin with...I believe the rumor started because the Chiefs have brought in numerous second tier Hb prospects that interest them in the Draft...the reason for that is to find a back that can lighten the load on L.J. this season...there's zero chance that the Chiefs will move L.J. this season...sticking with the Chiefs...
I was talking to one of my solid Draft sources this weekend and he told me that he's heard that the Chiefs first round pick might be a bit of a surprise to some of the draftniks out there...last year's first round pick DE Tamba Hali was a bit of a reach in some peoples minds.
04/22...My Sunday morning thoughts...If I'm picking for the Detroit Lions at the #2 spot, I'm taking WR Calvin Johnson plain and simple...a DE like Gaines Adams that can fly off the edge or an OT like Joe Thomas would be nice, but they don't score TD's and put points on the board!...just ask the Texans how much better they were last season by passing up Reggie Bush and Vince Young for Mario Williams...Calvin Johnson makes a Lions offense (that was pretty good near the end of last season) so much better and gives the Lions franchise something to hang their hat on going into every single game...the Colts proved for quite some time that you can win games with a very average defense...or go back even further in the 1980's when Qb Dan Fouts led Air Coryell into the playoffs without a defense...the bottom line is...if the Lions stay put at #2, it has to be Calvin Johnson because the Draft is also all about value and some will argue that CJ is worth the first overall pick in this Draft.
04/21...(4:00 pm)...I've heard this from more than one solid source so I think it's worth posting...the latest rumor floating around the league has a draft day deal between the Bucs and Lions is all but dead because the Bucs thinking is they won't need to move up for Johnson because he will fall to them at #4.
04/21...One NFL prospect that has flown way under the radar this season, but is considered to be one of the Draft's "sneaky sleepers" is Central Connecticut State's Justise Harrison...Harrison is a back with a good combination of size and speed who lettered for 3 seasons at Rutgers...in his freshman season at Rutgers, Harrison ran for 550 yards and scored 8td's for the Scarlet Knights...because of a crowded backfield he transferred and played one season at Milford Acadamy and then his senior season at Cent Conn St....Harrison dominated the competition at Cent Conn St. as he ran for an ave of 167.9 yds per game and scored 20 tds...he also led the entire nation in 2006 in all purpose yards from scrimmage at 199.8 per clip...he also averaged 6.7 yards per carry and had 7 td's over 50 yards in length...in his homecoming game versus St. Francis (Pa.) Harrison put on a clinic scoring the first two times he touched the ball and had 197 yds rushing in the first quarter alone!!!...he finished the game with 322 yards rushing...you can be sure that Harrison is on the Patriots Radar Screen because Pats GM Scott Pioli is a Cent. Conn St. alum and was spotted in attendance at that game...at his Pro Day, Harrison was measured at 6-0 222 and ran a 4.60 forty which is a bit slower than his ave forty time of 4.55 but ran the short shuttle in 4.15, ran a 6.94 three cone, had a 39" vertical and a 10-0 broad jump...as I noted earlier Harrison is one of those "sneaky sleepers" that several NFL teams have rated on their board in the hopes that another NFL team doesn't beat them to the punch.
04/20...(9:30 am)...According to one of my trusted sources the Seahawks have WR Darrell Jackson on the
trading block and one of the teams that is rumored to be interested is the San Francisco 49'ers...it's common knowledge that the Niners need help at the receiver position and have a boat load (10 picks of which 8 are in the first four rounds) of Draft picks in their arsenal...the Seahawks on the other hand are stacked at the receiver position and have just two first day picks with the first coming in the second round (pick #55)...stay tuned!
04/19...(8:00 pm)...There are several rumors floating around the internet regarding Alan Branch's health in regards to a leg injury that NFL teams have uncovered...as I reported back on Friday in my 04/13 column (the first to break this news on the internet or on the tube) Alan Branch has shin splints and nothing more than that. ..his condition isn't believed to be anything that will hinder him long-term and NFL teams aren't downgrading him because of it...so...as I have stated numerous times over the years...be careful what you read and whom you believe at this time of the year.
04/16...(4:00 pm)...Despite a less than stellar workout due to his lingering injury Ohio State WR Tedd Ginn Jr. is picking up steam as the Draft gets nearer and might make it into the Top 10 of the Draft after all...I've just updated My Mock and have him going in the top 10...I've also added his teammate Anthony Gonzalez to the first round in My Mock.
04/14...Way back in my 02/17 blog I noted that several NFL Scouts hinted that there won't be as much of a difference (ratings wise) between OT's Joe Thomas and Levi Brown in the final rankings of the two prospects when the entire Draft evaluation is complete...the general perception amoung several media outlets is Thomas will be a Top 5 pick while Brown has a chance to slip as far as the Giants pick at #20...don't believe the hype...
I was reminded by my source of that statement just yesterday and the latest word out there is Brown won't make it out of the top 10...there's also an outside chance that Brown could be the Draft's first big surprise pick on Saturday morning by the Arizona Cardinals with the fifth pick overall.
04/13...(6:30 pm)... DT Alan Branch's draft stock has taken a bit of a hit recently because he didn't turn in a good workout performance at the Combine or at his pro day....the rumors started that Branch wasn't in the best of shape for his workouts...well the latest regarding Branch could have something to do with that...the latest word circulating throughout the scouting community is that Branch has shin splints which may have hindered him in his workouts...NFL teams are checking into this matter to make sure that nothing is more serious with Branch...stay tuned!
04/13...(11:30 am)...The latest rumors/news coming out of Detroit has the Lions taking WR Calvin Johnson with their pick in the first round and then trading him to the highest bidder....my take on that is this...the Lions and Bucs have already had trade discussions regarding switching picks in the first round of the Draft... but if a deal isn't completed while the Lions are on the clock, they will take Johnson with their pick which will give them an extra 30 minutes to work out a trade with Tampa or more time to work out a trade with another team...if the Lions aren't able to find a suitor for Johnson, he will then become a Detroit Lion.
04/11...Tennessee DT Justin Harrell's stock is on the rise after proving to the Scouts that he's fully recovered from a torn bicep muscle which caused him to miss much of the 2006 season...Harrell was measured at 6-4.3 300 at the Combine and did 24 reps at 225 on the bar...but at his pro day workout Harrell showed the teams in attendance that he's getting back to strength as he did 31 reps at 225 and has gotten his weight up to 314...Harrell is considered to be one of those "rare" big men that can move and will be highly sought after on Draft day in what is considered to be a weak Defensive Tackle class... Harrell won't make it out of the first round of the upcoming Draft......and last but not least...I've added another prospect to my Sleeper list and he's a player that has flown way under the radar screen for most of the season.
04/03...David Carr arrived in Carolina to visit the Panthers on Monday and has a visit scheduled with Seattle later in the week...I believe Carr will land in Carolina because he has the best chance of furthering his career since Jake Delhomme has regressed the past two seasons and his backup Chris Weinke was allowed to hit the FA market and isn't expected to return...in Seattle, Carr would have to challenge Seneca Wallace for the backup job to starter Matt Hasselback...I still believe Carr has a chance to become a starter in the league and is coming off of a season in which he completed 68.3% of his passes.
04/01...One Draft prospect that is climbing up the boards is Western Oregon TE Kevin Boss...several good football people have been telling me that this guy is the real deal and could be taken ahead of a few more more familiar names on Draft day...so I popped in a tape of the Indy Combine on Saturday and watched Boss in all of the TE drills including the gauntlet drill...I came away very impressed because other than Greg Olsen (the top TE on everyone's board) Boss looked like the best of the group as he displayed athleticism, balance and soft hands...Ive added Boss to my Sleeper Prospect Watch which has more on Boss and where he might land on Draft day.
03/29...Dwayne Jarrett didn't dissapoint Scouts and NFL personnel in attendance at his workout on Wednesday because the times that he ran were what they expected of him...for weeks rumors persisted that Jarrett would run in the 4.6 range and that is exactly what he did clocking a 4.62 and a 4.67 in the forty...Jarrett "is what he is" which is a tall possession receiver that will provide a QB with a big red-zone target with reliable hands...will Jarrett fall out of the first round?...very likely...but I haven't had him included in My first round Mock for some time.
03/28...Today is a big day for WR Dwayne Jarrett as he gets his chance to silence his critics and run for NFL Scouts and personnel at USC's pro day...Jarrett was considered to be the second best WR coming out in this Draft (after he declared his intentions in January) but has seen his stock fall a bit since then due to speculation that he will have a hard time running under 4.6 in his forty...Jarrett added fuel to the fire when he decided not to run at the Combine due to a groin injury...If Jarrett is able to run in the mid 4.5's or less he stands a chance to be taken somewhere late in the first round of the Draft...if Jarrett runs a 4.6 or more he's second round material at best...the faster that Jarrett runs today... the higher he goes in the Draft...I can't remember the last time a 4.6 receiver was taken in the first round of the Draft...elsewhere...rumors have been floating that the Raiders are interested in Lions QB Josh McCown and are a bit concerned with JaMarcus Russell's weight...they are also said to be enamored with WR Calvin Johnson...the possibility still exists that they will take Johnson with the first pick in the Draft...I've stated all along that Johnson is the best prospect available in this Draft...but...I don't see them passing on a QB with their first round pick for a second year in a row.
