4 weeks agoPer a league source, the current expectation is that the New England Patriots will sit tight at No. 3 overall in the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night and take North Carolina quarterback
Drake Maye. The New York Giants (No. 6) and Minnesota Vikings (No. 11) had been linked to a potential trade up to No. 3, but the Patriots unsurprisingly have been asking for a lot in return. If the Patriots do stay in the third spot, their next challenge will be getting Maye ready after he showed plenty of inconsistencies and shaky mechanics in his final year with the Tar Heels. In an ideal world for the Pats, Maye would sit and learn behind veteran
Jacoby Brissett and
Bailey Zappe in 2024 and then be ready to go as the team's starter under center in 2025. The Patriots traded former first-rounder
Mac Jones to the Jaguars this offseason.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Pro Football Talk - Mike Florio
4 weeks agoThe Kansas City Chiefs have really been working to see if they can move up from No. 32 in the first round of Thursday night's NFL draft. The belief around the league is that the Chiefs moving up from No. 32 would be for one of the speed wide receivers in this talented draft class at the position. It makes sense given the fact that the Chiefs are expecting second-year wideout
Rashee Rice to be suspended for multiple games in 2024 after his involvement in a car accident that involved injuries. Even with Rice in the fold, KC has the need to bolster their receiving corps behind Rice and aging tight end
Travis Kelce. If the Chiefs do pull off a trade up in the latter portion of the first round, they could be targeting Texas receiver
Xavier Worthy.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: NFL Network - James Palmer
4 weeks agoThe Jacksonville Jaguars are calling around in an effort to move up in the first round of Thursday's NFL draft, and teams taking their calls believe they are on the hunt for a specific pass-catcher, according to a source. Even though the Jaguars signed wideout
Gabe Davis in free agency this offseason, it appears the Jags are looking to make a splash early in the first round this year for another weapon for quarterback
Trevor Lawrence. Jacksonville currently holds the No. 17 overall pick. If they were to trade into the top 10, players such as Washington receiver
Rome Odunze, LSU receiver
Malik Nabers, and Georgia tight end
Brock Bowers could all be options as they look for extra pass-catchers after they lost
Calvin Ridley in free agency. Stay tuned.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Athletic - Dianna Russini
4 weeks agoESPN's Jeff Darlington reports that the Minnesota Vikings are very tense with the first round of the 2024 NFL draft just hours away from starting on Thursday night as they look to trade up to No. 3 with the New England Patriots in an effort to take a quarterback of the future. The Vikings currently sit at the No. 11 pick and were unable to re-sign quarterback
Kirk Cousins in the offseason. The player that has fascinated them throughout the pre-draft process has been North Carolina QB
Drake Maye, but there is serious competition for the No. 3 pick, including the Patriots themselves. If Minnesota can't get Maye at No. 3, they'd likely need to jump the Giants at No. 6 in order to get Michigan QB
J.J. McCarthy. If they whiff on Maye and McCarthy, Washington's
Michael Penix Jr. could be the fallback option for the Vikes.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: ESPN.com - Jeff Darlington
4 weeks agoThe San Francisco 49ers have been in trade rumors regarding star wide receiver
Brandon Aiyuk all offseason, but NFL insider Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports the team has also talked with teams about trading fellow star wideout
Deebo Samuel. Russini said one of the teams the 49ers have talked with currently holds a top-10 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, so a blockbuster deal could be in the works. Aiyuk is reportedly asking for more money than the 49ers are willing to give him, while Samuel has been in the trade rumor circles for multiple seasons. With high-priced assets like
George Kittle,
Christian McCaffrey, Nick Bosa, and Fred Warner on the roster, the organization will have to make moves in order to re-sign quarterback
Brock Purdy in the near future. If one of the wideouts is traded, they should retain plenty of fantasy value with their new team.
--Jackson Sparks - RotoBallerSource: Dianna Russini -- The Athletic
4 weeks agoAlabama offensive tackle JC Latham has seemingly been a rising prospect as the 2024 NFL draft approaches, and NFL draft expert Todd McShay suggested he could be the first offensive lineman off the board on Thursday. Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt has been the popular choice to take that honor, but McShay believes the Los Angeles Chargers could draft Latham over Alt with the No. 5 overall pick. Latham played right tackle for the Crimson Tide, making him a perfect fit on the other side of stud left tackle Rashawn Slater. Los Angeles has been one of the trickiest teams to predict during this draft cycle, and new head coach Jim Harbaugh could choose to go an unconventional route.
--Jackson Sparks - RotoBallerSource: Todd McShay
4 weeks agoThe Indianapolis Colts hold the No. 15 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, and Bleacher Report's Jordan Schultz reports the team has done a ton of pre-draft work on the wide receiver position, and they are interested in Georgia tight end
Brock Bowers.
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4 weeks agoThe Chicago Bears are expected to select USC quarterback
Caleb Williams with the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, but they are willing to trade down from the No. 9 overall selection, according to Dianna Russini of The Athletic. Chicago only has four total picks in this year's draft, so moving down to acquire more selections makes plenty of sense. The team has been linked to Washington wide receiver
Rome Odunze, Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner, and UCLA edge rusher Laiatu Latu if they stay put, but the options become plentiful if they decide to move down the board. QB-needy teams like the Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders could be potential trade partners. Quarterbacks
Bo Nix,
Michael Penix Jr., and
J.J. McCarthy could still be available at that spot.
--Jackson Sparks - RotoBallerSource: Dianna Russini -- The Athletic
4 weeks agoThe Minnesota Vikings secured an additional first-round pick in the 2024 NFL draft via a trade with the Houston Texans in March. The organization held the No. 11 overall pick after finishing 7-10 in 2023, and they sent a bundle of picks to acquire the No. 23 overall selection from Houston (via Cleveland Browns). Many believe the Vikings are trying to use their two picks to move into the range to select a quarterback, and NFL insider Peter Schrager projects the Titans to be that trade partner. Tennessee holds the No. 7 selection, which could put the Vikings in range to pick Michigan quarterback
J.J. McCarthy. Schrager has the Vikings making that pick and the Titans landing Notre Dame tackle Joe Alt at pick 11. There are likely multiple avenues Minnesota can take if the speculation is current, but Tennessee could be willing to trade down since they do not have a third-round selection.
--Jackson Sparks - RotoBallerSource: Peter Schrager
4 weeks agoUCLA edge usher Laiatu Latu is one of the top defensive prospects in the 2024 NFL Draft, and he could even be in contention to be the first defender selected. However, NFL insider Peter Schrager said he could fall in the draft due to medical concerns. "Teams are split on the medical," Schrager said. Latu entered college football in 2019 with Washington, but he missed the entire 2020 and 2021 seasons with injuries, and he even medically retired before coming back and transferring to UCLA in 2022. In two seasons with the Bruins, he racked up 34 tackles for loss and 23.5 sacks. He has all the talent and makings of an early first-round pick, but several teams will likely be worried about his ability to hold up at the next level.
--Jackson Sparks - RotoBallerSource: NFL.com
4 weeks agoIt's no secret that the Buffalo Bills need to add some wide receivers in this year's NFL draft after trading
Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans and losing
Gabe Davis in free agency this offseason. At No. 28 overall in the first round of Thursday night's draft, the Bills would seem to be set to take a pass-catcher. However, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero thinks the draft class' depth at the receiver position could lead the Bills to wait perhaps until the second round to take a receiver, potentially adding a defensive player in the first round instead. As Buffalo's depth chart stands right now, their top three receivers are
Khalil Shakir,
Justin Shorter and veteran
Curtis Samuel. Even if the team adds a few wideouts in this year's draft, tight end
Dalton Kincaid could be Buffalo's leading receiver in 2024.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: NFL Network - Tom Pelissero
4 weeks agoThe Los Angeles Rams, who haven't picked in the first round since 2016, are calling up to try to get into the top 10 of the first round of this year's NFL draft on Thursday evening, according to sources. The Rams currently sit at pick No. 19, so it would take a lot to pull off a move into the top 10 this year. It's unclear who they might be eyeing if they were to pull it off, but the best bet would be to select Georgia pass-catching tight end
Brock Bowers, who has been projected to go at 10th overall to the New York Jets in a lot of mock drafts. The Rams have also been rumored to be looking for a successor to aging quarterback
Matthew Stafford, but it's unlikely they pull off a move all the way into the top five to take one of the high-end signal-callers in this year's draft. A defensive tackle is also on their draft wish list.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Athletic - Dianna Russini
4 weeks agoThe Denver Broncos are a contender to select a quarterback and potentially make a move in the first round of Thursday night's NFL draft, even after trading for quarterback
Zach Wilson earlier this week. Denver sits at No. 12 overall, but NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reiterated that he thinks the Broncos could trade down within the first round. They likely don't have enough draft capital to move into the top-four picks to take a high-end QB, so instead, they could move down to take a pass-rusher or even Oregon QB
Bo Nix. The Broncos have been linked to Michigan QB
J.J. McCarthy as well, but McCarthy's draft stock has been soaring in the lead-up to the draft, which means the Broncos would likely have to trade into the top five to get him. As of right now, Wilson is set to compete with
Jarrett Stidham for the starting job under center in 2024.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: NFL Network - Tom Pelissero
4 weeks agoThe Washington Commanders are declining the fifth-year contract option of linebacker Jamin Davis, according to a source. It's been heading this way for on and off-field reasons. The plan in 2024 is to have the athletically gifted Davis become a "hybrid" defender, which should translate to less pass coverage and more attempts to rush the quarterback. Davis played his rookie season in 2021 at Mike linebacker before moving to the off-ball role in the team's 4-2-5 base defense. According to Pro Football Focus, he tied for the highest yards per catch allowed (12.1) last year and ranked fourth-worst in average depth of target (5.5) because of his limited coverage instincts. The 25-year-old former 19th overall pick out of Kentucky has just seven sacks in his three seasons, but he could be more productive in that category if he's rushing the passer more in 2024.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Athletic - Ben Standig
4 weeks agoThe New York Giants have been trying to trade up to No. 3 overall with the New England Patriots in the first round of Thursday night's NFL draft, with the belief being that they want to select North Carolina quarterback
Drake Maye, according to multiple league sources. The prevailing thought is that it's a long shot to happen, though, but the Patriots are listening to all calls. The Giants and Vikings appear to be the most aggressive teams that are trying to trade into the top five in order to take a QB of the future in this year's draft. The Patriots have been open to trading down, but so far they've reportedly not received any serious enough offers, and they are also looking for a QB of their own after trading away
Mac Jones this offseason. Most pundits are expecting New England to stand pat and take Maye if LSU's
Jayden Daniels goes to the Commanders at No. 2.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Bleacher Report - Jordan Schultz
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