Tuesday morning roundup

April 26, 2022

Tuesday morning roundup … Just two days and counting to go! Somebody said to us the other day that the draft must be kind of like Christmas or our birthday to us. I told him it turns out that it really is like my birthday because my birthday actually comes during the draft. (I won’t say when or which; just that I’m old!). And it turns out that when my birthday falls during the draft, which it often does, I don’t get a birthday because the people that know me know that you just don’t bother me during the draft. Period. And speaking of birthdays. I had been thinking all year that this would be the GBN’s 24th draft. Turns out it’s actually our 25th! So Happy Anniversary to us!

And speaking of the draft, there were multiple reports yesterday that there is now a ‘consensus’ around the league that Jacksonville will now take Georgia DE Travon Walker with the #1 pick on Thursday rather than Michigan DE Aidan Hutchinson. Not sure if that ‘consensus’ actually means anything though as the only consensus that really matters is what Trent Baalke and the Jaguars think and right ow they’re not saying. There also appears to be a growing feeling around the league that Carolina will not be taking a QB with the 6th pick overall, but rather will wait until; after the draft and try and trade for a veteran such as Baker Mayfield of the Browns. In fact, it wouldn’t be a major surprise if they don’t already have some kind of deal in place. We noted yesterday that Pittsburgh G.M. Kevin Colbert mentioned how the Steelers had done the math on a potential trade up from the 20th pick to the 7th, which is currently held by the Giants. Turns out Colbert also mentioned that the Steelers had also done the math on a trade down to #32. Hard to know what to make of it; perhaps he was just referring to the range that the Steelers might move. Whatever, we’ll find out for sure on Thursday. For those that didn’t see it, Dave Birkett has an interesting piece in the Detroit Free Press further documenting the emergence of WR as the NFL’s #2 go-to position after QB. It will certainly be interesting to see where the top receivers do ultimately go on Thursday as they are not currently generally thought of as being part of the top 8-9 prospects. Indeed, we may get a sense of that growing value if San Francisco ultimately moves star WR Deebo Samuel who has asked to traded. The 49ers, who have said they are not willing to part with Samuel, are reportedly taking calls from other interested teams but may be asking for as much as two first-round picks in return, although it is believed they may settle for less if it comes to it. For the record, Green Bay got first and second round picks when they sent Davante Adams to Las Vegas, while Kansas City also got first and second rounders, along with some third-day picks in the deal that saw Tyreek Hill move to Miami. and we close this morning with an oddity pointed out by reader David C. Not one team in this year’s draft has their original complement of one pick in each round. Cincinnati with one pick in each of the first 6 rounds and then two 7ths. In fact, along with the Bengals, only two other teams – Buffalo and Jacksonville – have at least one pick in each round. Weird!