Tag: draft

49ers solve biggest roster flaw in ESPN mock draft

The 49ers address the offensive line in the latest mock draft from ESPN.

While the stretch run and playoff push of the season is looming in the NFL, the college football schedule is entering the final two weeks before conference championships, bowl season and the highly-anticipated 12-team playoff.

As the college football season heats up, the final handful of weeks will display some of the top prospects in the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft class for the final time.

In the latest NFL mock draft from ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller, the San Francisco 49ers addressed their offensive line in the first round. With the No. 16 overall pick in the 2024 edition of the NFL draft, Miller penned Texas Longhorns offensive tackle Cameron Williams.

According to Miller, Williams’ game is still “raw,” but he could be a “long-term fix” for the 49ers offensive line on the right side alongside breakout young guard Dominick Puni.

Via ESPN:

He’s a first-year starter, and his game is still raw, but he shows considerable potential. The 6-foot-5, 335-pounder has drawn comparisons to 2024 first-rounder Amarius Mims in terms of his strength and agility, with one NFC South area scout telling me that Williams has a chance to be the first OT drafted if he declares. The 49ers could plug him next to guard Dominick Puni, their third-round pick in 2024, and form an incredibly young and strong right side of the line.

Read Miller’s full mock draft here via ESPN. 

The former three-star recruit is listed at 6-foot-5, 335 lbs. Williams plays on the opposite side of the Longhorns’ line as fellow top offensive tackle prospect Kelvin Banks.

According to Pro Football Focus, Williams has earned a 72.0 offensive grade this season with a 79.3 pass-blocking grade and a 76.2 run-blocking grade. Williams earned his best grade during Texas’ contest against Vanderbilt with an 81.1 grade.

Williams will suit up for Texas against Kentucky on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. PT.

This post originally appeared on Niners Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

How valuable is QB Justin Fields on the trade market?

With Russell Wilson potentially the starting QB job for weeks to come, what would teams theoretically give up in a trade for Justin Fields?

Quarterbacks are extremely hard to come by in today’s game. Some franchises, like the Browns and Panthers, spend years rebuilding in hopes of finding the future of their organization. After Russell Wilson’s dominant Week 7 victory over the New York Jets, Justin Fields may be more valuable as a trade asset than as a backup QB.

Several teams are trying to compete without a reliable signal-caller in 2024, and if their were teams interested in acquiring Fields, what would a trade look like?

The Steelers gave up a conditional sixth-rounder to acquire Fields, but he has performed well so far this season, and the team could demand a conditional second- or third-round pick in 2024.

As the team is in ‘win-now mode’, if Pittsburgh traded Fields away, it’s more likely they would do so to acquire a talented receiver, such as DeAndre Hopkins, Jerry Jeudy, Diontae Johnson, or Jakobi Meyers.

Could Pittsburgh trade away their potential future signal-caller in hopes of winning a Super Bowl this season? Only time will tell as the November 5th trade deadline draws nearer.

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Aggregate 2025 NBA Mock Draft 2.0: International prospects rise

HoopsHype has updated where the top prospects stand for the 2025 NBA Draft by compiling six mock drafts from ESPN, Yahoo Sports, CBS Sports, Sports Illustrated, SB Nation, and USA TODAY. A couple of quick notes on our aggregate mock draft: * Some …

HoopsHype has updated where the top prospects stand for the 2025 NBA Draft by compiling six mock drafts from ESPN, Yahoo Sports, CBS Sports, Sports Illustrated, SB Nation, and USA TODAY.

A couple of quick notes on our aggregate mock draft:

* Some freshmen are missing because they weren’t listed on all the mocks we compiled, meaning scouts don’t see them as one-and-done prospects yet.

* Additionally, the ages shown for international prospects reflect their draft-day age. These are preliminary scouting reports and are subject to change as we progress through the pre-draft process.

While some see future all-stars in Cooper Flagg, Ace Bailey, Dylan Harper, and VJ Edgecombe, others have doubts. We tend to agree with scouts who don’t see this group as generational. As the season unfolds, they’ll have a chance to prove themselves, but expectations should remain grounded.

NOTE: These rankings reflect the composite score to get a feel for the overall consensus, not our own opinion. For example, if a player was the first pick on a publication’s mock draft, he received 60 points. If a player was second, he received 59 points, and so on. We then tabulated the total number of points for each player’s consensus ranking.

The New York Knicks forfeited their 2025 second-round pick due to tampering.

93.7 The Fan host on Steelers’ trade rumors with new WR target

Andrew Fillipponi, host of the popular PIttsburgh sports radio station, 93.7 The Fan, touched a rumor involving a new WR trade target.

Steelers commentator and host of 93.7 The Fan, Andrew Fillipponi, threw some gas on the proverbial ‘Pittsburgh trading for WR’ fire. The trade rumor in question, from Fillipponi, focuses in on the Panthers attempting to move on from former three-time Pro Bowler and former All-Pro WR Adam Thielen. This isn’t the first trade Pittsburgh has been linked to, as Omar Khan and the Steelers’ organization attempted to trade for both WR Brandon Aiyuk and WR Davante Adams but ultimately came up short. 

Thielen is currently on IR after suffering a hamstring injury in Week 3. He will be eligible to return no sooner than the Carolina Panthers’ Week 8 contest against the Denver Broncos on October 27th. Could the Panthers activate Thielen and trade him between this date and the trade deadline on November 5th? 

Fillipponi, asked fans of the ‘Steel City’ on social media if the team should pursue the former Vikings receiver.

Let us know what you think about the rumor involving Pittsburgh’s sixth-round pick and Adam Thielen below:

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Caleb Foster: ‘I came to Duke to win, and I’m living out my dream’

Caleb Foster, currently ranked No. 44 on ESPN’s Top 100 for the 2025 NBA Draft, made an immediate impact in his freshman season at Duke. Foster’s role as sixth man fit him perfectly, stepping in as the primary ballhandler when Tyrese Proctor was off …

Caleb Foster, currently ranked No. 44 on ESPN’s Top 100 for the 2025 NBA Draft, made an immediate impact in his freshman season at Duke. Foster’s role as sixth man fit him perfectly, stepping in as the primary ballhandler when Tyrese Proctor was off the court. He maintained a solid 2.0 assist-to-turnover ratio and shot 40.6 percent from deep. His season was cut short by an ankle fracture, but he started 15 games, helping Duke to a 13-2 record in those contests.

Despite missing the postseason, the 6-foot-5 guard’s efficiency and shooting made him a crucial part of the team.

During the 2024 ACC Tip-Off, Foster spoke with HoopsHype, reflecting on his offseason improvements, praising the incoming freshman class, and discussing season expectations and more.

49ers prepare for big free agent losses in mock draft

The Notre Dame defensive back was named to the 2024 AP All-American second team.

As college football season heats, so does the mock draft season. With a month of the NFL season in the books, mock drafts are beginning to take form. In the latest mock from Pro Football Focus, the San Francisco 49ers added some depth to their defensive back room.

With the No. 17 overall selection in PFF’s mock draft, Trevor Sikkema inked  Notre Dame cornerback Benjamin Morrison to the 49ers in his latest mock draft. According to Sikkema, Morrison is aggressive and has the traits to develop into a “starting outside corner in the league.”

Via Pro Football Focus:

With Charvarius Ward set to become a free agent after this season, the Niners may need to make a big move at outside corner. Morrison is still refining the anticipation aspects of his game, particularly in off-coverage, but he’s aggressive, has long arms and possesses excellent recovery speed to develop into a starting outside corner in the league.

Following the end of the 2024-25 season, both Charvarius Ward and Deommodore Lenior are set for free agency, opening a potential need at cornerback for the 49ers. The draft could be a way the 49ers address that opening.

In five games, the Notre Dame defensive captain has recorded 17 total tackles for Marcus Freeman’s Irish. The six-foot corner has also notched four pass deflections.

This post originally appeared on Niners Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

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Chase Young says Taliese Fuaga made a strong first impression

Chase Young has been a standout at Saints training camp, but he says Taliese Fuaga made a strong first impression: ‘He’s going to be a real great player’

We already know what the guys lining up alongside Taliese Fuaga think of the New Orleans Saints’ first-round draft pick. Pro Bowl center Erik McCoy called him the best rookie offensive lineman he’s been around since he joined the team back in 2019. But what about the players lining up against Fuaga on the defensive line?

Chase Young is one person well-suited to chime in. The veteran defensive end recovered sooner than expected from offseason neck surgery, and he’s quickly stacking great days of work at Saints training camp while the coaches carefully ramp up his workload. And many of those reps have come against Fuaga. What kind of impression has Fuaga made now that he and Young have gotten to know each other on the practice field?

“A dog,” Fuaga said, grinning. “He’s going to be a real great player. Real patient, super strong, you know. Even when I’m going against my guy I mix it it up on him, dial it in. Because he’s so massive. A guy who’s massive, who’s patient and strong, I mean, you can’t get away with many things. They can just sit on you.”

The Saints have high hopes for both players. Young could be the best defensive lineman on the roster if he’s healthy and fully engaged, which were challenges for him last season while dealing with that neck injury. So much is resting on Fuaga to transform the offensive line and protect Derek Carr’s blind side, which is a new experience for him after he spent his college career at right tackle.

But the results are positive for both of them, at least after a week of training camp practices. It’s a long road to Week 1’s kickoff game. The Saints won’t get to the playoffs if these guys slip up and don’t meet expectations, but they  could really make some noise if both of them hit. It’s early in the process but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong to feel encouraged by what we’re hearing out of camp.

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Saints made under-the-radar moves with high ceilings this offseason

The free agency and draft additions may not have made the most noise, but they could still be impact moves for the Saints next season:

After going over the New Orleans Saints best offseason additions, one thing became abundantly clear. The Saints’ biggest acquisitions are under-the-radar moves with a high ceiling for the team. Taliese Fuaga, Willie Gay Jr., Kool-Aid McKinstry and Chase Young all fall into this category

There can be an argument made against Fuaga and McKinstry. Fuaga was a first-round pick, but he was smothered underneath some of the bigger name offensive tackles drafted ahead of him. Still, he’s a great fit in the system and has the potential to be a cornerstone of the offensive line.

McKinstry comes from Alabama, but he wasn’t even the first cornerback selected from his team. He was also drafted in the second round to a team with two clear starters at the position. He is in position to be a starter in 2025 at a premium position. When NFL analysts had time to look back at how teams valued players after the draft, neither McKinstry nor Fuaga made it to New Orleans in hypothetical do-overs.

The Saints also picked up two more defensive playmakers in free agency. For different reasons, the signings of Young and Gay flew under the radar. Young is talented but he is at a crossroads in his career. He has to deliver on the promise in his athletic potential. If he does, the Saints could have a more productive and faster pass rush in 2024.

Gay also brings speed to the defense, best used against the pass. At the second level, it’ll help neutralize dump off passes to the flats. The lack of defensive speed makes these 3-yard gains become explosive plays. The Saints’ heavy man scheme opens them up to this, but Gay’s speed will help in these situations when the secondary’s back is turned.

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