Tag: draft board

Seahawks GM John Schneider shares what final week before draft looks like

Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider gave a small glimpse into the team’s final preparations ahead of the 2023 NFL draft.

The 2023 NFL draft is less than a week away and Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll are putting the final touches on all of the prep they’ve worked so hard to complete.

Here’s a look at what the two have planned in the final days leading up to the draft.

“We’re getting together with the coaches on Friday and Saturday,” Schneider said during his press conference at the VMAC. “Sunday is a really cool kind of gathering of all the information that you just heard and kind of a reset with the scouts and trying to figure out the input from the coaches and what that means to the front board. We’ll get with Jody (Allen) on Tuesday night and show her what it looks like and tell her what we’re thinking and what our process has been and the way we think it’s going to go, all the different scenarios.”

The Seahawks are in an unfamiliar position this year with two picks in each of the first two rounds and a ton of selections to consider. Some serious discussions are ahead for the duo.

“Then Pete and I will have a good day, afternoon just the two of us,” Schneider continued. “Like I said, speaking to other teams, speaking to agents, getting as much information in the final prep as we possibly can and then closing the doors and just getting ready for Thursday night to let it rip.”

The NFL draft kicks off on Thursday, April 27.

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John Schneider, Seahawks scouts still working hard ahead of NFL draft

After visiting multiple prospects, Seattle Seahawks GM John Schneider and his scouts still have work to do to finalize their draft board.

Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider and his staff have been on a whirlwind tour meeting with prospects ahead of the 2023 NFL draft.

Finally, back at home, Schneider spoke about the process so far during his weekly radio show on Seattle Sports.

“It’s exciting to go out and do the work and see all that, but I’m most excited about being back and being able to hunker down in the draft room with everybody and be able to study and continue to bounce things off each other and try to try to figure this thing out,” Schneider said. “I think just being back here – obviously I love sleeping in my own bed – but I don’t mind that travel at all.”

But all the hard work isn’t over just yet – there is still a lot to do ahead of the first round, and fortunately, it can be done closer to home.

“We’re still Zoom(ing) a bunch of guys,” Schneider explained. “We had a huge portion of our visits (on Wednesday) and then (on Thursday), we had our local group in for our local visit, which is a big tryout day. We had some really really cool guys in today and it was one of our better local days that we’ve had.”

After all the effort the crew has put in, it now comes down to putting the final touches on the Seahawks draft board.

“We’re meeting with the scouts right now. This is like our third time through the board,” Schneider explained, noting it could take up to five times to get everything up to par.

“It gets like a rescraping, kind of,” he said. “Not taking everybody off, but just moving around and making sure everybody has all their input and everybody feels good about it.”

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Only 3 safeties on The Draft Network’s top 50 big board for Packers

The Packers definitely need a safety, but the 2023 draft class doesn’t look gifted with top-tier talent at the position.

Addressing safety is a must for the Green Bay Packers this offseason. But if their plan is to do so in the draft, only three players from that position group are located inside the top 50 on The Draft Network’s big board, and two of them may not be exactly what the Packers need at the position.

The play from the safety position in 2022 – along with pretty much the rest of the defense – was underwhelming for the Packers. The normally steady and reliable Adrian Amos had what was easily his most inconsistent season since joining the Packers, and he is now scheduled to be a free agent, while Darnell Savage was often at the center of communication breakdowns that led to big plays for the opposing offense. Eventually, he was benched.

In addition to the lackluster play, this is a position group very much lacking depth at the moment as well. Savage is only under contract for 2023, playing on a fifth-year option, and certainly can’t be considered a long-term solution at the position. The only other safeties on the roster are Tariq Carpenter, a primary special teams player during his rookie season, and James Wiggins, who was signed to a futures deal in January.

Adding to this position early on in this year’s draft should certainly be on Brian Gutekunst’s radar; however, at least according to The Draft Network’s big board, there may not be many options to do so, with Jordan Battle, Antonio Johnson, and Brian Branch being the only players in the top 50. Here is a closer look at each of those players.

23. Jordan Battle, Alabama: The 6-1, 206-pound Battle is one of the more experienced players you will see, with over 2,600 career snaps at Alabama over four seasons. The bulk of his snaps have come as a free safety, but he also has experience in the slot and as a box defender. This past season, he allowed 16 receptions on 20 targets but at only 7.7 yards per catch with a pass breakup. Of the three safeties, in terms of need at the safety position, I believe Battle is the best fit.

25. Antonio Johnson, Texas A&M: Johnson, who stands 6-3 and weighs 195 pounds, has had the bulk of his playing time come over the last two seasons, most of which have come from the slot. In his career, Johnson has allowed 71 completions on 101 targets but held pass catchers to just 6.4 yards per catch with one interception and pass breakup. He was also a very active run defender this past season.

30. Brian Branch, Alabama: Like Johnson, the majority of Branch’s snaps have come from the slot, according to PFF. With the Packers having Jaire Alexander, Rasul Douglas, and Eric Stokes, not to mention Savage, while they need safety help, they don’t exactly need another option from the slot, which is why as a free safety, Battle may be the best fit, unless the plan is for Branch or Johnson to be utilized more often as traditional safeties in the NFL. Branch was a stout run defender in 2022, ranking 18th in run-stop rate among safeties, and held opponents to 6.8 yards per catch with six pass breakups and one interception.

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Now, of course, just because The Draft Network has only three safeties in their top 50 doesn’t mean that things won’t change between today and the draft, or perhaps the Packers will value other players differently, leading to more options. Also, if Green Bay doesn’t land a safety in Rounds 1 or 2, it doesn’t mean they can’t find a contributor later on, but obviously, the odds of doing so decrease.

Other safeties just outside of TDN’s top 50 include JL Skinner from Boise State, Brandon Joseph from Notre Dame, and Christopher Smith from Georgia. The strength of this draft class at the top end is at the tight end, edge rusher, and cornerback positions.

As I wrote recently for Packers Wire, in addition to the draft, adding a safety in free agency makes a lot of sense for Green Bay as well. There is value in having a veteran presence in the locker room and on the practice field, not to mention that after what we saw in 2022, relying heavily on Savage comes with some risks, and even productive rookies are quite inconsistent–just look at the Packers’ 2022 draft class.

Within Joe Barry’s defense, safeties are asked to do a lot, including being a willing and capable presence in the run game with the frequent light boxes that are utilized, along with also having to protect against the big passing play downfield. Again, this is where having additional experience on the roster could help.

With limited spending power in free agency, any free agent signing likely won’t be a flashy signing or a high-impact player, but instead, the goal would be to provide depth and needed stability to the position. Bringing back Rudy Ford is a move that fits these criteria.

As of now, the Packers hold the 15th and 45th overall selections in the 2023 draft. Other positions of need are tight end, edge rusher, wide receiver, and interior defensive lineman.

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Trio of LSU players crack CBS Sports 2023 draft board

The Tigers had 10 players drafted in 2022. How many will go next spring?

The ink is barely dry on the rookie contracts signed by former LSU players who were selected in the 2022 NFL draft, but with the summer underway and a new season creeping up on the horizon, it’s not too early to start taking a look at next year’s draft prospects.

Despite a disappointing season on the field, the Tigers ultimately had 10 players selected this year, and with a number of players poised for potential breakouts, there could be a solid haul from coach Brian Kelly’s first season.

CBS Sports’ Josh Edwards, Ryan Wilson and Chris Trapasso recently released a top-50 big board for the 2023 draft class, and three current LSU players cracked the list. Here’s where each of them stands.

Top 10, err 20, err 34: Cowboys 2022 draft board expanded

The detailed investigation of the Cowboys’ draft board kept rolling, totaling 34 names that Jerry Jones flashed on draft night. | From @CDBurnett7

During the press conference following the first-round selection of offensive lineman Tyler Smith, Dallas Cowboys team owner Jerry Jones pulled a classic move. When discussing the team’s rankings of prospects, Jones said insisted they had Smith rated over fellow offensive linemen Kenyon Green and Zion Johnson; two players routinely mocked to Dallas but both gone by the time Dallas hit the clock at No. 24. This was an unpopular opinion amongst the media, and in a very successful attempt to prove it, Jones lifted up a sheet of paper with the team’s draft board on it as a visual aid.

Whether he intended this to become a detective investigation is beyond comprehension but that’s what it became. Dallas fans and media members collaborated to decipher the board that Jones held up and WFAA’s Mike Leslie got the ball rolling.

KD Drummond is a veteran in these investigations and called up his old crew to go digging. It took less than two hours for the group, and they solved the top 16 to their best ability. The list goes as follows.

  1. Kayvon Thibodeaux, DE, Oregon
  2. Evan Neal, OT, Alabama
  3. Aidan Hutchinson, DE, Michigan
  4. Garrett Wilson, WR, Ohio State
  5. Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, CB, Cincinnati
  6. Derek Stingley, Jr., CB, LSU
  7. Travon Walker, DE, Georgia
  8. Kyle Hamilton, Safety, Notre Dame
  9. Ilem Ekwonu, OT, NC State
  10. Drake London, WR, USC
  11. Jordan Davis, DT, Georgia
  12. Charles Cross, OT, Mississippi State
  13. Lewis Cine, Safety, Georgia
  14. Jameson Williams, WR, Alabama
  15. Chris Olave, WR, Ohio State
  16. Tyler Smith, OG, Tulsa

This was just the beginning of a search that continued. Jumping in was The Athletic’s Jon Machota, who jumped down the rabbit hole and came back up with 34 names on the sheet.

The board shows 14 names in the top box, signifying the 14 first-round grades according to Machota. The next 20 were second-round grades, including Chris Olave and of course Smith, who the Cowboys selected. Here’s the final 18.

17. Devin Lloyd, LB, Utah: drafted at No. 27 by the Jaguars.

18. Daxton Hill, S, Michigan: drafted at No. 31 by the Bengals.

19. Breece Hall, RB, Iowa State: drafted at No. 36 by the Jets.

20. Kenyon Green, OG, Texas A&M: drafted at No. 15 by the Texans.

21. George Karlaftis, DE, Purdue: drafted at No. 30 by the Chiefs.

22. Zion Johnson, OG, Boston College: drafted at No. 17 by the Chargers.

23. Treylon Burks, WR, Arkansas: drafted at No. 18 by the Titans.

24. Kyler Gordon, CB, Washington: drafted at No. 39 by the Bears.

25. Tyler Linderbaum, C, Iowa: drafted at No. 25 by the Ravens.

26. David Ojabo, DE, Michigan: drafted at No. 45 by the Ravens.

27. Jahan Dotson, WR, Penn State: drafted at No. 16 by the Commanders.

28. Jermaine Johnson, DE, Florida State: drafted at No. 26 by the Jets.

29. Kaiir Elam, CB, Florida: drafted at No. 23 by the Bills.

30. Arnold Ebiketie, DE, Penn State: drafted at No. 38 by the Falcons.

31. Trent McDuffie, CB, Washington: drafted at No. 21 by the Chiefs.

32. Quay Walker, LB, Georgia: drafted at No. 22 by the Packers.

33. Devonte Wyatt, DT, Georgia: drafted at No. 28 by the Packers.

34. Logan Hall, DE, Houston: drafted at No. 33 by the Buccaneers.

Knowing Jones, this was probably all part of an Emperor Palpatine level plan to stir up the Dallas sports world but there’s the full list from the front page of grades.

“The good news is, most of those players are gone,” Stephen Jones added after Jerry Jones put the paper down.

Of the 34 listed above, Breece Hall, Gordon, Ojabo, Ebiketie and Logan Hall were still available when the second round started Friday night. According to our list, Smith was the second-highest-graded player remaining behind Cine. That Dallas picked Smith over Cine shouldn’t be a surprise considering how the Cowboys have valued safety in the draft over nearly the past 20 years. Roy Williams, in 2002, is the last safety Dallas has drafted in the first or second rounds.

All is said and done from the 2022 NFL draft and that’s another case on the books for the Cowboys’ investigators and Stephen Jones might keep a tight grip on that sheet from now on.

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7 takeaways from Chiefs GM Brett Veach’s pre-draft press conference

Here are some of the things we’re taking away from #Chiefs GM Brett Veach’s pre-draft press conference:

Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach sat down with local media members for his annual pre-draft press conference on Friday. He covered a wide range of topics surrounding preparations, evaluation and different situations that could unfold during the course of the 2022 NFL draft.

Here’s a quick look at what we’re taking away from his pre-draft press conference:

Here’s where LSU prospects stand in the latest big board from ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr.

Several Tigers players cracked Kiper’s positional top 10s.

With the NFL Scouting Combine starting on Tuesday, the 2022 NFL draft will be here before we know it.

After LSU’s 6-7 season in 2021, it doesn’t have as many top prospects in this year’s class as it has in years past, but with that being said, there are still a number of players that will almost certainly hear their names called.

The highlight is Derek Stingley Jr., the cornerback who had a breakout true freshman season in 2019 but has been limited to 10 games over the last two seasons and played in just three last year after undergoing midseason surgery to repair a Lisfranc fracture. He’s the Tigers’ only projected first-round pick.

But overall, 10 players from the Bayou declared for the draft, and many of them could find themselves off the board following in Days 2 and 3 of the draft. Here’s where every former LSU player lands on the latest big board from ESPN’s Mel Kiper.

Where do Florida prospects stack up on Mel Kiper Jr.’s big board?

Here’s where each UF prospect stands on Kiper’s board, starting with Elam.

As the 2021 college football season draws closer and closer to an end, it’s becoming time to evaluate potential pro prospects and turn our attention toward the 2022 NFL draft. ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. released his latest big board this week, and it features a number of Florida players in his positional top 10s.

Despite the fact that the Gators have struggled on the field this season there are several players who Kiper is high on, including cornerback Kaiir Elam, who is considered among the best cornerbacks in the country.

Here’s where each UF prospect stands on Kiper’s board, starting with Elam, the only one projected to go during the first day.