Tag: meeting

Cowboys among teams to formally meet with Utah TE Dalton Kincaid

Kincaid won’t do drills in Indy, but has an impressive body of work. The Cowboys may be in the market, with Dalton Schultz likely to leave. | From @ToddBrock24f7

The Cowboys have a big decision looming with veteran tight end Dalton Schultz, a decision that will certainly be at least somewhat affected by the encouraging production they got from a pair of promising rookies in 2022.

But none of that precludes them from entertaining even more options at the position in the upcoming draft.

The team has had a formal meeting with Utah’s Dalton Kincaid ahead of next month’s draft. The tight end confirmed the news to media members at the scouting combine in Indianapolis.

The 23-year-old Las Vegas native transferred to Utah in 2020 from the University of San Diego. In 31 games with the Utes, the 6-foot-4-inch Kincaid scored 16 touchdowns, putting him within the school’s all-time top ten. He was a John Mackey Award finalist and a first-team All-Pac-12 honoree in 2022, and he finished his college career leading all FBS tight ends in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.

He told reporters he will not be participating in drills at the combine as he continues to rehab from an back injury suffered while making an acrobatic touchdown grab in the Utes’ Nov. 26 routing of Colorado. He went on to play in the Pac-12 Championship versus USC the next week, hauling in 16 catches for 234 yards and a score, but the fifth-year senior did not suit up for the Rose Bowl.

He’s an intriguing prospect and certainly worth the Cowboys talking to, if for no other reason than doing due diligence on a possible early-rounder. (Mel Kiper Jr. even sent Kincaid to Dallas in the first round of his latest mock draft.) But does the team’s apparent interest in him give any clues about how the Dallas front office is looking at the tight end named Dalton they already have?

Schultz has been a rock-solid contributor in the three seasons since Jason Witten left Dallas to play for the Raiders, notching over 55 catches and more than 550 yards in each of those years. He was the second-leading pass-catcher on the roster last season, trailing only CeeDee Lamb in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns, all while playing on a $10.9 million franchise tag.

The Cowboys could elect to franchise tag him again in 2023, at a cost of $13.1 million, but it’s more likely Schultz will depart as a free agent, no matter who the club is eyeing with the 26th pick in the draft.

First-year players Jake Ferguson and Peyton Hendershot were welcome additions to the roster in 2022. Ferguson, the fourth-round pick out of Wisconsin, finished with 19 catches for 174 yards and a pair of scores, while Hendershot, the undrafted free agent out of Indiana, added 11 receptions for 103 yards and two touchdowns.

But Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy has never shied away from collecting big-bodied tight ends. And if his recent remarks about a desire to “run the damn ball” more are to be believed, the tight end position becomes even more valuable as both a blocker and a safety valve.

Kincaid revealed that he’s also met with the Packers and Bengals while at the combine.

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Former Raiders QB Derek Carr to meet with Jets after visiting Saints

Former Raiders quarterback Derek Carr is taking his free agent tour to the New York Jets after visiting the Saints in New Orleans last week:

And we’re off. Former Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr will take his free agent visit with the New York Jets this weekend after meeting with the New Orleans Saints last week; New Orleans sought to trade for Carr to prevent this exact scenario. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo first reported news of Carr’s impending visit, which was confirmed by multiple outlets. SI’s Albert Breer says Carr is scheduled to meet with the Jets on Friday night and return for a second day of discussions on Saturday.

New York is expected to be a big player in the quarterback market this offseason, whether that means signing Carr to a lucrative contract or maybe trading for Green Bay Packers passer Aaron Rodgers, or something else entirely. They have more money and assets to throw around than the Saints do right now, and they recently hired Carr’s former offensive coordinator Todd Downing to their coaching staff. They’re a real suitor.

What happens if the Saints aren’t able to land Carr? Rodgers feels like an unrealistic target, as does Baltimore Ravens franchise tag candidate Lamar Jackson. That might mean running it back with Andy Dalton again or signing another retread like Baker Mayfield, and potentially drafting a rookie to develop.

But time isn’t on Saints coach Dennis Allen’s side after a disappointing 7-10 season. If Jameis Winston is going to be released, as is expected, he’ll likely be looking for a veteran free agent who can play right away rather than a rookie who needs a year to prepare for the starting job.

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Derek Carr had dinner with Saints brass, visiting team facility a second day

Derek Carr had dinner with Saints brass, returns to visit the team facility for a second day of meetings, as first reported by @nick_underhill:

The New Orleans Saints kicked off a second day of meetings with Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr on Thursday, per NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill, who adds that the Saints took Carr out to dinner on Wednesday night after he spent the day meeting with coaches and touring the team facility. It’s developing into a drawn-out recruiting pitch, but a second day suggests he’s receptive to what they’re selling him.

And the clock is ticking. The Raiders will be on the hook for more than $40 million in guaranteed money over the next two years if Carr is on their roster after 3 p.m. CT on Wednesday, Feb. 15. They’re hoping to reach an agreement to trade him to another team like the Saints prior to that deadline, or else he’ll be released and become a free agent.

New Orleans probably can’t afford to enter a bidding war with other teams should Carr hit the open market so they have some incentive to reach a deal with Las Vegas, but a trade will only materialize if Carr is happy with the situation he’s walking into thanks to his no-trade clause. That gives him a ton of leverage and agency in these discussions, but it’s notable that he hasn’t yet scheduled any future meetings with other teams as this window continues to shrink. The Saints are very much in the driver’s seat.

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Chiefs had pre-draft meeting with Washington S Alex Cook at Hula Bowl

The #Chiefs met with a former teammate of Trent McDuffie’s at the Hula Bowl.

All-star game season is upon us and we’re going to start hearing about some pre-draft meetings that the Kansas City Chiefs have held with 2023 NFL draft prospects.

The first prospect that they’ve met with is at the safety position, which could quietly be a big need for the Chiefs with Juan Thornhill and Deon Bush slated for free agency. According to the Draft Network’s Justin Melo, Kansas City is one of the 10 teams that met with Washington S Alex Cook at the Hula Bowl over the past week.

Cook also met with the Raiders, Dolphins, Titans, Ravens, Giants, Bills, Lions, Eagles and 49ers.

A teammate of the Chiefs’ first-round draft pick in the 2022 NFL draft, Trent McDuffie, Cook was voted team captain in his final year at Washington and earned a Second-Team All-PAC-12 selection. The 6-foot and 195-pound Cook was recruited as a wide receiver out of high school, but he ended up making the switch to defensive back in 2019 and never looked back.

Over the past two seasons, Cook has appeared in 24 games with the Huskies, recording 128 total tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, two passes defended and an interception. He won a number of team awards in 2022, including the Guy Flaherty Most Inspirational Award, Defensive Skill Player of the Year, the Chuck Niemi Big Hit Award, and the Starving Dawg Award.

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Sean Payton schedules in-person interview with the Denver Broncos

Sean Payton has scheduled his first in-person interview with the Denver Broncos, who will meet with him as soon as NFL rules allow:

Sean Payton has scheduled his first formal interview for another team’s head coach vacancy, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The Denver Broncos will meet with the former New Orleans Saints head coach as soon as NFL rules allow them to talk shop — Payton will meet with Broncos brass first thing in the morning on Tuesday, Jan. 17 in Los Angeles.

Payton has previously spoken with Broncos owner Greg Penner remotely as a way of introduction, though league bylaws prevented them from taking the conversation anywhere in depth. Penner is new to the NFL after purchasing Denver’s franchise back in August at the head of a unique ownership group, so that at least allowed them to break the ice with Payton.

And, yes, the Broncos have enough draft picks to acquire Payton after previously trading for franchise quarterback Russell Wilson. Denver owns the San Francisco 49ers’ first round pick in 2023 (through a trade with the Miami Dolphins) as well as back-to-back third rounders (one of which is coming from the Indianapolis Colts), and they have a full slate of picks to work with in 2024 and 2025.

Things wouldn’t have progressed to this stage if they didn’t already have an idea of what the Saints want in return for Payton’s services, so the Broncos are very serious contenders. Of course it all comes down as to whether Payton wants the job, so their efforts may end up being in vain. Stay tuned.

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Peter Schrager says Sean Payton gave the Saints a pep talk before Raiders blowout

NFL Network host Peter Schrager says Sean Payton gave the Saints a pep talk before they beat the Raiders, their only win in five games:

Well this isn’t what you want to hear. NFL Network host Peter Schrager was a guest on the Bill Simmons Podcast this week, and he shared a nugget about the New Orleans Saints — who have won just a single game out of their last five matchups, which Schrager credits to a surprise “pep talk” from former Saints head coach Sean Payton ahead of their 24-0 blowout win against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 8.

“But I’ll tell you what’s interesting about (the Saints), I don’t know that it was reported at the time but I can say it now,” Schrager began. He continued, chuckling, “Sean Payton popped in because he had something to do in New Orleans, and like gave them a pep talk that week, they won 24-nothing. And then Sean Payton leaves, and it’s like, maybe the worst thing he could have done was give them a taste of the Sean Payton magic. Because they won 24-nothing once he lit a fire under their asses, he called out the defense, then he goes back to L.A. where he’s living in Manhattan Beach or wherever, they’re back to not being able to stop or score any points, you know?”

It had been reported that Payton visited the facility to catch up with old friends, but this is the first we’ve heard of him addressing the team. It’s a really bad look for Dennis Allen that the only game his team has won over the last month came after his old boss spent a few hours in the facility. Maybe Payton was doing him a favor in hyping up the squad for a game against the franchise that once fired Allen as head coach.

Regardless of anyone’s motivations here, this report doesn’t do much to help quiet the narrative of Allen working as a substitute teacher while Payton is on hiatus. Odds are Payton won’t return to New Orleans once he’s ready to coach again, even though the Saints might try and move mountains to win him back. But incidents like this only make it harder to tell what’s really going on, and to guess at what might be up next. We’ll just have to wait and see how things develop as the Saints finish out their season.

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Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence excited to work with new coach Doug Pederson

“Everyone’s really excited, everyone’s really relieved that we got our guy, and to be able to move forward and just go to work now is a good feeling,” Lawrence said.

Before the Jacksonville Jaguars formally announced former Philadelphia Eagles coach Doug Pederson as their seventh full-time head coach in franchise history, he had the opportunity to meet with the hopeful franchise quarterback in Trevor Lawrence.

Lawrence, who had a disappointing first year overall but flashed moments of brilliance that illustrated why he was the top pick in the 2021 NFL draft, said that the first meeting between the two was productive. It’s clear that he’s very excited to work with the new head coach, who replaces Urban Meyer — the legendary college coach whose foray into the NFL ended unceremoniously after just 13 games.

“We’re really excited… [Pederson] just seems like a really great guy, obviously he’s had a lot of success, his résumé kind of speaks for itself,” Lawrence said in a video posted by the Jags Twitter account. He’s an offensive guy, he played quarterback in the NFL, all those things make me really excited and something that I’m excited to get to work with him and see what he brings to the table.

“Everyone’s really excited, everyone’s really relieved that we got our guy, and to be able to move forward and just go to work now is a good feeling.”

The two spoke on the phone on Thursday night shortly after his deal with the team was finalized, but Saturday morning was the first time the pair met in person. Lawrence said he got a good idea of Pederson’s vision for the team moving forward.

“Just getting to know each other, that was the first part of the phone call,” Lawrence said. “Then after that, just talking a little bit of ball, kind of his philosophy, things that he likes to do. Obviously, he played the quarterback position so he sees it through my lens more so than a lot of coaches who haven’t played the position.

“That was really cool to talk to him and hear his take on a lot of things and just vaguely his plan, obviously you can’t get into all the details. But just really excited, he seems super prepared like he’s got a great plan, and I think it’s going to go over really well with the whole team.”

It certainly seems likely that Lawrence will benefit from an offensive-minded hire in Pederson, especially one who has a history of both playing and coaching the quarterback position, specifically. Pederson spent most of his playing career as a backup to Hall-of-Fame quarterback Brett Favre before coaching for the Eagles, later following coach Andy Reid to Kansas City to serve as offensive coordinator.

However, the gem of his coaching career is his victory over Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII with backup Nick Foles as his quarterback. That game set up an interesting coincidence, as Pederson was invited to speak at a Clemson practice just after Lawrence enrolled early as a freshman.

“I’ve heard a lot of great things, he’s actually really close with a lot of people at Clemson, actually the first time I saw him in person, we didn’t really meet, but I was a freshman, just got to Clemson in spring practice,” Lawrence said. “That was after they won the Super Bowl in Philadelphia, so he was there, coach (Dabo) Swinney invited him to speak at one of their clinics and he came to practice and talked with the team.

“Apparently, he told me on the phone, coach Swinney told him then, ‘Hey, watch out for this guy, he’s going to be a good one one day,’ and now he’s the head coach here and we’re on the same team. It’s cool how everyone comes full circle, it’s a small world, and just really excited to work with him.”

The two ended up together after all, and both Lawrence and Jaguars fans will hope the duo leads the Jaguars to the best days in franchise history after a decade of futility.

Packers meet with Auburn receiver and returner Eli Stove

The Green Bay Packers held a virtual pre-draft meeting with Auburn receiver and returner Eli Stove, according to Justin Melo of The Draft Network. 

The Green Bay Packers held a virtual pre-draft meeting with Auburn receiver and returner Eli Stove, according to Justin Melo of The Draft Network.

Stove, an experienced special teams player, saw action in 52 games at Auburn. He caught 136 passes for 1,186 yards and six touchdowns, rushed 55 times for 554 yards and four touchdowns, and returned three kickoffs and four punts.

Stove ranks fifth in school history with 136 catches. He had career-highs in catches (40) and receiving yards (330) over seven games as a senior, including 85 total yards and a touchdown against LSU.

The Packers could see Stove as a gadget weapon on offense with an ability to contribute as a returner and cover man on kicks and punts.

Stove’s lack of elite-level athleticism will likely mean he’s an undrafted free agent option.

The SEC named Stove to the conference’s Community Service Team in 2020.  He participated in the Hula Bowl following the season.

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Alabama LB prospect Dylan Moses says he’s met with the Saints

The New Orleans Saints have reportedly met with Alabama LB Dylan Moses, a top prospect in the 2021 NFL draft with an injury history.

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The New Orleans Saints need more linebackers after cutting Kwon Alexander and losing Alex Anzalone this offseason, and Alabama prospect Dylan Moses might fit the bill. Moses reflected on his pre-draft experience with WWL’s Amos Morale III, noting “quite a bit” of attention from New Orleans.

When asked what sort of interaction he’s had with the Saints, Moses replied: “Just speaking to them online and having to give them my background information and all that. The majority of it they already know but it’s cool to be able to speak to the hometown team.”

All team-prospect interviews are being conducted virtually again this year due to COVID-19 protocols, but Saints decision-makers Sean Payton and Mickey Loomis were in Alabama for the Crimson Tide’s second pro day this week. However, Moses wasn’t working out while recovering from February knee surgery.

A Baton Rouge native and former LSU Tigers commit, Moses went on to play for Alabama until a 2019 ACL tear sidelined him. He battled through a torn meniscus in 2020 until he went under the knife in the offseason. And his game tape reflects the movement issues that came from those injuries; he wasn’t the same effective player in coverage that he had been in 2020, struggling to move laterally and turn to flip his hips while trailing receivers downfield.

That’s hurt his draft stock, and not being able to work out won’t help. Moses was once a surefire first-round prospect, but it’s now less clear where he can expect to be drafted. If a team is comfortable with their read of his medicals, maybe he still gets picked late in the first round or somewhere in round two. But he might make more sense for the Saints with one of their third rounders.

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Packers meet virtually with Syracuse DB Trill Williams

The Packers held a virtual pre-draft meeting with Syracuse defensive back Trill Williams.

The Green Bay Packers are one of several teams to meet with a versatile defensive back prospect in the 2021 NFL draft.

According to Justin Melo of The Draft Network, the Packers met or will meet virtually with Syracuse defensive back Trill Williams, who played multiple positions in the secondary during a three-year career in the ACC.

Almost half of the NFL has met or will meet with Williams at this point in the draft process. His athleticism, size and versatility provide insight into why interest is so high.

Williams produced 93 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, four interceptions, three forced fumbles and six pass breakups over 28 games at Syracuse. He also scored three defensive touchdowns, including an interception return for a score in 2020 and a 94-yard game-ending fumble return for a touchdown to end the 2019 season.

Syracuse played Williams at cornerback, in the slot and at safety, giving him a versatile profile as he enters the NFL draft.

From his profile at The Draft Network: “Williams is long, rangy, athletic, physical, and aggressive. His physical skill set is exceptional and he doesn’t have any restrictions. He is springy and explosive, capable of thriving in both man and zone coverage...For a team looking for a versatile defensive back that can be a matchup-neutralizer, Williams has the physical gifts to do that. There is immense potential when it comes to the roles he can fill in the NFL and the ways he can make an impact.”

The Packers certainly have a need at cornerback, both on the perimeter and in the slot, and Williams’ versatility to play safety could be appealing for new defensive coordinator Joe Barry.

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