NFL execs' unfiltered comments on the NFL draft [article, paywall]

[Logic]

Thought this article at The Athletic was pretty cool. Anonymous comments by NFL executives on the results of the draft. It has comments for every team. I'll paste a few random comments I liked, as well as some AFC East stuff of interest. If you have The Athletic, though, the whole article is worth a read. Really helps ease the draft withdrawal. 


https://theathletic.com/2572409/2021/05/07/justin-fields-better-than-zach-wilson-micah-parsons-potential-with-cowboys-execs-unfiltered-on-nfl-draft/

 

Justin Fields better than Zach Wilson? Micah Parsons’ potential with Cowboys? Execs Unfiltered on NFL Draft

Mike Sando 5h ago


Random comments I liked:

"[undrafted] free agency started in the 5th round" [Logic's note: Guess this guy didn't think it was a very good draft class. Have heard similar comments from others].

.........

“The Raiders continue to have some of the most baffling drafts I have ever seen,” this exec said. “The guy they took at 17, (Alex) Leatherwood, is no different than them taking Clelin Ferrell (fourth in 2019) and the corner from Ohio State (Damon Arnette at 19 last year). If you have a head coach making that decision or guys who don’t know the league, you misrepresent the value.”

 

“You can like players, but you’re not capitalizing on value when you take them above their grade,” 

..........

On Zaven Collins: 

GM Steve Keim called first-round pick Zaven Collins less of a positional projection than previous picks, notably Haasan Reddick. Execs agreed with the assessment. Keim also compared Collins to Tremaine Edmunds, the linebacker Buffalo selected in the same slot (16th) back in 2018. Execs objected — “not even close,” one of them said.

..........

On Justin Fields:

“I had Fields ahead of Zach Wilson and Trey Lance,” an exec said. “The body of work was certainly better. Trey Lance requires a lot of development. The key for Fields will be putting some weapons around him and featuring his mobility. The guy is a running back with the skillset to play quarterback. You get the run game going, with his ability to execute play-action and hit the deep ball, and he is very intriguing.”

..........

On Trey Lance:

“You can’t pick the Alabama guy, Mac Jones, and have it turn out to be Daniel Jones,” an exec said. “You have to pick the guy that looks the part and has big-time upside. Lance is starting exactly where the Buffalo guy (Josh Allen) started. High grit, high want-to, works at it, loves the game, all those things that make you feel good about him developing.”

Buffalo Bills:

Gregory Rousseau (30th) and Carlos Basham (61st) were the defensive ends Buffalo selected after the Colts took Kwity Paye (21st) and Dayo Odeyingbo (54th).

“Kwity Paye and Dayo are significantly better than Rousseau and ‘Boogie’ Basham,” an exec said. “Rousseau is developmental. Long, lean defensive end who is not particularly physical or violent. I would rather have the Indy guys because they present more of a physical play style.”

Teams looking for defensive linemen had to hurry. Buffalo, Indy, New Orleans, Baltimore and Tampa were among the 2020 playoff teams selecting defensive end types between picks 21-32.

“Sean McDermott has coached linebackers, he has coached the secondary and he knows it’s so much easier to play defense when the other QB is under duress, so they go D-line early,” an exec said. “Sean also knows it’s a lot better for his own personal EKG when his quarterback stands in a facsimile of a pocket and delivers the ball on time rather than running around, so their next two picks are for the o-line.”

Rousseau joins Tre’Davious White (27th in 2017), Tremaine Edmunds (16th in 2018) and Ed Oliver (9th in 2019) as defensive first-round picks for Buffalo since McDermott became coach. Quarterback Josh Allen is the only offensive first-round pick for McDermott’s Bills.

“Buffalo’s picks fit the head coach,” an evaluator said. “Defensive head coach, they go defense. They already have a good scheme, they already have a good understanding of what makes for a good fit in their system. And there they go, they get two guys who the head coach clearly has a vision for — seems pretty good.”



Miami Dolphins:

A big debate entering the draft was whether the Dolphins were wise in trading up from 12 to 6 in a pre-draft deal with Philadelphia, not long after dropping from 3 to 12 in a deal with San Francisco. Did the Dolphins really need to regain six spots in the order to get the player they wanted? The move cost Miami a 2022 first-round pick, but the Dolphins still own an additional 2023 first-rounder from the 49ers.

“You have to go through the totality of the trade,” an exec said. “They did not give up a first. They still walked away from the draft with an extra first. Did they have to trade back up weeks before the draft? No, I do not think they needed to. They would have gotten better value if they waited. But, bottom line is, they came away with four really good players in the first two rounds, and they still picked up a future one.”

We now know what the tradeoffs were for Miami and Philadelphia. It’s a relatively clean theoretical comparison because both teams were intent upon selecting wide receivers with those picks. The Dolphins preferred one Alabama receiver (Jaylen Waddle) to another (DeVonta Smith) and were willing to pay a premium for the difference. That is a simple way to analyze Miami’s strategy, as the Eagles would land Smith at 10 after trading up two spots at the cost of a third-rounder.

Let’s say the Dolphins were determined to land one of the draft’s top wideouts. If you were the Dolphins, would you rather lose a 2021 third-round pick to jump from 12 to 10 for Smith, or would you rather lose a 2022 first-rounder and 33 spots in the middle rounds of the current draft for the ability to land Waddle at six? That was one potential tradeoff for the Dolphins. But it could be a mirage.

“A team like Miami does not sit there and say, ‘OK, let’s trade back to 12, we are good with these three receivers and whichever one falls to us, we are happy,’ ” an evaluator said.

“The reality is, that high in the draft, yes, they are all good players, but teams have one guy they really like. When you have more than one guy, you have no guy and you make bad decisions. Being happy with six or seven guys in a slot works later in the draft.”

There was some thought Miami positioned itself at 6 partly because there was additional upside in case Florida tight end Kyle Pitts slipped past Atlanta and Cincinnati.

“They knew they were going to get a very good player at 6,” an exec said. “They know they picked up a future one. What’s wrong with that? It’s better than sitting at 12 and Pitts happens to be there at 6 or nobody lets you get up and the two players you really coveted offensively, you can’t get either one of them, but you have two future ones. Who gives a ***** then? I don’t think you can be critical of their draft at all.”

At worst, the Dolphins sacrificed a future first-round pick on a 5-foot-10, 182-pound player at a position that is relatively easy to fill but also easy to misevaluate.

“
Are they better off with Waddle at six, or the trade with the Bears where they get the Bears’ one next year?” an exec said. “You would have your own one, another from Chicago and another from San Francisco, plus San Francisco’s one in 2023, and if your young quarterback faltered, you’d have the ammo to be in the mix for Rodgers, Wilson, Watson or whoever else might be available.”

Had the Dolphins traded back to 20 in a deal with Chicago, they would have been in Kadarius Toney territory from a wide receiver standpoint.

“You take a wideout at 6, that is Julio Jones-ish,” an exec said. “They get a small-body wideout at six, and I think it’s risky. From their standpoint, it’s like, ‘Well, we went from 3 to 6 and we got X, Y and Z,’ but the price from 3 to 6 should be more than a 2023 one and whatever else they got. Is Jalen Waddle worth two ones? Maybe, but *****, if you are them, you might be able to have Julio for a two. I presume their thinking was that someone would trade in ahead of them for a QB and maybe they get Chase or Pitts.”



New York Jets:
 

Without question, this draft is going to remake and upgrade the Jets, especially on offense. That might say as much about what the organization put on the field previously as it says about the new draft choices. The Jets are the only team in the league with zero Pro Bowlers on offense over the past five seasons.

“They were so bad, you could almost put the salary-cap guy out there himself and it might be an upgrade,” an exec said.

It hasn’t come to that for the Jets. Quarterback Zach Wilson, guard/tackle Alijah Vera-Tucker and receiver Elijah Moore are going to play right away, and play lots.

“They had a good rounds 1-4 for sure,” an exec said. “I like the fit for Wilson in that offense. He just is small. I don’t care what he measured, he is not a big-boned guy and he has missed games, and that makes me a little nervous. But his ability to throw, his arm strength and his quick release and athletic ability and all that, I mean, I see all that.”

The Jets drafted Vera-Tucker after trading up from 23 to 14. The move was similar in scale and price to the 2007 trade the Jets made in climbing from 25 to 14 for cornerback Darrelle Revis. The Revis trade-up ranks among the great moves in franchise history. Landing an offensive lineman can never be as sexy, but it’s tough finding evaluators with anything negative to say about Vera-Tucker. The questions pertain mostly to where on the line he’ll be most effective.

“They could have had (Christian) Darrisaw at 23, but Vera-Tucker is a cleaner prospect who is more versatile,” an exec said. “You’re trying to protect your young quarterback? Yes, I support it. And Vera-Tucker would have been gone by 23.

The trade-up for Vera-Tucker cost the Jets 23, 66 and 86. They received 14 and 143 in return. The Revis trade-up cost the Jets 25, 59 and 164. They received 14 and 191 in return.

“Vera-Tucker is a good pick, and Moore should be good from Ole Miss — real quick, real fast, very good hands, good run after the catch, ran in the 4.3s,” an evaluator said. “The running back from North Carolina (Michael Carter) is a good player, too.”

 

Edited May 7, 2021 by Logic

[scuba guy]

Logic

 

Good read tks

 

Nothing on the cheats

[Kwai San]

46 minutes ago, scuba guy said:

Logic

 

Good read tks

 

Nothing on the cheats

 

No need too! 🤣

[RochesterLifer]

1 hour ago, Logic said:

GM Steve Keim called first-round pick Zaven Collins less of a positional projection than previous picks, notably Haasan Reddick. Execs agreed with the assessment. Keim also compared Collins to Tremaine Edmunds, the linebacker Buffalo selected in the same slot (16th) back in 2018. Execs objected — “not even close,” one of them said.

Are the execs saying (he asks hopefully) that Edmunds is considered far better?

[CorkScrewHill]

wait .. what????

 

"GM Steve Keim also compared Collins to Tremaine Edmunds, the linebacker Buffalo selected in the same slot (16th) back in 2018. Execs objected — “not even close,” one of them said."

 

So Keim thinks Tremaine is as good as his 14th pick in the draft and other experts who like Collins .. say that the rookie picked in the 14th spot is no where near Tremaine???? I don't understand. I thought Tremaine was junk ... do they not read TBD????

 

Well I guess if I have to choose I will trust the couch GMs over the guys who get paid to do this  ...

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

Regarding the Raiders unusual urgency for picking a player early:

 

“You can like players, but you’re not capitalizing on value when you take them above their grade,” 
*
Screw you.  If Mark Davis, Maycock, and Chuckie want to handle the draft like three drunks in a golf cart, let them.  The executive making the statement sounds like the stockbroker who's getting you 1/4 of one percent on your investments annually, but he just got a newer and bigger Jaguar.

[Logic]

1 hour ago, scuba guy said:

Logic

 

Good read tks

 

Nothing on the cheats

I was thinking about posting their bit, too, but I felt like I had already copy and pasted quite a bit. I get to feeling weird about posting paywall content. Don't want to steal too much from journalists who make their living off this stuff.

Suffice it to say that the execs quoted don't think Mac Jones will be seeing the field for a while, and seem to have more faith in Cam rebounding than Many Bills fans do.

[Punching Bag]

38 minutes ago, CorkScrewHill said:

Well I guess if I have to choose I will trust the couch GMs over the guys who get paid to do this  ...

 

Depends on GM.  Remember Lions signed a member of fourth estate as GM but yea usually.

[Charles Romes]

It’s funny because Al Davis, now gone for a decade, constantly did the same thing. Take players way over their projection and not give a $&@& about what anyone thinks about it. It’s almost as if Mayock and junior keep doing it so they can make themselves more Raidery. 

[WideNine]

4 hours ago, CorkScrewHill said:

 

 

So Keim thinks Tremaine is as good as his 14th pick in the draft and other experts who like Collins .. say that the rookie picked in the 14th spot is no where near Tremaine???? I don't understand. I thought Tremaine was junk ... do they not read TBD????

 

Well I guess if I have to choose I will trust the couch GMs over the guys who get paid to do this  ...

 

 

To be fair, I think we have over a hundred pages of posts going over what Tremaine does well and where his game needs to improve. I don't think there is one of them that says Tremaine is "junk".

 

By TBD standards the debate about what he does well and what he struggles doing in our defensive system has been shockingly thoughtful and informative.

 

He has room to grow and his ceiling with his physical gifts is pretty hard to ignore. How much that is worth and how much the team is willing to bet towards a long-term deal are legit topics to debate.

 

 

 

 

Edited May 7, 2021 by WideNine

[Sbucholz]

Anyone else get the spins from hearing endless debate on the merits of certain players...the cocksure commentary and predictions only to be followed by segments on greatest draft busts and "it takes 3 years to assess the effectiveness of a draft class"...go figure.

[DJB]

5 hours ago, CorkScrewHill said:

wait .. what????

 

"GM Steve Keim also compared Collins to Tremaine Edmunds, the linebacker Buffalo selected in the same slot (16th) back in 2018. Execs objected — “not even close,” one of them said."

 

So Keim thinks Tremaine is as good as his 14th pick in the draft and other experts who like Collins .. say that the rookie picked in the 14th spot is no where near Tremaine???? I don't understand. I thought Tremaine was junk ... do they not read TBD????

 

Well I guess if I have to choose I will trust the couch GMs over the guys who get paid to do this  ...

 

Would have loved to see the same question regarding Tremaine vs Parsons. 

[Never NEVER Give-up]

5 hours ago, Logic said:

I was thinking about posting their bit, too, but I felt like I had already copy and pasted quite a bit. I get to feeling weird about posting paywall content. Don't want to steal too much from journalists who make their living off this stuff.

 

I hear you but I look at it more as a free peek for non-subscribers that could turn into paying customers for The Athletic (as long as you overtly cite them as the source).  Excerpts like this is why I now subscribe to The Athletic.  If I hadn't seen stuff like you shared, I wouldn't have subscribed because I wouldn't have known what I was getting for my money.  Now I do and it is worth it!