NFL Network Media Conference

Friday, February 21, 2020 Daniel Jeremiah

THE MODERATOR: Thank you for joining us today on the conference call with NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah to preview the upcoming 2020 NFL Scouting Combine.

DANIEL JEREMIAH: It's going to be fun. It's going to be a fun draft. Getting ready for this Combine and just kind of immersing myself in this tape here for the last couple of months.

A couple of big-picture takeaways, you always start with the quarterbacks. It's really a fascinating -- it's a fascinating group because you've got tons of ability with these guys, but there are some question marks kind of. You begin with Joe Burrow, the best college season I've seen from a quarterback that he had this last year. The question that's there is what happened from last year to this year to see such a jump. And I think I've got a handle on that. But that's the question out there on him.

You've got Tua with the medical situation, obviously a phenomenal player. And the next group, Herbert has been a little bit up and down; Love, grade 18, (indiscernible) 19; and Jacob Eason with a lot of talent as well.

It's an intriguing group of quarterbacks. But in terms of the depth and the talent in this draft, wide receivers and corners, especially the wide receiver group, as deep as I've seen.

I've got 27 wide receivers with top 3-round grades in this draft. And consider average 31 are taken. We had a max of 35 taken in, I believe that was in 2017.

So this is a really phenomenal group of wideouts. Not all those guys are going to go early. They'll end up spreading throughout the draft. But it's really a good group.

Really good at corner, really good at running back. When you look at some positions, maybe not quite as deep -- tight end, edge rusher and linebacker, just a little bit of a shallow group there.

We've got special player in Chase Young, who I think is the best player in the draft. And just overall a lot of storylines. The teams that need quarterbacks, they're clumped together -- five, six, and seven, Dolphins, Chargers, Panthers. And they're clumped together -- 12, 13, 14, with Raiders, Colts, Bucs. So how the jockeying for position takes place for the quarterbacks is going to be a lot of fun to follow.

Q. Daniel, can you discuss the Georgia prospect? And then Jake Fromm, what he has to prove to the NFL scouts? And Andrew Thomas are the two that I'm most interested in. DANIEL JEREMIAH: Sure. I mean there's a bunch of them. I won't go through all of them but I think when you look at Jake, I had a chance to go visit with Jake and watch him work out. When you visit with him, you're immediately impressed just talking with him.

He's very mature. He's engaging. You can see how he's won over the locker room there at Georgia. He's going to be impressive when you get in the room and get on the board and talk Xs and Os, very sharp.

The knock on him, the concern has really been pure arm strength. When I've watched him, I've seen throws, I've seen him make deep outs from the far hash in the Florida game. You see examples of it, but there's other times where the ball hangs and the ball dies.

I think mechanically he can help with some things there to get his lower body more involved. And I know he's been down in Mobile, Alabama at QB Country working with David Morris and Daniel Jones is down there. He's starting to make progress there.

That's his challenge. I have him in that second-round range. And I don't think he's for everybody. But I think if you've got run-game defense and you want somebody to be efficient and make good decisions, I think that's who Jake is.

When you look at some of these other players from Georgia, I have Swift as their top player at running back. He reminds me a lot of DeAngelo Williams when he was coming out. He's compact but he's got great patience, vision and quickness. He can really drop his shoulder and power through tackles. He's the first-round back, to me, in this draft.

Andrew Thomas, you mentioned the big left tackle, he's powerful, he's dominant in the run game. He can anchor in pass protection. He's very aware. He's just on the ground a little bit for me. That was concern, some of the balance issues.

I know some teams would like him to kick over to the right side, but I definitely think he's a first-round tackle. And you go through the rest -- Georgia has so many guys, all these linemen, Isaiah Wilson is intriguing because he's so big, 6'7", 340 pounds. He's a little bit stiff.

But he's got a lot of ability and you kind of go all the way down through the list. A lot of the other guys I think are day-three players.

J.R. Reed, the safety, is the only one I have yet to do. I've got about eight or nine safeties left to watch at least one of them. I'll get to him before we get to Indy.

Q. A couple tight ends I was curious about. Number one what jumps out to you about Harrison Bryant's skill set when you look at him? And then when you're assessing Brycen Hopkins how do you juggle the upside versus project equation with him? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Sure. Good question. When I look at this tight end position, I think there's really kind of, I have it with 1, 2, 3 guys right there at the top, where I have the same grades on Adam Trautman from Dayton, Harrison Bryant, who you mentioned at FAU, and Cole Kmet from Notre Dame. I think all those guys are in position to potentially be the first tight end picked. I don't think any of them are first-round guys.

But when I look at Harrison Bryant, they split him out. They use him all over the place. I was a little bit interested to see what he would look like in the run game. I thought the Senior Bowl he did a really nice job. Obviously athletic, can high point the ball, an easy mover. Kind of a Dennis Pitta type of player, I thought he was. And he did a good job blocking when he got to the Senior Bowl. I think he's in the mix to be the first overall guy.

And then when you look at Hopkins, he's real fluid. He's a clean route runner, but I just, man, there was a lot of drops when I watched him. So that was kind of my concern there. And you're going to need to continue to grow and develop as a blocker.

So I put him, literally the grade I gave him is a developmental grade which kind of puts him in the fourth-, fifth-round range.

Q. I wonder what you think of the changes, some of the changes in the Combine that specifically dropping the number of interviews from 60 down to 45 and maybe some of the drill changes, anything significant there in your eyes? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I like what they've done with the drills. Getting a chance to go over that yesterday and look at what they're doing. Incorporating some of the changes in the game that we can see in some of these evaluation tools.

They're going to do a smoke route drill where basically it's a quarterback, how quick can you catch, gather and fire the ball out, which is something you'll see, you watch any football game on a Sunday you're going to see that happen two or three times.

It's also going to carry over with the RPO stuff to be able to see that; how quick can you catch the ball from the gun and get the ball out of your hands? I like the red zone stuff they're doing with the receivers.

I think adding more coverage stuff with the linebackers and really dialing in on that, I think, is great. I think having the backs do more in the passing game with some of the option routes and different looks you can get at them. I think all of those are real positive.

It's been long overdue to have our evaluation tools match where the game is. I'm encouraged by that. I think it's going to be a fun part of the Combine. It's going to be refreshing to see some of these new drills.

The one thing that's interesting, I've read all these stories about people leaving personnel at home and coaches not coming to the Combine. And I don't know how I feel about that because I think when you get a chance to be around the players, as many opportunities as you can get a chance to be around them and be in the room with them when you interview them, I think there's value in that.

Now, if you want to go back and watch the workouts at home or you want to go finish your interviews, if you're a corners coach or a receivers coach, I should say, and you finish up all the receiver interviews, and you don't want to stay in the building to watch the workout, I understand that because you can watch it all on tape.

But I think it's a lost opportunity if you're a coach and you don't get a chance to be in the room to be around these players. It's just another point of contact that I think can really help you.

With the changes, starting in the evening versus the morning and the mid- morning, I'm excited about it. It's going to be fun. It's going to be good for television because we're going to get more eyeballs, and it will draw more attention to the event.

I know talking to buddies around the league, they're just kind of skeptical. They just want to see how it comes together. It's all new to them. So I think you'll have a better feel for how they like it after we get through the week.

Q. The Ravens have been pretty open about wanting to improve their front seven. When you look at them in the draft at No. 28, who do you see that could really help them there in terms of pass rusher, inside linebacker? I know you mocked Kenneth Murray, but it seems he could be potentially gone before 28 comes? DANIEL JEREMIAH: At this point in time the process trying to figure out where some of these guys are going to go is difficult. I just know when you look at their team and how they've built it and as explosive as they are on offense now, I think building your defense to be able to play with the lead, which means getting more edge rush, getting linebackers that can really, really run and cover, because teams are going to be playing catch-up because you're so dynamic and explosive on offense.

Patrick Queen to me would be a home run pick from LSU if somehow he was there. I think he should be gone by then. He's so athletic and explosive. Kenneth Murray, we just talked about. Zack Baun from Wisconsin can give you versatility as somebody who can rush (indiscernible) the cover.

When you talk about pure edge guys, you know they've tended to lean more towards the physical rushers. That's where Dave (indiscernible) from Auburn, he's a huge edge rusher who can slide from side to side as well. But he's got real powerful, strong hands -- is kind of that Ravens mentality with how he plays, just a very violent, very physical player. I can see him kind of factoring in there in that range.

If you wanted to trade back a little bit, I guess somebody like a Bradlee Anae in the second round could make some sense. And one to keep an eye out too would be the kid from Penn State, Yetur Gross-Matos, who is somebody I wasn't super in love with when I first watched him. But the more I've studied him I have to give him credit, he's a good player and he'll factor probably in the bottom of one range.

Q. When looking back at players like Orlando Brown and some of the guys who have struggled significantly in the timeline (inaudible) NFL careers, what positions do you think is the most helpful for, and how do you gauge how much this is going to (inaudible)? DANIEL JEREMIAH: You cut out on me, but I heard you talk about Orlando Brown and the Combine impact and not getting carried away with it, with your evaluation. I think it's a great example of why it's important and these teams do this is to get your boards set before the Combine. It's kind of an anchoring effect.

Once you have the board up, then maybe you can split some ties at the Combine, which is a good way to do it. If you've got the same grade, guys are clumped together, the Combine can be a good tie-breaker and factor in the workout and maybe more so there.

But in his case, he was somebody that was punished way too much for a poor workout because the tape was so good. And where he came into that Combine and where he ended up was way too far of a drop. That's kind of a great example of a warning sign there for teams that don't stray too far from your initial board once you get it up.

I just think when you get to the Combine, there's certain positions where it holds more weight with the workout, and that to me is corner. You have to be able to run at that position. You just do.

That to me is where that can have a pretty drastic impact on your draft stock, if you're playing that position and determining how you run. And then really putting more emphasis on the interview, getting to know the kid. Rely on the tape, get to know the person and use these workouts to split ties, I think that's the best way to go about it.

Q. The Cowboys have a need at safety and they'll likely lose quarterback Byron Jones to free agency, what sort of fit do you believe Xavier McKinney and C.J. Henderson would be in Dallas? Is there anything in particular you hope to see at the Combine from any defensive back who may be in consideration there in the first round? DANIEL JEREMIAH: There are two really good players. Starting with Henderson, I think he's the second best corner in the draft. I think he'll be the second one to go. He's just really explosive. He can play press. He can play off. He's real loose and fluid.

He shows the ability to play the ball down the field. Can be a little bit inconsistent there. The main knock on him is just tackling. He's just missed way too many tackles. That's kind of the flaw. But he'll put on a show in Indy. He's going to test very well, very athletic. And I think he'd be a good fit there, provides he cleans up some of the tackling.

And McKinney, I think McKinney is the best safety in the draft. I think you're going to like him more closer to the line of scrimmage. He can play high, but he's better when he can drop down and play in the box. And he's also, he's a great communicator.

And I had some scouting influences on me when I started that had come from New England. And Coach Belichick would always preach to those guys, you cannot win with a dumb safety. You've got to have an intelligent and good communicative safety. And I think that's what McKinney is to the point where they had so many linebacker injuries at Alabama they kind of played him down there in that nickel backer role and let him call the fronts and communicate.

That is a skill that he has there, and he is -- I think he's one of the safest players in the draft. I think he'll be an unbelievably great fit in Dallas.

Q. So from the Lions standpoint, let's say Burrow and Chase Young go 1, 2, and the Lions have some trade-down options, how big is the next group of defensive players -- Okudah and whoever else that you'd feel comfortable coming away with one of those guys? And how low do you think the Lions could go in the draft and still get one? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Great question. I think when you're just looking at the defensive guys, I don't think you want to go too far. I think there starts to be a little bit of a drop-off there. If you're at 3, I think you want, if you want to trade down, I don't think you want to trade off of getting out of the mix of this group of guys.

You've got Isaiah Simmons at linebacker, who is a safety/linebacker hybrid, just a playmaker overall.

Derrick Brown, if you trade down, if you trade down and come away with Derrick Brown or Okudah, I mean, that's huge. Isaiah Simmons, come in there and be a big-time player as well.

Then you start getting into Kinlaw, and that's probably the last one. And that would be the group where I'd say, okay, if you're picking at 3, I don't know that I want to go much further than six, at the furthest seven. If you get in that range, I think you come away with one of those guys.

But I think it could also be determined with what happens with the corner. If they trade Darius Slay then you say we don't want to get out of the range of Okudah because you have to have a replacement there.

Q. Where do you think the bottom is for Okudah? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Gosh, when I look at it, the interesting thing is just I don't see him getting past -- eight would be the absolute floor. And that's provided some quarterbacks really go up there, when you've got five, six and seven with the Dolphins, Chargers and Panthers. I can't see him getting to eight, but that would be the absolute floor for me. I can't see him going beyond that.

So I'd be nervous, if I was Detroit, I'd be nervous of going back any further than sixth, to be honest with you, because Carolina, that could make a lot of sense for them.

Q. Could you just highlight a couple or three guys in the first-round conversation who aren't quarterbacks that maybe have the most to gain next week? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Most to gain. I'd give you one in Wirfs, Tristan Wirfs from Iowa. I think he's somebody that has a chance to be an All-Pro guard. And I know he's played tackle, he's played on the right and the left. And he's a good tackle. I think he can play tackle in the NFL. I think he has a chance to be an elite guard.

He's got some issues -- oversetting, that can be cleaned up a little bit. I just thought he'd be better if he had neighbors on each side. But in terms of having something to gain, if he goes out there and puts on an athletic show, which I've heard there's a chance he does, then he could kind of put that to bed and say, look, I am a tackle. I'm not sliding inside; that's what I am. I think he has a chance to help himself there.

I think you could go through a long list of guys with medical stuff, just to kind of show that they're healthy. But in terms of other on-field workouts, gosh, let me give you another name here. I'm anxious to see how big and how heavy K'Lavon Chaisson is from LSU. He's an explosive edge rusher for them and got better as the season went along, tore his ACL in '18. Then as you watched him through the season you started to see him really pick it up and get better.

So I don't know, I've heard he played in the high 230s I've heard he could be in the low 250s now. So how big he is could go a long way in helping him.

And I think corner-wise it's always as I mentioned earlier it's big on the 40. So when you get some guys that maybe have a little bit of a question mark there, how fast are they going to run, I think you've got a chance to really help yourself, Kristian Fulton from LSU would be the prime example -- really solid, really good football player, just concerns about his deep speed, what does he run.

Q. I'm curious what you think the Giants do at four. I saw on your mock, you had an offensive tackle which is obviously a big need. But with the defense that needs so many playmakers, that really has no playmakers, desperate need for them? Is that a place to go? Or how you would weigh trading down for them, similar to the questions about the Lions, how you would see them trading down for more picks to fill all those holes? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Well, they've got a lot of holes. You pick up there for a reason. And I get what you're saying about finding some playmakers on the defensive side of the ball. But, look, as an organization, your number one priority is ensuring that Daniel Jones is going to grow and develop and be a success.

So if I have to go through another year of watching some vanilla, boring defense lacking in playmakers, I'm going to do that if it means I can go ahead and get my left tackle that will protect this kid for the next 10 years. That would take priority for me. I know there's depth at the tackle class. To me Mekhi Becton is a freak, from Louisville, an absolute freak.

I'm not in the business of trading off freaks at a need position. He's a left tackle. He's a better version of Bryant McKinnie. He's going to be that guy for the next 10 to 12 years to protect your franchise quarterback. He's so big, so long, so athletic, even when he is not perfect, it doesn't matter because nobody can get through him. He's 6'7", 370 pounds.

You just don't see guys like that come around very often. I know trade-back options exist. I know you can take a defensive playmaker. To me I'm not trading off that pick. I'm sitting there right there taking Mekhi Becton.

Q. You mentioned the wide receiver class and how impressive it is. The Eagles were obviously in the market for one. You would think this year. When you look at the area they've picked, the low 20s there, 21, which players do you anticipate will be available? And which of those guys kind of fits what they do and would make the most sense? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Well, they could use all different styles of receivers, when you talk about getting a Z or an X slot. Like, I think they would prefer to have the speed, which is Jerry Jeudy. I don't anticipate that -- not Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs. Jeudy will be long gone. I assume that Henry Ruggs will be long gone as well.

But that to me, if you were to say home run pick for the Eagles, who is it, it's Henry Ruggs, just because of how much speed and juice he would give to that offense.

But I think Justin Jefferson has got a chance to be a high, high volume slot receiver a lot like Keenan Allen, can fill that role, can work in traffic. He's really good down in the red zone. He led the -- he led this entire draft class with touchdowns down in the red zone this year at 12. So, he's a point producer and he would be a great fit for them.

I love Brandon Aiyuk from Arizona State. I think he's a stud. He's tough, competitive, run-after-catch guy. Needs a little polish, but can return as well. So has some value there.

And you get into Tee Higgins, who I think will probably be there, who is really tall, long and rangy. You hope you're drafting A.J. Green. I don't think he's on that level but that's the style with which he plays. There's a little bit of concern with him just getting off press. Some of the better competition they played later in the year he struggled a little bit with that. I would say that group of wide receivers is probably be the ones they'll be staring at.

Q. Everybody has Chase Young plugged in number two with the Redskins. Is it a mistake to even consider moving out of there and going back, considering how many holes they have at a lot of spots? And if you do decide or if they do decide to move back, what kind of haul would you need to make that happen? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Man, that's -- first of all it would be somebody obviously coming up for a quarterback, I would be -- I just don't trade off of elite edge rushers. You have a need there at the position, those guys are hard to find. So to get a player like that you would have to blow my doors off to get me to trade off that pick, if I was the Washington Redskins.

And I'm not going back far. That would be five, six, seven would be the only teams I would consider talking to, and you're talking multiple ones plus some Sugar. You've got to get a lot to get out of there, because even if you get to five, you won't see Chase Young at that point in time. So you're trading off a premier player at the second most valuable position in the sport. You're going to have to get a heck of a haul to do that.

Q. Looking at the Browns at No. 10 and obvious need for offensive tackle. I know you mentioned a few of the guys and talked about them, but can you give your overview for the offensive tackle landscape as it relates to the Browns, and who might be the best fit for that outside zone scheme that Kevin Stefanski is bringing? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Sure, I think when you look at Jedrick Wills from Alabama, he can really move and he's really good working up to the second level. Showed some of his athleticism there. A natural knee bender. Good in pass protection. He doesn't really get beat when you study Alabama. I think he's the second best tackle in the draft. I think he could plug right in.

He played on the right side -- you've got a left-handed quarterback in Tua, protecting his blind side. I think he could play on either side. I think he'd be a wonderful fit there in that scheme.

Then when you get to -- Andrew Thomas, I don't know that he's a great fit for that scheme, but it's an obvious upgrade for them. So they could do a lot worse in taking him. He'll be a steady solid player again. My issue with him is just some of the balance stuff and staying off the ground.

The name that I would keep an eye on, I know there's a lot of people that really like Josh Jones from Houston. I think Austin Jackson will go ahead of him. I think he's a better player. And he's somebody that as you go through the Combine, I think he's going to test really well and I think you're going to start hearing his name mentioned in that top 15-type mix.

If you want somebody to fit that offense, I don't know that anybody fits it better than him. He's only 20 years old. He's got great knee bend. He can really move laterally. He's going to get better. He donated his bone marrow to his sister over the offseason. So he lost an offseason. Obviously speaks to the kind of brother he is and his character.

But the loss of that offseason, he just needs to get physically stronger, but as a 20-year-old with that type of athletic ability, the upside is really endless. And I think he's somebody that maybe people are sleeping on a little bit at this point in time. I have a feeling once we come out of the Combine, Austin Jackson will be a name that Cleveland Browns will keep an eye on.

Q. I had a question about A.J. Epenesa, nobody had more sacks in Power 5 than he did in November and the bowl season. What is separating him from being a mid-first-round pick versus potentially a top 10 pick? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Well, I think it's going to be big to just see him and see him move around and see him test. He's a skilled, skilled rusher. And you noted how well he played at the end of the season. I really didn't see bad tape on him.

He just doesn't have -- he's not real real explosive when you watch him coming off the edge. He's big and powerful. He has great hands. He can flip his hips and finish. He's got a variety of hand moves.

I just -- so the guy has a high floor. You're not going to miss on A.J. Epenesa. Now whether or not you're going to get a 14 sack guy or eight or nine sack guy, I think that's the debate. But he's going to be almost 6'6". He's going to be around 280 pounds. And talking to some folks that have been keeping an eye on him in the training process, I have a feeling with a 10 at least, he might show he has more burst and more explosiveness than you might think.

If he does well there, I know he'll interview well. Everything I've heard from him from that standpoint is off the charts. So I think he's absolutely in the mix to be in the top half of the first round because he plays a premier position and he's a really good football player. I think he's a 1 -- I feel like he's a lock as a 1. And I think he's got a chance going through the process to find his way up into the top half of the first round.

Q. My question is simply if there's such a thing as a sure thing, can't miss guy other than maybe Chase Young, when you're talking about the Cardinals at eight, are you looking at a can't-miss guy as a tackle? Is it one of the two top wide receivers? Is it Isaiah Simmons or is it somebody I'm missing? DANIEL JEREMIAH: For the Cardinals? I just look at them and I see needs everywhere. But I also know that if they want to run the offense the way it was designed to be run, they have to get better up front.

And I just think when you look at Kingsbury, with a dynamic quarterback in Tyler Murray, they had to keep too many guys in protection last year. And they found a creative way to move the football. But that's not what they want to do. That's not what the offense is designed to do. But they couldn't get more guys out in the route because they couldn't protect.

So I know they brought back D.J. Humphries, but if there's a tackle there that you like, and to me if -- Jedrick Wills would make a lot of sense, you just plug him in right there, and now you've got two young tackles you can build around and go. I think Wills can even slide inside if you wanted to, if you felt that's what you wanted to do.

But I just think with these teams that have young quarterbacks and you're picking up high, you've got an opportunity to get offensive linemen, you can address some of those other needs. You can get corners in other rounds, get safeties in later rounds. The offensive linemen all go, they're all gone.

My kind of theory on that is when you really look at what the college game is doing and giving the NFL, it's four, five wide receivers. So it's not a shock when you look at the depth of these draft classes. You see wide receivers and corners and then you see offensive line, it just doesn't have that depth. Falls out right away, so protecting hasn't been as important at the college level and we just haven't seen as many quality offensive linemen.

When you've got a young quarterback and you're picking high enough to get an impact starter to protect them for a decade I just think that trumps all your other needs.

Q. What do you think the perception is for Jacob Eason and all those other University of Washington guys? Does anything jump out to you about a Nick Harris or Trey Adams or Hunter Bryant? Do any of those guys make an impression on you? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Sure. There's some good players in there. When you start with Eason, teams are literally all over the map. And I talked to a team yesterday that has him as the second quarterback in the draft. So there's teams that really, really like Eason. And then you've got teams that have concerns.

Now, when I watch him, I see the big arm. You watch the Oregon game, you get really, really excited. There's a lot of good things to take away from that game. He's got some really good tape. But then he's got some bad habits where you get him off of his spot. He's got a bad habit of trying to wheel out, turning his back on the defense. That's something he's going to have to clean up, which is something you can fix. But that's one of the things to keep an eye on with him.

And then you just want to see him be a little bit of a playmaker, instead of just being a pure thrower. I want to see him create some plays and extend some plays there. That's the kind of thing with him.

I think he'll go in the first two rounds. Wouldn't shock me if he went in the first round because I know there's teams that really like him. I'm hoping to get a chance to visit him with as we go through the process of getting to know him better and see where that all goes. But there's a lot of ability with him.

When you look at some of the other guys from UW, Nick Harris, he's going to be a zone center. He's not -- he's 293, and it's almost an artificial 293. He's puffed up to get there. He's going to play lighter. But having been around Kelce with the Eagles and seeing him at a lighter weight just play at a very, very high level, that's what you're hoping you're getting with Nick. I think he's probably going to be a third or fourth round pick when it's all said and done. But just really quick first step, quick hands, great on combo blocks. You can pull him outside. He's really, really smart. Just when you get real heavy size over his nose, and we saw it at the Senior Bowl, he can get exposed a little bit. That's kind of the concern with him.

When you look at the tight end, the tight end is, he's explosive. I compared him to Gerald Everett when you're talking about Hunter Bryant. You flex him out, you can get him the shovels, get the ball in his hand, he's got big time YAC ability. Just has some concentration drops and some durability questions -- how healthy is he. I think that's something to keep an eye on.

And then for a day three wide receiver -- and he might not even get picked because this is such a deep draft -- but I think there's a little something to Aaron Fuller late in the draft, who has just got some juice, can return punts. And I think he's kind of an interesting project-type receiver. I think it was Eastern Washington, had a nice one-handed catch in that game that seemed to pop to me and noted that. Said I don't hear teams talking about this kid but there's something there, he's kind of interesting.

Trey Adams, the tackle, it's all health. What's the medical going to say on him?

Q. Curious about your evaluation of Isaiah Simmons, and is he good enough that you would think the Raiders or any other teams -- they're at 12 and 19 -- I don't know if you believe in trade charts or value charts, would 12 and 19 be worth trading up to get him? DANIEL JEREMIAH: That would be really expensive. I don't know that you have to do that. If you want to get up to get him, there's a chance you could do it with 12 and one of your extra picks. I know the Raiders are loaded with extra picks, where they don't have any twos but they have three 3s. Maybe you part with a couple of those threes as well as maybe if something next year, maybe it's a 2 next year and a 3 this year. And I don't have the trade chart in front of me.

But I do not think it would cost you both those, and I would be kind of targeting getting into that six or seven probably range -- five, six or seven and try to get up there to get him. I don't see them vaulting all the way up to the third pick. That might cost you all that. I don't think that would be a smart move as much, as I love Isaiah Simmons. Too many other holes for the Raiders to fill.

And they're in a good position where they can get a good linebacker, maybe that's Queen from LSU, and they could also go get a wide receiver to get a playmaker on offense. So they're in a prime position where they're picking to get both those needs filled.

Q. Wanted to get your thoughts on a couple of Michigan guys. One, Josh Uche, I know he's projected to go 1 or 2, had a really good Senior Bowl. And a couple Michigan guys, Cesar Ruiz, Ben Bredeson and Donovan Peoples-Jones. DANIEL JEREMIAH: When you watch Uche, first of all he just plays really hard. That's the first thing that jumps out to you when you study him. He's eight and a half sacks, stands up, plays on and off the ball. Just really the motor is what jumps out to you. You can use him as a looper. He's a finisher now.

At 6-0-1-3 [phonetic], 241, you're, like, what do I do with this guy? Where do you play him? Can he play on the edge? I thought at the Senior Bowl, especially in the game, he was dominant in rushing. I know when you get in sub packages he can rush off the edge. And I think he's athletic enough that you could play off the ball on those early downs. So, I gave him a grade which kind of puts him in the third-round range. I think he's just a really good football player and I like kind of the edge that he plays with.

With Ruiz, I think he reminds me a lot of Travis Frederick when he was coming out. He's just firm and strong. He's consistent each and every game. He plays with great awareness. He doesn't have -- he's not the quickest afoot, but he does a nice job of latching on and running his feet on contact. And he's good on combo blocks.

To me he's a steady Eddie, high floor, know-exactly-what-you're-getting player who can get a chance to be a Pro Bowl caliber center. I'm a big fan of his.

Donovan Peoples-Jones can play inside/outside. Really creative route runner. He gets off the line easy. Real efficient in his movement. You see an ability to make plays on the back shoulder balls. He's just not real dynamic, in my opinion, when I studied him. That's kind of the knock on him.

In a normal draft, he's probably a second-round pick. In this draft, he's probably a third or fourth-round pick, just because there's so much depth.

So we'll see what he runs. He runs well, that could help him and maybe he gets back into the day two conversation and locks himself in there. But he's a really good player.

And Bredeson, I think, was the other one you mentioned. Obviously, you love the size. He's got some quickness. You see the strength, upper body-wise, the torque, there's an issue with me with some of his balance issues. He leans a little bit, gets tugged and pulled. And I thought he struggled a little bit changing direction at the next level.

I know some teams are a little higher on him. I have him as a day three pick. He has a chance -- he has a chance to develop into a functional starter, but there's a significant gap between him and Ruiz, in my opinion.

Q. I was going to ask you if you had 27 wide receivers with at least a grade of 1 through 3, can you tell me how many were Big 12 receivers and maybe give a rundown of some of those guys? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Sure. Well we start with CeeDee Lamb. He's my top receiver. He's outstanding. And I think we all know about that one, that's an easy one. I can go through just give you the names here and I can circle back.

CeeDee Lamb up there. I have Jalen Reagor from TCU, big time-time speed. And Mims similar to Tee Higgins at Baylor.

And I've got both Texas kids in there -- Duvernay and Collin Johnson -- they're kind of at the bottom of that group, but that's the guys I have there from the Big 12. So kind of just going through them.

When you look at -- when you look at who I think is the best receiver in the draft, CeeDee Lamb, he's just so tough. You can play him inside/outside. He wins 50/50 balls. He breaks a zillion tackles. The PFF numbers on that, I've got them floating around here, I'll have it at the Combine. PFF does a great job on that stuff, those types of stats, like forced tackles, broken tackles, he is way, way up there in those numbers. What he gives you after the catch is just outstanding. He's a really good football player.

With Reagor, he's somebody, I think one of the things people are trying to find in this draft is your version of Tyreek Hill. He's not as fast as Tyreek Hill, but he's going to run in the 4.3s, and he can take the top off coverage. You can use him on the jet sweeps, get the ball to him in the flat and just let him go. He can play over the top. The knock on him, he's got a good number of drops. So he's got to clean that up.

Denzel Mims from Baylor, I think he's got a chance to really end up being one of the best receivers in the draft. And we'll see where he ends up. But he's almost 6'3", 206 pounds. He's another one -- he wins at the line of scrimmage. He is just so smooth and athletic, he's got some acrobatic catches, a lot of contested catches, just real athletic. And after the catch, he's just kind of a slippery, smooth, make-you-miss player.

He's not the most physical player. But I think he's a second-round pick all day long with how he plays. We'll see where he ends up going and what he ends up doing, and the two Texas kids, Duvernay, one of the most productive slot receivers in the draft. That was a great move for him. I love the story when you do your homework on him and find out that the players went to the coaching staff and thought he should have been a captain in the middle of the season, so they ended up making him a captain. That says a lot about him and his work ethic and character.

He's got big-time track speed, another one. And he's going to be a bubble screen, fly sweep, just get him the ball and also help you as a kick returner.

And Collin Johnson, he's like Goliath out there, almost 6'6", 221 pounds. He's a strider. He's real fluid, but he's going to have a little bit of a tough time just getting off press consistently, and I think when you watch the TCU game and see Gladney, who is a really good corner, he got into him a little bit there, he just has so much surface area that he gives up to DBs. He's going to have to continue to work on that. I thought he had a good Senior Bowl week.

And I think, in a normal year he's a third-round pick, but who knows where that could happen this year just because there's so many of these guys.

Q. I know you've been a fan of Matt Rhule for a long time. Why do you believe he's poised to have success in the NFL with the Panthers? And how do you see him approaching his first draft? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Well, first of all, Matt he's just a leader. If you're going to look for what you want in a head coach you want somebody that's going to be a leader, that's going to create an environment that's very competitive and he's going to have a football team that's tough and physical. And I think when you follow him throughout his career, that's followed him.

It's something that he takes time. He doesn't try and bake it in the microwave. Takes his time and does it the right way. I wouldn't be surprised if you saw a lean year, maybe a couple lean years, but he's eventually going to get all the people that fit in that building and that's from a staffing standpoint to a playing standpoint.

And I think they'll have sustained success. I was happy that they gave him such a long-term deal so he can do it the way that it needs to be done and do it the right way. I just think he's a leader. I think he's a leader of men. And I think the Carolina Panthers, I don't know that they could have made a better hire than Matt Rhule.

Q. How do you see him approaching the draft this year? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I think you're going to see guys with physicality and toughness. I know Mike Mayock last year talked about with the Raiders draft, his first draft, he kind of wanted to put his mark on it and he used the phrase "foundational pieces," and so this is Matt Rhule's draft to pick up some foundational pieces and how he's going to build this program.

So that's what I would expect. I would expect it will be in his image, which is tough, physical and fast. When I went and visited with him at Baylor, he talked about track background, guys that can really, really run. They're confident in their ability to teach. So there might be some guys especially once we get into the middle rounds, maybe guys who will go a little bit higher. But if they're tough and fast and maybe they're not great football players right now, they're a little bit raw, developmental, I know they have a lot of confidence in their group as teachers to be able to get it out of them.

So that's kind of the traits I would keep an eye on for them is finding guys who can really, really run and are really tough.

Q. I wanted to circle back quickly to the Lions at 3. Based on your mock and your earlier comments you seemed pretty set on the idea that Okudah is the best choice, but on the big board you have Derrick Brown a few spots higher. They have significant needs at both positions there. Considering the team's going to be presumably looking for immediate contributions with the coach and GM on the hot seat, can you just elaborate a little bit more on the choice between Okudah and Brown at 3 and explain why you went the route you did? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Sure. Derrick Brown is -- to me, I have the same grade on Derrick Brown at his position as I do with Chase Young at his position. I think he's a phenomenal player. He's the closest thing, ironically, to Ndamukong Suh, who everybody in Detroit know so well. That's who he reminds me of when you watch him on college tape, so strong and powerful. He can really punch off blocks, separate, find the ball, make plays. He plays really hard.

So he's outstanding. And when you plug him in there, you talk about immediate impact, he'll make an immediate impact on every single down as an interior player.

And Okudah, look, he's somebody that can -- you're going to let him just press and just mug people at the line of scrimmage. He's so long and twitchy and fluid. He can find the ball. Everything I've heard about him from a character standpoint is off the charts.

Some of the stuff you hear about him in the workouts, like jumping 40 inches and going to be less than 4 percent body fat, just like crazy stuff. Both of these guys are special players and outstanding players.

I had him going with a corner, just because I thought with Jeffrey Okudah, the chance for him to come in and play coverage, work your defense back to front fit more of the philosophy. If you're going to go by the Patriots and how they've done things and make the connection with Patricia, kind of building up that secondary, they've kind of flipped the script.

I personally would go front to back and take the defensive linemen, but I look at the success defensively the Patriots have had lately they've done it with more premier players in the secondary than at the line of scrimmage. So that's why I had Detroit looking in that kind of direction.

Q. If you were Chris Ballard, with picks 6, 13, 34 and 44, how would you handle the quarterback dilemma along with other needs? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I would start by signing Philip Rivers, and I would try and make a run at this thing for the next couple of years because I think they're pretty close. I think Philip would come in and give them an upgrade. And then I think where you're picking there, you know, you're picking at 13.

I know there's so much depth and I've talked about the depth of receiver, and I can show you studies that will show you how many impact players have come in the second, third round, and you can get good players in those positions. But I'm trying to get, if I'm the Colts right there, I'm awfully tempted, if you see a Jerry Jeudy, a CeeDee Lamb, a Henry Ruggs, one of those three guys was there, I would go ahead and pull the trigger right there.

You've changed the offense completely. You've got a good offensive line, you pair what you have already outside with one of those three receivers, Philip Rivers, I think you've got a chance to be a really, really fun offense to watch.

And then you get into the second round, you look at some other directions they could go. At that point in time, maybe if there's a quarterback that you like as your developmental quarterback, you could look that route, go that route. Or you could just go with a defensive tackle that has some real twitch and some upside that can rush. I think they'll have some options there, when you look at guys like a Neville Gallimore or somebody like that from Oklahoma would make some sense there who has some twitch and interior pass rush ability.

I think Jordan Elliott is another name that could come in the mix from Missouri, another guy who can really rush inside.

They're in a great spot. I'm curious what they'll do with the quarterback position first and foremost. If they decide to stick with Jacoby Brissett and want to go towards the draft, at that time in time, gosh, Jordan Love, I don't know that he's ready to play right away, but that's a huge upside pick. And you give him a chance to develop that could have a huge pay-off.

Q. You brought up the Eagles needing a wide receiver earlier in the first round. But they also need help at cornerback. Who are a couple of guys that you would peg on maybe day two to kind of address the cornerback need or the safety needs that they have? DANIEL JEREMIAH: It's a good group. When you start getting to day two, look, you've got a guy like A.J. Terrell from Clemson, who's real tall, lean, real fluid. He's somebody that plays a variety of techniques there. A really good blitzer coming off the boundary too, which would be fun for Jim Schwartz to play with a little bit.

But he can be a little sticky when he has to work back downhill. But he's a tall, long, athletic corner. I think he's a late 1, early 2, could end up slipping a little bit in the second round, see what happens.

Damon Arnette, I love Damon Arnette. He's twitched up from Ohio State. He can find and play the ball. He's a little bit tight, but you can play him in press. He's somebody, I think, is going to go in the second round.

Jeff Gladney from TCU, kind of he's got some similarities to a Denzel Ward. Just undersized, real feisty. He plays off. He's real fluid, very aware. I've watched the Iowa State game, one of the games I flipped on with him, it was a war watching him go up against that wide receiver. He's another one in that range.

The one that I think is going to go in the second round that's fascinating to me is the corner from Auburn, Igbinoghene. I'm going to get that name right when we get to the Combine. I'm sure I just butchered it. But he's one that's really explosive. A former wide receiver. He was a track guy. They moved him to corner. Really, really ultra twitched up.

But he struggles to play the football. And that to me is my concern. He doesn't have any interceptions. He's always in phase, in the right position. And especially in the LSU and Alabama games, he just struggled to find and play the ball.

So I think he'll get drafted in the second round based off traits, but there's still some development to take place there.

And another name I would just throw in the mix would be Diggs. We'll see what happens with Diggs from Alabama who has got some Aqib Talib-type skills. But the question is just pure deep speed. But real fluid. Obviously Stefon's brother there, the wide receiver with the Vikings. Former wide receiver, kickoff returner. Really skilled athlete.

The question is just how is his deep speed and he's just okay as a tackler.

It's a good group. If you want to take a corner in the second round, that's the list of names you would be choosing from. And I think there's a lot of good players in that group.

Q. I was just kind of wondering what makes Chase Young that once-in-a- generational talent? But what can he do for the rest of the defense? How can he unlock the Redskins at defense if that's where he goes? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I think when you watch the last few games of the season, you can see the benefit that he has for everybody else up front in just creating one-on-ones. He draws so much attention.

And I feel like it's interesting because I've used the phrase "generational talent". When I say that, it's almost like people feel like it's a slap in the face to what Ohio State's done because when you look at the Bosa brothers and how good they are, he's in the group with those guys. I do want to clarify that.

He's the best player in this draft class. I actually had a little bit higher grade on Nick coming out than Chase. I had a higher grade on Chase than Joey. Obviously Joey has been a perennial Pro Bowl player; he's outstanding.

But he's one of those type guys. And the impact he has, not only is he -- he's going to win his one-on-ones when he gets them, but he's going to create so many double and triple teams his way it's going to be able to let the other guys eat a little bit.

When you can pair him up, look at Washington and Montez Sweat. Montez Sweat is going to see nothing but one-on-ones, and he's going to have a chance for a huge year if this is the pairing that ends up coming together.

Q. Just wanted to compare and contrast the draft chances for a couple of running backs from Daytona Beach -- Appalachian State's Darrynton Evans and UCF's Adrian Killins. The types of schemes they roll, schemes and (indiscernible) that best fit, and what grade do you have on both of those kids? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Obviously one of them is close to my heart there, when you talk about Darrynton Evans at my alma mater, App State. He's outstanding, big time juice, both these kids. Obviously Killins is a track star, so you know he has juice. But Darrynton, he's going to go much higher. He has a chance to go in the third-round range.

The first tape I popped on was UNC Charlotte, he goes 87 for a touchdown. I just remember paying attention to him as obviously a fan of the team, having gone there, Penn State game he has a long kickoff return against them his freshman year.

Zone scheme, one hit and go, if you look at Raheem Mostert what he did in the last few games with the 49ers, to me this is the same kid. This is the exact same skill set. So if you're in that Shanahan system, the Shanahan scheme we're seeing all over the league right now, those teams are going to love him because he can get lateral, one foot in the ground, get up field and explode.

He needs to get better in pass protection. He knows that. Needs to get a little stronger. But he's going to be involved in the screen game and you get a crease and he's going to go. I'm a big fan of his. I think he's got a chance to be a third-round type player.

Killins, I was really surprised -- I don't think he's going to the Combine, which is surprising. He's obviously really little. In the East West, he's 5'7'' and three- eighths, 168 pounds. He's a 200 meter champ in the state of Florida, quick feet. You get to the perimeter and he's gone.

I wrote down in my comparison, I wrote De'Anthony Thomas, and the kind of career he's had. Spot play, use him on special teams, kind of a gadget player. But at 162 pounds, as you can expect, there's not a lot of play strength.

I think he's going to be a late-round pick. Might even be an undrafted free agent, but if you want to bring in somebody that's got some pop and some juice, kind of create some a role for him and a gadget variety, that's what you're going to get there with Killins.

Q. What are your expectations for Tua's stock at the Combine? And how high do you think he, Herbert and Love all could rise between now and the draft? DANIEL JEREMIAH: With Tua, it's just medical. And it's not -- his stock is not going to be impacted by what gets out in the media, because what gets out in the media is going to get out for a reason. So I don't know that we're going to know where that's at. But I know that each individual team's doctors are going to get a chance to see him and find out what's going on there with the hip.

And it's just different. A hip is different than a ankle and a knee. That's what obviously for good reasons concerns a lot of people. So you're going to get your doctors get a chance to see where he's at. He'll come to the recheck, get another look at him. I'm sure teams will want to bring him in and look at him even more there.

So that information I'll be surprised. The only reason that information will get out is if a team wants to get it out, hoping that somehow he would end up dropping. So that's going to be interesting to see what happens with him on the medical front. I don't anticipate we'll get many answers there.

But I do think that, provided long term health there's no concerns, I think teams would be okay if they said he has to redshirt for a year. He can't play next year. I think if you're picking up there and you're Miami, the Chargers, the Panthers, I know Detroit has even considered it, I think if that would not impact your decision. If they said he wasn't going to play year one but he would return to full health, I think if you like Tua that would not bother you at all. So that's the question with him.

And then with Herbert, that one's tricky. Teams are split. There's some teams that really like Justin Herbert and some teams are not high on Justin Herbert. I have him in my personal list down a little bit. I have him beneath Love and I have him outside the top 10 range. But when you look at the Chargers having a need there -- five, six, seven -- you've got Dolphins, Chargers, Panthers, that's kind of quarterback alley, I think there's a chance we see two of the quarterbacks go in those three picks.

And I think the third one will go somewhere in the next group when you're talking about the Raiders, the Colts and the Bucs, 12, 13, 14. You've got a quarterback at 1. I think we'll see two go between 5 and 7, and I think we'll see one go between 12, 13 and 14. So that's how I kind of see that shaking out.

Q. My question is Eagles related. Someone asked earlier about like defensive backs in the second round. I guess my question is like how do you balance the fact that obviously they need a wide receiver and a defensive back with maybe thinking there might be more depth at wide receiver in the second round? Like, if you're Howie Roseman how do you go about figuring all that out? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I think first of all we've got to go with agency, we'll see. If they end up making a move to free agency at one of those positions, then that could free up. I think when you look at the free agent group, I think it would be more likely to get a corner in free agency which would really free them up to take big-time impact receiver in the first round.

So that to me will go a long way in figuring out what the heck they're going to do with their first-round pick. I think there's a good pool of -- there's a great pool of receivers to choose from outside the first round. And I think even corner-wise, going through that list of names we went through a little earlier, there's guys that will come in and start and help the team right away.

I think it's a situation you're true to your board, who do you have the higher grade on. I don't think you have to play the supply-and-demand game if you're the Eagles because those two positions I think you'll be happy with what you get in both rounds. Just take the higher-rated player in the first round.

Q. I'm curious about the four Nebraska players at the Combine coming up. How would you evaluate the draft stock of Lamar Jackson and Darrion Daniels? And what can a couple defensive linemen like Khalil Davis and Carlos Davis do at the Combine to improve their standing? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Start with Lamar Jackson. For those listening, no relation. Look, you love the size. He's over 6-2. He's 206 pounds. I had just had a question about some of the twitch and explosiveness with him.

He can really play the ball up in the air, but there's a lot of separation when I watched him on tape. So that to me would be interesting to see him just does he have that real burst. I have him in the later rounds right now. So we'll see what he does there.

The other one, Darrion Daniels, plays that nose. I have a higher grade on Darrion Daniels than Lamar Jackson. But doesn't have a lot of pass rush, but he's got some range in the run game. He's got quick hands. He's got some knock-back, push the pocket right now.

But in a league right now, as much as the ball is being thrown around, the fact that he doesn't really rush the passer, to me he's -- I have him kind of in that sixth-round range for me.

And the other two defensive linemen with Khalil Davis and Carlos Davis, Khalil, I have a higher grade on him than Carlos. Khalil, he's got the ability to kind of widen the (indiscernible). He's got some power. I thought he needed to play inside. They played him outside. I like to see him exclusively there on the inside. But he's got some shock in his hands. There's something to work with him, again, kind of a late-round guy.

And then with Carlos, he plays too high, gets uprooted. Likes to kind of stack and peak. Like to see him fire off the ball, play a little bit lower to the ground. I had an undraftable, free agent grade on him.

Q. We've seen a pretty wide range of price tags to trade up for the quarterback into the top portion of the first round. The big discrepancy between RG3 and Sam Darnold trades for instance. How does Tua Tagovailoa's medical concern affect the possible compensation for trade-up, say in that third spot for the Detroit Lions? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I think it's a huge part of it and it's because of what, if you're making the gamble to go up there and get him, you're betting your job. So you better know that his health is 100 percent. And I think if you are iffy on his health and there's concerns and there's major issues, it's one thing to take him. It's another thing to sacrifice a good portion of your draft to take him. So I do think that's going to have a major impact.

Now if he comes through this Combine and comes through the medical recheck and they say, man, we have no concerns whatsoever and your medical people are fine, I think you would see a more aggressive compensation for a team trying to get up there and get him. So I think it's a great point. You'll know, if a trade does go down, you'll know that the medical information came back very solid based on the return that they get.

Q. Could you talk about just addressing the Jaguars' defensive needs and Isaiah Simmons, why do you think he would be a good fit, and you have him at safety and not linebacker? You can address those two things, please. DANIEL JEREMIAH: I'll start with him. Because he can do anything. We had the same debate about Derwin James when he was coming out where some teams had him as a Will linebacker, some had him at a strong safety.

I've talked to a bunch of defensive coordinators in the offseason and posed this question to them about: Are we going to start heading towards a position- less game, where you see guys on offense like Deebo Samuel who are playing in the slot but can almost function as running backs. You see guys like Derwin James, who could just darned near play every single position on the defense.

But when you have offenses trying to manipulate personnel and get certain groups on the field like the Ravens have done a masterful job where they have the tight ends that they can put you in certain sets and then split the tight ends out, you better have more versatile players that can do multiple things.

So with a guy like Isaiah Simmons, whether you want to list him as a linebacker or safety, I know you plug him into that defensive scheme and week by week you can deploy him in different ways depending on what the strength of your opponent is. That's why he has so much value. And putting these guys in little position boxes I think that's going to go away eventually. You're just going to see getting your athletes on the field and deploying them in different ways on a week-by-week basis.

When I look at other needs for them, I think you can make a strong case in the secondary, either corner or at safety. I think they've got needs both places. So finding some real speed and athleticism in that back end, especially when you look at the division and when you look at Deshaun Watson and you're going to be dealing with a lot of speed with that team for the next decade, you better get faster and more athletic, at especially the second and third level.

Q. Wanted to get your thoughts on what you feel the talent level at Michigan State has been in recent years and have you seen a drop-off from where it was when the program was at its peak and the middle part of this past decade? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I'd have to go back and really look at it. It's been kind of a middle -- it's been kind of a middle/late-round group recently. It is what it is. I'm looking at my players that we've got that I've done so far.

I like Josiah Scott and Raequan Williams, those are the good players but they're not -- in my opinion they're not first-, second-day guys.

So, yeah, I think you can make the case that it's fallen off a little bit. But it's also a program that's been noted for, with Dantonio for most of his career there, just good, physical, tough, smart college football players. So his job is not necessarily to put those guys in the NFL; it's to win games at the college level. And they've done that with some good college players but not necessarily translated as well to the next level, especially from an athletic standpoint.

Going back to the years where it felt like we had a Michigan State corner every year way up there, yeah, I would assume there's been a pretty significant drop-off.

Q. Question about the 49ers. They have a pick at 31, but don't pick again until the fifth round. Possible draftings them are at wide receiver and cornerback. Based upon what you said about the depth of those positions, would it seem logical and maybe behoove them to be able to trade back and collect picks and still get a quality, say, corner, wide receiver? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I think it makes a ton of sense. I would almost be surprised if they didn't do that. When you've got where they're picking at 31 is always kind of a popular trade pick because teams, especially if you want the quarterback -- and now we'll see how I haven't dug into the new CBA, if this thing passes or not, and how that will impact the fifth-year situation. But traditionally over the last several years that's been a popular pick you can get out of if you're San Francisco and teams will come up.

That to me makes more sense to recoup some picks. They're really light in picks. They've got a really good personnel department there with John Lynch, Adam Peters and Martin Mayhew. They do a really job, as we can see, identifying players.

So the strength of this draft, I think there's a lot of depth. I wouldn't be surprised to see him trade back a couple times, really try to restock with some of those middle-round picks. They can go find some players especially in the secondary you'll find some really good players in rounds two and three.

Q. Assuming Derrick Brown, Kinlaw and Blacklock are the three interior linemen that go in the first round, what does day two look like for an interior defensive linemen, particularly the twitchy three technique-type guys? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I think there's some interesting names in that mix. I think Gallimore from Oklahoma -- wait until you see this guy test. I talked to him at the Senior Bowl. He's a fascinating story, growing up in Canada.

The kid was dunking at the age of 13. He'll put on a show at the Combine. He's going to run really fast. He's going to jump out the gym. So somebody that can get in a gap and get upfield and playing that scheme, he makes a lot of sense.

Madubuike from A&M, he's played more kind of a power knockback-style there at A&M, but I think he's more athletic. He's got a chance.

I think Jordan Elliott is somebody that can play on an edge in that scheme and get upfield.

James Lynch from Baylor who played on the edge but I think is going to kick in. He's somebody else. He's got some first-step quickness. He's very productive. He could make some sense there. I'll give you one more, Davon Hamilton from Ohio State. He didn't get as many opportunities there because they were so darned talented on the front to really rush the passer. Usually he was congratulating Chase Young after he just got off the quarterback because he got there so fast.

But this kid's got some upfield ability. He showed that at the Senior Bowl. I think he'll be a better pro player than a college player. I think he's probably more in the third-round range, but he's somebody that can get on an edge and get upfield.

Q. When you look at Okudah and put a grade on him, where does that grade compare to some of the other cornerbacks, the top-end guys that have come out maybe in the last half decade or so? DANIEL JEREMIAH: He's way up there. I was just looking at that the other day. And the one that I had a higher grade on was Lattimore. I think that might be the only one. I mean, I've got a big grade on him. And he just does everything -- he does everything you'd want in terms of size, length, twitch, competitiveness, intelligence, ball skills, toughness, he checks all the boxes.

I would say just beneath Lattimore, in terms of my college grade, if I have to go back and look at it, I don't know how many years that will go back, it's way up there.

As a player, when you're trying to figure out, okay, who does he remind you of, it's Gilmore, Stephon Gilmore, when he was coming out of South Carolina. He went a little bit later than he should have. Obviously Defensive Player of the Year, but we've seen what type of talent he has. And this kid has that type of ability.

Q. You kind of touched on a couple guys briefly earlier, but wondering what Michigan State guys you have the highest grade on and what your evaluation of Kenny Willekes is? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I have Josiah Scott is the top one, plays outside. I think he's going to be a nickel. He's got makeup speed. He can pattern read. He's really fluid. He can find the ball. He just got outsized a little bit on the outside losing some of those 50/50 balls. But he's somebody that I have as the top guy. And he's probably in that fourth-round range for me.

Raequan Williams, right beneath him, can play the 1 and the 3 technique.

He's got the ability to collapse the pocket. He's all power and bull rush. He just doesn't have a great get-off, and he's a little bit stiff. So those are the top two guys. And Willekes I had beneath those guys, more effort than twitch and explosiveness. He kills tight ends. Man, he loves to play over tight ends, does a great job against them, has a long arm. He can bull rush.

But I just didn't see a ton of twitch or a ton of burst with him. Although, I'll give him credit. He did some good things down in Mobile at the Senior Bowl. I have him there. And you've a couple guys underneath him, with Lewerke. I don't anticipate that he'll get picked.

Cody White, kick returner, just has a lot of drops when I studied him. Thought he was more of a one-speed player. And Bachie you have what happened with him missing games, which you know about.

And I thought he did a good job directing traffic. He could float and sort and fill and make some plays there. I just thought he had really average speed and range. And I didn't anticipate he would get drafted. Darrell Stewart, another wide receiver, who I thought was a free agent, who is good on bubbles and tunnel screens. He can work some in the middle of the field, I just didn't see a lot of juice.

Q. I guess just the big picture for you, you look at Baltimore and Kansas City. They've molded their offenses into really powerful forces with great offensive lines and good skill talent around their top quarterbacks. Just from talking to people, team officials around the league, do you get a sense for whether teams are valuing skilled position talent and offensive lines now any more than the other and has that changed at all in recent years? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I was talking to somebody about this a couple months ago. And I posed the question to them with the personnel director and said, tell me all the great teams with bad offensive lines and tell me all the bad teams with great offensive lines.

It's, like, at some point in time it's not complicated: The teams with good offensive lines you have a high floor every year. They'll keep you competitive, give you a chance to win each and every week. I don't know that offensive line has been more important than it is right now. When you look at the investment with these playoff teams, what they've done in the offensive line, it sticks out like a sore thumb.

So you better invest. That's with high picks, with free agents. But you need to take care of your offensive line. I think that's first and foremost.

And after that, you look on the defensive side of the ball, you're trying to find dynamic playmakers and the skill talent that's come in on offense is going to continue to get faster and more athletic, that's what the college game is and that's made its way to the NFL.

You better have linebackers that can run all day long and cover and you better have safeties that can be interchangeable, can play high, can play low, and can really run in range.

So I think it's what it's turned into. It's having good offensive line play. You want to have a couple of edge rushers and you better have speed everywhere else, that's kind of how you're building teams right now.

Q. I've heard you talking a lot about the importance of the offensive line and regarding the Browns. So my question is, is it a no-brainer for you thinking tackle for the Browns or would you consider Isaiah Simmons there or pass rusher if they let Olivier Vernon go? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Look, you can make cases for a lot of those positions. I feel like I keep saying some of the same thing with all these different teams. If you have a tackle that you really like, you have a young quarterback in Baker Mayfield, this is a big year for him. I think it would be hard to go in any other direction.

Now, if you have a much higher grade, which I love Isaiah Simmons, he's a great player and I have him right now on this list he's my fourth player. Whereas, you look at somebody like Jedrick Wills is down there as my 11th player.

If you're going strictly off the board, you'd say Isaiah Simmons. But the grades are close enough where I think I would value for this Browns team protecting my quarterback with the left tackle.

That's the direction that I would lean and I would go is, let's get that figured out. You've got to be able to evaluate your quarterback. To fairly do that you've got to protect him. And I think that's kind of the boat that a bunch of these teams are in with these young guys.

You've got young quarterbacks. If you look at the young quarterbacks that have been successful, for the most part a lot of them have had good offensive line play around them and that's been a huge benefit in their growth. So I'd like to see them give Baker Mayfield that benefit.

Q. With the Patriots obviously having such a need at tight end this offseason, who in this class can you see as being a good fit for their offense? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Again, I think there's three. I think you can make a strong case for three of them with Cole Kmet from Notre Dame a big, physical -- he's the one, if you're saying, okay, who looks like Gronk and who kind of has that physicality to them, it would be Kmet.

Now he's not nearly as athletic as Gronk, but he's somebody with that big catch radius. He's tough to tackle. Big, physical and strong. He's good in the run game. He can create some movement there and help you.

So he's a nice two-way tight end there. And Adam Trautman, I haven't talked a lot about him today. But the kid from Dayton, he's 6'5", 250 pounds. Obviously a small school. Was a high school quarterback. Switches to tight end. Now his position coach at Dayton was also a high school science teacher.

This kid, he's going to just continue to get better and better. And the crazy thing is he's really polished. He knows how to set up defenders. He can separate. He's got wiggle. He wins a lot of 50/50 balls. He had a great Senior Bowl week. I thought he was outstanding there. I thought he was the best tight end down there, which it was a good group.

He's somebody I think for the Patriots give you a little bit more separation and athleticism at the position. And I can make a strong case for that. And Harrison Bryant from FAU, who was there at the Senior Bowl with him, talked about him earlier, but he's somebody who has got some burst and some juice. Real athletic, easy mover, better in the run game than I anticipated he would be. Not quite as heavy and not quite as big as Trautman and Kmet. But he's somebody, give him a little more athleticism in there.

So I think any of those three guys, I think any of the three would be great players. And if you want to go down around and you start getting into maybe more in that late two, into the third round, if you wanted to move tight ends like H-backs, kind of could do some fullback stuff if you wanted, there's the three names that I really like are Deguara from Cincinnati, who is really, really explosive and athletic.

Taumoepeau from Portland State, similar type players. And Hunter Bryant from Washington, who is, to me, a lot like a guy like Gerald Everett, if you've seen him play with the Rams. Those three guys are kind of riding together. They're all 6'2" and a half, 245-pound-type guys, and that's that move tight end, that H that you're looking for to fill that role.

Q. A lot of mock drafts have said Jerry Jeudy to the Raiders at 12 and others have said CeeDee Lamb. For John Gruden's offense, who do you think fits his style more? He likes his wide receivers to know all the positions, just their knowledge and IQ of the game, who do you think is a better fit? DANIEL JEREMIAH: It's tough to answer that question because I have them touching each other on my sequence list. They're a little bit different styles, but I think both of them would fit beautifully in that system. I mean, Jerry Jeudy, just what do you value a little bit more.

And I think you can make a case for either guy. Jerry Jeudy, you're going to get a little bit more separation. You're going to get a little bit more route polish, which you could say that fits Gruden really well. I think he's going to play primarily inside. I think he's going to be a slot.

But then when you look at CeeDee Lamb, I think you get a little bit more of an outside guy who can play inside, but I'd like to keep him outside. And then you're going to get a little more physicality and toughness run-after-catch with him. He's a little more of a contested catch player.

If I'm looking at how does it fit with them, if you wanted a Z receiver and then maybe somebody that could come inside to the slot, gosh, I guess I would lean towards Jerry Jeudy on that one, for those two factors there.

I think CeeDee Lamb, and I probably am going to play him outside, but he could do a little bit of everything as well.

Q. Obviously the Ravens want to improve in the wide receiver area. Is there any value at the bottom of the first round as far as wide receivers you are seeing this year? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I think so, James, I can find him in every portion of the draft. But in terms of guys that would make some sense for the Ravens, I look at them as getting guys with -- again, I talked about last year building a track team around him, around Lamar Jackson. And they did that at the wide receiver position last year with Hollywood Brown.

I would go back, get more speed and just continue to add more speed like the Chiefs have done. I would double down. And I think Shenault would be a fun toy for them, somebody that could play be in the slot. You can use the fly sweep stuff with him.

You could put him in the backfield with Lamar hand him the ball. He's done that a bunch at Colorado, for a creative offense, there's none more creative than Greg Roman. Shenault would be a heck of a lot of fun.

I put down this list of guys in this draft, and I just wrote "Finding Deebo." That's going to be a theme for a lot of these teams when you talk to them around the league. Laviska Shenault, Brandon Aiyuk and Lynn Bowden from Kentucky, who played some wildcat for them, is going to be that fly sweep guy. And Duvernay from Texas we've talked about.

I would even throw Michael Pittman from USC. Obviously his dad was a running back. But those guys are guys you can use and run the jet sweep stuff and run, get on top of coverage and make plays down the field. And they're just tough to get on the ground with the ball in their hands.

So finding somebody with maybe some physicality to go along with their speed to complement Hollywood Brown in this offense, it would be fun to watch.

Q. Kind of piggybacking off of Jamison's question, but is the Bills' need for a wide receiver so dire that they can't afford to pass on one of the top options, or will they be able to find somebody to immediately impact their offense in the second round or even the third round? DANIEL JEREMIAH: They can wait until the third round if they wanted to and still find guys to come in and help them this year. It's so deep, so loaded. And I think that offense is another one that could use this type of a player that we just discussed of guys you can use on some of the, get them some of the bubbles, some of the easy completions, some of the fly sweeps, all that stuff.

I think they could find one of these guys outside the first round that would help them there. If you look at Buffalo, the direction they could go, I think finding an edge rusher, finding another corner, interior offensive line, that wouldn't be a bad way to go early; you could always circle back and get yourself a wide receiver. Just comes down to whether or not they love 1s, if you really love 1 and you want to get him, go get him. But I think you can make a strong argument that they could hold off and wait on that one.

Q. I have a question more about the Combine itself. With the era of football we're in, there's so much more information coming to these teams, pro football-focused, player tracking, et cetera, et cetera. Where does something so basic like the 40 fit into the player evaluation now in the draft? Has the sort of era information changed what the 40 means to the teams as far as it's part of an evaluation of players? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I'm excited that we're starting to see some changes in some of the field testing. And I think the 40, the value in the 40 has been that we've just done it for so long that you can compare it going back forever to compare players and to have kind of that marker. So that's where the value is and I think that's where the hesitation is to change.

But with all the GPS stuff, with -- I think it's a Catapult System that all these NFL teams and college teams are incorporating all this GPS, I talked to more guys on the road this year, more scouts, that when you're going into schools, they're starting to get top speed, MPH acceleration/deceleration. They're starting to collect data on that with these guys, and they're going to eventually get enough of a sample size, they're going to be able to find out what really matters there.

And I hope I'm still doing this. I hope I'm still up there with Rich Eisen in the booth and we're talking about a guy that just ripped off a 24-mile-per-hour run instead of saying he ran a 4.32, whatever it is. I think that's where it's headed. And we can talk about just the explosiveness they had and the ability to decelerate.

I think that's going to end up being more valuable information. And I'm glad you mentioned with pro football focus, too, because I think some people think that you either are kind of a tape person or you're analytics or you want to put PFF in that category.

I personally have really enjoyed being able to incorporate a lot of PFF data that they collect with your evaluation. And I think instead of in scouting saying in a meeting when you say this guy drops too many balls and then you have the information there to say, well, he's got a 12 percent drop rate, they give actual data that's accurate, that is huge. And it's made scouting way more efficient as well.

There's the program now where you can tie in the video that you get, that teams get, which I'm fortunate enough to get that ties in with pro football focused data. So you can watch a guy drops a ball, I can watch all his drops for the year. How does a corner play the ball in the air?

I can watch every single target just like that of every time he was challenged down the field. The technology has made scouting so much better.

And when you combine the technology and the data with groups like PFF and watching the tape, I think that's it's really exciting. I'm excited for where scouting is right now from where it's going.

Q. I wanted to get your thoughts on Cam Akers, the running back. How do you view him with the rest of the running backs in the rest of the draft? DANIEL JEREMIAH: He's talented. I've got him -- I broke down the running backs coming into this Combine. I had them in different tiers. He's in my second tier.

I had Swift, Edwards-Helaire and Dobbins in my top tier. And I have Taylor and Akers, Taylor from Wisconsin and Akers just right below that. He runs really hard. Obviously his five-star kid. All the accolades coming into school.

But use him in some wildcat stuff. He runs through contact. He's strong. He can catch the ball out of the backfield. He's got good patience. He'll press and bounce. He's got a good feel for that. He doesn't -- I don't believe he possesses that elite-elite top speed. It will be interesting to see how he runs there in Indy. But if you told me four years from now that Cam Akers ended up being the first or second best back in this draft, I would not be surprised at all.

I think he's really talented. And I think he's got a chance to start getting more in the conversation. They just weren't any good, Florida State wasn't any good. And sometimes when you're a player that's on a team and a program that's in a place that that program was at last year, he had all the reason in the world to shut it down and he didn't do it, which told me a lot about him as a competitive kid. I think teams like him as well. I think he's a really good football player.

Q. Appreciate this. You were just talking about the 40. I wanted to ask you about Henry Ruggs and just your evaluation of him overall and how much do you think, and impressive showing, record-breaking showing even. 4.2, 4.21, could do for his draft stock next couple of months? DANIEL JEREMIAH: Everybody's talked about who will be the first receiver taken, is it going to be Jeudy or is it going to be CeeDee Lamb. I actually -- I firmly believe Henry Ruggs is in that discussion. I think it's a three-man race to be the first receiver.

I think he's going to absolutely fly. Everybody knows it's coming. He's still going to do it. I think the second number will be a 2. I don't know what the third number will be. But he's the closest thing to Tyreek Hill that I've seen, since Tyreek Hill entered the league. And just looked like he's been on a different speed than everybody else. This kid does the same thing. He's so sudden off the line of scrimmage. It's instant death for corners.

He's just by them and it's over. You can use him on the jet sweep stuff. You can use him on kickoff return. I love watching him as a gunner on punt. Shows just how tough he is. And the thing that nobody talks about, the production for these Alabama kids, it's all somewhat limited because it's the best wide receiver corps I've ever seen in college football, because as good as these kids are with Ruggs and Jeudy, when you watch 17, Waddle, who wasn't draft eligible, that dude is a freak. He can fly. DeVonta Smith, a lot of us were surprised he didn't come out. He's a burner. Four legit first-round players at the receiver position.

Some of the production doesn't blow you away, but Ruggs only dropped one ball. A lot of times, when you get these speed guys, you get inconsistent hands. This kid's got great hands and he can fly. Now, he's not nearly as polished when you're talking about his teammate Jerry Jeudy as a route runner. I am willing to bet if you went and polled the 32 defensive coordinators in the NFL, gave them the video of the top three receivers, said which of these guys do you not want in your division, I would be willing to bet a lot of money that Henry Ruggs would get the most votes. That's the guy you do not want to face. That's why I believe it's not over who will be the first receiver. It's not a two-man race; it's a three-man race.

Q. I want to ask you about Canadians. I know you talked a lot about Neville Gallimore. Did he sneak into the first round; and if so, how? And also what are your takes on Notre Dame receiver Chase Claypool and Ohio U QB Nathan Rourke? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I haven't done the Ohio QB yet. I don't think he's going to the Combine. I'll eventually get to him.

Gallimore, he has a chance to get into the first round. I have him outside the first round. I have him at the second. But as I mention, he's going to test incredibly well and that will generate some buzz and potentially get him in that discussion.

I did not think he played to the consistency of a first-round pick. But the upside and athleticism, again it's off the charts. So it's all there, the potential there for him to be a first-round pick.

Claypool, Claypool is another one of these receivers that is just so big and strong and physical. He's a 50/50 ball guy. That's kind of -- that's his specialty. The tough part, when you watch tape, he gets open a lot and there's just some bad throws, unfortunately didn't always get the best ball to deal with there.

So he's another one who is a gunner on punt. He's very tough, very aggressive, can really, really wall guys off in the red zone. He's a threat down there. He's just not a full route tree player. In other words, he's not going to be efficient running every route that you would have in your playbook. And that's going to take a little bit more time for him to develop. But the guy's 6'4" and change and 229 pounds, who has that type of toughness.

So he's a really good player. And I think in this year's draft he's probably in the third-, fourth-round range, because of just the sheer depth in the class. I was at the Senior Bowl, was curious to see how he would do there with Michael Pittman. And that was kind of the two guys I wanted to really see how they would compare. And I thought Pittman was a little bit better than him earlier in the week.

Pittman got hurt and, ironically, the receiver I didn't have quite in that class was Antonio Gandy-Golden from Liberty. And I thought he outplayed both of those guys during the week at the Senior Bowl -- a big athletic receiver from Liberty.

It just speaks of the depth of this class that a guy like Chase Claypool has a chance to be there potentially in the fourth round. No fault of his own; it's just an incredible group.

Q. What do you think will be available for the Steelers at 49 when they finally pick? Do you think it will be skill position, and what players do you see among them? DANIEL JEREMIAH: That's a good question, trying to figure out what's going to be there at that point in time. When I look at the needs for the Steelers, trying to find an edge rusher at that point in time -- you know, an interesting -- I put edge rusher, you can look offensive tight end, a couple different directions there.

But if you're looking for -- just take one at a time here -- if you're looking for edge rushers, Jonathan Greenard from Florida, who can stand up, he stands up off the edge, he's got a nice get-off. He's really good with his hands. He'll push and pull, do those things. Very athletic, had an 80-yard fumble return when I was watching the Vandy game.

But he's got some real twitch and real fluid. He can bend at the top of his rush. He's somebody in the second-round range.

Curtis Weaver, teams are all over the place of him, from Boise State, because he doesn't have a good, a typical body type you would see for an edge rusher. He carries a little bit of extra weight. He doesn't have great get-off, but he's somebody with a tremendous amount of wiggle as a rusher and he's a finisher. He's very productive, can change directions. I don't think he'll test very well, so he could kind of be in that range.

One more name I would give you would be a guy like Darrell Taylor from Tennessee, who has got -- really if you watch him in 2018 is a first-round type player, was not healthy this year. But really, really dynamic explosive. He's got a stutter bull move. He can really knock you back. Has a really high ceiling. But injuries I think will knock him down a peg. So he could be in the mix there in that group at that point in time.

And then the tight ends, I feel we've kind of gone over them. I think there's a chance at that point in time you might have a chance at maybe it's a Harrison Bryant or Trautman there from Dayton with the opportunities for them there at the tight end position.

And interior offensive line, last one, some opportunities for them at that point in time, look, I think you look at a guy like Robert Hunt from Louisiana- Lafayette. He played tackle, but I think he's going to be a guard. He's really, really explosive. He's got upper torque, just collects a ton of knock-downs. Football intelligence is just okay.

But there's a lot to work with him, and he'd be an example -- Damien Lewis, another one from LSU, would be another interior player that would factor into that portion of the draft.

Q. I wanted to go back to the new coaches. You spoke about Matt Rhule. When you look at Mike McCarthy coming to Dallas, how much do you anticipate a new coach changing the Cowboys draft style from what we've seen in the past five or 10 years? DANIEL JEREMIAH: I don't know that it will have that much of an impact on the draft in terms of what they're trying to do draft-wise there. I think a lot of the same things that he believes in and what they had success with there in Green Bay, I think a lot of that is in place there with Dallas. I think Dallas has done a good job identifying and collecting talent.

I would say run after catch has always been a big part of the receiving corps. And I think depending on what happens with Amari Cooper, trying to find somebody that can run after catch. They've always valued guys that can return in Green Bay. That's kind of their -- that goes back to Ted Thompson, finding receivers that have return skills.

So a guy that -- a great fit in that offense would be a guy like Van Jefferson from Florida, as a receiver, who I compare him to Cooper Kupp. Just a really polished route runner with strong hands. And he's another one, gosh, another one of these guys that's a gunner on punt, another tough kid, but really good after the catch.

K.J. Hill would be another receiver who is just a really crisp route runner and just really good after-the-catch guy. Those types of receivers, I think, would make sense with what McCartney has had success with.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports Rev #1 by #188 at 2020-02-21 20:47:00 GMT