Filling their QB needs
Four teams that were interested in trading for Deshaun Watson selected quarterbacks in the first round of the NFL draft Thursday night.
Watson’s legal problems caused teams to put their interest on hold, so Zach Wilson ( Jets), Trey Lance (49ers), Justin Fields (Bears) and Mac Jones (Patriots) were selected by teams filling needs at quarterback. The Jets, 49ers, Bears and Patriots were among the eight teams that let the Texans know they were interested in Watson before he was accused of sexual harassment and assault in 22 civil lawsuits.
The Texans didn’t trade Watson on Thursday, and they’re sitting out the first two rounds to complete Bill O’Brien’s trade with Miami for offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil and receiver Kenny Stills.
Unless he trades out of the 67th overall pick, general manager Nick Caserio will wait until the third round Friday to make the Texans’ first selection.
If there’s a quarterback Caserio likes, he could take him even though the Texans have so many needs on both sides of the ball.
Before the draft began Thursday, the Aaron Rodgers controversy dominated news throughout the day. ESPN reported Rodgers wants out of Green Bay and wanted to be traded to the 49ers, who made an offer Wednesday, according to national reports.
Like Watson, Rodgers is disgruntled and wants out, according to multiple reports. The Packers reiterated they’re committed to Rodgers, who earned the
Four teams that were interested in trading for Watson opt to pick signal-callers in the first round
NFL Most Valuable Player Award last season when they lost the NFC Championship Game for the second consecutive year.
Meanwhile, when the draft finally started, the Jaguars (Trevor Lawrence), Jets (Wilson) and 49ers (Lance) took quarterbacks with the first three picks for the third time in NFL history. They better hope their quarterbacks develop and produce more like 1971 than 1999.
In 1971, the first three picks were Jim Plunkett (Patriots), Archie Manning (Saints) and Dan Pastorini (Oilers). Plunkett won two Super Bowls with the Raiders. Manning became a legend in New Orleans. Pastorini helped the Oilers reach back-to-back AFC Championship Games after the 1978 and 1979 seasons during the Luv Ya Blue era.
In 1999, Tim Couch (Browns), Donovan McNabb (Eagles) and Akili Smith (Bengals) were the first three picks. McNabb played 10 seasons in Philadelphia, winning five NFC East titles and making the playoffs eight times, including a Super Bowl XXIX loss to New England.
Unfortunately for Cleveland and Cincinnati, Couch and Smith were huge busts.
Interestingly, the first player drafted in 1999 who wasn’t a quarterback is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The Colts used the fourth overall pick on running back Edgerrin James.
The Falcons are hoping the fourth overall pick Thursday ends up in the Hall of Fame, too. There was a lot of speculation Atlanta’s new general manager and head coach, Terry Fontenot and Arthur Smith, would draft a quarterback to groom behind Matt Ryan.
The Falcons had a choice of Fields and Jones. It would have been the first time in history quarterbacks were the first four picks, but Atlanta still made draft history.
The Falcons selected tight end Kyle Pitts, the second-rated player behind Lawrence. Pitts became the highest-drafted tight end in history. Mike Ditka (1961) and Riley Odoms (1972) were drafted fifth overall. Chicago chose Ditka, and Denver selected Odoms, who played at the University of Houston.
For the first time, offensive players were the first seven picks in the draft. The first defensive player was Carolina cornerback Jaycee Horn, and Denver followed with cornerback Patrick Surtain Jr.
With the 10th pick in the first round, the Cowboys entered the draft hoping to get Surtain or Horn for a defense desperate for improvement, especially in its pass coverage. When the Panthers and Broncos spoiled their plan, the Cowboys traded down with the Eagles.
Philadelphia wanted to move one spot ahead of the Giants to draft receiver DeVonta Smith, the Heisman Trophy winner. He’d been projected to the Giants.
With Smith gone, the Giants traded down with the Bears, 11th to 20th. Among the draft choices they received to move down was a first-round pick in 2022. Chicago used the 11th overall pick on Fields, solving the Bears’ biggest need.
The Cowboys followed up by taking Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons, the first player from the front seven to be drafted.
Of the top five quarterbacks, only Jones remained.
The Patriots had the 15th pick in the first round. Bill Belichick knew the Chargers and Jets, who traded into the 14th spot with the Vikings, wouldn’t take a quarterback with the selections in front of New England. There was no need for Belichick to try to trade up with one of them.
As the head coach at Cleveland and New England, Belichick never drafted a quarterback in the first round. There was no need with the Patriots because Tom Brady, a sixth-round selection, was becoming the greatest in history.
Even though Belichick seldom shows emotion unless the Patriots are winning a Super Bowl, he had to be ecstatic that Jones dropped to him. Belichick’s close friend, Alabama coach Nick Saban, highly recommended Jones to every NFL team that inquired about the quarterback who led the Crimson Tide to another national championship last season.
Of the five best quarterback prospects going into the draft, Lawrence will make the most money, but Jones might turn out to be the biggest winner. He’ll play for the greatest coach in history for a franchise that’s won six Super Bowls.
That means Jones will be compared to Brady. That seems like an unfair comparison for any player.