Welcome to the Monday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!
You better buckle up and get ready because things are likely going to start getting crazy in the NFL this week. Actually, things have already started to get crazy, and it started on Monday with the news that Derek Carr is expected to sign in New Orleans.
Not only do we have the Carr news, but the franchise tag deadline is coming tomorrow at 4 p.m. ET, which means there could be some drama on that front. Also, the Aaron Rodgers situation is still lingering out there. Free agency starts on March 15 and the Packers will need to know what's happening with Rodgers before that date, so don't be surprised if some Rodgers news breaks at some point this week.
We'll be covering the Carr news today, plus we'll be taking a look at who had the best combine and also unveil our latest mock draft.
As always, please tell everyone you know to sign up for the newsletter. To get them signed up, all you have to do is click here and then share the link with them. All right, let's get to the rundown.
1. Mock Draft Monday: Colts and Buccaneers both trade up for a quarterbackFrom now until the start of the 2023 NFL Draft, the first day of every week here will be known as Mock Draft Monday. What this means is that Ryan Wilson, our senior NFL Draft analyst, will be unveiling his latest mock draft.
The biggest winner in his newest mock is Florida QB Anthony Richardson, who put on quite the show at the NFL combine. Not only did Richardson record the highest vertical jump (40.5 inches) by a QB in modern combine history (detailed combine records only go back to 2003, so that's considered modern history), but he also tied the modern record for the broad jump with a 10-foot-9 leap AND he also fan the fourth-fastest 40 for a QB since 2003 (4.43).
As for the other quarterbacks at the combine, we graded how each of them did in Indy, and you can check that out here.
Before the combine, Richardson was viewed as a high mid-first round pick, but now, the consensus seems to be that he's going to be a likely top eight pick, if not top five.
In Wilson's latest mock, he has Richardson going No. 7 overall to the Raiders.
Here are the first 15 picks:
1. Bears: EDGE Will Anderson (Alabama)
2. Texans: QB Bryce Young (Alabama)
3. Cardinals: EDGE Tyree Wilson (Texas Tech)
4. Colts: QB C.J. Stroud (Ohio State)
5. Seahawks: DL Jalen Carter (Georgia)
6. Lions: DL Myles Murphy (Clemson)
7. Raiders: QB Anthony Richardson (Florida)
8. Falcons: CB Christian Gonzalez (Oregon)
9. Panthers: QB Will Levis (Kentucky)
10. Eagles: CB Joey Porter, Jr. (Penn State)
11. Titans: OT Paris Johnson, Jr. (Ohio State)
12. Texans: EDGE Lukas Van Ness (Iowa)
13. Jets: OT Peter Skoronski (Northwestern)
14. Patriots: OL Darnell Wright (Tennessee)
15. Packers: WR Zay Flowers (Boston College)
One other thing worth noting about Wilson's mock is that Jalen Carter's legal situation didn't seem to have much impact on his draft stock. Despite the fact that he's facing two misdemeanor charges in Georgia, Wilson still has him going fifth overall.
If you want to see how the rest of the first round pans out in his mock, then be sure to check out his entire mock draft by clicking here.
As for Richardson, he was one of our biggest winners at the combine and we have a full list of winners and losers, which you can see here.
2. Derek Carr Saints boundThe Derek Carr sweepstakes is finally coming to an end and it looks like the Saints are going to come out on top. After flirting with the New York Jets for the past two weeks, Carr has decided that New Orleans is the best fit for him.
Here's what we know:
Carr headed to New Orleans. According to NFL.com, the Saints are "closing in on a deal" with Carr, who spent the first nine seasons of his career with the Raiders. The Saints were actually the first team to show interest in Carr and he ended up visiting with them in early February for two days. At the time, Carr still played for the Raiders and the Saints were thinking about pulling off a trade, but instead, they waited for him to be released. Carr met with the Jets, Panthers and Saints at the combine before settling on New Orleans. Contract numbers. Although the exact numbers haven't been released yet, NFL.com has reported that Carr will be getting a four-year deal. No matter what the numbers are, the Saints are going to have to get creative with the contract, and that's mostly because they're currently $18 million OVER the salary cap. By adding Carr now, that gives them nine days to get their cap situation figured out (Each team has to be salary cap compliant by March 15 at 4 p.m. ET). One way to pick up some quick money would be cut Jameis Winston. If the Saints cut him now, it would free up $4.4 million. They could also wait until June 1 to cut him, which would free up $12.8 million, but if they go that route, it wouldn't help them get under the cap before March 15. Carr reunited with Dennis Allen. One reason Carr probably likes the Saints is because he's already familiar with their head coach. Dennis Allen was the Raiders' head coach in 2014 during Carr's rookie year in the NFL. Allen got fired by the Raiders after just four games in 2014, which means both guys know what it feels like to be dumped by the Raiders. Carr instantly become the best QB in the NFC South. This might change after free agency, but right now, Carr is the best QB in the division by far. The Buccaneers have Kyle Trask, the Falcons have Desmond Ridder and the Panthers only have Matt Corral under contract. If the other teams don't upgrade, that's going to make the Saints the instant favorites to win the NFC South in 2023. Jets are the biggest losers here. Over the weekend, it appeared the Jets were the frontrunners in the Carr sweepstakes, but now, they're back at square one. With Carr out of the running, the Jets will probably turn all of their attention toward Aaron Rodgers. If they can't acquire him, then the Jets might have to settle for someone like Jimmy Garoppolo. To me, Carr to the Jets always seemed like a longshot. I wrote in the Feb. 20 newsletter that there's no way he'd play in a cold-weather city so I'm not surprised at all that he picked a team that plays in a dome.If you're wondering how Carr's signing could impact the rest of the QB market, we took a look at that, and you can check it out here.
3. 2023 NFL Combine: Biggest risers, biggest fallers and answering other burning questionsIf you didn't spend your entire weekend watching the NFL Combine, that's OK, because our draft writers watched everything and then they proceeded to break it all down for us. Our draft gurus -- Josh Edwards and Chris Trapasso -- both spent the weekend in Indianapolis and they watched a LOT of football.
Here are their answers to the combine's biggest questions:
Q: What's the biggest storyline out of the combine?
Edwards: Bryce Young's measurables. "With a height of 5-foot-10 and 1/8 of an inch and a weight of 204 pounds, Young met the desired height and weight thresholds. It is great to see that he can reach that number, but it means very little for this to occur in March if he has no intention of maintaining that weight through his playing career."
Q: Who helped their draft stock the most?
Edwards: Adetomiwa Adebawore, EDGE/DL, Northwestern. "Adebawore would have been the most impressive performer had it not been for Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson. He tested off the charts in essentially every category. He ran a 4.49 seconds 40-yard dash at 282 pounds after vertically jumping 37.5 inches and broadly jumping 10-feet-5-inches. The Florida native also put 225 pounds up 27 times on the bench press. Teams will need to have a plan in place for his size, but he checked a lot of boxes athletically."
Q: Who hurt their draft stock the most?
Trapasso: Jordan Addison, WR USC. "Addison weighed in light as a feather at 5-foot-11 and 173 pounds with arms under 31 inches and hands just under the 9-inch threshold many teams want to see out of their receivers. Then, despite his minimal weight, Addison ran 4.49 in the 40, the 21st-fastest among the wideouts. Surprisingly slow. His 34-inch vert was the seventh lowest, and his 10-foot-2 broad was the eighth-lowest at the position. Look, Addison is a slippery, reliable stud on film. Here at the combine, Addison's stock tipped downward. He should've tested more explosively at 173 pounds."
Trapasso and Edwards answered several other burning question about the combine, and you can check out those answers by clicking here.
As for the rest of the combine, here are a few other notes:
Michigan corner runs fastest 40. We can't move on from talking about the combine until we reveal who ran the fastest 40. This year, that honor went to Michigan cornerback DJ Turner II, who ran a blazing fast 4.26. Turner's time was the fifth fastest of any place since 2003 and just .04 seconds off of John Ross' record time of 4.22. BYU offensive lineman shines. BYU offensive tackle Blake Freeland recorded a 37-inch vertical jump, which was the all-time record for an offensive linemen. To give you an idea of how impressive that is, his vertical was higher than players like A.J. Brown, CeeDee Lamb, Stefon Diggs and Amari Cooper. You can read more about Freeland's impressive performance by heading here. Shortest guy at combine. This is one record I wasn't expecting to see broken over the weekend. Kansas State running back Deuce Vaughn had a height of just 5-foot-5, which makes him the shortest player at the combine since official record-keeping started in 2003.Finally, if you want to know who the top receivers and tight ends were at the combine, then be sure to check out our story here. If you're more interested in running backs, you can see how they fared by clicking here.
4. Franchise tag deadline is one day awayThe franchise tag window opened on Feb. 21, and over the past two weeks, only ONE team has officially used the tag with the Commanders placing it on DT tackle Daron Payne (The defensive tackle will be getting an $18.94 million one-year salary in 2023 for getting tagged).
The franchise tag deadline is Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET, so let's take a look at where things currently stand around the NFL:
Ravens: Lamar Jackson's status up in the air. If the Ravens can't work out a deal with Jackson, they're definitely going to tag him, but there is still one big question: Will they use the exclusive tag or non-exclusive? If they use the exclusive, Jackson will get $45 million for 2023 on a one-year deal. If they use the non-exclusive, Jackson will only get $32.4 million AND he'll be allowed to negotiate with other teams. Of course, if Jackson gets the non-exclusive and ends up signing somewhere else, the Ravens will get two first-round draft picks in return from any team that signs him. You can check out more details on Jackson's situation by going here. Raiders: Vegas planning to tag Josh Jacobs. After watching Jacobs lead the NFL in rushing in 2022, the Raiders have decided they're not going to let him leave in free agency. According to multiple reports, the Raiders plan to tag Jacobs if no long-term deal is reached by tomorrow. The tag number for running backs is $10.09 million. Cowboys: Dallas using tag on Tony Pollard. The Cowboys are using the tag on Pollard, and now it will be interesting to see what happens with Ezekiel Elliott. Zeke has a base salary of $10.9 million in 2023 and having two running backs who are both making more than $10 million doesn't make much sense (Pollard will net $10.09 million with the tag). Jaguars: Evan Engram to get tagged. After a huge season in Jacksonville, the Jags are planning to keep Engram around for at least one more year by using the tag on him. The franchise tag for tight ends pays out $11.345 million for the 2023 season. Giants: Tag likely going to Daniel Jones. If the Giants don't reach a long-term deal with Jones by tomorrow's deadline, they're definitely going to tag him, according to multiple reports. Of course, if they do get a deal done, that could open the door for the team to use the tag on Saquon Barkley.With the tag deadline coming tomorrow, it's definitely going to be an interesting 24 hours in the NFL. Also, keep in mind that any player who gets tagged still has a chance to sign a long-term deal. After getting tagged, players are allowed to negotiate a long-term deal with their respective team until July 15, so even though the tag drama will be over tomorrow, it won't actually be over.
5. XFL kicks off: Highlights from Week 3 actionWe're three weeks into the XFL season and the league still hasn't gone out of business, which definitely qualifies as a positive thing considering how quickly some prior spring leagues have folded. The better news for the XFL is that the league seems to be getting more exciting by the week with Week 3 definitely being the craziest week of the season so far.
Here are some of the highlights from each of the Week 3 games:
Seattle Sea Dragons 30-26 over Vegas Vipers. The Sea Dragons were trailing in this game 26-24 with under 75 seconds left to play, but they ended up winning, thanks to a wild 65-yard touchdown catch by Josh Gordon that came on fourth down (You can see the play here). That was actually Gordon's second TD catch on the night. The receiver caught six passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns in a game where Ben DiNucci ended up throwing for 377 yards and four touchdowns. DC Defenders 34-28 over St. Louis BattleHawks. This might have been the wildest game of the season so far. Not only did it have the most total points of any game through three weeks, but we also saw three players get ejected after a brawl late in the fourth quarter (Details here). AJ McCarron threw four touchdown passes, but he also turned the ball over three times, including a pick-six that you can see here. The BattleHawks had four turnovers and a missed field goal in the loss. Arlington Renegades 10-9 over Orlando Guardians. For the first time in his XFL career, Guardian QB Paxton Lynch did not get benched in a game. After getting benched in both Week 1 and Week 2, Lynch actually played the entire game in Week 3, but he didn't do much. Lynch only led one TD drive and he didn't get any help from running back Jah-Maine Martin, who lost two fumbles. Renegades QB Kyle Sloter threw a game-winning 17-yard TD pass with under eight minutes left to play in the game (You can see the throw here). Houston Roughnecks 22-13 over San Antonio Brahmas. The Roughnecks won this game, thanks to an impressive goal line stand late in the fourth quarter. With just under six minutes left to play, the Brahmas had first-and-goal from Houston's one-yard line. They proceeded to run the ball on four straight plays and got stuffed each time. It was a dominant defensive performance for the Roughnecks, who held San Antonio to just 162 total yards. Roughnecks QB Brandon Silvers threw for 278 yards and three touchdowns to pace his team in the win.Our writing crew of Bryan DeArdo, Jeff Kerr and Shanna McCarriston watched every minute of all four XFL games over the weekend and you can read about all the XFL highlights from the weekend by clicking here.
6. Rapid-fire roundup: Vikings release All-Pro linebackerIt was a busy weekend in the NFL and since it's nearly impossible to keep track of everything that happened I went ahead and put together a roundup for you.
Vikings release Eric Kendricks. After eight seasons with in Minnesota, the Vikings have decided to dump Eric Kendricks in a cost-cutting move that will save $9.5 million in cap space. Kendricks led the team in tackles in each of the past two seasons and will
