Chargers
Chargers HC Brandon Staley tells Steve Wyche on NFL Network that they want RB Austin Ekeler to be back with the team, despite the fact that heโs speaking to other teams about a potential trade.
โWeโve been in full communication with his team,โ Staley said. โI think thereโs alignment and a way forward. We want him to be a Charger. I think that thatโs something that [General Manager] Tom [Telesco] has said. Itโs something Iโve said. We want this guy to be a Charger. Weโre also respectful of his position, and weโre going to see where it goes. Thereโs going to be time now between now and our first game, and weโll see what happens. But I know the Chargers feel very strongly about Austin Ekeler. Heโs just been fantastic for us.โ
Jimmy Garoppolo
Raiders HC Josh McDaniels wouldnโt rule out the team drafting a quarterback this year despite signing QB Jimmy Garoppolo.
โI think we would take the best player,โ McDaniels said, via NFL.com. โWeโve kind of said that since we came here. I think we think thatโs the right way to go. (General manager Dave Ziegler) and I both believe in that: Take the best football player. It always makes your football team better.โ
โSo we only have one quarterback under contract, plus Chase Garbers, whoโs the rookie free agent last year,โ McDaniels added. โSo there (are) only two of them total. Iโd say thereโs a chance weโre going to end up adding to the quarterback room in free agency here, continuing to move forward, and then also weโre looking at every guy in the draft, too. So weโre doing our work. Weโre doing our due diligence. Weโll see how the board falls.โ
McDaniels still has high praise for Garoppolo despite looking to add more to the quarterback group in Las Vegas.
โI think (Garoppolo has) had a lot of important experience,โ McDaniels said. โHeโs played in a lot of big games, heโs won, heโs a winner, and heโs been a great leader. I got to see that just a little bit in New England when I was with him, but I definitely have seen it from afar when he was in San Francisco. Really proud of what heโs done when he left us and went to Kyle (Shanahan) and John (Lynch) in San Francisco. Really a competitive guy. Heโs a guy that brings the team together. Really good leader, exceptional in that regard. Looking forward to his impact on our team.โ
Raiders
Raiders owner Mark Davis discussed how he sees Raiders HC Josh McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler as they enter Year 2 together. Las Vegas still seems far away from contending despite the aggressive moves they made last offseason, but Davis said he always thought it would take time for McDaniels and Ziegler to enact their vision.
โEverybody that comes in thinks that they can see from the outside what this team is, and they look at the film and they say, โOK, we can do it.โ Until you get here and work with the people thatโs in it, you donโt know who they are,โ Davis said via the Athleticโs Tashan Reed. โSo, I personally felt that they were going to take a year to really understand who they were working with and everything like that and then they would make decisions that would work towards the future.
โThey did make a huge move when they first got here for Davante (Adams), so that took away their draft last year; the third-round draft pick was the first we had. So, coming into this year now, itโs a different story. They came in without a quarterback, basically, after they made the decision on Derek (Carr). They decided on hiring Jimmy Garoppolo as our quarterback and thatโs how they want to go into this season. They have 12 draft picks, and weโll see what they do. Itโs up to Dave Ziegler, really, who is the general manager, now to start putting a roster together and really putting this team together for the future.โ
Last year, Davis and the Raidersโ brain trust made it clear with their words and actions they thought they could be competitive right away. That tone shifted quickly and Davis explained that while he was hopeful, he knew in the back of his mind it would take time.
โThe reason it wasnโt a rebuild is because they came in and they had the quarterback, they got Davante, they had everything that they wanted based on seeing from afar what they thought they were coming into,โ Davis said. โAnd no matter how much you tell people what theyโre getting, they got to see for themselves. So, at that time, it was in my mind for them, โLetโs see what you got.โ
โAgain, there wasnโt extreme disappointment because I had a feeling that from afar, they didnโt really see exactly what they were getting, but I knew by the end of the season, theyโd know. So, did I think it was a rebuild at that time? No. I thought it really was an opportunity to move forward again. Is it a rebuild now? I suppose if youโre getting a new quarterback, obviously, thatโs a big positional change and the fact is we still have holes on the defense we need to fill. The offense, again, we lose a quarterback and a tight end; thatโs a lot. So, again, thereโs pieces there that have to be placed in. So, are we closer than we were last year? I donโt know at this point. But we do have the draft coming up and thatโs going to tell a lot.โ
Davis reiterated his philosophy is to hire people, step away and let them do their job, then come back and evaluate at a later date. So heโs not going to meddle with the day-to-day decisions McDaniels and Ziegler are making.
โFor me, I hire people. One thing I know is what I donโt know,โ Davis said. โI hire people that do know those things, I let them do their job, I give them vision and goals and let the results speak for themselves.โ
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Let him go thereโs PLENTY of solid RBโs in this draft, like Bijan Robinson who is at least as goodโฆ possibly better, without the injury list EK has accumulated. OBVIOUSLY we need the Cap space so thereโs that