AFC Notes: Broncos, Russell Wilson, Chargers, C.J. Stroud, Raiders

Broncos

Broncos GM George Paton said everyone in the building has moved on from last season, including QB Russell Wilson. Paton added that the team has confidence in HC Sean Payton to turn it around.

“I think Russ has moved forward. We’ve all moved forward,” Paton said, via PFT. “We’ve talked about last year and it’s been well-documented. It didn’t go our way. It wasn’t all his fault. We’re all to blame, you know, and we have to improve. We have to move on. With Sean here, with our new staff, I think we will.”

• The Broncos hired Chargers assistant Isaac Shewmaker to their staff as a defensive quality control coach. (Mike Klis)
• Pittsburgh OT Carter Warren had a formal Combine interview with the Broncos. (Ryan Fowler)
• SMU WR Rashee Rice had a formal interview with the Broncos at the Combine. (Tom Downey)

Chargers

Cowboys HC Mike McCarthy recently said former Cowboys and new Chargers OC Kellen Moore wanted to score points quickly as opposed to McCarthy wanting to create time to rest their defense. Moore said it was a “fun process” to merge his offense and McCarthy’s. 

“It was really fun just to go through the process of merging worlds. I think that was such a fun process,” Moore said, via Todd Archer of ESPN. “There’s just so many little things as you go through game plans and gamedays as you’re calling the game, just being able to have those conversations about different ways you can go, different paths you can take, he was really a great sounding board for me.”

• Pittsburgh OT Carter Warren had a formal Combine interview with the Chargers. (Ryan Fowler)

Raiders

Vic Tafur and Tashan Reed of The Athletic mention that the Raiders could be looking to sign a cheap quarterback instead of going after an expensive veteran and drafting their quarterback of the future with the No. 7 overall pick.

There is no guarantee that the team selects a quarterback, as they are also in the market for an edge rusher and a tight end. 

The duo also notes that the price to move up in the draft is steep and the team may not be able to walk away with a player like Ohio State QB C.J. Stroud, with GM Dave Ziegler weighing in on the situation.

“It’s a possibility,” Ziegler said. “I think there are some really talented young players here. … It looks like there’s a handful of guys that have shown on film to be talented, to be diverse in their skill set. And so, that’s exciting. And then we’ve got to go through the next part of the process to really determine that.”

“We understand what that market is,” Ziegler continued. “We have a hierarchy of what that looks like in our building, and we’re prepared to execute that plan with the caveat being there’s a contract element and a cost element involved in that. … And so, I’d say, if you go in there with just Plan A, you could be scrambling if you don’t have a multistep plan in that situation.”

• ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler says the Raiders would like to re-sign QB Jarrett Stidham, and one of the options Las Vegas is considering at the position is rolling with Stidham and a rookie. 
• LSU OL Anthony Bradford had a formal Combine interview with the Raiders. (Justin Melo)
• Oklahoma WR Marvin Mims met with the Raiders at the Combine. (Tom Downey)
• Alabama CB Eli Ricks had a formal Combine interview with the Raiders. (Tom Downey)