AFC Notes: Dolphins, Raiders, Titans

March 31, 2018

Even with Reshad Jones and T.J. McDonald and in place at safety, Omar Kelly of the Sun-Sentinel writes that the Dolphins should consider the possibility of trading for Seahawks S Earl Thomas if Seattle is willing to accept a second-round pick for him and Miami is comfortable making him the highest-paid safety in the NFL.
Should the cost of acquiring Thomas and signing him to a long-term extension be too high for the Dolphins, Kelly believes they should consider signing a veteran safety such as Ron Parker, Kenny Vaccaro, or Eric Reid.

Jerry McDonald of the East Bay Times writes that Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie clearly has a figure in mind that he’s willing to pay for veteran ILB NaVorro Bowman and it’s unlikely he’s going to stray much from it, considering how he’s handled negotiations with veteran players in the past.
McDonald also points out that it’s possible Oakland could end up using their No. 10 overall pick on an inside linebacker such as Georgia’s Roquan Smith, which means they may prefer to wait and see how things go in the draft before committing to bringing Bowman back for the 2018 season.
McDonald expects Bowman to walk if a team steps up and is willing to pay him like an every-down linebacker.
The plan for the Raiders’ defense under new DC Paul Guenther is to employ a 4-3, one-gap team scheme and get Khalil Mack in one-on-one blocking situations.
The Raiders plan to move Bruce Irvin back to edge rusher, as opposed to playing strongside linebacker.
As for a long-term extension for Mack, McDonald says that if a deal is to get done this year, it will likely happen in late June, which happens to be around the same time the Raiders signed QB Derek Carr to a big-money extension.

According to Jim Wyatt, new Titans HC Mike Vrabel floated the idea of possibly using DT Jurrell Casey on offense.
Regarding the team’s need at defensive tackle, Wyatt writes that free agent Johnathan Hankins has been mentioned “a lot” in speculation, but there’s nothing happening with him right now.
Wyatt would be surprised if the Titans pursued another quarterback, considering that they currently have Blaine Gabbert on the roster behind Marcus Mariota.