NFL Notes: Running Backs, Draft, Raiders, Texans

Running Backs

While there has been a lot of talk about how great this year’s running back class is, an NFL evaluator tells Emily Kaplan of TheMMQB.com that he wouldn’t have any of this year’s running backs rated higher than Ezekiel Elliott coming out of Ohio State.

“He was so well-rounded coming out of Ohio State,” the evaluator said of Elliott. “He’s not the fastest guy you’ll see, but his first step, burst and vision are all elite. He was so much more advanced in blocking pass protection than Gurley or Fournette. He’s a workhorse and not only a three-down back, but he could be featured in the pass game as well. If you’re looking for a pure physical runner, with the best power/speed combination that most of us have ever seen, then Fournette is your guy.”

Interestingly enough, the evaluator provided his Top 15 running back prospects since 2014 which includes Leonard Fournette (#2), Dalvin Cook (#3), Alvin Kamara (#9), Christian McCaffrey (#10) and D’Onta Freeman (#15).

Draft

• The Saints are hosting USC guard Jordan Simmons for an official pre-draft visit. (Aaron Wilson)
• FAU DE/OLB Trey Hendrickson reportedly “impressed a lot of people” during his visit with the Cardinals on Tuesday. (Tony Pauline)
• The Broncos visited with Pittsburgh DL Tyrique Jarrett. (Mike Klis)

Raiders

• Raiders owner Mark Davis mentioned during an interview with 95.7 The Game that there was a point where they were close to a deal with the city of Oakland back in 2013. However, things ultimately unraveled after the A’s got a 10-year lease. (Vic Tafur)
• Interestingly enough, Davis said that he offered the A’s a 20-percent stake in the Raiders, but they didn’t want to tear down the Oakland Coliseum and build two stadiums at the same time. (Scott Bair)
• Davis said they never got the kind of financial support they needed to remain in the Bay Area: “We always said we had $500 million to contribute to a stadium deal, but we needed help. We never got that help.” (Scott Bair)
• While the Raiders were able to secure financing with Bank of America, Davis said that this load wasn’t going to work for a stadium in Oakland, as they considered the A’s lease to be a major roadblock. (Scott Bair)
• Davis added that he’s hoping  “emotions will dry” and they can “bring a championship to Oakland” in next two or three years. (Vic Tafur)

Texans

• Jason Cole of B/R mentions that the Texans now find themselves in a bind at quarterback now that Tony Romo has decided to walk away from the NFL for a job with CBS.
• As of now, the Texans have just Tom Savage and Brandon Weeden on their roster at quarterback and Savage’s lack of expiring is viewed as a problem for the team’s Super Bowl aspirations.
• According to the Cole, the idea of bringing in a veteran option such as Jay Cutler and Colin Kaepernick is viewed as a strong possibility by sources within the Texans’ organization.