| Somehow a fatal accident involving draft prospect DL RUEBEN BAIN, Jr. of the U. of Miami flew under the radar until this reporting by The Athletic: University of Miami defensive lineman Rueben Bain Jr. was the driver during a traffic collision in the early hours of March 17, 2024, that resulted in one of the passengers, 22-year-old Destiny Betts, being severely injured, according to court documents obtained by The Athletic. Betts, who was one of four passengers in the 2021 Land Rover, was not wearing a seatbelt, according to the crash report, and died from those injuries nearly three months later, on June 13, 2024. Bain was issued a citation for careless driving, with police saying that he “operated his vehicle in a careless or negligent manner.” No field sobriety test was conducted. The citation would eventually be dismissed, with the reason listed as “defective citation,” and Bain was never charged in connection with the crash. According to a diagram in the crash report, first obtained by The Read Optional, Interstate-95 has five regular lanes and an additional express lane. The report states that Bain, driving a vehicle owned by Miami Sports 27 Inc., was traveling northbound in the outside center lane when the left front of his vehicle collided with the right rear of another car. The collision resulted in Bain’s vehicle going through two lanes on the right and hitting the east concrete wall before going across the entire six-lane highway. It hit the west concrete wall, where the vehicle eventually came to a stop. In October 2024, the driver of the other car sued Bain on a count of motor vehicle negligence, alleging that the wreck caused him physical injury along with mental anguish. The other driver voluntarily dismissed his case with prejudice in June. Court records also show a mediation session scheduled for March, including counsel representing Bain, Miami Sports 27, Betts’ estate and an auto insurance company. In a separate incident, Bain was issued another citation on Oct. 14, 2025, which indicated he was involved in another crash. The second citation was also dismissed due to a “defective citation.” In a statement to The Read Optional, Betts’ family said: “Destiny’s passing was the result of a tragic accident that occurred several years ago. While the loss remains incredibly painful for our family, we have worked hard to find peace and move forward. At this time, we are not seeking public attention surrounding this tragedy and respectfully request that our family’s privacy be honored. We also wish Mr. Bain the best as he continues his life and career.” The Athletic has reached out to Bain for comment, and will update this story if he responds. As with most prior legal situations, NFL teams will conduct their own investigations into the incident and make their own decisions based on all available information — including anything from law enforcement and whether or not Bain was up front with them about this during any interviews with teams. Bain is considered one of the top prospects in this year’s NFL Draft. In Brugler’s Top 100, Bain checks in at No. 9 overall and the third-best edge rusher, behind Ohio State’s Arvell Reese and Texas Tech’s David Bailey. Despite his top-tier talent, questions have swirled around Bain leading up to the draft because of his arm length, which checks in at just under 31 inches. |
| NFC SOUTH |
| TAMPA BAYMike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com on Tampa Bay’s history of paying big money for a quarterback (hint – there is no history of that): Buccaneers owner Joel Glazer recently said it doesn’t hurt to write a big check to a quarterback. He wouldn’t know, because the Bucs have never done it. Yes, they paid Tom Brady. But not top-of-market money. When he arrived in 2020, the Bucs gave him $25 million per year. The market, at the time, was led by Patrick Mahomes, at $45 million annually. (Before Mahomes signed his second deal, the market leader was Russell Wilson, at $35 million.) On PFT Live, Chris Simms and I went through the list of Tampa Bay quarterbacks since the franchise was founded in 1976. (Simms was one of them.) None has ever gotten a top-dollar, market-level contract. With Baker Mayfield entering the final season of a three-year, $100 million deal, those days could be ending. It’s not like Mayfield will get $60 million per year. But he could be in line for more than $50 million. Consider some of the players who are making north of $50 million. Consider that the cap keeps going up, and up. And up. That said, too many teams have broken the bank when they didn’t have to (e.g., the Dolphins with Tua Tagovailoa). The Buccaneers currently aren’t negotiating against anyone. What if they let Mayfield play out his deal and see what happens? When he was closing in on free agency in 2024, the Bucs didn’t apply the franchise tag to Mayfield. Other teams that should have been interested in Mayfield weren’t. Next year, that could change. The fallback for the Buccaneers is the franchise tag. With a cap number of $39.975 million in 2026, it would cost $47.97 million to keep Mayfield off the open market. Where will it go from here? It all comes down to whether Mayfield wants a deal that starts with a 5. If he gets one, it’ll be the first time the Buccaneers approach the top of the market with a quarterback in 50 years of existence. |
| AFC NORTH |
| PITTSBURGHLB PATRICK QUEEN is not as confident as some that QB AARON RODGERS will be back with the Steelers. Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com: Most assume quarterback Aaron Rodgers will return to the Steelers for another season. One Steelers player seems to think Rodgers remains on the fence. Appearing on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football, Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen put the odds at “50-50,” via Jeremy Bergman of NFL.com. “Is he gonna be back? I don’t know,” Queen said. “But hell, I’ll take him. Dude is a great teammate, great quarterback. We all know him, we all love him. He knows how to win. We just have to be better for him.” That may ultimately be the source of any hesitation. How much better will the Steelers be this year than last year? Much of the AFC is in flux. The Steelers are in flux, too. And Rodgers arrived in large part because of the presence of coach Mike Tomlin. With Mike McCarthy now leading the team, who knows whether the Steelers will be better, or worse, than they were in 2025? Then there’s the reality that there’s no other viable option for Rodgers, if he wants to play in 2026. Beyond the Cardinals, every team has a clear starter — or the clear candidates to win the starting job. Some think Rodgers will commit to the Steelers next week, when Pittsburgh hosts the draft. He could show up on the stage, using the enthusiasm of having the draft in town to boost the enthusiasm of a fanbase that is lukewarm at best regarding another year with Rodgers. He also could wait. If an eventual contender loses its starter, his phone could ring. He could swoop in, leading the way for one of the leaders of the pack. He could cap his career with a real playoff run, not a one-and-done disaster that ended with a pick-six. That pick-six on his last throw of the season perhaps becomes the magnet for another run. Rodgers surely doesn’t want his final act in the NFL to be the thing he avoided better than most quarterbacks who have ever played. Even with Queen pegging the odds at even, it feels like he’ll end up in Pittsburgh. With Rodgers, however, there’s no way of doing what he’ll do until he does it. |
| AFC SOUTH |
| TENNESSEEDave McGinnis, a beloved figure in Nashville and throughout the NFL has passed away. Jim Wyatt of Titans.com with a long remembrance: Dave McGinnis, known affectionately as “Coach Mac” by most, has passed away. In McGinnis, the football world lost a man who never stopped coaching, and encouraging, even though his role in the NFL changed in more recent years. The world, and the Titans community, lost a man who was a friend to many, always generous with his time, money, and stories. McGinnis died on Monday after an illness that first hospitalized him in early March. He was 74. In recent days, friends and colleagues, including a big group of former players and coaches he worked with during his coaching days, stopped by to see McGinnis in the Nashville hospital he was first admitted to back on March 4. He listened to recorded voice messages from those unable to make it to town. McGinnis did his best to laugh, smile, and talk football, even in his final days, as his body weakened. “The lives he touched, and the number of people that cared about him, it’s amazing really,” former Titans head coach Jeff Fisher said of McGinnis, his friend of 40 years. “Mac treated people so well, and made everyone feel like they were important. Even in the hospital, people would stop by to see him, and he would ask about their families, their grandkids, even when he could barely speak. He made a big impact on so many people. Everyone loved Mac.” McGinnis will be remembered for loving football, and the relationships he developed along the way. “I love Dave McGinnis, and I don’t know that I’ve met anybody who was created for football, and a football life, more than Coach Mac,” said Burke Nihill, President and CEO of the Titans. “He just loved the game. Obviously, he played it for a long time and coached it for longer, and with everything he has done for us over the years as color commentator and a Titans personality. He lived such a special football life. He was such a special guy.” Raised in Texas, McGinnis spent a lot of his life in Nashville with the Titans, first as a coach and later as a broadcaster. “My heart aches with the loss of Coach Mac, who was so much more than a coach and broadcaster – he was family,” Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk said. “Coach Mac gave so much of himself to this organization over the years, and his passion, loyalty, and love for the Titans never wavered. He cared deeply about the people around him, and that kindness and authenticity left a lasting impact on everyone who knew him. He held a very special place in our family, and his presence in our lives and within this franchise will never be forgotten. We will miss him dearly, and we will always be grateful for the legacy he leaves behind.” A beloved coach, McGinnis reached celebrity status in Music City not long after taking over as gameday color analyst in 2017 for Titans Radio, a job he held through the 2025 season. He initially joined the Titans family as an assistant coach on Fisher’s staff with the team back in 2004, and he spent eight seasons as linebackers coach. “I told him: ‘Mac, I have a home for you here,” Fisher recalled. “We grew to be really close friends. My kids called him Uncle Mac growing up, and he became Mac-Daddy.” Even before that McGinnis was on his way to becoming enormously popular across the NFL, where he ultimately accumulated three decades of coaching experience from 1986 to 2016 with the Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals, Tennessee Titans and the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams, as a linebackers coach, defensive coordinator, assistant head coach, and also as a head coach. In his career, McGinnis coached eight Hall of Famers, including linebacker Mike Singletary with the Bears. McGinnis loved telling stories about Walter Payton from his time in Chicago, and he later coached Hall of Famers Emmitt Smith and Aeneas Williams during his time as head coach of the Cardinals. “Coach Mac, he was upbeat, and he was honest, and I always appreciated that,” said former Titans linebacker Keith Bulluck, who played six seasons under McGinnis. “He had a young Stephen Tulloch and he’d tell him: You can’t be playing rat ball. … He’d say that to all the young guys: ‘You see this right here, this is rat ball.’ He was not a yeller, and he did not try to make you look dumb in front of the guys. But he had his funny Texas way of telling you to get your shit together, and “This is unacceptable.” He wanted to make sure a game didn’t go down on his watch.” Raised in Snyder, Texas, McGinnis graduated from Snyder High School. He played in college at Texas Christian University, where he was a three-year starter as a defensive back. When he crossed paths with another TCU alum, he was quick to curl his fingers down to represent the school’s mascot, the horned frogs. McGinnis began his coaching career immediately after he finished his playing career, spending 13 years as a college assistant before moving to the NFL. Between 1973-85, McGinnis served on the coaching staffs at TCU, Missouri, Indiana State and Kansas State. McGinnis embarked on his NFL career in 1986 with the Bears, where he spent 10 seasons on the staffs of Mike Ditka and Dave Wannstedt as linebackers coach. It was in Chicago where McGinnis coached Singletary, Wilber Marshall and Otis Wilson. Singletary was the captain of the defense, and he was named to seven straight Pro Bowls and was honored as Defensive Player of the Year in 1988 when he was coached my McGinnis. “I found him to be a friend over the years, and what a great time, the timing of him coming to the Bears and being my coach,” Singletary said of McGinnis. “I needed somebody like him. I knew where I wanted to go, knew what I wanted to do and I needed somebody to guide me, somebody to help me and have a perspective about what was next for me, and how to be a professional about getting there. For me, Coach Mac was a godsend at that time, when he came. “I really leaned on him. He was honest with me, and he helped me so much go to the next level. He’d say: Mike, you may not want to hear this, but I have to tell you, partner: This is what you need to do, and you need to do a better job of doing this. He was a friend, a mentor, and he told you the truth. He loved helping players work through things. He was going to be a friend if you needed a friend, he knew when to get on your tail, and he knew when to back off. I was really very fortunate to have come across someone like him who could find that balance of being a coach, and a friend. I think he and I needed each other at the time we met.” In 1996, McGinnis left Chicago to become Vince Tobin’s defensive coordinator in Arizona, and he spent nearly five seasons in that role before taking over as the Cardinals interim head coach in 2000. McGinnis remained Arizona’s head coach for three seasons, and ended up serving 57 games as a head coach. In Arizona, McGinnis coached a player who made a profound impact on his life: Pat Tillman, who left his sports career and enlisted in the United States Army Special Operations in May 2002 in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. Tillman died in Afghanistan in 2004 at the age of 27, and McGinnis often spoke about his courageous life, and his death. “I’ve coached eight Hall of Famers, and no player I’ve ever coached had more of an impact on my life than Pat Tillman did,” McGinnis once said. “It was an immense loss, and it will always be there. But we are all better for having known him. His legacy will live forever.” Following his coaching days with the Cardinals, Fisher brought McGinnis to Nashville, which would eventually become his final home base, but not before traveling to two more cities with Fisher. After serving on Fisher’s staff as linebackers coach from 2004-2010 in Tennessee, and in 2011 under Mike Munchak with the Titans, McGinnis later served as an assistant head coach under Fisher with the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams from 2012-2016. When he returned to Nashville at the end of his coaching career, McGinnis joined Titans Radio, where his knowledge and passion for the game was regularly on full display while providing insight and analysis as color analyst while working alongside play-by-play men Mike Keith and Taylor Zarzour. Keith spent eight seasons in the booth with McGinnis. Keith said he learned early on that McGinnis, who had built strong reputation as a football coach, was going to be a natural. He’d already shown so many impressive traits when he joined the organization the first time, as a coach. “When Gunther Cunningham left as linebacker coach, he was one of the most beloved people in the building. Amazingly, his successor, Dave McGinnis, surpassed him,” Keith said. “In his eight years on the staff, Coach Mac came to know everyone in the building. Everyone. When he left for the Rams after the 2011 season, he invited everyone to lunch at Rosepepper’s (in East Nashville). Everyone. And almost all stopped by to spend one more moment with Coach Mac. “We called him to ask if he wanted to join our Titans Radio team in 2017. He had no broadcasting experience, but we were all convinced that he would be a huge hit. By the end of his first preseason, he was the star of the broadcast. We rebuilt what we did around him. We eventually created Titans Gameday on TV as one more vehicle for him. The world could not get enough Coach Mac. We rode his coattails, as we traveled coast to coast and to England (twice) where people had to get his autograph, a picture or just to visit with him. Dave McGinnis was the same as a coach and a broadcaster – one of the very best. Why? He was 100% genuine. What players and fellow coaches experienced was real. What listeners and viewers experienced was real. We hear a lot of people in this world claim to be “authentic”. Coach Mac wouldn’t say that about himself, because he didn’t have to say it. He was “Coach Mac” every minute, every hour, every day. He never disappointed. Ever. I learned so much from Dave McGinnis about kindness, about compassion, about loyalty and about being committed to a task. I loved all of his stories. I loved listening to him “talk ball”. I loved seeing him spend time with his fans. I loved watching famous NFL people – people that I idolized growing up – stop Coach Mac to say hello. I could live another 100 years and travel to every country in the world and not meet a person as original as David McGinnis. I loved him.” Zarzour, who took over as the team’s play-by-play man, quickly developed a relationship with McGinnis on and off the field. He credited McGinnis for welcoming him, and making him better. “When I became the voice of the team, Mike Keith was so thoughtful with his advice and support,” Zarzour said. “The most important thing he told me was about the partnership I would have working with Coach. Mac immediately opened his arms to me, constantly checking in, and he became my teacher and sounding board. “For the past year I have followed Coach Mac everywhere that he went, from the practice field to the very back of the last bus, to the broadcast booth. And I’ve learned about a lifelong love affair of football and his willingness to share it. He was the center of our Titans Radio family and we are heartbroken. I had so many more games I wanted to call with him, and I’ll always miss my friend.” In addition to his work as color analyst for Titans, McGinnis also regularly appeared on Titans Radio’s flagship station, 104.5 the Zone (WGFX) in Nashville. He worked alongside Titans Radio’s Rhett Bryan during the Titans season for his own show, “Mac Talk”, and he regularly appeared on the Official Titans Podcast (OTP) and other programming alongside Amie Wells. Bryan and Wells, along with the Titans Radio crew, spent countless hours with McGinnis, who was quick to mentor and share expertise about the game he loved so much. On the road, he often picked up the tab for expensive meals, but not until he’d learned the names and backgrounds of all the waiters and waitresses. McGinnis had friends in cities across the NFL, and all over Nashville. “There’s not enough words to say about Dave McGinnis,” said Bryan, Executive Producer for Titans Radio. “He’s a man that has had a massive impact on multiple NFL markets, and to every single person he comes in contact with. I call him the “Mayor of Everywhere” because he never met a stranger. His magnetic personality draws people to him that know his NFL pedigree and those who don’t. “Coach Mac has given me an NFL education for free and the bond we made over the game of football will never be broken. What an incredible friend and mentor who makes you better by osmosis. In life and in my case, broadcasting. For the rest of my life, I’ll honor him and celebrate him. Like so many Titans fans, I mourn this tremendous loss. For the Titans organization he was an ambassador and for all of us he was our treasure. Think of him as the “football Dolly Parton”. Everyone loved Mac.” Wells, sideline reporter for 13 seasons with the team, admired McGinnis for the life he lived aside from the game, and his friendship. McGinnis once surprised Wells when he bought a pair of battery powered cars for her two daughters. Close friends of McGinnis say he didn’t have much furniture in his East Nashville home after giving his own furniture to a family that lost its possessions after storm damage from a tornado several years ago. “Coach Mac is special for so many reasons, but what will stay with me forever isn’t his professional success,” Wells said. “It’s the way he showed up in the world every single day. He never met a stranger and somehow, in just a few moments, could make you feel seen and valued. His mind held more football knowledge than most could ever imagine, but what made him truly rare was how much space he made for people. He remembered the little things, the conversations, the details, the moments, and that’s what made every interaction with him feel meaningful. When people ask, “Who does Mac know?” the honest answer is everybody, and more importantly, everybody felt like they knew him. “While so many will remember Dave McGinnis for his incredible career in the NFL, I’ll remember his heart. His patience, his willingness to teach, his quick wit, and the stories that could light up any room. There will never be another person like him, and I feel incredibly lucky, not just to have worked with him, but to have known him as a dear friend.” McGinnis was a man of the people, and he loved to interact with fans. When the Titans held a pep rally before the team’s playoff game at Kansas City during the 2017 season, McGinnis said to the crowd, “On a scale of 1-10, this is good shit”. His unique football verbiage rolled off his tongue in conversation, or on the air. Some examples of Coach Mac speak: “No, Not Yes, Hell Yes!” “He’s willing to throw his face in the briar patch.” “Looks like a puppy in traffic.” “Keep your powder dry.” “He’s got that Motorcycle Lean.” “He has a GPS to the Ball.” “He’s High-Hipped” or “Oily Hipped.” “He’s a Dancing Bear.” “As a coach, he had a million one-liners,” Singletary said with a smile. “He’d say something to you, and it may be later that night before bed before you figured it out. And you’d come back the next day and say, “I know what you meant now. He’d laugh.” Nihill, like so many others, said McGinnis will be missed. On the practice fields, on the radio airwaves, in the hallways at the NFL Combine, at his favorite restaurants in Nashville, and in life. “Much more than his love for the game, I just so appreciated being around the man because he was always so positive, so optimistic, and he always left everybody feeling better about themselves,” Nihill said. “He’s been around my family, he’s been around our fans and our partners, and he just always made you feel like you were the most important person in the world. “He had this unique gift of investing in people through his time and attention and conversations. He was 1 of 1.” After living life to its fullest his entire life, McGinnis was slowed in the last month after being taken to the hospital. He spent time in intensive care, and then in a regular room before moving to a rehabilitation room at the hospital, where he began physical therapy. But his health began to fail him, and he was moved back to intensive care, where he’d remain. Former Titans trainer Don Moseley was among those who showed up for McGinnis every day over the past five weeks, and many others made his hospital room a part of their daily routine. Some just sat in his room, holding his hand. One day last week, after Fisher and Titans special teams coach John Fassel had visited McGinnis in the hospital, the two coaches arranged for former Titans linebacker Tim Shaw to contact McGinnis. Shaw, who is battling ALS, spoke to McGinnis through the voice-recreation device attached to his wheelchair. “Tell coach that I am praying for him, and that I love him,” Shaw told McGinnis. “And tell him to keep fighting.” McGinnis fought to the end. On Monday morning, he was given his last rites by a Catholic priest. He passed away on Monday afternoon with his family by his side. Keith, like so many others, went by to see McGinnis in his final days. He wanted to let him know just how much he meant to him. It came as no surprise to Keith that their final conversation turned to football. “As I was leaving his room, I asked him: “Who are we (the Titans) taking at #4 (in the NFL draft)?” Keith recalled. “As sick as he was, with an oxygen mask on, Coach Mac managed to answer with: “Whoever is left after No. 3!” Coach Mac was still Coach Mac until the end. We were all lucky enough to love him. Everyone.” |
| THIS AND THAT |
| COULD NBC LOSE SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL?Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com thinks NBC’s Sunday Night Football package could be a very attractive package for a streamer like Netflix: When it comes to the NFL’s nascent effort to get the broadcast networks to pay more money for the remaining years of their current deals, CBS and Fox have been the focus. NBC inevitably will be on the radar screen. The league has started the process with CBS, activating a change-in-control term that allows the NFL to reopen the deal after the recent Skydance acquisition of Paramount. And it’s widely believed CBS will inevitably cough up significantly more than the $2.1 billion per year it’s due to pay over the remaining four years of its current contract. Fox entered the chat when suspicions emerged that Rupert Murdoch is instigating the ongoing political pressure against the league. Those suspicions became confirmed when Murdoch’s Wall Street Journal posted an editorial questioning the viability of the league’s 65-year-old broadcast antitrust exemption. As to NBC, the question eventually becomes this: Is the Sunday Night Football package in danger of moving to another provider? Via John Ourand of Puck, Michael Nathanson of MoffettNathanson believes that, of the networks currently in business with the NFL, NBC has the greatest risk of losing its prime-time package. “Look at what NBC is paying for the NBA,” Nathanson said. “Now imagine what the NFL wants for Sunday Night Football, which is the best game. What’s stopping Netflix, which wants more events, to get Sunday night’s best game for 18 straight weeks? That would accelerate its ability to monetize ads. So, to me, the NBC Sunday night game is probably the most at risk.” Netflix, of course, would first have to want a weekly package. To date, its focus has been big events. Amazon could be a better option, since it already has a weekly package. Amazon could pay the freight for Sunday, with NBC sliding to Thursday. As the league tries to make, if not exacerbate, the pivot to streaming, there’s a benefit to having the Sunday night game on an online platform. Folks who may be resisting Prime Video for Thursday games could be more inclined to make the move if that’s the only way to cap the traditional NFL viewing day. It was surely no accident that Amazon got the Packers-Bears wild-card game in January. The contest set a streaming record with 31.6 million viewers. The counterpoint comes from the bipartisan push against requiring consumers to pay for high-profile NFL games. Shifting the Sunday night game from free TV to streaming won’t do much to quiet the current scrutiny from the public, Congress, the FCC, and/or the DOJ. And, yes, our content is exclusively licensed to NBC. But that won’t keep us from covering potentially significant developments that may impact NBC. And it would be significant, to say the least, if the Sunday night game slides off the TV dial entirely and lands on Prime Video. However it goes, the current deals last four more years. (ESPN’s deal runs for five more seasons.) Some networks, like CBS, may extend. Others may dig in. At some point in the next three years, there will be clarity as to the weekly destination of the NFL games that millions will consume, wherever they may land. It’s a lot easier to put one game a week on the air, as Prime has done, than to coordinate five to seven games per week. FOX and CBS have the infrastructure of personnel and equipment to do that. |
| 2026 DRAFTBill Barnwell of ESPN.com with some proposed draft trades: Tennessee Titans: Trade down from No. 4A rebuilding Titans team doesn’t have much to show for years of neglect after peaking under former coach Mike Vrabel. There’s nobody left on this roster from the draft classes of 2020, 2021 or 2022. The 2023 class delivered a Pro Bowl-caliber guard in Peter Skoronski, but the only other draftees left from that year are backups Will Levis and Tyjae Spears. And the 2024 class isn’t looking hot, given that JC Latham has struggled in pass protection at both left and right tackle, and second-round pick T’Vondre Sweat was traded for edge rusher Jermaine Johnson (who is entering the final year of his rookie deal). The Titans understandably want to surround quarterback Cam Ward with premium talent at No. 4, but this roster is riddled with holes or short-term free agent patches. If the Titans can move down into the bottom half of the top 10 and pick up another second-round pick, that’s a move general manager Mike Borgonzi should seriously consider. Tennessee simply has too many issues to fix throughout its roster to focus on adding one particular player early in the draft. New Orleans Saints: Trade down from No. 8In my mock draft of only trades last week, I tried to account for what the Saints are most likely to do. General manager Mickey Loomis doesn’t ever trade down in the first round, and as a result, I had the Saints moving up. But here I’m arguing for what teams should do. And for the Saints, that’s pretty clearly trading down. There are certainly reasons to be optimistic about where things are heading in New Orleans. Coach Kellen Moore did a great job of scheming for Spencer Rattler and then for rookie Tyler Shough, who did an admirable job in his half-season as a starting quarterback. First-round pick Kelvin Banks Jr. improved massively as a pass blocker, as his quick pressure rate improved from 5.8% over the first half of the year to 1.4% afterward. Defensive tackle Bryan Bresee, the team’s 2023 first-rounder, was more productive on film than his 2.5 sacks and eight knockdowns would suggest. And receiver Chris Olave stayed healthy and was deservedly a second-team All-Pro selection. There’s a young core beginning to emerge here. And yet, we should also be realistic. The Saints won six games against the league’s third-easiest schedule (per ESPN’s Football Power Index). Their three wins outside the moribund NFC South came against the Giants, Titans and Jets, who were a combined 10-41 last season. New Orleans finished 28th in DVOA, and while it swept the eventual division-champion Panthers, DVOA had Carolina as only the 25th-best team in the league. The Saints did that while fielding the league’s 10th-oldest team by snap-weighted age, including the third-oldest defense. And though the contracts of such stalwarts as Demario Davis, Cameron Jordan and Taysom Hill have finally expired after years of restructures, Loomis signed veterans David Edwards and Kaden Elliss, who will be 29 and 31 this season, respectively, to fill holes in the starting lineup. Like the Titans, the Saints should prioritize adding premium picks in bulk as opposed to focusing on adding one star-level talent. It would be tough to turn down Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate if he’s still on the board at No. 8, but it would also be a surprise if the Titans, Browns and Commanders all passed on him. There should be plenty of talent at wideout available in the bottom half of Round 1, and moving down would allow the Saints to comprehensively address both receiver and the secondary within the top 75 picks of the draft. Kansas City Chiefs: Trade up from No. 9The Chiefs are not going to have this chance very often, are they? Picking at No. 9, the Chiefs can land a player who projects to offer significant upside at a premium position. Coach Andy Reid had to trade two first-round picks to move up for Patrick Mahomes in 2017, and though they appear to have landed a standout left tackle in Josh Simmons, it required taking a leap of faith on a player coming off a serious injury. Picks on the most premium positions late in Round 1 in recent years have delivered players such as George Karlaftis, Felix Anudike-Uzomah and Xavier Worthy — guys who have ranged from solid to disappointing. It’s entirely possible to land standouts in that range, but it’s always going to be easier to hit on players at the most difficult positions in football if you’re picking in the top 10. At No. 9, the Chiefs could stay put and hope that one of those players at premium positions like wide receiver or edge rusher fall to them. Armed with extra draft capital from the Trent McDuffie trade, though, this might be an opportunity for general manager Brett Veach to go big. I wouldn’t want to sacrifice that No. 29 pick altogether, but if the Chiefs can use that along with No. 9 to move up and then land another Day 2 pick as part of a deal, it might give them a chance at the sort of pass-rushing prospect they wouldn’t normally see at the bottom of Round 1, such as Texas Tech’s David Bailey. Drafting a player out of Tech didn’t go too poorly the last time the Chiefs tried it, right? New York Jets: Trade up from No. 16The Jets would obviously love to trade up from No. 2 to No. 1 for Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, but I suspect the Raiders might not be willing to pick up the phone. Here, I’m referring to their pick at 16. Gang Green has two second-rounders (Nos. 33 and 44) and two fourth-rounders (Nos. 103 and 140), so general manager Darren Mougey should have the latitude to move around, especially if teams trading up can pay discount prices in a year in which there doesn’t appear to be a ton of demand to jump ahead. What happens at No. 2 would determine who and why the Jets would be moving up from No. 16. If they go edge rusher or front seven at No. 2, then No. 16 could be a wide receiver to play alongside Garrett Wilson, and the Jets would want to get ahead of the Dolphins (No. 11) and Rams (No. 13). If coach Aaron Glenn wants to double up on defense and add a defensive back, every team picking from Nos. 7-12 and the Ravens (No. 14) and Buccaneers (No. 15) will at least be considering taking a defensive back with their first-round pick. After the Jets traded Sauce Gardner at the deadline, it’s easy to imagine Glenn pushing for LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane, who won’t be around at No. 16. Detroit Lions: Trade down from No. 17After years of growth and sustained success, GM Brad Holmes and the Lions are in the middle of a difficult offseason. The 2025 team that had Super Bowl aspirations missed the playoffs, and the young core that propelled the Lions forward on rookie deals is getting much more expensive. Though several standouts have already signed extensions, the likes of Jahmyr Gibbs, Sam LaPorta, Jack Campbell and Brian Branch are all eligible for their second contracts this offseason. Even if the Lions hold off on a new deal for Branch as the talented safety recovers from a torn Achilles, the other three players are going to earn significant raises. Gibbs, LaPorta and Campbell were averaging about $10.7 million combined on their rookie deals; extensions could take their combined deals north of $60 million per year. With Jared Goff, Aidan Hutchinson, Penei Sewell, Amon-Ra St. Brown and others already on significant deals, the Lions are going to be facing a cap crunch in the years to come. Having too many talented players is a good problem for teams to have, but Holmes now needs to find the next generation of young Lions to supplement those players as they enter their primes. The Lions have been quiet in free agency owing to those financial constraints apart from a deal for center Cade Mays, who steps in for the released Graham Glasgow. Detroit is also down a pair of third-round picks in this year’s draft after trading up for receiver Isaac TeSlaa last year. It would be a surprise if the Lions traded out of the first round and did something drastic, and given their needs at offensive tackle and edge rusher, they probably don’t want to drop too far to ensure having a shot at a player who can step in as a starter in 2026. But dropping down a few spots and getting a third-round pick back would be the ideal scenario for Holmes. Dallas Cowboys: Trade down from No. 20As with the Jets, this is referring to the latter of Dallas’ two first-round picks, which comes in at No. 20. Unlike the Jets, though, the Cowboys don’t have the same sort of draft capital through the rest of the 2026 draft and into 2027. They don’t have a second-round pick in this year’s draft, and their third-rounder is 16 picks later than where it would have originally landed as a result of the George Pickens and Osa Odighizuwa swaps. The Cowboys will send the better of their two first-round picks in 2027 to the Jets, and they don’t have fourth- or fifth-round picks next year, either. Though trading Micah Parsons avoided what could have been a record-setting commitment to the top of their roster, the draft capital sent to the Jets for Quinnen Williams all but ensures that the Cowboys will make their defensive tackle one of the highest-paid defenders in football over the next 12 months. Between Williams, Kenny Clark, Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and Pickens, the Cowboys have a very expensive core. The way to survive with that sort of roster is to build through the draft and rely on talent making an impact while players are on rookie-scale deals. The Cowboys typically do a good job of selecting talent all things considered, but they don’t appear to have found much between their 2023 and 2024 draft classes beyond center Cooper Beebe and linebacker DeMarvion Overshown. Adding more young talent to this roster is the only way the Cowboys can build a Super Bowl contender around their big-money group of veterans. And moving down from No. 20 to add more capital would be the right way to get them there. Philadelphia Eagles: Trade up from No. 23Howie Roseman is the king of the selective strike. The Eagles’ general manager has a habit of making small moves up the board to get ahead of nearby rivals for a player at a position of need. Sometimes, that delivers Andre Dillard. Other times, the Eagles land Jordan Davis. Even after trading a third-round pick for Jaelan Phillips and a fifth-round pick for Dontayvion Wicks, Roseman has his own picks in the first two rounds, pick Nos. 68 and 98 in the third round, and two picks in the fourth round (one of which jumped by eight spots after the Eagles dealt Sydney Brown to the Falcons). It’s also about time for the Eagles to start shifting their draft picks to offense. Eight of Philly’s nine Day 1 or Day 2 selections over the past three years have been on defensive players, as Roseman has committed to building a young defense to complement what has been the most expensive offense in NFL history. The Eagles have just about every one of their starters except right guard Tyler Steen on a significant deal. That spending is about to shift to defense. Zack Baun is getting $17 million annually, but Davis became the first player from this recent core of young, homegrown draftees to sign a meaningful second contract earlier this offseason. A handful of standouts are about to follow over the next 12 months, including Jalen Carter, Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean, all of whom should land among the highest-paid players at their respective positions. That’s not even including guys such as Moro Ojomo and Nolan Smith Jr., who could also justify big deals. Though the Eagles aren’t going to overturn their entire roster, that money is going to come from the offensive side in the big picture. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Roseman deal A.J. Brown after June 1, when the dead money on his deal can be spread over two years. Star right tackle Lane Johnson is nearing the end of his career. Dallas Goedert is probably in his final year with the Eagles. Only $2.5 million of Saquon Barkley’s $16 million cash compensation in 2027 is guaranteed. This offense could look very different in a year or two as Philly’s money flows to the defense. Roseman has to start thinking about what the future looks like on offense now. At No. 23, he’s stuck behind teams that could be thinking offensive tackle, including the Panthers at 19, Cowboys at 20 and Steelers at 21. Moving up ahead of them might be necessary to get Johnson’s long-term replacement on the right side. There isn’t the same sort of hunger for a wide receiver immediately ahead of the Eagles, but the teams right behind Philly (the Browns, Bears, Bills and 49ers) could try to jump Roseman to get that wideout, which might necessitate the longtime general manager beating his rivals to the punch. Chicago Bears: Trade up from No. 25General manager Ryan Poles has been aggressive in rebuilding a defense that struggled for consistency a year ago, moving on from starters such as Jaquan Brisker, Kevin Byard III and Tremaine Edmunds. The likes of Devin Bush and Coby Bryant were signed as replacements, but there’s still a need to address the defensive line. The Bears are locked into deals for Grady Jarrett and Dayo Odeyingbo for another year after signing the veteran linemen in free agency last offseason, and given that neither made a significant impact in their first season with Chicago, Poles has to treat their contracts like sunk costs. Anything in 2026 from Odeyingbo as he returns from a torn Achilles would be a bonus. Poles was able to extract a strong return for DJ Moore from the Bills, landing a second-round pick for a player the Bears probably wanted to dump for cash and cap purposes. The Bears have pick Nos. 25, 57, 60 and 89 over the first two days of the draft, and though they shouldn’t be treating this as an all-in opportunity, this regime has a chance to move up and target a much-needed difference-maker up front. By the Jimmy Johnson chart, packaging No. 25 with the 60th pick they landed from the Bills should be enough to get the Bears up to No. 16, where the Jets could be interested in trading down and adding more selections. They would also jump the Lions in the process, a division rival who should be looking at edge rushers with their first selection. There’s nothing wrong with staying put and holding on to both second-rounders, of course, but this could be an opportunity for Poles to both hit his biggest position of need and steal an opportunity away from a divisional foe in the process. Miami Dolphins: Trade for 2027 picksClearly entering what should be a multiyear rebuild this offseason, the new regime of Jeff Hafley and Jon-Eric Sullivan have a bounty of draft picks, both via the Jaylen Waddle trade and from the trades made by the previous regime. The Dolphins enter April’s draft with two first-rounders (Nos. 11 and 30), one second-rounder (No. 43) and four third-rounders (Nos. 75, 87, 90 and 94). If anyone has the capital to move all around this year’s draft, it’s Miami. I’m instead arguing that the Dolphins should deal some of that bounty for 2027 picks, where they currently have only an extra fifth-rounder via Pittsburgh. This is partially about draft quality. Admittedly, the idea that next year’s draft is going to be better than this year’s class has become a bit of a running joke in NFL circles. We’re often overly optimistic about who will be entering the draft and how they’ll perform next season at the college level. With that being said, teams seem to be more excited about what might be on the table in 2027, especially at quarterback and on offense. The Dolphins probably will be in the market for one of those signal-callers, so maximizing their 2027 capital would make sense. The other factor is based on information. Though Sullivan might not completely overhaul the Dolphins’ front office over the next few months, all of the preparation for this year’s draft was done by the former regime of Chris Grier and his staff. Sullivan and his team were doing their own prep in Green Bay, of course, but the Packers were also down their first-round pick as a result of the Micah Parsons trade, which probably influenced how they approached their scouting during the 2025 college football season. By next autumn, Sullivan will have more of his people in place and be more confident that the scouting intel he’s getting is in line with what he looks for from potential prospects. The Dolphins can’t afford to push all of their picks into the future, and there aren’t any guarantees that the new regime will be any more successful at scouting talent, but it might make sense for the Dolphins to stack more of their draft capital in 2027 than 2026. Don’t be surprised if they swap one or two of those third-round picks for Day 3 selections in 2026 and third-rounders in 2027. Seattle Seahawks: Trade down from No. 32John Schneider is not going to require an invitation. The Seahawks trading down at the bottom of Round 1 was one of the safest bets you could make during the Russell Wilson era, with Seattle even stringing together combos as part of multitrade ladders. In 2019, Schneider turned the 21st selection into Nos. 47, 64, 120, 132, 142 and 204. And while those sorts of trades can be dismissed as turning a dollar into some spare change, consider that the teams trading up grabbed eventual disappointments such as Darnell Savage, DeAndre Baker and Greg Little. And Schneider packaged two of the many picks he received to move up at the end of the second round and take DK Metcalf. The Seahawks have their own picks at the end of each round on Day 1 and Day 2, but their fourth- and fifth-rounders were sent to the Saints for receiver Rashid Shaheed. They also traded a sixth-round selection and their lone pick in the seventh round, meaning Schneider & Co. have only one pick on Day 3 — and it doesn’t come until No. 213. Sliding down a few spots from Nos. 32 or 64 and recouping some of those missing selections in the later rounds of the draft seems like an obvious move. |
