NFC SOUTH

ATLANTA

The other Matt, QB MATT RYAN, will not be traded per this report at NFL.com from Kevin Patra:

Matthew Stafford was traded, but another Matt is likely staying put.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported Tuesday on Super Bowl Live that the Atlanta Falcons aren’t expected to trade quarterback Matt Ryan this offseason.

“From what I am told, Matt Ryan is not going anywhere,” Pelissero said. “The Falcons have not had any trade conversations about Ryan or their star wide receiver Julio Jones. And every expectation is both players are going to be on the roster in 2021.”

Pelissero noted that Falcons’ new coach Arthur Smith plans to run a similar offense to the Kyle Shanahan-led scheme that led to Ryan winning the NFL MVP award in 2016.

It’s clear that Ryan has years of good football left, and the Falcons appear in no hurry to completely reshuffle the deck in the first year under Smith and new GM Terry Fontenot, who is very familiar with Ryan from his days in New Orleans.

The other (main) reason Atlanta will stick with Ryan in 2021 is the massive dead-money cap hit it’d take by jettisoning the 35-year-old QB. The Falcons would be on the hook for more than $44 million in dead money in 2021 if Ryan is traded before June 1, per Pelissero. For comparison, Jared Goff just set the record for the biggest dead-money hit in L.A. at $22.2 million.

In a year when the salary cap is expected to be down significantly, the Falcons, currently projected to be over the cap, aren’t keen on taking a ridiculous cap hit to move on from Ryan.

The veteran signal-caller on the roster should not stop Atlanta from considering using the No. 4 overall pick on a quarterback if it believes the heir-apparent is available in that spot. It would be less painful to get out of Ryan’s contract in subsequent seasons, and the savvy vet could be a mentor to a young QB.

Taking Ryan off the market in 2021 lessens the options for the likes of the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots, among others, who are in the market for a veteran quarterback. With Ryan staying put for at least one more season, more emphasis will be on the free-agent QB market that could get wild when the new league year opens on March 17.

TAMPA BAY

The NFL has silenced the cannons.  Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com:

When the Buccaneers score a touchdown at Raymond James Stadium, cannons fire at Tampa’s pirate ship-themed home field. But not at the Super Bowl.

NFL officials told Jenna Laine of ESPN that they will not permit the cannons to be fired after Buccaneers touchdowns at Super Bowl LV.

The reason is that the Super Bowl is supposed to be on a neutral field. This year’s Super Bowl happens to be on a participating team’s home field for the first time in NFL history, but that doesn’t change the NFL’s efforts at neutrality. The Buccaneers are considered the home team because the NFC is always the home team in odd-numbered Super Bowls and the AFC is always the home team in even-numbered Super Bowls, but that only applies for issues such as getting to choose their jersey color. Everything about the stadium, including not only the cannons but also the painting of the end zones and other elements of the field, will be treated as neutral.

So while the cannons will fire during pregame introductions, they will go unnoticed for the rest of the game — unless a player throws a football into a cannon, in which case some lucky bettors will profit.

NFC WEST

SEATTLE

The new OC says he won’t butt heads with Coach Pete Carroll.  Brady Henderson ofESPN.com:

During his introductory news conference Tuesday, new Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Shane Waldron sounded a lot like the head coach who just hired him.

He said his offensive approach starts with the belief that it’s “all about the ball,” a go-to phrase of Pete Carroll’s that emphasizes the importance of winning the turnover battle. He made several mentions of his desire for offensive balance and one about playing complementary football, two more Carroll favorites.

It’s no wonder the Seahawks tabbed Waldron to replace Brian Schottenheimer, whose clashing with Carroll led the team to announce last month that he would not return after three seasons because of “philosophical differences.”

“That was really, in my opinion, what was so natural about the interview process, was that there was so much philosophical alignment between he and I,” Waldron said. “I had mentioned this to him: It wasn’t like an interview where you’re trying to sell yourself to win the job in any sort of sales pitch. It was a conversation, and it was a football discussion that had so many things in alignment that it felt just like a natural progression as we got to know each other and talk through things. So, so many of those things were just naturally in alignment, and that’s where I think I felt really good about the process.”

As much as Carroll and Waldron found themselves on the same page as they spoke via phone, FaceTime and Zoom over the course of several days, Carroll didn’t arrive at his decision alone. Quarterback Russell Wilson made it clear he wanted to be involved in the hiring process — and he was. A source told ESPN that Waldron was among the candidates Wilson was most fond of during the two-week search and that the quarterback was excited over the hire.

Jake Heaps, Wilson’s personal quarterback coach and a co-host on 710 ESPN Seattle, called Waldron the “perfect mesh” of what Carroll and Wilson want in their new OC.

“I had the great chance to get to know him as a person,” Waldron said of his conversations with Wilson both during the interview process and since. “[We] talked a lot about our families and just really getting to know each other more as people because I do think the football part of it, that’s going to be an important part of it when the time is right, but our conversations really have centered around just who we are as people because you’re in a room with some guys for a lot of hours every day when that season gets rolling. … He seems like he has this unrelenting desire to be better, to be the best that he can be, so I think when we started talking about those things, that’s where it was some really fun conversations.”

Waldron’s coaching career has included college stints at Notre Dame and UMass, one year in the UFL and NFL jobs with the New England Patriots and Washington Football Team before his four-year run with the Los Angeles Rams. He said he took things from each stop to build an offensive philosophy centered around three things: protecting the ball, fundamentals and balance.

“I think the great part about Russell Wilson within this system is he does have an ability to do a lot of different things, and just because I’m saying that it’s a balanced attack doesn’t mean that that’s a conservative attack,” he said. “I don’t ever want to get that confused.”

What wasn’t clear from Waldron’s first comments to Seattle-area reports was how much of the Seahawks’ offense will be what he brings in versus what they were already doing.

“I have a core set of beliefs that I’m going to stick to, but we’re going to build this thing together,” he said. “I think that the one thing with Russell and with the rest of the players that are on this team, they have a great foundation and they have won a lot of football games together, so will there be parts of stuff that carries over? Absolutely, because there’s been some great things they’ve done in the past.”

Waldron called Sean McVay a friend and mentor while saying the Rams’ head coach has been instrumental in helping him get to where he’s gotten. Waldron spent the past three seasons as Los Angeles’ passing-game coordinator and said he wore various hats in that role, including being responsible for certain situational aspects of games, helping with game-planning and being on the headsets with McVay. Waldron also held the title of QB coach in 2019.

One thing he didn’t do: call plays. McVay handled those duties with the Rams. Waldron has not done so in college or the NFL, at least not in an actual game.

“It’s a great challenge, and it’s a challenge that I’ve been preparing for my whole life,” he said. “So I think it’s one of those things that I’m ready to get going with and excited to attack that opportunity. I’ve learned a ton from Sean along the way. With that play-calling experience, he’s allowed me the opportunity to do it in different settings, whether it’s the preseason or scrimmages or practices. So I’ve had a little hand in it that way knowing that’s obviously not the real deal and there is going to be that opportunity here coming up.

“I’m a guy that likes to prepare. I want to be organized, I want to have that really consistent approach, and in my mind, that preparation began a long time ago and I can’t wait for this chance to go ahead and do it.”

Waldron is bringing one assistant with him from Los Angeles in Andy Dickerson, who will be Seattle’s run-game coordinator. That position was vacant with Brennan Carroll leaving Seattle’s staff to be the offensive coordinator at the University of Arizona. Waldron said that when Carroll asked him if he wanted to bring anyone with him who could help with the transition, his first thought was Dickerson, who spent nine seasons as the Rams’ assistant offensive-line coach. He and Waldron were college teammates at Tufts University.

AFC WEST

LAS VEGAS

Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com on what the Raiders may be up to at the quarterback position:

The quarterback carousel is spinning, and one of the riders has a perpetual scowl on his face.

Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that “several NFL insiders” expect the Raiders to field calls regarding a potential trade of quarterback Derek Carr. Bonsignore suggests that the expected demand for Carr could result in a three-team trade that would result in the Raiders trading Carr and acquiring quarterback Deshaun Watson from the Texans. (Presumably, the Texans don’t want Derek Carr, perhaps because of its experience with his brother, David.)

The story suggests that the Raiders could get two first-round picks for Carr. That seems a little high, frankly.

The sourcing for the report seems confusing, to say the least. Are “NFL insiders” coaches, team executives, media members, agents, players, or some combination of those categories? (As used in the industry, the term “NFL Insider” typically refers to someone in the media.) In Carr’s case, “insiders” suggest the possibility of a three-team deal. And an “NFL Insider” applied the potential price tag of two first-round picks onto the transaction.

Frankly, this feels like an effort — either gratuitous or subtly requested by the team — to kick-start a potential trade market for Carr, and to introduce the concept of the Raiders being a potential suitor for Watson. After all, G.M. Mike Mayock said last week that Carr had an “exceptional” year, while also repeating the notion that the team is always looking to upgrade at every position.

Carr was good last year, but he wasn’t a Pro Bowler. Carr finished 14th in completions, 11th in yardage, 11th in touchdowns. He ranked 10th in passer rating, 10th in completion percentage, and he finished in a three-way tie for fifth in average per attempt.

As to the original nugget reported by Bonsignore, that the Raiders are expected to field calls regarding a potential trade for Carr, that’s not a surprise. In the offseason, General Managers always talk and always inquire about the availability of players, regardless of whether the player officially is on the trade market. Given that the Raiders have seem to have a perpetual attitude of ambivalence about Carr, any team looking for a quarterback would be wise to see whether the Raiders are willing to move him and what the Raiders would want.

If the notion that Carr is available takes root, maybe the calls will come more quickly and more frequently. Maybe the Raiders will get an offer that they won’t want to refuse for Carr. Regardless of whether that leads to making a run at Watson, the Raiders possibly regard Carr’s fringe top-10 performance of 2020 as an opportunity to sell high.

AFC EAST

MIAMI

QB RYAN FITZPATRICK hopes there is a market for his services, because he still wants to play.

Ryan Fitzpatrick was not available for the final week of the regular season after he tested positive for COVID-19 and that meant the Dolphins couldn’t call on him in relief of Tua Tagovailoa in the Week 17 loss to the Bills that kept Miami from making the playoffs.

With the Dolphins out of action, Fitzpatrick moved a step closer to free agency in what’s shaping up to be one of the wilder quarterback markets in recent memory. The 38-year-old said on The Pat McAfee Show Tuesday that he wants to be right in the thick of that market because he plans to continue playing.

“This offseason, we already saw it with [Jared] Goff and [Matthew] Stafford obviously,” Fitzpatrick said. “Who knows what’s going to happen with Deshaun [Watson]. There’s rumors everywhere in the quarterback market, but there are a lot of teams looking for a new quarterback or new quarterbacks. For me, personally, I have to take every offseason and reassess. These last two years have really re-lit that fire under me and I still want to play and I enjoy being out there playing.”

Fitzpatrick was benched in favor of Tagovailoa after Week 6 and he said during the season that it hurt despite the fact that he knew Tagovailoa came to Miami to become the starter. The Dolphins could be one of those teams making a play for Watson and a return to Miami may not be in the cards under any circumstances, but Fitzpatrick wants to keep playing and it seems likely he’ll find a seat somewhere before the music stops.

NEW ENGLAND

Could QB JIMMY GAROPPOLO migrate back to the Patriots?  Jimmy Thornton of Barstool Sports:

Speaking as someone who’s never lived outside of Rte 495, I can tell you this whole business of spending an offseason desperately casting about for a quarterback … arms flailing … legs akimbo …, is something I haven’t experienced since the 1980s and very early ’90s. And if I recall correctly, the factory setting on quarterbackless franchises involves taking the best available with your first draft pick and/or grabbing the backup from the best offense you can possibly raid. Which is how the the Patriots ended up with Tony Eason and veterans like Marc Wilson and Hugh Millen.

This offseason they’ve got the same need, but the situation couldn’t be more different. A lot of QBs are going to become available. The draft is top heavy at the position, with at least four and perhaps as many as six coming off the board in Round One. And veterans are going to be attainable in trades and free agency as fully half the league is going to have to jettison cargo when the salary cap plummets.

So rumormongeringwise, there’s no reason to aim small. Now is a time to dream big dreams. Rodgers? Possibly. Stafford and Jared Goff have already been dealt. Deshaun Watson? He’s on the market. With many more partners still to be swapped at the masked orgy in a mansion that will be the 2021 quarterback market. This Football Guys Wide Shut. And there’s a good chance that one of them will be Jimmy Garoppolo.

Yes, he’s still under contract with San Francisco. But the rumors they’re ready to move on have been pervasive. There’s enough smoke here to determine there is, in fact, a fire. Just a few examples:

This report from November that quoted “multiple execs” who think the Niners are interested in moving on from Garoppolo.

This conversation after the Patriots-49ers game where the mics picked up Josh McDaniels telling Jimmy G “I’ll stay in touch.”

This from yesterday’s MMQB that, while “they’re fine going forward with Jimmy Garoppolo,” the Niners did make an offer for Stafford.

Lifelong member of Belichick’s inner circle Mike Lombardi saying that he’s got the Patriots installed as “even money” to land him:

Mike Reiss’ suggestion that if the Niners land Watson, the Patriots will jump on Garoppolo.

The simple fact that GM John Lynch can look at the stats and not see an appreciable difference between Jimmy G and Nick Mullens;

Not everyone is on board with the idea. While acknowledging San Fran might have to release Garoppolo outright, especially if they add another QB, because they have just $10 million of available cap space, Greg Bedard quoted sources in the Patriots organization who are not sold on Garoppolo:

Yes, the Patriots would very much be open to reuniting with Garoppolo, but don’t expect them to appear desperate. Garoppolo’s lack of durability is an issue with the team and could make them play hardball with the contract. There are questions internally about how tough Garoppolo is, ultimately. Especially in comparison to Tom Brady. It doesn’t get any tougher than that.

“Jimmy’s not exactly as tough as you would like,” said one source.

It’s not an unfair criticism. He’s only been a starter since midway through 2017 and he’s already missed 25 career games with injuries. But if people inside the Patriots recognize it, it only makes sense that the 49ers would be thinking about it too. Still, just because he has been injured doesn’t mean he’ll always be. Like the financial analysts are forced to say by law, past performance does not guarantee future results. So let’s not let the part about toughness overshadow what he’s reporting about the team being “very much open” to a reunion. This is a guy who took his team to the Super Bowl just 52 weeks ago.

A lot of this seemed to be predicated on the assumption that Stafford had San Francisco on his short list of preferred destinations. Yeah, well. Last April I had Ireland on mine. Plans change. There are still plenty of QBs who are likely to move, beginning with Watson. If John Lynch lands one of them, he’ll have Belichick waiting in a breakout room of that Zoom call, ready to send his 2nd rounder, as a sort of take back for the No. 43 pick Lynch sent him in the 2018 draft.  And even if the Niners don’t swing a trade or sign a free agent QB, they’re sitting on the 12th pick. Though the odds of them starting over with a rookie seem a lot slimmer than using that pick in a package for Watson or to haul in some other veteran who’ll make them a contender again.

As far as the salary cap being a driving force behind any decision, here’s how the Sacramento Bee explains the numbers:

The pandemic is expected to cause the salary cap to dip in 2021 from $210 million to roughly $175, meaning Garoppolo’s $26.9 million cap hit will be more burdensome than expected while the 49ers have a slew of free agents to re-sign — headlined by cornerback Richard Sherman and left tackle Trent Williams — and young centerpieces to reward with new contracts. They already did with tight end George Kittle and defensive lineman Arik Armstead, while star linebacker Fred Warner is next in line.

The team is currently in cost-cutting mode, evident by decisions to trade away DeForest Buckner in the spring and Kwon Alexander this week.

And according to people who are able to communicate in the weird “Arrival”-like language of the cap, Garoppolo’s guaranteed money has virtually all been paid, meaning it’s advantageous to the Niners to get out from under that cap hit now. I can’t explain it and I don’t try. But when they dumb it down for me like I’m four years old, that’s what they say.

So injury concerns and payroll accounting aside, I can’t imagine the Pats not being very, very much invested in the Jimmy G Futures Market. They know that, even if there’s another disruption in the offseason, he’s ready from Day One to step in and lead this offense. They’ve worked with him and like him. In a world where Tom Brady had aged like a mortal human being he’d be their quarterback anyway. He needs to cut down on his turnovers, but in his one full season he was in the top eight in every major passing statistic. And he’s already proven he can win in this league. So why wouldn’t they be? If they do manage to reacquire Garoppolo, they’ll automatically be back in Super Bowl contention. So right now we should all hope San Francisco lands a new franchise quarterback. I know I am. Let’s put the band back together.

The chances Jimmy Garoppolo comes (back) to New England: 50%

THIS AND THAT

“FRACTURED” COACHING MARKET

Jim Trotter of NFL.com pleads the case, at length, that Black coaches are being treated differently.

They are perched on a significant summit in their coaching careers, Eric Bieniemy of the Kansas City Chiefs and Byron Leftwich of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, offensive coordinators who have helped their teams advance to Super Bowl LV on Sunday in Tampa, Florida. Their success is due in part to their ability to see a problem and swiftly identify a solution, and yet they both admit there are certain questions for which they have no answers, questions that come from various angles, in various forms, all essentially asking the same things: Why was Bieniemy passed over for each of the seven head-coaching vacancies this hiring cycle, and how did Leftwich fail to even get an interview?

“We have no answers because those things are not up to us,” Leftwich says. “We’re not the ones making the decisions, so it has nothing to do with us. We get asked about it, but it’s tough for us because we can’t speak for someone else. You can only speak for your part that you have in it, your ability to coach, your ability to lead men. To be honest with you, I don’t even think about it, because the fun that I have here, and the group of people that I have here, allows me to focus on doing what I need to do to put these guys in positions to have success.”

In a perfect world, the focus would be on all the things Leftwich and Bieniemy have done to help their teams reach this point, but the NFL, like most big business, is far from perfect, particularly as it relates to hiring practices. Of the 27 coaching vacancies over the last four hiring cycles, only three have been filled by Black men, making the cases of Bieniemy and Leftwich even more conspicuous. Both are Black, both are qualified, and both have more complete resumes than some of those who’ve gotten jobs. And yet, in a league where the player population is roughly 70 percent African-American, only 11 percent of the coaching vacancies since 2018 have been filled by Blacks, a reality that some in the league office find embarrassing and that minority coaches find concerning.

The question of race and reward as it relates to head coaches is sure to be a common thread for Leftwich and Bieniemy during media interviews this week, and each will deal with it from a different vantage point. For Leftwich, this is his first time in the eye of the storm. He served as quarterbacks coach in Arizona in 2017, spent time there as the interim offensive coordinator in 2018, then was brought to Tampa by Bruce Arians, who initially hired him with the Cardinals, the following season.

In 2019, his first year as a play-caller, Leftwich was overlooked for interviews despite the Bucs finishing third in scoring and total yards, perhaps because Jameis Winston threw a league-high 30 interceptions and Tampa missed the playoffs. This season, the offense finished third in scoring again — in a year in which the NFL broke its record for points scored — and the former Marshall quarterback, who started 50 games in a nine-season NFL career, was marginalized by media and team decision-makers again as many rushed to give credit to Tom Brady, the six-time Super Bowl champion QB who was signed last offseason.

In an age where owners are said to be looking for young, creative offensive minds to run their sidelines, the marginalizing of the 41-year-old Leftwich has not gone unnoticed by Arians, who told 95.3 WDAE of Leftwich not receiving an interview this cycle: “Yeah that really pissed me off, I’ll be honest with you. The job he’s done — he coaches quarterbacks, he calls plays, he’s everything everybody says they are looking for.”

Bieniemy releases a soft, knowing chuckle at the treatment of Leftwich. He has been there before. The only difference is that he has gotten interviews, at least eight at last count, but no offers over the last three cycles. It’s as if he has had nothing to do with helping QB Patrick Mahomes win a league MVP one year, capture a Super Bowl MVP and Lombardi Trophy the next year, and position himself for a possible second title in as many seasons this year. Doug Pederson and Matt Nagy, his immediate predecessors at offensive coordinator in Kansas City, each got head coaching jobs with Philadelphia and Chicago, respectively. But that opportunity has yet to present itself to Bieniemy, despite strong recommendations from Chiefs coach Andy Reid.

“Is there ever a time you feel frustrated?” Bieniemy says, repeating the question. “The human element in everything will, at some point, try to take over. So, yes, there are times. But here’s the thing — and this is where I can draw from my past — I can only be frustrated for that particular moment because we’re still prepping to pursue our dream, we’re still prepping to get ready for the Super Bowl, so I don’t have time to have a pity party and sit here and be upset because someone has chosen not to choose me.”

– – –

Jimmy Raye Jr. is all too familiar with this. In some respects, he was Eric Bieniemy before Eric Bieniemy, a standout college football player — he was the first Black QB from the South to win a national title, leading Michigan State to the championship in 1966 — whose climb up the coaching ladder stopped at the coordinator level. Over his 35 NFL seasons as a coach or senior offensive assistant, he was good enough to work as coordinator for the Rams, the Bucs, the Patriots, the Chiefs, Washington, the Raiders and the 49ers, but never the right man to lead a team.

“What’s happening today is much the same of what was happening in the late ’70s and the ’80s and the ’90s,” says Raye, now 74 and retired in North Carolina. “You think you are in a fair and equitable system and being judged by your abilities and your expertise and your leadership qualities to lead men, but in the end, none of that matters, because they don’t have any rules in hiring. They hire who they want to hire, qualifications be damned. Basically what the NFL, what the business establishment is saying is, ‘We’re going to do what we want to do, and what are you going to do about it?’ There is no accountability and no consequences for your actions.

“Owners are buffeted by who influences them — the general managers and team presidents, whoever they talk to — because they don’t run the business of football as they run their private businesses. You couldn’t succeed doing it that way. But the toy that they play with as far as their football teams, they don’t feel any responsibility to address the issue. They’ve proven that over the last 100 years, even though the product on the field is dominated by Black players. What’s going to happen is that it’s going to erode and eat itself from the inside out, because the competency of the young coaches that they’re hiring is lacking. That’s why you see the six or seven jobs open every year. The hiring process is fractured, and eventually it’s going to leak into the game, and the game is going to lose its voracity, and then — maybe only then — they’ll say, Something is wrong here. But that’s a ways away. But that’s the direction it’s going.”

Troy Vincent, the league’s executive vice president of football operations, considers Raye a mentor. He has previously included him on working groups to address the lack of diversity at the top of the coaching ranks. He acknowledges the pain that Raye and others are feeling, calling it “real.” But he says the league remains optimistic about change, because there was overall progress made this cycle.

First, the number of Black general managers has increased from two to five, with Brad Holmes (Detroit), Terry Fontenot (Atlanta) and Martin Mayhew (Washington) joining Andrew Berry (Cleveland) and Chris Grier (Miami). Second, the number of Black coordinators has increased from 17 to 25, thanks in part to a new policy that stops clubs from blocking assistant coaches from interviewing for coordinator positions elsewhere, or even making what some would technically view as lateral moves when they are actually promotions. It’s part of the reason Duce Staley and Aubrey Pleasant were able to leave the Eagles and Rams, respectively, to join the Lions.

– – –

Does Raye see change on the horizon? “Not in my lifetime, no. I don’t,” he says. “There’s too much rationalization going on and too much more acceptance in society of white privilege and white supremacy. We’ve got our hands full right now trying to save the democracy. NFL football is a blip on that radar, so I don’t see it. I would like to hope that that would be the case, but it’s so disingenuous, and so inbred, and so deeply imbedded in systemic racism that it has no chance.”

Raye is not one for hyperbole. He is soft-spoken and thoughtful. He cares about the game, but more than that, he cares about fundamental fairness, which is why he is speaking out for the minority coaches who have to remain silent, for fear of retribution. As for Leftwich and Bieniemy, their focus is on Sunday’s game and doing what they can to help their players succeed. They will worry about their personal situations at another time, if at all. They are former players who have been taught to worry about only what you can control. But most importantly, to keep fighting.

“Out of respect for Coach Sherm, I’m going to make sure that that doesn’t happen,” Bieniemy says of his career path stopping at the coordinator level. “I’m going to continue being who I am, I’m going to continue to work regardless of what has taken place, and I will continue banging on that damn door. At some point in time, somebody is going to let me in for the right reasons; not because they feel they have to, but because they feel that I am qualified and am the best man for the job. Until then, if it takes us just winning Super Bowls here in Kansas City, then that’s what I’m going to do.”

2021 DRAFT

Michael Renner of ProFootballFocus.com offers up eight sleepers in the 2021 Draft:

The “sleepers” listed for the 2021 NFL Draft are purely my opinion. None of the prospects below have been in a first- or second-round mock that I’ve seen and have not been oft-discussed in draft circles. Let’s get to it.

QB DAVIS MILLS, STANFORD

He may not do much to get you excited, but Mills looks like he’ll be more than capable of operating an NFL offense with the traits he displays. The biggest is easily his quick decision-making. Mills’ 2.39-second average time to throw on non-screens, RPOs and play-action passes was the fourth-fastest in the nation — even edging out Trevor Lawrence. And on such throws, he earned an 84.0 passing grade. While not the most physically gifted, he’s still a former five-star prospect who has made only 10 career starts.

WR JAELON DARDEN, NORTH TEXAS

No one wants to be the team that drafted the 174-pound receiver from North Texas early on only for him to not translate in the NFL. All that means is some team is getting a heck of a value. Darden showed up 20 pounds lighter this season and remade his body into the explosive jitterbug he is today. He can and did take it to the house from anywhere, racking up 19 touchdowns in 2020 for the Mean Green. He’s a perfect explosive, modern slot weapon.

TE TOMMY TREMBLE, NOTRE DAME

Tremble possesses two traits that are incredibly rare for a tight end prospect: legit speed and run-blocking ability. He led all tight ends in the FBS this season in run-blocking grade. Tremble won’t garner much attention because he wasn’t even the No. 1 option at tight end on his own college team, but in his defense, freshman Michael Mayer will likely be a first-rounder in a couple of years. Tremble is the perfect fullback for any team in need of such a thing and can be a mismatch with his speed as a blocking tight end.

OT WALKER LITTLE, STANFORD

“Sleeper” may not be the right word for Little. “Forgotten man” may be more accurate. Little has played just one game over the past two seasons, and he looked pretty darn good in it, allowing zero pressures to Northwestern.

If you go back and search “way-too-early 2020 mock draft,” you’ll be hard-pressed to find one without him in the first round. Heck, Bleacher Report had him going No. 2 overall. That’s the caliber of talent we’re working with, and it’s not like it disappeared. Rather, we just haven’t seen it. Having seen training videos of Little since then, he’s cleaned up some issues with his feet that were present before. If he falls out of the top two rounds, he could be a massive steal.

IOL KENDRICK GREEN, ILLINOIS

Despite playing only eight games, Green tied with Alabama’s Landon Dickerson for the Power Five lead in big-time blocks this past season, with 14. He’s an explosive interior lineman who has improved by leaps and bounds over his three years as a starter to an 87.8 overall grade this past season. Ultimately, center looks like his best position. He would be a great fit in a zone-heavy scheme.

DI MILTON WILLIAMS, LOUISIANA TECH

Williams’ tape toward the end of 2020 was as good as you’ll see from a small school defensive tackle in the draft. While his competition level wasn’t great, he still put up a 78.3 overall grade against a Power Five TCU line late in the year. He’s a rocked up 280-pounder with a high motor and a violent play style. That’s a great developmental profile on Day 3.

EDGE RONNIE PERKINS, OKLAHOMA

Perkins is a three-year starter for the Sooners who has not registered much in the way of fanfare. Even after a dominant 2020 season that saw him earn run-defense and pass-rushing grades in the 90s, Perkins wasn’t even named first-team All-Big-12. He’s got one heck of a get-off at 247 pounds and will be a nice speed-rushing threat at the next level. Despite his size, Perkins looks as if he can hold his own in run defense, as well. He is well worth a Day 2 pick.

CB TAY GOWAN, UCF

You may have heard of UCF cornerback Aaron Robinson, who has been in a number of Round 1 mocks and showed out at the Senior Bowl. It was Gowan, though, who was doing the heavy lifting for the Knights on the outside in 2019 before opting out this past year. At 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, Gowan has likely 4.3-second speed that put clamps on every receiver he faced. He allowed only 20 catches on 50 targets for 274 yards with a 54.9 passer rating against in all of 2019. Unfortunately, we just didn’t get to see what his next step looks like.