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The Bears were shrewd, Tyrod Taylor has competition, the Rams have rough vibes and more on the first three rounds of the draft. After all of the posturing before Round 1 of the NFL Draft about where the top five quarterbacks would go, it was freeing to go into night two talking mostly about safeties, running backs and offensive linemen. Round 1 might have all the glitz and glamour , but Rounds 2 and 3 are the real meat of the NFL Draft, where teams’ preferences diverge, steals are to be had and pick announcements begin to be met with quizzical-but-polite applause from even the most fervent fans. Aside from the fact that we don’t know if Aaron Rodgers or Jordan Love got a new receiver on Friday, here are our picks for the night’s winners and losers. Winners Dave Gettleman What if I told you … Dave Gettleman traded down not once but twice in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft? And that he still was able to get a difference-making receiver in Round 1 and an edge rusher with f...

How “Little Dougie,” the skinny kid with Coke bottle glasses, blossomed into a big-play threat on the gridiron. And why, despite a limited role at Iowa State, he became a favorite of NFL scouts. Kene Nwangwu doesn’t look nervous, although he probably should. The former Iowa State running back is standing in the kick return huddle on an October evening in Ames, ready to put his heels on the five-yard line and take the lead role in football’s most violent play. His Cyclones need a spark—a strip sack left them trailing No. 17 Oklahoma by a touchdown with under nine minutes to play. “If you execute your job, I’m going to take this thing back,” he tells his teammates. When he catches the end-over-end kick, he isn’t thinking about the cascade of tacklers charging toward him or the cracking collisions around him. He’s transported home, away from the drizzling rain and biting wind at Jack Trice Stadium, to the Dallas heat rising off a rubber track and his teammate sprinting around its curv...

Houston has finally acknowledged what it wouldn't earlier in the offseason: The team needs a new long-term answer at quarterback. There is an ocean of information— not to mention formal legal proceedings —to wade through before we could even begin to talk responsibly about the idea of Deshaun Watson seeing an NFL field again. His story has taken on an eerie quiet of late, as the football world has thankfully taken a break from reporting on the relentless wave of trade rumors that preceded the lawsuits of 22 women alleging sexual misconduct during massages over the last two years. Even the most hardheaded among us understand the idea that this must run its course before we return Watson’s primary context to a children’s game . But with their first draft pick of the Nick Caserio era, the Texans seemed to signal what they thought the landscape might look like whenever we reach that point. By picking Davis Mills , a high-upside quarterback out of Stanford who was once the most sou...

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With uncertainty surrounding Deshaun Watson's future with Houston, the Texans used its first pick of the 2021 draft on Stanford QB Davis Mills. View the original article to see embedded media. The Texans used its first pick of the 2021 NFL draft on Stanford quarterback Davis Mills in the third round. Houston's first and second round selections were dealt as part of the Laremy Tunsil trade  back in 2019. With Deshaun Watson's status uncertain, it's not surprising the Texans are adding to the QB room. Watson is  facing 22 civil lawsuits with allegations of sexual assault and misconduct. Prior to Watson's legal issues, he expressed his frustrations with team brass and reportedly asked to be traded . Mills was the eighth quarterback selected in the first 67 draft picks in this year's draft, and the third passer selected on Day 2.  The Norcross, Ga., native threw for 3,468 yards, 18 touchdowns and eight interceptions while averaging 7.9 yards per pass attemp...

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Trask was a Heisman Trophy finalist as a senior at Florida and could potentially replace Tom Brady after the future Hall of Famer retires. View the original article to see embedded media. Three months after hoisting the Lombardi Trophy, the defending champs might have just nabbed their quarterback of the future. The Buccaneers selected Florida quarterback Kyle Trask with the final pick of the second round, acquiring a potential replacement for 43-year-old Tom Brady. Trask put together a banner senior season at Florida, throwing for 4,283 yards with 43 touchdowns and eight interceptions, leading the country in scoring passes. He was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, finishing fourth in the voting behind DeVonta Smith, Trevor Lawrence and Mac Jones. Florida coach Dan Mullen wished Trask well on Twitter, calling Trask "the true definition of perseverance and grit." After five quarterbacks were selected in the top 15, none were taken until Trask's selection at p...

Broncos trade their picks (40 and 114) for Falcons' pick 35 and 219, leap-frogging Miami to steal UNC's Javonte Williams. View the original article to see embedded media. Broncos fans, meet your new running back—Javonte Williams.  In an early second-round trade, Denver sent its No. 40 and 114 picks to the Falcons in exchange for their No. 35 and 219 picks. In doing so, the Broncos leap-frogged Miami to snag the North Carolina star, who the Dolphins were rumored to have their eyes set on.  Williams had a breakout season in 2020 as he and teammate Michael Carter formed the top running back duo in the country. They set an NCAA record against the Hurricanes, rushing for a total of 544 rushing yards between them (236 for Williams, 308 for Carter). Williams finished the season ranked third in the FBS with 19 rushing touchdowns and sixth with 1,140 rushing yard. Williams ended the season ninth in the FBS by averaging 7.3 yards on his 157 carries. He's the third running ...

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The college coaching legend only jumped to the NFL for the top quarterback prospect in decades. Now the pressure is really on. There will be fairytales written in the coming days about Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars’ courtship of Urban Meyer once it became clear that the safest quarterback selection in four decades was headed to northern Florida. How they are on the same wavelength. How they mutually admired one another. How the coach understands the way to maximize an unreasonable amount of potential. Left out, at least for now, is a question that we should all be asking of Meyer in general as he embarks upon a moment that will forever alter his legacy for better or worse: Why on earth would he sign up for this? The same might be asked of Lawrence who, just a few weeks ago, admitted that he hoped to have a life beyond football one day and was shredded by the game’s old guard for a perceived indifference. This league is a machine that swallows talent whole and spits it out for...

Lawrence finished his college career with the most wins by a quarterback in Clemson history. The Jaguars selected Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NFL draft. The Cartersville, Ga., native will travel nearly six hours to his NFL home in Jacksonville. He joins Jaguars first-year coach Urban Meyer , who never shied away from his interest in the quarterback from day one. When asked by NBC Sports' Peter King last month whether there was any mystery about Jacksonville's selecting Lawrence first, Meyer said, "I’d have to say that’s the direction we’re going. I’ll leave that up to the owner when we make that decision official. But I’m certainly not stepping out of line that that’s certainly the direction we’re headed.” Lawrence entered the draft as the presumptive top pick, having excelled at Clemson, finishing his college career with the most wins by a quarterback in Clemson history (34), passing Rodney Williams, Tajh Boyd and Deshaun Wat...

With Trevor Lawerence locked in as the No. 1 selection and Zach Wilson going to the Jets with the second pick, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer says the focus is on the third pick. The 49ers made a blockbuster trade with the Miami Dolphins to jump to the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. With Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson likely off the board by the time San Francisco picks, the question becomes which quarterback will they select. It seems they have narrowed down their choices to Alabama’s Mac Jones or North Dakota State’s Trey Lance. Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer weighs in on the latest rumors out of San Francisco.

Zach Wilson sported an Armani suit while Trey Lance was iced-out with a Cartier timepiece. But Kwity Paye stole the show with honoring Chadwick Boseman. View the original article to see embedded media. Move over Oscars, you may have just met your match.  The ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic didn't keep the 2021 NFL draft prospects from pulling out all of the stops as they sports show-stopping fits on the red carpet.  Former BYU quarterback Zach Wilson was seen wearing a Giorgio Armani suit while Florida's Kyle Pitts wore an all-green suit  with cognac colored patches on his elbows. North Dakota State's Trey Lance was iced-out with a Cartier timepiece, and Alabama's Patrick Surtain II had a “PS2” chain made for him by Leo Frost.   Others were more sentimental in their approach.  Kwity Paye told GQ's Tyler R. Tynes earlier Thursday that Chadwick Boseman is his hero, and the ex-Michigan defensive end honored the first Black superhero in his suit. ...

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Lawrence keeps adding to his collection of big moments ahead of Thursday's NFL draft. As Trevor Lawrence prepares for the 2021 NFL Draft on Thursday, he keeps adding to his collection of big moments. Lawrence's six-piece NFT collection through Topps —which included five open edition cards, a one 1/1 auction of a signed superfractor card and a signed artist proof card—sold for roughly $225,000 through the Mintable app. Lawrence's brother and sister-in-law—Chase and Brooke Lawrence— helped create the collection that was released on Tuesday. Buyers who purchased all five open edition NFTs will receive a limited edition chrome card.  Beyond the NFT world, the former Clemson quarterback announced his signing with Adidas in a Twitter post on Wednesday.  The 2020 Heisman Trophy runner-up and ACC Player of the Year is the projected No. 1 overall pick heading into Thursday's draft. Lawrence finished his college career with the most wins as a quarterback in Clemson history...

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