2010 Draft

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May 11
• (10:00 AM): And then there were none ... New England and Oakland both announced their undrafted rookie free agent class signings earlier this morning. The Patriots and Raiders were the last two teams that had not in some way announced their undrafted rookie signing classes. And while they were late comers to the party, both the Patriots and Raiders were still able to sign several highly rated prospects. The Patriots, for example, announced the signing of only 7 players, but their list included former Miami DT Marcus Forston, former Iowa OT Martin Zusevics and former Ole Miss RB Brandon Bolden. Meanwhile, the Raiders signed Missouri DT Dominique Hamilton, former Wisconsin safety Aaron Henry and former Pitt G/T Lucas Nix. In fact, with just a couple of exceptions, just about every player on our list of the top undrafted rookie free agents as well as most of the top undrafted rookies by position have now been signed. Note though that several teams are holding rookie mini-camps this weekend and those teams likely have other undrafted rookies in for tryouts.
• (9:30 AM): Giants ink top pick … The defending Super Bowl champion Giants signed RB David Wilson, the 32nd and final player selected in the opening round of the 2012 draft.
• Chiefs tweak scout staff … Kansas City has made several changes to its scouting department as Jim Nagy has been promoted from regional scout to national scout, Kyle O’Brien has been hired as a regional scout, and Ryne Nutt has been promoted from m scouting assistant to area scout.
• (12:01 AM): Panthers sign picks … Carolina has reportedly come to terms with its 2012 draft class including MLB Luke Kuechly. Kuechly, the 9th player selected this past April, reportedly agreed to a 4-year contract worth $12.6M million, all of it guaranteed. Kuechly becomes the third 2012 first rounder to come to terms joining LB/DEs Bruce Irvin and Melvin Ingram who were selected by Seattle and San Diego respectively with the 15th and 18th picks this year. Meanwhile, Baltimore which did not have a first-round pick this year, has also reportedly signed all its picks from this April's draft.
• College football blotter update … It’s the really silly season for college football players many of whom are done with classes, at least those that actually go to class, for the summer and have too much time on their hands waiting for fall practice to get underway. At Texas, for example, DE Alex Okafor and FS Kenny Vaccaro, both of whom are considered to be top prospects for the 2013 draft, were among several current and former Longhorns cited earlier this week on the misdemeanor charges of refusing to obey a lawful order. The group reportedly refused to leave a local pizza place. Meanwhile, Wisconsin RB Montee Ball, another leading prospect for the 2013 draft, was ticketed for trespassing during a block party in Madison. Local police, though, say Ball was cooperative, and alcohol wasn't an issue. And Clemson sophomore WR Sammy Watkins, a potential top 5-10 prospect in 2014, was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana and a controlled substance for which he did not have a prescription last week and likely faces some supplementary discipline from the team. At the same time, emerging Oklahoma junior WRs Trey Franks and Jaz Reynolds were among four Sooners who were suspended indefinitely for violating team rules. Franks, who led the team with a 24-yard KO return average last fall, will reportedly miss the entire 2012 season, while Reynolds, who averaged over 17 yards per catch last season, is out for seven games. Both Franks and Reynolds have been suspended before. Reynolds was suspended after tweeting insensitive comments about a gunman at Texas earlier in his career and was also suspended for one game last season for a violation of team rules, while Franks was suspended for two games last season for violating unspecified team rules.
• Raiders restructure personnel staff … The makeover in Oakland in the wake of the passing of long-time owner Al Davis continues with a major shakeup in the team’s scouting and personnel departments. Since last month’s draft, the Raiders have fired long-time scouts Jon Kingdon, who was in effect the team’s director of college scouting, and Bruce Kebric, while scouts George Karras and Kent McCloughan resigned. In their place, the Raiders have added Joey Clinkscales, who had VP of college scouting with the Jets, Shaun Herock, who had been assistant director of college scouting with Green Bay, and Raleigh McKenzie, the twin brother of Raiders’ G.M. Reggie McKenzie.
  May 3
• (4:00 PM): CFL draft underway … The annual Canadian Football League draft of Canadian-born players is underway. Saskatchewan had the #1 pick and didn’t stray far from homes selecting Saskatchewan G/T Ben Heenan who was one of the two Canadian reps at this year’s East-West Shrine game. Britsih Columbia traded up for the second pick and selected Eastern Michigan DE Jabar Westerman, the younger brother of Miami OLB Jamaar Westerman, while Winnipeg chose Washington State OT Tyson Spenser with the third pick. Edmonton then chose Virginia OG Austin Pasztor with the 4th pick, although he won’t be available for awhile as he signed with Minnesota after the 2012 NFL draft.
  May 1
• (4:00 PM): BC RB gets the boot … Boston College RB Montel Harris, the team’s all-time leading rusher has been kicked off the team for what is being described as repeated violations of team rules. Harris played in only two games in 2011 and was being held out of spring practice because of a knee injury suffered at the end of the 2010 season. It’s not clear what the 5-9, 205-pound Harris does now, but he could transfer to a lower-level school and play this fall or he could make himself available for the NFL’s summer supplemental draft, although his health status would make actually being selected something of a longshot.
• (10:00 AM): Road trip over … What turned out to be something of a road trip from heck is over and we have been able to catch up with most of the undrafted rookie free agent signings that have been announced since the draft concluded on Saturday. In fact, so far roughly three-quarters of NFL teams have announced the bulk of their undrafted rookie signings. Note, though, for most part, we prefer to include only signings formally announced by the respective teams. Other names are out there, but often many players who report they have signed are actually only getting tryouts. Signings of note include Boise State QB Kellen Moore, who signed with Detroit; Houston QB Case Keenum who stayed home and signed with the Texans; Washington RB Chris Polk who signed with Philadelphia, Troy OT James Brown who signed with Chicago, Virginia CB Chase Minnifield who signed with Washington; and enigmatic Arizona MLB Vontaze Burfict who has reportedly signed with Cincinnati. Still, there are a number of top undrafted players at a number of positions who do not appear to have signed.
• Chargers pick likely to miss year … San Diego rookie OG Johnnie Troutman, a 5th round pick at the 2012 draft, is expected to miss the upcoming season after undergoing surgery late last week to repair a torn pectoral muscle. Troutman was already expected to miss some time this spring as a result of a knee injury suffered at this year’s Senior Bowl.
• Polian son lands with Falcons … Former Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Polian, who was fired as part of the organization’s complete housecleaning after last season, has been hired by Atlanta where he will work in a scouting capacity and have some assignments around the league. Polian is the son of long-time NFL exec Bill Polian who was also released by the Colts this off-season
  April 28
• (10:00 PM): Just 364 days to go until the 2013 draft ... Hang in there guys!! To help ease everyone into the new draft year, here is over very, very preliminary first-round projection for the 2013 draft. The long-standing rue that who writes in with a "What are you guys smoking! The Bukaroos will never take a ... " comment on this mock will be suspended indefinitely from the site for a violation of common sense.
• On to the 8th round ... Even though the 2012 draft is now history, there won't be much rest for NFL personnel people over the next little while as the dash to sign the top undrafted rokie free agents is now fully underway. And this year the crop of undrafted rookies looks to be especially deep. Among players not drafted this past weekend included previously highly rated prospects such as Washington RB Chris Polk, WRs Dwight Jones of North Carolina and Texas A&M's Jeff Fuller; TE DeAngelo Peterson of LSU; OTs James Brown of Troy and BYU's Matt Reynolds; Pittsburgh OG Lucas Nix; Ohio State C Mike Brewster; Miami DT Marcus Forston, Arizona State MLB Vontaze Burfict and Virginia CB Chase Minnifield each of whom for one reason or another was passed over this week. Here is a list of the top undrafted rookie free agents by position, although it is possible that some have signed already. We'll be updating this chart as the signings are officially announced by the respective teams.
  April 28
• (12:01 AM): Second day musings ... NFL teams only have a few hours before the getting back to busy for the final four rounds of the 2012 draft which get underway at Noon ET on Saturday. There is still plenty of serious sifting to do to really get a grip on what happened in Friday's second and third rounds, but for now here are some preliminary impressions of the good, the bad and the ugly from Friday's picks
  April 27
• (7:00 PM): And we're back ... Join us in the GBN War Room for the evening where we'll be tracking the picks as well as updating the Big Board as the picks come off.
  
• (10:30 AM): First-round musings ... Of course, it will be several years before the dust really settles on the 2012 draft, however, after sleeping on it overnight, first impressions were that there were some great moves in last night's opening round as well as a couple of real posers. Again, it will be awhile before one can conclusively say who the ultimate winners and loser were at the 2012 draft. but here are some preliminary impressions of who got off to a good start at this year's draft and who maybe has some ground to make up.
  April 26
• (11:30 AM): That's a wrap ... The first round of the 2012 draft is in the books. The opening round of the 2012 draft certainly had its share of surprises starting with the fact that 7 of the first 8 picks were traded including one, the 6th overall, which was moved twice. In fact, half of all first round selections were swapped at least once this year. Despite all the trades, though, the opening round zipped along, finishing in a record 3 hours and two minutes. For the most part, the top picks came off the board pretty much as expected, although not necessarily to the predicted teams. In fact, the picks came off the board pretty much as expected until Seattle selected West Virginia DE/LB Bruce Irvin, who had been projected as a mid-to-late second rounder. There were also a couple of surprise picks at the end of the round as San Francisco selected Illinois WR A.J. Jenkins with the 30th pick, while the Super Bowl champion Giants, who had not taken a RB higher than the 4th round since the ill-fated selection of Ron Dayne way back in 2000, took Virginia Tech RB David Wilson with the final pick of the round. If there was a constant to those two picks, though, it was speed and big-play ability as both guys can move with the football. In the end, though, one of the story lines of this year's opening round was the players, in particular, several offensive linemen, who went somewhat later than expected. Stanford OG David DeCastro, who had been considered to be a possible top ten prospect, for example, was selected 24th overall by Pittsburgh, while Iowa OT Riley Reiff went one pick earlier to Detroit. At least, those two were actually selected as Georgia G/T Cordy Glenn and Stanford OT Jonathan Martin weren't selected at all. Same story for Alabama DE/OLB Courtney Upshaw, who will have to wait another day to get a call. In fact, teams around the league will have plenty to chew on overnight as there are a lot of very good prospects left on the board for when the second round gets underwy at 7 PM ET Friday evening. Indeed, in addition to the players mentioned above, players left on the board include WRs Stephen Hill, Reuben Randle, and Alshon Jeffrey, TE Coby Fleener, OTs Mike Adams and Bobbie Massie, OG Amini Silatol, C Peter Konz, DEs Andre Branch and Vinny Curry, DTs Jerel Worthy, Kendall Reyes, Devon Still and Brandon Thompson, LBs Zach Brown and Lavonte David and CB Janoris Jenkins. Figure that personnel people around the NFL don't get a whole lot of sleep as they restack their boards and plot strategy for the draft's second day. St. Louis and Baltimore, both of which have 4 second-day picks, should be among the busiest teams on Friday. The Rams, wo have three of the first 13 picks in the second-round, in particular, have a chance to make a statement on Friday. Green Bay (with 11) and Minnesota (with 10), though, have the largest number of overall selections remaining in the remaining six rounds. Ironically, New England, which made an art of hoarding picks in past years, has only two picks remaining in the entire draft, and at this time don't have any third day picks at all.
• Terp QB sheds shell; morphs into Badger … 
  March 28
• Browns lead picks pack ... With the NFL releasing the full selection order for the 2012 draft yesterday, it was confirmed that Cleveland currently has the most picks of any team at this year's draft with 13. The Browns are followed by Green Bay with 12 and Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, Buffalo and the Jets with ten each. Here is the full, updated listing of picks by team for this year's draft.
  March 27
• (12:01 AM): Draft starts in Cleveland?? … With Indianapolis and Washington locked into QBs Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin with the 1st and 2nd picks respectively at next month’s draft, and Minnesota still expected to take OT Matt Kalil with the third pick, the real intrigue at the 2012 draft could start with the 4th pick with Cleveland on the clock. And Browns’ G. M. Tom Heckert dropped a few hints as toi what the team may be thinking at a presser at the spring league meetings. On the one hand, Heckert pretty much ruled out a trade up for the Browns, but indicated that they would be willing to move down, although likely no farther than the 8th pick. Heckert added that the Browns have identified five players they like so could afford to move back several spots and still get one of the players they have targeted. Heckert also would not rule out taking CB Morris Claiborne if they stayed at #4, but also indicated that the Browns would prefer to add some offensive weapons. Heckert also said that the fact that Claiborne underwent surgery to repair a torn ligament in his wrist late last week was not going to be an issue. Lastly, Heckert indicated that the Browns are happy enough with Colt McCoy at QB, although would not rule out drafting Texas A&M QB Ryan Tannehill, but only if the Browns moved down.
• Colts to work out Luck, not Griffin … At his owners’ meeting presser, new Indianapolis G.M. Ryan Grigson said the Colts still have not made a final decision on which player the team will take with the #1 pick at this year’s draft. However, the Colts plan to bring Stanford QB Andrew Luck to Indianapolis for an individual workout during the next couple of weeks, but have no such plans for Baylor QB Robert Griffin. Grigson also said that even if the Colts make a decision before April 26th they aren’t likely to sign anyone before the actual draft. The Colts also reportedly have shelved plans to trade star DE Dwight Freeney for at least another year.
• Tide trio hopes to work out ... There could be a key event in the draft process later today when Alabama holds a follow-up on-campus workout at which RB Trent Richardson, OLB Courtny Upshaw and SS Mark Barron will finally get to work out for pro teams. All three are potential first-round prospects for the upcoming draft, but each has been preventted from working out to date because of injuries. For now, here is the remaining pro day schedule, as well as the latest pro day results which we'll be updating as new information becomes available.
  March 26
• (5:00 PM): Comp picks awarded … The NFL has awarded 32 compensatory selections at the 2012 draft. Cleveland, Green Bay and the Jets lead the way with four picks apiece, the maximus allowed for any one team, while Pittsburgh, Oakland and Indianapolis gets three each. And mercifully, one of the Raiders’ comp picks is a 3rd rounder, meaning Oakland will have at least one selection in this year’s first three rounds. In fact, the Raiders got this year’s highest comp pick, the 95th selection overall. As well, Minnesota and Baltimore got two comp picks, while 8 other teams got one extra selection each. Here is the full list of 2012 compensatory selections.. Compensatory picks are awarded based on a complex formula of the free agents a team has signed and lost last year.
• NFL execs meet this week ... The NFL's annual spring meetings get underway later today in Palm Beach where league executives are expected to discuss a range of topics including possible changes regarding instant replay and injured reserve. It is also possible that the compensatory picks for the 2012 draft will be announced during this week's meetings. Stay tuned.
  March 23
• (8:00 PM): Jets trade QB to Colts updated ... Updating the trade in which the New York Jets sent journeyman QB Drew Stanton to Indianapolis, the Colts also get the Jets' 7th round pick this year, while the Jets receive the the 6th-round pick Indianapolis got from Philadelphia earlier this month in exchange for OT Winston Justice.
March 22
• (5:00 PM): Surgery for top CB ... LSU CB Morris Claiborne will have wrist surgery tomorrow to repair a torn ligament. Claiborne suffered the injury in LSU's regular season victory against Alabama, but played through it the remainder of the season. Claiborne, who has reportedy accepted an invitation to attend this year's draft, is a top 5 prospect who could go as high as rd overall to Minnesota, although its hard to know at this point whether news of the injury will a major impact on his status.
• (4:30 PM): Luck solid in pro day workout ... The Stanford pro day just wrapped and by all accounts QB Andrew Luck did nothing to jeopardize his status as the presumptive #1 pick at the 2012 draft. Throwing outdoors in blustery conditions before a packed house that even included former Secretary of State Condeleeza Rice, a stanford grad known to be a huge football fan, Luck showed excellent footwork, a very smooth delivery and enough arm strength to make all the throws. Meanwhile, TE Coby Fleener had a strong day running the 40 in a hand-timed mid-4.5 range that will probably translate to the low-t-mid 4.6 range. Fleener also had a 37-inch vertical. Interesting, also that OG David DeCastro, who like Luck is considered to be the top prospect at his position for the upcoming draft, worked at C on the request of a number of teams.
• (1:30 PM): Bears-Dolphins trade update ... Thanks to reader Vic F for the heads up as the 2012 3rd round pick Miami acquired from Chicago in the trade for WR Brandon Marshall is the 74th selection overall that the Bears had originally acquired from Carolina. The Bears own pick in the 3rd round is the 81st. The Dolphins also acquired a 3rd round pick in 2013 to complete the deal.
• (10:00 AM): Cardinal pro day coverage ... This afternoon's Stanford pro day workout featuring QB Andrew Luck, along with a supporting cast including OG David DeCastro, OT Jonathan Martin and TE Coby Fleener is scheduled to be covered by ESPN3 starting at 2 PM ET, while the NFL Network has what is listed as a 'special' Path to the Draft edition on tap for 3 PM ET which would appear to be from the Stanford pro day.
  March 21
• (1:00 PM): League hammers Saints for bounties ... The NFL really lowered the boom on Ne Orleans for the bounty business. Head coach Sean Payton has been suspended for one year, former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams was suspended indefinitely, and G.M. Mickey Loomis was suspended for eight regular-season games. In addition, the Saints were fined and will forfeit second round picks in both 2012 - the 59th overall - and in 2013. Because the Saints had already traded their #1 pick to New England during the 2011 draft, New Orleans now will not pick until the 91st selection this year.
• Smith set to resign with 49ers; Tebow 'sweepstakes' underway and other buzz ... Another piece of the NFL QB picture appears to be falling in place as San Francisco is reportedly close to resigning free agent Alex Smith. The 49ers were one of the finalists in the pursuit of Peyton Manning who ultimately opted to sign with Denver yesterday. That had Smith flirting with Miami, but his preference was still to return to the 49ers. Meanwhile, with Manning under contract, Denver has reportedly had calls from as many as 5-6 teams inquiring about QB Tim Tebow. Jacksonville is believed to be at the head of the line, but Green Bay and the Jets are also reportedly interested, while Philadelphia and Buffalo could be tempted to at least kick the tires. It does not appear, though, that any team is offering more than a third-day pick at this time. And one team that apparently isn't all that interested is Miami. It also appears that Cleveland has given up on finding a new QB this year and are making noises that they are prepared to give Colt McCoy another year. Meanwhile, there is a bit of a buzz out of Minnesota that the Vikings could thinking seriously of taking LSU CB Morris Claiborne with the 3rd pick overall rather than USC OT Matt Kalil. Vikings' G.M. Rick Spielman is reportedly very high on Claiborne and has been downplaying the value of the LT position. There has been some speculation that Spielman is just throwing out some smoke designed to entice some team to trade up to the #3 spot, however, a pretty good case can be made that the Vikings would have more suitors to move to get Kalil than Claiborne so talking up the LSU corner in that regard wouldn't make a whole lot of sense. Stay tuned!
• Star USC WR to sit spring … Southern California junior WR Robert Woods will sit out the skip the rest of spring practice while recovering from off-season ankle surgery. Woods, a top prospect for the 2013 draft after catching 111 passes last fall, had arthroscopic surgery on his ankle in December after getting hurt playing pickup basketball before the season.
  March 20
• (8:00 PM): Eagles get vet LB for pick ... Philadelphia has acquired veteran LB DeMeco Ryans from Houston in exchange for a 4th round pick at this year's draft. The Eagles and Texans also swapped third-round picks meaning Houston willnow have the 77th pick, while Philadelphia will select 90th. Ryans was one of the best young MLBs in the game early in his career, but ruptured an Achilles in 2010 and hasn't been quite the same since. It is also an interesting acquisition from the perspective that most 2012 draft projections have the Eagles taking Boston College MLB with the 15th pick overall, however, the acquisition of Ryans may allow Philadelphia to address other needs with their first-round pick this year.
• (3:00 PM): Manning deal done … Peyton Manning is being introduced this hour as the new QB of the Denver Broncos. Manning and the Broncos agreed on a 5-year, $96M contract earlier in the day.
• WVU LB arrested over the weekend… West Virginia OLB Bruce Irvin was arrested last Saturday evening and charged with destruction of property after he allegedly broke a sign at a sandwich shop in Morgantown. On the one hand, it does not appear to be most serious of offenses, however, it is also the kind of thing that can raise a red flag a little too close to the draft. Irvin is considered to be a late second or early third day prospect for the upcoming draft.
March 19
• If I were G.M. (I'd be rich!!) ... Old friend ’Pigskin’ Paul Guillamette has some thoughts on several players that might not be on a lot of teams draft boards at all for various reasons.
• Duke DE gets another year of eligibility … Duke DE Kenny Anunike, who had already been granted one extra year of eligibility, has been given another by the NCAA. The 6-5, 250-pound Anunike had been leading the ACC in sacks this past fall when he suffered a season-ending torn ACL injury in September. Anunike had also missed the 2008 season with a previous knee injury. Anunike will technically still be a junior in 2012 with two years of eligibility left.
  March 18
• (1:30 PM): Bills get their man; sign DE Williams ... Buffalo has reportedly signed former Houston DE Mario Williams, arguably the top free agent available this year, to a 6-year deal worth up tp $96M with $50M in guaranteed nmoney.
• Gators’ OG gets extra year … Florida OG James Wilson has received a sixth year of eligibility from the NCAA. Once a top-rated recruit, the 6-4, 327-pound Wilson has played in 37 games with five starts in his career for the Gators. Wilson redshirted his first year and then missed most of the 2010 season with a knee injury. Wilson who returned last year, but did not start any games is listed as the Gators’ #1 LG this spring.
• Canadian WR impresses at CFL draft camp … The CFL recently held its pre-draft evaluation camp in Toronto and one player who may have caught the eye of NFL scouts is Wilfrid Laurier WR Shamawd Chambers. The 6-3, 220-pounder ran a 4.42 40 at the Canadian version of the combine, had a 38.5-inch vertical and a 104 broad jump, while posting times of 4.04 in the short shuttle and 6.91 in the 3-cone drill, both of which would have been among the leaders at the position at the NFL combine. A couple of DBs also had strong workouts. Saskatchewan’s Keenan McDougal, a 6-2, 208-pound safety, for example, ran a 4.52 40 and had an explosive 40.5-inch vertical, while St. Francis Xavier CB Dylan Hollohan clocked a 4.53 forty, vaulted over 42 inches in the vertical and ran a quick short shuttle in 3.92 seconds. Here are all the results from the CFL evaluation camp. The CFL draft is scheduled for May 3rd and is open to players born in Canada, although many of the top prospects actually play collegiate in the U.S.
  March 14
• (7:30 PM): Browns lose RB Hillis to Chiefs; could impact #4 pick ... In a move that could have a bearing on how the first 5 picks at the 2012 draft play out, Kansas City has signed former Cleveland RB Peyton Hillis to a one-year deal. And that could have the Browns taking an extra hard look at Alabama RB Trent Richardson with the 4th pick overall at this year's draft. Elsewhere, Jacksonville has signed former Dallas WR Laurent Robinson, while Arizona signed OG Adam Snyder away from division-rival San Francisco.
• (4:00 PM): Free agent pass rushers in demand ... Several pass rushers hilite the latest free agent signings in the NFL. San Diego, for example, has signed former Baltimore DE/LB Jarrett Johnson. Johnson in fact is the second pass rusher the Ravens lost today after Cory Redding signed earlier in the day with Indianapolis. That could put the Ravens in the market for pass-rush help at the upcoming draft. Same story for Cincinnati which had former DEs Jonathan Fanene and Frostee Rucker sign with New England and Cleveland respectively today. Meanwhile, the Giants have plugged their big hole at TE signing Martellus Bennett awya from Dallas.
• (11:30 AM): Colts get vet OT from Eagles for 6th round pick flip ... Indianapolis has acquired veteran OT Winston Justice from Philadelphia in return for a swap of th team's respetive 6th round picks. The Eagles will now get the 2nd pick in this year's 6th round, while Indianapolis will drop down to the 17th selection in that round.
• (11:00 AM): Bucs get another big-name FA ... Tampa Bay continues to make most of the big waves in free agency as the Buccaneers have reportedly signed former New Orleans OG Carl Nicks to a multi-year deal that makes him the highest paid interior offensive lineman in the league. The signing of Nicks, who the Buccaneers take away from a division opponent, comes a day after Tampa Bay signed WR Vincent Jackson.
• (9:00 AM): Bucs, Bolts make key late FA deals ... There were a couple of overnight free agent signings that could impact what several teams do early on at the 2012 draft as Tampa Bay signed former Detroit CB Eric Wright, while San Diego signed former Tennessee WR Robert Meacham. Meacham, at least partially, will fill the Chargers' void at WR with the departure of Vincent Jackson who signed with Tampa Bay yesterday. Elsewhere in fee agency, DE Mario Williams reportedly left Buffalo with signing and is believed to be headed to Jacksonville.
March 13
• (5:45 PM): Bucs land top FA WR ... Less than two hours into free agency and there are unconfirmed reports that Tampa Bay has signed former San Diego WR Vincent Jackson to a multi-year deal. The first confirmed free agent signing though appears to be former Indianapolis WR Pierre Garcon who has signed with Washington.
• (4:00 PM): And they're off ... Chicago and Miami got the new NFL football year off to a rousing start as the Dolphins traded WR Brandon Marshall to the Bears for 2nd round picks in 2012 and 2013. It hasn't been announced yet though whether the #3 pick the Dolphins get this year is the 74th pick which Chicago acquired from Carolina or the Bears' own 3rd the 81st overall. Ironically, Marshall will be re-united with QB Jay Cutler in Chicago after the duo played together in Denver. The trade has also triggered speculation that in trading away Marshall, their own legitimate big-play wideout, the Dolphins have taken themselves out of the Peyton Manning sweepestakes. Its just as possible, though, that in dealing Marshall who has never got along with his QBs that the Dolphins could actually be making themselves somewhat more Peyton friendly, especially if they can replace Marshall with a veteran free agent WR. Failing that, the Dolphins will almost certainly be in the market for a #1 receiver at the 2012 draft. Stay tuned!
• (12:01 AM): New football year to kick off … The new football year kicks off at 4 PM ET later today which will signal the start of the free agency signing period. As well, teams can now consumate trades meaning the deal between St. Louis and Washington which saw the Redskins acquire the 2nd overall pick this year, for the 6th and 39th selections this year and the Redskins #1s in both 2013 and 2014 can be formalized.
• Manning to meet with Dolphin, Titan head coaches ... Peyton Manning has reportedly decided not to travel to meet with any more teams prior to deciding on a new team, but will meet with both Miami head coach Joe Philbin and Mike Munchak of Tennessee in the next couple of days. Manning had spent over 6 hours in both Denver and Arizona. However, it does not appear that Manning will sign with anyone prior to the start of free agency later today.
• Tide G/T Jones to move again … Alabama G/T Barrett Jones, who figures to be one of the top-rated offensive linemen at the 2013 draft, will move to C this coming season after playing LT last year. In fact, Barrett won the Outland Trophy as the nation’s top lineman last fall playing at LT after starting the two previous seasons at OG.
• UGA CB arrested for pot … Georgia CB Branden Smith, who seriously considered entering the 2012 draft, was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana following a traffic stop over the weekend.
  March 9
• (11:00 PM): Redskins acquire #2 pick from Rams ... Everyone knew that St. louis would be dealing the #2 pick overall, although just about everyone thought any deal wasn't likely to come until closer to the draft. Washington, though, has trumped the field and acquired the second pick from the Rams for the 6th and 39th picks this year, as well as first round picks in both 2013 and 2014. With the 2nd pick, Washington is expected to take Baylor QB Robert Griffin. However, while the trade has been confirmed by both teams, it can't officially be announced until Tesday when the new football year begins.  As a result of the deal, the 2012 selection order and picks by team files have been updated.
  
• (6:00 PM): Blackmon runs 'okay' at pro day ... In the end, Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon probably didn't have a great pro day workout, ut it was still probably good enough to solidify his status as a top 5-10 pick this year. Blackmon's official 40-time today was 4.46 seconds, although most teams are likely to tick that up into at least the low-4.5 range because of the fast track they run on at Oklahoma State. And that is just about what was expected from Blackmon who is not considered to have track speed. What would have hurt Blackmon would have been to run in the 4.55-4.60 area on that fast track. Blackmon also had a good, but not great 35-inch vertical and dropped a couple of passes in the positional drills. However, given his size, as well as the body of work over his college career, it would appear that Blackmon did enough today. Remember, too, that former Georgia WR A. J. Green was also only just okay as his workouts last spring, but still was chosen 4th overall by Cincinnati and went to have an excellent rookie season.
• (10:00 AM): Top TE prospect cited for DUI … Georgia TE Orson Charles, one of the top prospects at the position for the upcoming draft, was reportedly arrested early this morning and charged with driving under the influence. Charles was booked by local police in Athens and released on bail, however, it is not the kind of thing that helps one’s grade in the weeks before the draft.
• (12:01 AM): Dirty dozen express interest in Manning … According to league sources, as many as 12 teams have expressed at least some interest in Peyton Manning who was released earlier this week by Indianapolis. Manning has indicated that he would like to choose a new team by next week before the NFL free agency period begins. Scratch at last one of those teams off the list though as Manning has already indicated that he is not interested in signing with Washington. Meanwhile, Cleveland, which has the 4th pick this year, has indicated that it has no interest in Manning, which is no big news as there was no chance that Manning would sign with the Browns. Interestingly, though, Cleveland G.M. Tom Heckert acknowledged at a presser yesterday that the Browns have had talks with St. Louis about the #2 overall pick, but wouldn't classify them as serious yet. Heckert, though, wouldn‘t rule out sending the Rams both the Browns two #1 picks this year as part of a package.
March 8
• (12:01 AM): Manning released, heads to Miami … The almost unthinkable did happen in Indianapolis yesterday when the Colts formally released QB Peyton Manning. Manning headed off to Miami, but not to meet with the Dolphins. In fact, Manning lives in the Miami in the off-season and was simply heading home. And for now, Manning, who is free to sign with any team, claims he has no formal visits planned any time soon. However, if healthy, Manning is expected to command plenty of attention from several teams around the league including Miami, Seattle, Arizona, Kansas City, Washington and the Jets all expected to at least give his tires a kick. Of course, if healthy is the operative term as Manning has undergone 4 neck surgeries in the past year and a half and still is not 100%, although all signs point to the fact that he may be finally regaining some the arm strength that has been lacking since he started throwing again last December.
• Top Pac-12 WR to miss spring … California junior WR Keenan Allen, a potential top prospect for the 2013 draft, is scheduled to have ankle surgery that will sideline him for all of spring practice. However, the Golden Bears expect that Allen will be back for summer workouts and be ready for the season opener. Allen had 98 catches for over 1,300 yards last all.
  March 7
• Tide back to miss spring with toe injury … Alabama junior RB Eddie Lacey, a potential top prospect at the position for the 2013 draft, will miss spring practice after undergoing surgery to repair a turf toe injury.
• Tiger DL to miss spring … Missouri DE Brad Madison and DT Sheldon Richardson will both reportedly miss spring practice after undergoing off-season shoulder surgery. Both are considered to be second-tier prospects for the 2013 draft.
  March 6
• (12:01 AM): Big Board updated ... With the combine in the books, the GBN Big Board ranking the top 200 prospects for the 2012 draft has been adjusted to take into account the data from Indianapolis. And if the GBN board is at all accurate - and for the most part we try to reflect the current typical board across the NFL, if such exits, in our rankings - then the defensive line could be emerging as the go-to position this year with DTs and DEs making up 11 of the top 32 players on our board.
• Tags flying in NFL Monday was the deadline for NFL teams to apply franchise or transition tags to potential free agents. And when the smoke had cleared nearly 2 out 3 teams across the league ended up using their franchise tag this year. Today, for example, New England franchised star WR Wes Welker, while Kansas City tagged WR Dwayne Bowe, Dallas franchised OLB Anthony Spencer, Detroit tagged DE Cliff Avril, Tennessee designated FS Michael Griffin, while Denver (PK Matt Prater), Tampa Bay (PK Connor Barth), Jacksonville (PK Josh Scobee), and the Giants (P Steve Weatherford) franchised a specialist. Meanwhile, Indianapolis franchised DE Robert Mathis, but just minutes later signed him to a new contract. Earlier, New Orleans had designated QB Drew Brees as the team's franchise player, while other players who had been tagged as franchise players prior to today included RBs Matt Forte of Chicago and Baltimore’s Ray Rice; WR DeSean Jackson of Philadelphia; Washington TE Fred Davis; CB Brent Grimes of Atlanta, safeties Tyvon Branch of Oakland and Dashon Goldson of San Francisco; DE Calais Campbell of Arizona; and PKs Phil Dawson of Cleveland and Mike Nugent of Cincinnati. Players who were not franchised today and will become free agents on March 13 include WRs Vincent Jackson of San Diego, Marcus Colston of New Orleans and Pittsburgh's Mike Wallace, who will be restricted but with the Steelers cap-strapped likely could be had for a #1 pick this April, along with Houston DE Mario Williams, Green Bay QB Matt Flynn and New Orleans OG Carl Nicks.
March 5
• (10:00 AM): Bills sign vet WR; two other RBs sign ... Buffalo has a press confeence scheduled for this hour at which time the Bills will announce that WR Stevie JOhnson has agreed to a long-term extenson. With Johnson resigned the Bills can now focus on other positions at the upcoming draft. Meanwhile, Seattle has resigned veteran RB Marshawn Lynch, while Houston has extended RB Arian Foster.
• (12:01 AM): Positional rankings updated ... With the combine in the books, the GBN rankings by position for the 2012 draft have been adjusted to take into account the data from Indianapolis. For the record, the biggest changes appear to be at DT, CB and WR. The GBN Big Board should also be updated sometime within the next day or so.
• Browns, Redskins holding line on RGIII talks … Sources in Cleveland and St. Louis are reporting that the Browns are currently unwilling to include both the of this year’s first round picks in any deal with S. Louis for the second overall pick at this year’s draft. The Browns reportedly would part with the 4th pick overall to move up to get Baylor QB Robert Griffin, but still aren’t willing to part with the 22nd pick acquired in a draft day deal with Atlanta at last April’s draft. Meanwhile, Washington, the other primary contender to trade up with the Rams, reportedly isn’t willing to part with their second round pick this year along with the 6th pick this spring and 2013 first rounder. And until, the dust settles on where free agent QBs Peyton Manning and Matt Flynn ultimately land neither the Browns or Redskins are likely to feel much pressure to move up in the draft. And it appears that at least for now, Cleveland and Washington are the only serious players in talks with St. Louis about the #2 pick.
March 3
• (12:01 AM): MAC stars at pro day ... Miami of Ohio OG Brandon Brooks was one of the most surprising players not invited to last month's scouting combine in Indianapolis. However, Brooks was able to makes a statement at the Redhawks pro day yesterday. Saints’ picks at risk in bounty story … New Orleans could potentially lose draft picks as a result of an investigation by the NFL security department that found that New Orleans had an internal bounty system during the past three years from which players were rewarded for big hits including those that knocked opposing players out of games. The findings have been presented to league commissioner Roger Goodell who will determine the appropriate discipline for the violation which could include fines, suspensions and the forfeiture of draft picks. Recall that in 2007, New England was forced to forfeit its first-round pick as a result of the so-called Spygate incident. Ironically, New Orleans does not have a #1 pick this year having traded it to New England.
  February 29
• USU wideout gets extra year … Utah State WR Matt Adams has been granted a sixth season of eligibility by the NCAA. Adams missed the entire 2009 season with a foot injury and then suffered a season-ending knee injury early the next year. Adams had 34 receptions for the Aggies last fall.
  February 28
• (3:00 PM): Slow times for combine DBs … Official times for the cornerbacks and safeties at today’s on-field workout for defensive backs at the scouting combine in Indianapolis are now available and it has to be considered something of a disappointing day for most of the top prospects at the positions. LSU CB Morris Claiborne, for example, did post a respectable 4.50 40 clocking, but that is considerably slower than the 4.35 pro scouts were expecting. Its also a relatively slowish time for corner with a top 5 grade. At the same time, none of the other top-rated CBs flashed much in the way of track speed. The exception was South Carolina’s Stephon Gilmore who may have elevated himself into the first round conversation when he clocked 4.40 over 40 yards. At the same time, North Alabama’s Janoris Jenkins was solid enough with a 4.46 forty clocking, while Alabama‘s Dre Kirkpatrick posted a 4.51. Nebraska’s Alfonzo Dennard, whose stock had reportedly been slipping heading into the combine, probably didn’t do much to stem the bleeding as he was only able to run a 4.55 40, although he did post an impressive 37-inch vertical. Iowa State‘s Leonard Johnson, who had been considered to be a rising star at the position, also struggled running a very pedestrian 4.71 40. It also wasn‘t a good day for several small-school prospects who had been considered possible second-day candidates as Ryan Steed of Furman (4.59), Montana’s Trumaine Johnson (4.61) and Coastal Carolina’s Josh Norman each struggled to break the 4.6 mark. In fact, the fastest 40 among corners at the combine was turned in by Josh Robinson of Central Florida who blitzed a 4.33 clocking, while Ron Brooks of LSU (4.37) was the only other CB to break the 4.40 barrier, although, both Coty Sensabaugh of Clemson (4.42) and Dwight Bentley of Louisiana-Lafayette (4.43) were close. And with Alabama’s Mark Barron, the consensus top safety in this year’s draft, sidelined today’s workout was a chance for some of the second-tier prospects at the position to try and dispel the notion that this year’s crop at safety in not at all strong. None really delivered. Indeed, Antonio Allen of South Carolina (4.67) and Boise State’s George Iloka (4.66) barely broke the 4.7 mark in their 40s. That left the stage to several lesser known safeties to deliver. In fact, in the end, this quickest safety today was unheralded Chris Thompson of South Carolina State who ran a 4.50 40, while Sean Richardson of Vanderbilt, who also had an athletic 38.5-inch vertical, and Michigan State’s Trenton Robinson both ran 4.52, Kelcie McCray of Arkansas State posted 4.54 and Jeron McMillian of Maine recorded a 4.56. Harrison Smith of Notre Dame (4.57) and LSU’s Brandon Taylor (4.58) also had respectable times. For the record, here are all the official 40 times posted at this year's combine to date including those for the defensive backs.
• DBs to wrap combine ... The 2012 combine wraps up later today when the CBs and safeties hit the field for their physical tests and positional drills. NFL.com will have real time results with their combine tracker. Also please note that our reporting may be disrupted on occasion over the next several days as our server is upgraded.
• MLBs star at combine … Inside LBs Luke Kuechly of Boston College and Michal Kendricks both made themselves some cash at Monday’s on-field workout for defensive linemen and LBs. Kuechly, of course, has always been the top-rated ILB prospect in the 2012 draft class, however, many teams had questions about just how much upside he had as he had been projected to run in the 4.75-4.80 range. However, Kuechly put those questions about his athleticism out of their misery at yesterday’s combine workout when he actually ran the 40 in under 4.60 seconds, posted a 38-inch vertical leap and was among the leaders at the position in the other drills. For his part, Kendricks was considered to be more a mid-to-late round prospect, but likely has pro personnel people headed back to the tape after he ran a sizzling 4.47 40 and registered a very athletic 39.5-inch vertical. Meanwhile, OLBs Zack Brown of North Carolina and Bruce Irvin of West Virginia also ran the 40 in 4.5 seconds, although both had been expected to run well in Indianapolis. In fact, NFL personnel people may actually have been a little disappointed that Brown didn’t run faster. On the other hand, it was a miserable day for Arizona State MLB Vontaze Burfict, who was considered to be a great athlete with character issues. Its hard to tell whether Burfict was able to dispel the character concerns in interviews at the combine, but he certainly didn’t do his case any good at all and he lumbered to a very pedestrian 5.09 40 clocking and followed it up with a poor effort other drills. Meanwhile, other LBs who had pretty good days at the combine included Alabama’s Donta Hightower who ran a respectable 4.68 40; along with Demario Davis of Arkansas State and Najee Goode of West Virginia. Davis ran a 4.61 forty and had a 38.5-inch vertical, while Goode ran a 4.64. On the other hand, Oklahoma OLB Travis Lewis ran a very disappointing 4.88 forty. It was also a great combine for Memphis DT Dontari Poe who had an official 40-clocking of under 5-flat4.9 (4.98) after he put on an impressive show in the bench press where he registered 44 reps pressing 225 pounds; for the record, that was 8 more than any other defensive lineman in Indianapolis. Mississippi State DT Fletcher Cox also may have locked up a spot in this year‘s opening round and could actually be pushing for a top 15 grade after he ran a 4.79 forty, a remarkable time for a near-300-pound DT. In fact, a number of DTs ran really well at this year‘s combine including Florida’s Jaye Howard (4.82), Michigan’s Mike Martin (4.88), and Kendall Reyes of UConn (4.95) each of whom stopped the clock in under 5-flat, while both Devon Still of Penn State and Michigan State‘s Jerel Worthy ran respectable 5.08 forties. On the other hand, LSU’s Michael Brockers, who had been starting to generate some top-10 buzz, ran for a very slow 5.36 40 this morning. This year‘s DEs weren‘t quite as impressive, but several did show good speed and explosion including tweeners Nick Perry of USC and Boise State‘s Shea McClellin who both ran in the 4.65 range, with Perry also posting an athletic 38-inch vertical. At the same time, Clemson’s Andre Branch helped himself with a solid 4.70 time that included a very quick first ten-yard bust, while Illinois’ Whitney Mercilus also made a statement with a 4.68 clocking, as did Okahoma’s Ronnell Lewis. And North Carolina’s Quinton Coples probably didn’t hurt himself with a 4.78 clocking, a decent time for a 280-pound guy. Same story for South Carolina’s Melvin Ingram who didn’t wow with a 4.79 clocking, but wasn’t expected to run all that fast. On the other hand, Marshall’s Vinny Curry, another player who had jus started to generate some buzz for himself, had to be very disappointed with a slow 4.89 clocking.
  February 27
• Skill position combine wrap … Baylor QB Robert Griffin grabbed most of the headlines during yesterday’s on-field drills at the scouting combine in Indianapolis when he ran a 4.41 40. However, Stanford’s Andrew Luck was no slouch himself as the former Cardinal star stopped the clock in 4.67 seconds in his forty. And it wasn’t much of a surprise that Wisconsin QB Russell also ran well posting a 4.55 40 clocking. Meanwhile, with Alabama’s RB Trent Richardson unable to participate in the combine because of an injury, the focus at the position shifted to the battle among the second-tier prospects at the position. And Miami junior Lamar Miller took the opportunity to put his name in line to be the 2nd back chosen this year when he blitzed a 4.40 40. Virginia Tech’s David Wilson was also solid with a sub-4.5 clocking (4.49). On the other hand, Washington’s Chris Polk probably didn’t enhance his grade when he was only able to run a 4.57 40. At the same time, Texas A&M’s Cyrus Gray (4.47), LaMichael James (4.45), Cincinnati’s Isaiah Pead (4, 47), and Brandon Pierce of Temple (4.49) also ran under 4.5 seconds. On the other hand, there were some turtles among this year’s RB class as a number of prominent prospects at the position did not run particularly well including Mississippi State’s Vick Ballard (4.65), Brandon Bolden of Ole Miss (4.65), Dan Herron of Ohio State (4.66), Baylor’s Terrance Ganaway (4.67) and USC‘s Marc Tyler who may have run himself right out of the draft with a 4.76 clocking. Along with Griffin and Miller, the big winners at yesterday‘s workouts also included Georgia Tech WR Stephen Hill who blitzed a 4.36 40 and the looked very polished in the receiving drills. Notre Dame Michael Floyd also may have separated himself from the other second-tier prospects at the position when the 225-pounder ran a very respectable 4.47 40. On the other hand, Kendall Wright of Baylor, who had been staring to get some top-10 buzz likely sent NFL personnel people back to the tapes as the big-play threat was only able to run a 4.61 40. Same story for Rutgers‘ Mohamad Sanu and Arizona’s Juron Criner who both needed to show some quickness, but both were barely able to break the 4.7 mark. At the same time, though, a track meet almost broke out among the WRs with Travis Benjamin and Tommy Streeter of Miami, Chris Givens of Wake Forest, NC State’s T.J. Graham, A.J. Jenkins of Illinois, Kashif Moore of UConn, Fresno State’s Devon Wylie, Jarius Wright of Arkansas, and Stanford’s Chris Owusu joining Hill is running in the 4.4 range.
  February 26
• Hawkeye OL injured at combine … Iowa OT Markus Zusevics did not participate in Saturday’s on-field workout with the offensive linemen after he reportedly injured a pectoral muscle during Friday’s bench press.
  February 25
• (2:30 PM): Slow time for top TE ... The TEs are through their 40 runs and while several ran resonably well, Clemson's Dwayne Allen had to be very disappointed with an official 40-clocking of just under 4.90 which is just not the stuff expected of a receiving TE who doesn't block all that well. Allen also finished near the bottom of the pack among TEs in most of the other drills, although he did post a solid 3rd place time in the 3-cone drill. At the same time, neither of Stanford's Coby Fleener nor Georgia's Orson Charles, who were thought to be Allen's competition to be the first TE off the board this coming April, ran today. Fleener is still rehabbing from a late-season ankle injury, while Charles opted to wait until his pro day. Meanwhile, unheralded James Hanna of Oklahoma posted the fastest 40-time among the TEs with a 4.49 official clocking while Ladarius Green of Louisiana-Lafayette helped himself with a 4.53 time and Missouri's Michael Egnew was solid with a 4.62 effort. NFL.com is posting real time results from the combine. Here are the full official 40 times for the offensive linemen and TEs from today's workout.
• (1:30 PM): SC OT confirms top status … Official 40 times have been announced at the combine for the offensive linemen and Southern California OT Matt Kalil made a statement that he may just be the top prospect in the 2012 draft at any position other than the QB when he ran the 40 in under 5.0 seconds; 4.99 to be exact. The official times were also reasonably kind to Georgia G/T Cordy Glenn who posted a 5.15, while OTs Riley Reiff of Iowa and Ole Miss' Bobbie Massie both clocked in at 5.23. Overall, Okalhoma's Donald Stephenson, who was credited with an official 4.94 40 clocking was the fastest OT, while Iowa's Adam Gettis led the OGs with a 5-flat. And the guys whose unofficial times weren't very good likely won't be much happier with the official results. Ohio State OT Mike Adams' final 40-time, for example, was revised up to 5.40 which is likely outside the parameters most, if not all teams around the NFL have for a LT.
• (11:00 AM): UGA G/T shines at combine; Buck OT struggles … The first group of offensive linemen is through the 40-yard dash and have moved onto positional drills. The star of the morning so far has been Georgia G/T Cordy Glenn who posted an unofficial 40-time under 5-flat for the 40 as he timed in at 4.96. While that may be factored higher when the final electronic times are announced, that is an excellent time for a 345-pound lineman. Glenn also had a very good 1.72 10-yard split and then looked smooth in some of the early positional drills. On the other hand, it has not been a good combine so far for Ohio State OT Mike Adams, who only managed 19 reps in the bench press yesterday and then ran two 40s in over 5.3 seconds in which he didn’t look very quick or explosive. Stanford OG David DeCastro also ran a relatively slow 40 with an unofficial 5.34 clocking. Fastest early times were posted by Iowa OG Adam Gettis who ran the 40 in an unofficial 4.91 seconds, while South Dakota OT Tom Compton posted a 5.03 and Baylor C Philip Blake clocked a 5.09.
• Michigan C paces OL combine press … As expected, Michigan C David Molk led the way when the offensive linemen and TEs did the bench press at the scouting combine in Indianapolis on Friday. Molk managed 41 reps pressing 225 pounds, although he never threatened Stephen Paea’s 49 reps last year which is generally regarded as the all-time record for the combine. Meanwhile, other top offensive line prospects who had solid outings in the bench press included Stanford OG David DeCastro who posted 34 reps, while the figures were 32 for Wisconsin OG Kevin Zeitler, 31 for Georgia G/T Cordy Glenn, and 30 for USC OT Matt Kalil, who is generally regarded as the top OT prospect for the upcoming draft. At the same time, though, several top OL prospects had pro scouts asking where‘s the beef as Iowa OT Riley Reiff only managed 23 reps, while Ohio State’s Mike Adams was only able to do 19 reps and Wisconsin C Peter Konz did just 18. Other OL prospect who disappointed to a degree in the bench press included Cal OT Mitchell Schwartz (23), Ole Miss OT Bobbie Massie (22), Boise State G/T Nate Potter (22), Washington G/T Senio Kelemete (21), and UAB OT Matt McCants (17). For the most part, however, those guys are taller players with long arms who are generally considered to be at a disadvantage in the bench press, although it is something that NFL teams will want to check. At the same time, the most impressive effort in the bench press may have been turned in by Georgia TE Orson Charles who posted 35 reps despite the fact he only weighs 251 pounds. However, Charles may not have closed much ground on either of Stanford‘s Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen of Clemson, the other top-rated TEs in this year‘s draft who both managed a very respectable 27 reps.
• Okie State WR now won’t run at combine … Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon has announced that in the end he will not run when the receivers take the field at the combine on Sunday. Blackmon, the top-rated WR in the 2012 draft, had indicated when he arrived in Indianapolis that he would do a full workout, but now says he has a hamstring issue and won’t workout until the Oklahoma State pro day on March 7th.
  February 24
• (1:30 PM): Svelte SC WR checks in at combine ... What of the bigger questions at this year's combine was what kind of shape South Carolina WR Alshon Jeffrey would show up at. At this last year, Jeffrey, who reportedly played at around 230 for the Gamecocks, was considered to be a potential top 5 prospect for this year's draft, however, his stock has plummeted in recent weeks after his numbers fell off this past season and there were reports that he had ballooned up to as much as 250pounds. However, Jeffrey reportedly weighed in at a very trimmed down 216 pounds earlier today at the combine and may have put some of those concerns to rest. Jeffrey, though, also still has to show pro teams at Sunday's workout that he has more than 4.6 type speed and explosion before he works himself back into this year's opening round.
• (11:30 AM): RGIII measures up ... Concerns that QB Robert Griffin might not be quite as tall an NFL teams generally like their QBs to be were put to rest this morning when the former Baylor star measured in a 6-2.5 and 223 pounds at the scouting comibine in Indianapolis. Griffin had been listed at 6-2 and there were concerns heading into the combine that he might actually be closer to 6-1. At the same time, Stanford's Andrew Luck measured in at 6-4, 238.
• Cardinal OT won't run at combine ... Stanford OT Jonathan Martin reportedly has decided not to participate in on-fields drills when the offensive linemen take the field on Saturday. Martin has reportedly had to curtail his training in the days before the combine because of an minor illness. Instead, Martin, who figures to go somewhere between the 10th and 20th picks in this year's opening round, plans to do a full workout at the Cardinal’s pro day on March 22nd.
• (9:00 AM): Dolphins, Chiefs win coin flips ... Miami and Kansas City won this morning's coin flips to decide the final spots in this year's opening round. As a result, Miami will have the 8th pick in this year's opening round, while Carolina will pick 9th. At the same time, Kansas City will pick 11th and Seattle will have the 12th selection. In the second round, Carolina will pick 40th, while Miami gets the 42nd pick and Seattle and Kansas City will select 43rd and 44th respectively. Then in the third round, Miami will pick 73rd, while Chicago will have the 74th pick acquired from Carolina and Kansas City will select 75th and Seattle 76th. Here is the updated selection order for the first three rounds of the 2012 draft and the still unofficial list of picks by team. 
• Tide RB workout set for late March … Alabama Trent Richardson, who will not participate in this week’s combine after undergoing minor arthroscopic knee surgery three weeks ago, will now reportedly work out for NFL teams on March 27. Richardson, who is easily the top rated player at the position for the upcoming draft, had hoped to be able to take part in Alabama’s pro day March 7, but clearly felt he needed the extra time. Meanwhile, Florida RB/WR Jeff Demps stayed true to his decision to try and earn a spot on the U.S. Olympic sprint team for the 2012 London games and is not in attendance at this week’s combine.
  February 23
• (9:00 AM): Rising LB to miss combine with illness … Utah State LB Bobby Wagner, one of the rising stars in the 2012 draft class, will not participate in this week’s scouting combine in Indianapolis after being hospitalized earlier in the week with pneumonia. Wagner reportedly is feeling better but still likely won’t be released from the hospital until the weekend at the earliest and won’t travel to Indianapolis. It’s also still up in the air whether Wagner will be able to participate in Utah State’s pro day on March 8. If not he will almost certainly schedule a private workout later in March or early April. After a very strong Senior Bowl week, Wagner appears to have moved into the mid-to-late second round range.
• BC TE denied 6th year … Boston College TE Ifeanyi Momah has been denied denied a sixth season of eligibility by the NCAA. The ACC had granted Momah, who played in only one game in 2011 after also missing the 2009 season with an injury, an extra year, but the NCAA denied his request and have now turned down Boston College’s appeal. Momah will now enter the upcoming draft where he could be something of a sleeper. The 6-5, 245-pound Momah caught only 19 passes in 2010, but did average almost 16 yards per grab, but had 8 receptions for 157 yards in the Eagles season opener last fall before injuring a knee.
• (12:01 AM): Knee issue to keep top RB on Indy sidelines … According to a report by Jason La Canfora of NFL Network, Alabama RB Trent Richardson wll not participate in on-field position drills at this week’s scouting combine in Indianapolis. Richardson reportedy suffered a mild knee injury in practice prior to Alabama’s BCS national championship game victory over LSU last month. Richardson did play in the BCS title game but underwent what is being described as “minor” arthroscopic surgery on the knee afterwards. While there are some concerns about Richardson‘s durability at the next level, this appears to be more of a minor setback for the former Tide star who plans to workout fully at the Alabama pro day on March 7th.
February 22
• BC RB to sit spring … Boston College RB Montel Harris reportedly will sit out the rest of spring practice to rest a sore knee. Harris, the Eagles’ all-time leading rusher and a mid-round prospect for the 2013 draft, missed most of the past season with a lingering knee injury.
  February 21
• (12:01 AM): Combine by the numbers ... No question that the road to the draft runs though Indianapolis as a large majority of the players selected each year, and almost all of those taken in the early rounds, have attended the scouting combine in Indianapolis prior to the draft. And that was the case last year as over 85% of the players selected at the 2011 draft attended last February's combine. Here's an overview of the of the numbers from last year's combine.
February 20
• Bills’ pick upgraded … The 2012 pick that Buffalo will receive from Seattle to complete last year’s trade for RB Marshawn Lynch has been confirmed as having escalated from a 6th round selection to a 5th round pick. In the original trade for Lynch Buffalo received a 4th-round pick in 2011 and a conditional sixth-round pick that based on Lynch's playing time. That pick became a 5th when Lynch rushed for over 1,200 yards and 12 TDs for the Seahawks last fall. As a result, our unofficial list of picks by team at the 2012 draft has been updated.
February 18
• (3:00 PM): UGA CB to sit first two games of season … Georgia CB Sanders Commings, a second-tier prospect for the 2013 draft, has been suspended for the Bulldog’s first two games of the 2012 season after he was charged with domestic violence and simple battery following an incident involving his girlfriend. Meanwhile, UConn SS Jerome Junior, another later round or free agent candidate for next year’s draft, has been suspended from the team for the entire upcoming season for violating team rules and may very well have played his last game with the Huskies.
  February 15
• (1:00 PM): Frog LB arrested … Texas Christian junior MLB Tanner Brock, a 3rd team All-American in 2010, was one of four Horned Frogs caught up in a drug sting. Brock played in only one game this past season after undergoing foot surgery last summer.
  February 14
• (10:00 AM): Top SEC TE to miss spring … Auburn TE Philip Lutzenkirchen, one of the leading prospects at the position for the 2013 draft, will miss spring practice after undergoing surgery two weeks ago to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder. Lutzenkirchen, though, is expected to be fully healed by the start of the upcoming season.
  February 13
• Tide S to miss combine … Alabama safety Mark Barron reportedly will the scouting combine after undergoing double hernia surgery. Barron, who is projected to be the first safety off the board this coming April, is expected to be out up to 8 weeks, meaning that he could still have time to go through a private workout prior to the draft, although its not likely that he would be in top physical condition at that time.
  February 12
February 10
• (9:00 AM): Yet another OL gets extra year … Pittsburgh OG Chris Jacobson has become the latest veteran collegiate offensive lineman to be be granted a 6th season of eligibility by the NCAA. Jacobson, who figures to be a mid-to-late round prospect at the 2013 draft if he is healthy, missed all but 3 games this fall after hurting a knee; earlier he had missed all of his true freshman season in 2007 with another knee injury.
  February 9
• Another vet OL gets extra year … LSU has announced that veteran OG Josh Dworaczyk has been granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA. The 6-5, 305-pound Dworaczyk, who figures to be a late-round prospect for the 2013 draft, has 38 career starts for the Tigers including all 13 games during the 2009 and 2010 seasons, but missed the 2011 season after tearing an ACL in fall practice.
  February 8
• (11:00 AM): Two OL get extra years … Missouri OT Elvis Fisher and Boise State C Cory Yriarte have both reportedly been granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA. Fisher had been considered to be a solid prospect for the 2012 draft, but ended up missing the year after rupturing a patellar tendon. Meanwhile, Yriarte missed both the 2009 and 2010 seasons with torn ACLs.
• Top RB prospect moves down to lower level … Former Iowa RB Marcus Coker has reportedly transferred to Stony Brook where he will be eligible immediately. The 230-pound Coker who figures to be an interesting prospect for either the 2013 or 2014 drafts, led the Hawkeyes with almost 1,400 rushing yards and 15 TDs this past season, but was suspended from the team’s bowl game and later released from his scholarship. The school has never made public the reason, however, Coker was investigated earlier in the year after a woman claimed he sexually assaulted her, although no charges were laid.
• (12:01 AM): Combine roster by position ... Overall, 330 players have been invited to the combine including 53 underclassmen. As usual, though, there are a number of surprises among the players not invited this year. The biggest surprises among those left off this year's list includes Arkansas MLB Jerry Franklin, Wisconsin FS Aaron Henry, Boston College CB Donnie Fletcher, Oklahoma State OT Levy Adcock and Miami of Ohio OG Brandon Brooks. Others who didn't get invites this year include OTs Blake DeChristopher of Virginia Tech and Mississippi State's James Carmon, TEs Kevin Koger of Michigan, Michigan State's Brian Linthicum, Anthony Miller of California and George Bryan of North Carolina State, Western Kentucky RB Bobby Rainey and Alabama C William Vlachos.
  February 7
• Top LB prospect hit with DUI ... Stanford MLB Shayne Skov, one of the top prsopects at the position for the 2012 draft, was arrested for driving under the influence late last month. Skov was the Cardinal's leading tackler in 2010 but missed most of this season after tearing an ACL.
  February 6
• (2:00 PM): Pot charge against Tide CB dropped … Police in Alabama have reportedly dismissed a charge of marijuana possession against Alabam junior Dre Kirkpatrick after the driver of the car he was a passenger in took responsibility for the drug. Kirkpatrick is projected to be one of the first 2-3 players off the board at the position at the upcoming draft.
February 4
February 1
• Bronco back gets extra year … Boise State RB D.J. Harper has been granted a 6th year of eligibility after he missed most of the 2009 and 2010 seasons with torn ACLs. The 5-9, 205-pound Harper has over 1,500 career rushing yards including almost 600 last fall when he was the primary backup to Doug Martin. Same story for Southern Miss G/T Jason Weaver who has been granted an extra year of eligibility. The 6-5, 320-pound Weaver, who started at RT most of the season for the CUSA champion Eagles, missed the 2010 year after suffering a knee injury in the season-opener that year; he also had sat out his first year of eligibility following the death of his brother. On the other hand, the NCAA denied MLB Korey Williams’ appeal for a 6th year after he suffered a season-ending knee injury in the fourth game of the 2011 season. Like Weaver, Williams sat out his freshman year after the death of a family friend, however, that relationship was not considered close enough to justify an exemption. The 6-1, 245-pound Williams could figure as at least a late-round prospect for the 2012 draft if his knee checks out after he posted 93 tackles, including 12.5 for loss the previous year.
  January 31
• (12:01 AM): That’s a wrap, Part deux … The Senior Bowl is now formally in the books and while NFL teams tend to put more emphasis on hat happens at practice in Mobile rather than the game itself, there’s still plenty to learn from what transpired on Saturday. Here’s our scouting staff’s evaluation of the winners and losers at least from a draft perspective from this year’s game. And we would be remiss in not once again thanking Paul Guillamette, editor of Paul’s Pigskin Place for his reports from both this year’s Shrine and senior Bowls.
• Bears continue front office shuffle … Just days after hiring a new G.M. Chicago director of player personnel Tim Ruskell is reportedly no longer with the organization despite the fact he had a year to run on his contract. The Bears described it as “mutual decision.” Ruskell interviewed for the Bears G.M. job that became vacant when Jerry Angelo was fired at the end of the year, but lost out to Phil Emery. The Bears are now expected to hire both a director of college scouting and a director of pro personnel to replace Ruskell, the former Seattle G.M. who joined the Bears two years ago.
• Sooners pivot has neck surgery … Oklahoma junior C Ben Habern, a second-tier prospect for the 2013 draft, underwent what is being described as major neck surgery late last week. The 6-2, 295-pound Habern will spend the next 3-6 weeks in a neck brace and obviously will miss spring practice, but expects to make a full recovery.
  January 30
• (11:30 AM): One trade cleared up ... Thanks to reader Wayne W for the heads up as New Orleans and Miami will swap 6th round picks to complete the deal for RB Reggie Bush. That means that New Orleans will get either the 8th or 10th pick in the 6th round from Miami, depending on the coin flip with Carolina, while Miami will have the 27th pick in the round.
• (12:01 AM): First three rounds pretty much set … For the first time in weeks, there are no changes to the selection order of the 2012 draft this Monday morning. However, with the exception of the final two picks in each round, which won’t be decided until next weekend’s Super Bowl, the first three rounds of the 2012 draft are now pretty much set as least unofficially. As usual, New England, with 5 picks in the first three rounds including a couple of late first rounders, has the most premium picks to dates, although time will tell whether the Patriots will use them all this year. Meanwhile, Cleveland and Cincinnati, both of which also have an extra #1 pick this year, along with Chicago and Philadelphia have 4 picks within the first three rounds. In contrast, Oakland doesn’t have any picks at all in the first three rounds; indeed, barring a trade, the Raiders won’t pick until the 5th round and have only two picks overall. For the record, Cincinnati and Cleveland are also tied for most picks overall with 9 along with Philadelphia and Buffalo, while Atlanta, with 5, is the only other team along with Oakland to have less than 6 picks at this time. Of course, those numbers will change somewhat when the NFL announces this year's compensatory picks sometime in late March or early April. For now, though, here is a very unofficial list of picks by team, although note that there are several traded picks which are still undisclosed. Again, note that these data are totally unofficial and if anyone has updates please pass them along. Also note that there are some references out there that indicate that the selection order for playoff teams after the first round reverts back to the old format based on their record and strength of schedule as was done in the past, however, that was not the case the past two years after the rules were changed so that playoff teams were grouped with the other teams eliminated at the same time through all 7 rounds, although teams in the same group with the same W-L record continue rotate.
  January 28
• (5:00 PM): Bears sign new G.M. … Chicago has signed former Kansas City director of college scouting Phil Emery as the team’s new general manager. Emery replaces Jerry Angelo who was fired at the end of the past season. Emery, who worked previously for the Bears as a regional scout, reportedly beat out New England director of player personnel Jason Licht for the job.
• Top rook LB hit with DUI charge … San Francisco OLB Aldon Smith, the 7th player selected at the 2011 draft who rang up 14 sacks this past season to earn several defensive rookie of the year honors, has been charged with driving under the influence in Miami.
• (12:01 AM): Senior Bowl game goes later today … The Senior Bowl all-star game is scheduled to kick off at 4 PM ET in Mobile later this afternoon. National TV coverage will be provided by the NFL Network. Here are the updated rosters for the North and South rosters. Eagles restock top scout staff … Philadelphia has promoted Anthony Patch to the role of director of college scouting, while Rick Mueller has been hired as a pro personnel executive. Patch, who has been with the Eagles that past ten years as a scout and assistant director of college scouting, replaces Ryan Grigson who departed to become the general manager in Indianapolis earlier this month. Meanwhile, Mueller has been director of player personnel for New Orleans and director of college scouting for Jacksonville.
• ‘Noles OT opts to enter draft … Florida State OT Andrew Datko has reportedly given up on trying to get another year of eligibility through a medical redshirt and will enter the 2012 draft. Datko had been considered one of the top LT prospects in the country entering the past season, but end up playing in just 4 games this year because of a shoulder injury. In fact, the 6-5, 320-pound Datko had started 40 games at LT for the Seminoles prior to being injured and was rated ahead of teammate Zebrie Sanders who is now considered to be one of the top 5-6 OTs in the upcoming draft. However, Datko still has a chance to be a second day pick this coming April if he checks out medically at next month‘s combine.
  January 27
• (9:00 AM): Senior Bowl stock updates … With an off-day of sorts at the Senior Bowl in Mobile prior to tomorrow’s actual game, here and here and here and here are several overview reports on the winners and losers from this week’s North and South practice sessions.
• (12:01 AM): That's a wrap ... The weather played a nasty trick at the final day of practice of this year's Senior Bowl in Mobile as a rain storm forced both teams inside for today's light practices. And that gave us a change to review our notes and review the week's workouts including our choices for the guys that had the best weeks in Mobile.
• Bucs hit up Big East for new coach … Tampa Bay, which has the 5th pick overall at the 2012 draft, has signed Greg Schiano as its new head coach. Schiano, who spent the past 11 years at Rutgers, replaces Raheem Morris who was released after the Buccaneers lost their final 10 games of the season to finish at 4-12.
• Top ACC safety to miss spring … Clemson FS Rashard Hall, one of several good safeties likely to be available at the 2013 draft, will miss spring practice after having surgery on a knee that bothered him most of this past season.
  January 26
• (10:00 PM): More Memos from Mobile ... The two days of full-pad practices at this year's Senior Bowl in Mobile are in the books, but our ’Pigskin’ Paul Guillamette, editor of Pigskin Paul’s Place, as well as a Special Scout for the GBN, is still on the case as he files his latest Memo from Mobile with some observations from Wednesday afternoon's South practice.
• Vikings put top pick on market … Minnesota G.M. Rick Spielman indicated during an interview on the NFL Network coverage of the Senior Bowl that the Vikings would be willing to move the #3 pick at this year’s draft if the price were right. According to Spielman “if someone wants to come up and get that pick we’ll be listening.” The Vikings, of course, selected QB Christian Ponder at the 2011 draft as their QB of the future, at least for now, so are not likely to be in the market for a passer with the third pick.
• Colts get new head coach … Indianapolis, which has the #1 pick at the 2012 draft, has signed Baltimore defensive co-ordinator Chuck Pagano as its new head coach. The Colts are expected to select Stanford QB Andrew Luck with the first pick this coming April. And the hiring of Pagano, a defensive specialist, has further fueled rumors that the Colts will try and move veteran QB Peyton Manning.
  January 25
• (10:00 AM): More comments from Mobile … As we wait for Wednesday’s practice sessions to get underway, here and here and here and here are several observations from yesterday’s Senior Bowl practices.
January 24
• (Noon PM): Updates from Mobile … With NFL draft analysts, both pro and amateur, heading to the tapes to mull over this morning’s North practice at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, here, here and here are some further observations from around the country on Monday’s activities. Meanwhile, updating several personnel moves, both of Baylor WR Kendall Wright nor Penn State DT Devon Still, who would have been two of the top-rated players in Mobile this week, withdraw because of injuries. Meanwhile, Arizona State C/G Garth Gerhart had to withdraw after he ruptured a tendon on a finger and has been replaced by OG Joe Looney of Wake Forest. At the same time, Tennessee DT Malik Jackson, Louisiana Tech RB Lennon Creer and Arkansas State OLB Demario Davis has been added to the South squad, while Clemson DE Andre Branch has been deleted from the South roster.
• (12:01 AM): More Memos from Mobile ... The first day of this year's Senior Bowl in Mobile is in the books and our ’Pigskin’ Paul Guillamette, editor of Pigskin Paul’s Place, as well as a Special Scout for the GBN was on top of things. Here is his latest Memo from Mobile with some observations from this afternoon's South practice. And for those that haven't seen them yet, here are the height and weight numbers from Monday's player weigh-in by position.
  January 23
• (12:01 AM): Senior Bowl gets underway … One of the big events on the draft calendar kicks off later this morning when the Senior Bowl gets underway in Mobile. Players will be measured and weighed later this morning, while both teams will have light practices in the afternoon. Full practices sessions get underway on Tuesday morning with the NFL Network providing extensive coverage. And while many of the top prospects for the 2012 draft are juniors who are not eligible for the Senior Bowl, there will be as many at least 8 legitimate first-round prospects in Mobile this week including DEs Quinton Coples of North Carolina and South Carolina’s Melvin Ingram, LBs Courtney Upshaw of Alabama and Zach Brown of North Carolina, CBs Alfonzo Dennard of Nebraska and North Alabama‘s Janoris Jenkins, and OGs Cordy Glenn of Georgia and Iowa State’s Kelechi Osemele. Here is the current roster of players expected to be in Mobile this week.
• Canes LB gets extra year … Miami OLB Ramon Buchanan has been granted a medical hardship waiver by the NCAA and will be back at school in 2012. Buchanan suffered a torn ACL during the fourth game of 2011 and missed the remainder of the season
• Heels OG has surgery; will miss spring … North Carolina junior OG Jonathan Cooper, a 6-3, 310-pound mid-round prospect for the 2012 draft, had surgery to alleviate chronic inflammation in his shoulder and likely will miss spring practice this this year.
style="color: rgb(51, 102, 255);">January 20
• (2:00 PM): Shrine top 10 listed ... They are taking a day off down at the East-West Shrine site in St. Petersburg prior to tomorrow's actual game, but there's no rest for our ’Pigskin’ Paul Guillamette, editor of Pigskin Paul’s Place, as well as a Special Scout for the GBN was on top of things. Here's his list of the top dozen prospects at this year's Shrine practices as well as a few other random thoughts from St. Pete's.
• More star game updates … Practice sessions for this weekend’s three all-star games are in the books. And as usual, ’Pigskin’ Paul Guillamette, editor of Pigskin Paul’s Place, as well as a Special Scout for the GBN was on top of things. Here is his report from today's practice sessions. In addition, here and here are a couple of other wrap-ups from the East-West Shrine game and another from the Battle of Florida game.
• Tide NT has ACL surgery …. Alabama NT Josh Chapman, a potential second-day pick at the 2012 draft, will not participate in next week’s Senior Bowl after undergoing surgery to repair a torn ACL and a torn meniscus in his left knee. In fact, its unlikely that Chapman will be able to workout at all prior to the draft, although he actually played through the injury the past couple of months including the Tides win in the BCS championship game earlier this month. Meanwhile, Notre Dame WR Michael Floyd reportedly has chosen not to participate in the Senior Bowl next week.
  January 19
• (5:00 PM): Junior RBs look to be still in draft ... We are still waiting for a final confirmation, but it appears that RBs Chris Polk of Washington and Utah State's Robert Turbin did not appear on the NFL's official list of underclassmen eligible for the 2012 draft because, while both had a year of eligibilty remaining, neither was required to formally apply for entry to this year's draft. Polk was listed as a junior by Washington because he played in only two games as a freshman in 2008 before being injured, but never formally applied for a redshirt year so is considered to be a senior by the NFL; in fact, he is scheduled to be in Mobile for next week's Senior Bowl. For his part, Turbin has been out of high school for five years and therefore is not required to apply for early admission to the draft. Meanwhile, according to sources at Troy, DE Jonathan Massaquoi is still entered in the draft, although as noted below his name also did not appear on the NFL list; at age 24 already, Massaquoi is an older player, but has only been out of high school for four years.
• (1:00 PM): Record number of underclassmen enter draft ... The NFL has released the final list of underclassmen eligible for the 2012 draft with a record 65 juniors and redshirt sophomores on the list. In fact, the previous high was last year when 56 underclassmen entered the draft. The final list of underclassmen in this year's draft included a number of players who had not previously indicated they were entering the draft including safeties Johnnie Thomas of Oklahoma State and Janzen Jackson of McNeese State, a one-time budding star at Tennessee who was dismissed from the field for off-field issues, and 355-pound Purdue OG Ken Plue. Others who appear to have been late additions include Texas RB Jamison Berryhill, Minnesota TE Tiree Eure, McNeese State DB Janzen Jackson, Miami WR Alarius Johnson, and Auburn QB Barrett Trotter. On the other hand, a trio of juniors - Washington RB Chris Polk, Troy DE Jonathan Massaquoi and Utah State RB Robert Turbin - each of whom had announced they were entering the draft do not appear on the official list of underclassmen eligible for the 2012 draft and presumably either never followed through in actually submitting paperwork to the NFL to be included in this year's draft or withdrew their names prior to yesterday's deadline. Here is the full list of underclassmen who will be available at the 2012 draft.
• Titans, Broncos shuffle front-offices … Tennessee has promoted G.M. Mike Reinfeldt to the role senior executive V.P. and chief operating officer, while Ruston Webster, who joined the Titans in 2010 after previously serving in the personnel departments of the Seahawks and the Buccaneers, becomes the team‘s new general manager. At the same time, Lake Dawson has been promoted to V.P. of player personnel, Webster's old spot. Meanwhile, Denver has named Matt Russell, who had been the Broncos’ director of college scouting, as the team’s new director of player personnel. The Broncos also hired Brian Stark, a former assistant coach at Yale and San Diego State, to work as a west coast scout.
  January 18
January 17
• Tide CB cited for possession … Alabama junior CB Dre Kirkpatrick, who announced he would be entering the 2012 draft earlier this week, was arrested and cited for marijuana possession in Bradenton, Florida. Kirkpatrick, a potential mid first round pick at the 2012 draft, was charged with possessing less than 20 grams of marijuana and was released on $120 bond. Not the kind of thing that is going to help any prospect’s draft grade, however, as a general rule NFL teams tend not to be too concerned about marijuana issues. Indeed, what they may be more concerned about is what this says about Kirkpatrick’s maturity.
• (11:00 AM): Prelim combine rosters released … A preliminary list of players invited to next month’s scouting combine in Indianapolis has been circulating the past couple of days. We have been unable to confirm whether in fact this is an official list. The Combine does normally publish a list of invited players , but not usually until later in January once the full list of underclassmen in the draft has been confirmed. Indeed, the above list of combine players includes only seniors.
• Heels PK gets extra year; BC WR doesn’t … North Carolina PK Casey Barth has been granted a medical hardship waiver by the ACC and will get another year of eligibility next fall. Barth played in just 3 games this past season because of a groin injury. On the other hand, the NCAA has denied Boston College WR Ifeanyi Momah an extra year. Momah, who played in only one game in 2011 and missed most of the 2009 season because of injuries, had been granted a medical hardship waiver from the ACC and appeared to fit the NCAA‘s criteria for a sixth year of eligibility. For whatever reason, that process didn’t go as expected. As a result, Boston College reportedly will appeal the NCAA decision.
• More Shrine comments … In addition to our own Shrine report below, Wes Bunting of the National Football Post and Dane Brugler of the Sports Xchange writing for CBSSports.com have comments on the first day of practice at the East-West Shrine game in St. Petersburg.
• (12:01 AM): Shrine practice underway … The East-West Shrine game week got underway yesterday with the official weigh-in ceremony as well as the first practice session for both teams. Courtesy of Yahoo! Sports here are the results from today‘s measurements. And ’Pigskin’ Paul Guillamette, editor of Pigskin Paul’s Place, as well as a Special Scout for the GBN weighs in with some observations from the first day of practice.
  January 15
• Duck QB surprises and enters draft … In something of a surprising move, Oregon junior QB Darron Thomas has decided to forego his final year of eligibility and enter the upcoming draft. Thomas is a good athlete who has been very productive in the Ducks’ high-octane offense, but is not really considered to be a prime NFL prospect at the position.
• Gopher gets 6th year … Minnesota CB Troy Stoudemire has been awarded a 6th year of eligibility by the NCAA and will play for the Gophers in 2012. Stoudermire suffered a fractured arm in September and did not play the remainder of the season.
  January 14
• (2:00 PM): Sun Belt DE, others enter draft … Troy junior DE Jonathan Massaquoi has announced he will be entering the 2012 draft. The 6-2, 250-pound Massaquoi is an edge rush specialist who had 19.5 sacks in his two years at the school, although 13.5 came last year. Massaquoi, though, decided to jump to the NFL, in part, because he’s a little older than normal for a draft prospect and will be 25 by the time he arrives at a pro camp next summer. Meanwhile, Oregon junior CB/KR Cliff Harris does not appear to have ever formally declared his draft intentions per se, but is reportedly working out at one of the training sites preparing players for the combine. Harris was an All-American punt returner as a sophomore two years ago, but was booted from the team late this season because of a series of off-field incidents. Southern Illinois junior RB Jewel Hampton, a one-time Tennessee recruit who rushed for over 1,000 yards last fall, is also headed to the draft. Same for Wyoming junior RB Alvester Alexander who is more a free-agent prospect. There are also rumblings that Kansas State sophomore RB Bryce Brown will be entering the upcoming draft. Brown was once the top-rated recruit at the country at Tennessee, but has played to date and has been known mostly for off-field issues. Underclassmen have until tomorrow to apply to the NFL for early entry to the 2012 draft. In fact, most of the top names have already declared their intentions and many the latest announcements have been from players such as QBs Tyler Wilson of Arkansas and Michigan’s Denard Robinson and Oregon RB Kenjon Barner, who confirmed what just about everyone expected all along that they would be returning to school.
  January 13
• (9:00 AM): BC DE to enter draft ... Boston College junior DE Max Holloway has announced that he won’t be returning to school for a fifth season, but instead will enter this year’s draft. The 6-2, 250-pound Holloway, who had 6.5 sacks over the past couple of seasons, is not considered to be a prime draft prospect, but could get soem late-round or free-agent interest from 3-4 teams looking for depth as a rush LB.
• (12:01 AM): 2011 draft revisited; grades posted plus … Our crack scouting staff has spent the past week or so squirreled away reviewing the 2011 draft and have posted grades for every team based on their rookies productivity, although we caution that it still takes 2-3 years for the true value of any draft to really become clear. That said, based on what happened this year, Seattle, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Houston, Arizona and Dallas leading the pack with straight As. Meanwhile, Carolina QB Cam Newton and San Francisco OLB Aldon Smith led the list of top 10 offensive and defensive rookies respectively. And while do-overs are a no-no when it comes to the draft, just for fun, we have projected what the 2011 draft might look like if teams knew then what they know today.
• Third Tigers goes pro … LSU junior WR Rueben Randle became the third Tiger to jump to the NFL today when he announced that he will be entering the 2012 draft with one year of eligibility left. Earlier in the day, former junior CB Morris Claiborne and sophomore DT Michael Brockers also announced that they would be entering this year’s draft. Randle is projected to be a second-day pick.
• Gators RB to try out for Olympics … Florida RB Jeff Demps has reportedly decided not attend the combine or any other pre-draft workout. Instead, Demps plans to devote his full energies to trying to make the U.S. 2012 Olympics sprint team. Demps, of course, will still be available at this spring’s draft and there is a chance that some team could take a flyer on him with a late round pick.
  January 12
• (4:00 PM): Bama LB joins mates in rush to draft ... Alabama LB Donta Hightower did not join teammates Trent Richardson and Dre Kirkpatrick in their press conference announcing they would be entering this year's draft, however, Hightower has also decided to leave school and enter the 2012 draft where he is projected to be a second-day pick, although he still could slip into the latter part of the opening round.
• (2:30 PM): Bama duo declares for draft … Fresh off this week’s national championship, Alabama juniors Trent Richardson and CB Dre’ Kirkpatrick have announced at a press conference in Tuscaloosa they will be entering the 2012 draft where both are expected to be top 10-15 prospects. So far, though, there is no word from Alabama junior LB Donta Hightower who had also been expected to be part of today’s press announcement. Meanwhile, LCU junior CB Morris Claiborne, a top 5-10 prospect for this spring’s draft, will also reportedly announce his intention to enter the draft at a 4 PM ET news conference. Claiborne will be joined at the draft by LSU sophomore DT Michael Brockers who has also reportedly decided to turn pro. Brockers is a 6-5, 300-pound interior lineman who had 10 tackles for loss this past season.
• Top QB confirms broken foot … Texas A&M QB Ryan Tannehill, arguably the top senior prospect at the position for the upcoming draft, has confirmed that he broke a foot in training and will not participate in this month’s Senior Bowl in Mobile. The injur in fact may require surgery which likely would also keep Tannehill from particpating in next month's scouting combine in Indianapolis, although his camp indicates there is a chance he could still be able to throw at a private workout prior to the draft.
• (11:00 AM): Rocket WR rockets to pros ... Toledo junior WR Eric Page will announce at a press conference later this afternoon that he will be foregoing his final year of eligibility and entering the 2012 draft. The 5-9, 180-pound Page was 6th in the nation in all-purpose yardage this fall and is projected to be a mid-round pick this coming April.
• (12:01 AM): Badgers’ QB to stick with football … Wisconsin QB Russell Wilson has reportedly informed the Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies that he ill not be reporting to spring training this year, but rather will train for the upcoming NFL draft. Wilson, who is a little undersized and lacks prototype arm strength, threw for over 3,000 yards and 33 TDs this fall while throwing just 4 picks.
• Tide back to announce later today … Alabama junior RB Trent Richardson has reportedly scheduled a news conference at 2 PM ET Thursday afternoon to announce whether he will be entering the 2012 draft. Richardson, who is considered to be a top 10-15 prospect for this year’s draft if h opts to turn pro, is one of three Alabama underclassmen the NFL is still waiting to hear from regarding their intention to enter the 2012 draft. What isn‘t clear is whether CB Dre‘ Kirkpatrick or LB Donta Hightower will also make their announcement at the same time.
• LSU WR on the move … LSU junior WR Russell Shepard is reportedly leaving the team. What isn’t clear though is whether he’s planning on entering the draft or transferring. Shepard, who came to LSU as a highly-touted dual threat QB, but was soon switched to receiver, may want a chance to play that position or is simply going to give the pros a shot despite the fact he had just 14 receptions for 190 yards this fall and wasn’t thrown a pass in Monday’s BCS Bowl loss to Alabama.

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