If you liked the endless buildup to a three-day NFL Draft, you're going to LOVE the league's plans for next season. The NFL is reportedly looking at new locations to hold the NFL Draft, including Madison Square Garden in New York, or yet determined locations in Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadephia, Dallas, Houston, Pittsburgh, Boston and Canton, Ohio.
Quotables: Reactions to a four-day draft, Doug Martin trade rumors, and Motown serenades
It’s NFL Silly Season, all right. Read on for more on changes to the NFL Draft, weird Doug Martin trade rumors, Arian Foster serenading Andre Johnson with the sweet sounds of soul, and more!
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Perhaps the most noteworthy tidbit to come out of reports is that the NFL seems set on making the draft a four-day event after posting record ratings this past May. This is terrifying news for many who think that the hot take-inducing affair is already long enough.
It’s not clear where support for a four-day draft is coming from. True, the draft drew a record number of eyeballs, but that could be a symptom of an ever-expanding NFL fanbase and a 2014 talent pool with a particularly high number of headline-worthy players.
Once those players are gone, however, who will want to tune into another day of draft coverage just to watch sixth and seventh rounders get selected? Awful Announcing wondered the same thing:
Obviously, there will be a large chunk of insane people that do that, but there’s not much appeal to me, and I imagine there are many casual fans that feel the same way and be against any further expansion of an already too bloated NFL Draft.
“I know you wanna leave me / but I refuse to let you go / If I have to beg and plead for your sympathy / I don’t mind coz’ you mean that much to me”
- The Temptations, “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg”
Arian Foster chose "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" as a plea to Andre Johnson to return to the Texans. We'll see whether it works. In the mean time, d'awwwwwwww:
“The source said that he wouldn’t be surprised if Martin got traded prior to the start of the season.”
Those rumors concern the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Doug Martin. Yeah. Weird, right?
Bucs Nation thought so, too, and very patiently explained why the rumors are probably a lot of bunk.
In addition, having to build a run-heavy offense around Charles Sims, Mike James and Bobby Rainey is very different from doing the same thing with Doug Martin. It would hurt the Bucs' offense, unless Sims turns out to be much better than he looks. Trading Doug Martin, barring some exceptional trade offers, doesn't make a lot of logical sense at this point.
How quickly we forget that Martin was really, really good as a rookie.
“Some people say you aren’t doing your job if you don’t have certain stats, but you ignore that.”
Luke Kuechly spoke with Cat Scratch Reader, and addressed a Pro Football Focus article that made the bold claim that he is one of the most overrated players in the NFL. Kuechly took the diplomatic approach, and fortunately for him he has accolades on his side, including an AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year award.
Quality is often in the eye of the beholder, or at least not always in the eyes of statistics. The Carolina Panthers will certainly disagree after watching Kuechly rack up 156 tackles, two sacks and four interceptions on the NFL's No. 2 total defense.
More from the interview:
Alright Luke, we’ve got four rapid-fire questions for you. Only need one-word answers. Ready?
Yes.
Coke or Pepsi?
Pepsi.
Cats or Dogs?
Dogs.
Cake or Pie?
Pie.
Pirates or Ninjas?
Pirates.
Pirates.
“There is now internal belief that the veteran will be pushed by Carr.”
For the uninitiated, it would seem to make sense that Derek Carr, a second-round pick, is pushing Matt Schaub for playing time. The NFL.com report goes against what the Oakland Raiders have said in the weeks since the NFL Draft, however. The Raiders have publicly stated that they believe that Schaub can be the long-term solution at quarterback. Privately, that does not appear to be the case.
Schaub is coming off a disastrous year with the Houston Texans, who were seemingly all-too-eager to let the veteran walk. If Carr is already exceeding Oakland's expectations, he should find himself starting behind center in due time.
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