#nfl-draft

#nfl-draft

The Atlanta Falcons officially hired former Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski on January 17th. Since then, there have been 13 mock drafts where the Falcons, who are without a 2026 1st-round pick, in case you forgot, are selecting at least one player. Some pundits got so bold as to go through all seven rounds; others set their sights on the top 100. Either way, since Stefanski signed on the dotted line, 26 draft prospects have been sent to Atlanta.

Love is a one-cut and go runner who hits creases fast and keeps his balance through contact. He's dangerous when the blocking gives him a lane because he accelerates quickly and can turn routine runs into chunk gains, and he's more than just a runner. The biggest improvement area is the pass protection and playing under control. He can also put himself in danger by trying to hurdle defenders, which he tries to do often.

Every year it turns into the same conversation- length, speed, wingspan, testing numbers -and somehow the actual games start mattering less and less. By the time January hits and draft reports come out, some defenders are treated like future stars even though their impact felt pretty hit-or-miss all season. When I went back and studied this defensive class, a pretty clear divide showed up.

MOBILE, Ala. - Georgia Tech guard Keylan Rutledge can't be missed during Senior Bowl practices. He's the mauler, the beast, the one pounding his opponents into dust. And he's attracted the interest of the Dolphins, a team wanting to get better in the trenches. On Tuesday, Rutledge (6-foot-3, 316 pounds), projected as a mid-round pick, had a few impressive displays of physicality and aggression - including one against SMU's Jeffrey M'Ba, and one against Texas A&M's Scooby Williams. He drove them both to the ground.

I found that Murdock wins with instincts, angles, and physicality. He reads plays quickly, stays square, and finishes tackles. One thing I noticed is he doesn't overrun the ball or guess his way into trouble, he plays within the structure of the defense and does his job snap after snap. What really stood out to me is how he creates turnovers. Murdock finished his college career as the all-time FBS leader in forced fumbles, and that's not just luck.

As part of the Micah Parsons trade, Green Bay's first pick in April belongs to Dallas. But while the 18 non-playoff teams already know the order for their picks, the next 14 depend partially on playoff results. The losers of the six games this weekend will get picks 19-24, with the order being determined by regular-season records and any relevant tiebreakers.

Some people hit the slots, the tables, the apps, spend what they can spend, and go home - or put the phone down. Not me. I'd wake up early in the morning, and the first thing I'd do was bet. I'd stay up late and bet. All day. All night. I had insomnia, so if I woke up in the middle of the night, phone next to the bed, I'd bet. Any little money I had, it was going straight to FanDuel.

The general manager of the Atlanta Falcons for the past five seasons has been canned. Terry Fontenot came in to oversee a rebuild-we-don't-call-a-rebuild back in 2021 and was tasked with creating a sustainable winner out of the wreckage of the Dan Quinn/Thomas Dimitroff era. Instead, he'll leave the job having overseen five straight losing seasons, presiding over a roster-building era where the Falcons acquired plenty of compelling talent but were never able to put together a winning squad.

Aside from tonight's Rams-Falcons game, Week 17 is in the books. Most of the playoff field has been set in both conferences, but there is still plenty to be determined regarding the first-round draft order. By virtue of their loss on Sunday, the Raiders are now in pole position to secure the No. 1 pick. Vegas sits at 2-14 on the year, with four teams sporting a record of 3-13.

A few hours before that news conference, the Rams traded pick No. 26 to the Atlanta Falcons, who used it on James Pearce Jr. The outside linebacker has 8.5 sacks this season, which leads all rookies. He has recorded at least a half-sack in seven straight games, which is the second-longest streak by any rookie since 1982 when sacks became official, according to ESPN Research.

We have made the decision to place Maxx Crosby on the Reserve/Injured list for the remainder of the 2025 season. After deliberate and thorough consultation with multiple top medical professionals, it became clear that this decision was in the best interest of both the franchise and the player. Maxx is the ultimate warrior, and he has fought extremely hard to compete each week with his teammates since injuring his knee mid-season. We are grateful for his extraordinary contributions. He is a true Raider on and off the field -- we look forward to his leadership and toughness into 2026 and beyond.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida State quarterback Thomas Castellanos has dropped his appeal for another year of college eligibility and declared for the NFL draft. Castellanos thanked family, friends, coaches and teammates and "everyone who has supported me along this journey" in a statement posted on social media. Just Win Management Group, which represented Castellanos during his legal fight, said it supported his decision. "While the unique facts and circumstances surrounding the petition for an additional year of eligibility did create a path of viability, after careful review and consideration, we full support Mr. Castellanos' decision to forego that continued pursuit and focus his attention on preparing for the 2026 NFL draft," the agency said in a statement.

Nico Iamaleava will remain with UCLA in 2026, he announced Monday, with the school also announcing that the quarterback is "forgoing the 2026 NFL draft." The redshirt sophomore transferred to UCLA from Tennessee prior to the 2025 season, in which the Bruins finished just 3-9 and coach DeShaun Foster was fired after an 0-3 start. UCLA has since hired James Madison coach Bob Chesney, who guided the Dukes to the College Football Playoff, losing 51-34 at Oregon on Saturday.