Mike Freeman's NFL Draft Notebook: Miami Trade Won't Lighten Load on Josh Rosen
From Day 2 of the draft, the future remains uncertain for some young quarterbacks, while things are looking up for the Saints and, yes, the Raiders.
1. Josh Rosen is in hell
Not sure what football gods quarterback Josh Rosen angered, but he needs to find out and make amends.
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He was drafted 10th overall last year by the Cardinals and suffered one of the most physically brutal seasons I've ever seen for a quarterback. He was sacked 45 times in 14 games, and some of the hits he took were ugly.
So what happens after you're drafted by a team with a terrible offensive line? It trades you to Miami.
Cardinals quarterbacks were sacked a total of 52 times in 2018. Do you know how many times Miami quarterbacks were sacked? Yes, 52 times.
Here's the other problem for Rosen. Because the Dolphins will be terrible next season, they will be in prime position to select a quarterback next draft...just as the Cardinals were this year.
The Dolphins will have a bevy of picks next season, and the draft will have at least three extremely talented throwers in Oregon's Justin Herbert, Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa and Georgia's Jake Fromm.
It's possible Rosen could find himself in the exact same situation next year. In fact, it's likely.
Could Rosen somehow turn his career around? Stranger things have happened. He will be in a system better suited for his abilities, will have almost no expectations and will play for a coaching staff that wants him.
The problem is the Dolphins don't have a lot of talent. If they win six games, it would be a miracle. They should throw a parade somewhere on South Beach.
None of this is to say we should feel sorry for Rosen. But still: He might be in NFL Hell.
2. Smith's unfair rip job
By now, you may have seen former wide receiver Steve Smith absolutely atomize Rosen into tiny little molecules. Speaking before Rosen was traded and referencing Rosen's having unfollowed the Cardinals after they selected Kyler Murray in the first round, he said Rosen was less than "a man" and should be getting ready to compete instead of "playing with [his] phone."
What's always been fun about Smith is that he will speak his mind. He's humorous, smart and honest. Those are actually rare qualities in the crowd of NFL television analysts. So many are too scared of blowback from the league.
Yet Smith's criticism of Rosen was massively unfair. It's not that Rosen isn't a competitor; it's that he knew the chances of him succeeding in Arizona were weighted against him.
Teams do not take a quarterback No. 1 overall, as the Cardinals did with Murray, to have him sit.
Plus, Rosen probably looked around that franchise and realized it's been a dumpster fire. How ever tough the odds might be for him in Miami, they're better than what he would have faced in Arizona.
3. Doug Baldwin done?
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Seattle wide receiver Doug Baldwin might not play another down. If that's true, it's incredibly sad.
Baldwin, 30, has long been one of the most underrated receivers of his generation. He wasn't the biggest or the fastest, but he was always the toughest. Baldwin also had skills, and he provided quarterback Russell Wilson with a solid target.
The Seahawks drafted Ole Miss receiver D.K. Metcalf, an excellent pick who could be a Pro Bowl player.
But he will have a long way to go before he becomes Doug Baldwin.
4. Did Elway, finally, find his future QB?
The Broncos took Missouri quarterback Drew Lock in the second round Friday. This would seem like good place for Lock. It might not be.
The team's general manager, John Elway, has selected six quarterbacks in the draft. None of the previous five before Lock are on the roster now. That is a remarkable level of bad at drafting quarterbacks.
Lock might be Elway's best chance because he is a solid athlete. After the Broncos drafted him, Lock told the story of his almost college basketball career.
"I had three offers coming out of high school to play basketball: Missouri, Oklahoma and Wichita State," said Lock, according to a transcript provided by the Broncos. "Oklahoma and Wichita State both ended up being Final Four teams, so that's kind of my big claim to fame. The reason I chose [football] though was...you can grab a lot of guys and throw them on a basketball court and...someone besides myself [goes] 8-out-of-10 because they had a lucky day.
"But in my mind, going through the whole process, seeing how I played QB, I didn't think there were many people that could spin it the way I did. That's why...I felt I could make a career out of football the best.
"I'm sitting here talking to the Denver Broncos right now, so I think I ended up making a good decision.”
Does Lock have a chip on his shoulder from not being picked in the first round?
"I know the kind of player I am and know what kind of player I'm going to be," he said, "and this adds a little chip to the shoulder bigger than the one that's already on there. I'd say it's almost a full Pringle size—the king-size Pringles right now—that's how big the chip on my shoulder is. But it's good.
"If I for some reason I needed any extra motivation, I definitely got it."
5. The real McCoy
One thing I heard from teams Friday night was how the Saints got one of the best players in the draft in Texas A&M center Erik McCoy.
The Saints also demonstrated how to work a draft board unlike, say, the Giants. They noticed that there was a run on defensive backs at the beginning of the second round. So they were patient, and McCoy fell right to them.
He was a team captain, had 39 starts in college and has a good chance to start for the Saints next year.
6. Raiders' excellent second-rounder
Oakland had a sort of odd draft. It began with a massive reach taking Clemson defensive end Clelin Ferrell with the fourth overall pick. The team added Alabama running back Josh Jacobs and Mississippi State safety Johnathan Abram. Hit and miss.
Then came the Raiders' second-round selection: Clemson cornerback Trayvon Mullen.
I've heard numerous good things about Mullen. He was one of the most popular players among scouts—seen as a tough, smart and extremely physical player.
Some of the same personnel men who were excoriating the Raiders to me over the Ferrell pick were praising them for selecting Mullen.
7. Reggie Wayne talks smack
Former Colts receiver Reggie Wayne decided to troll the fans of the Tennessee Titans...in Nashville.
It was actually funny.
The problem was the soft response of the Titans fans. They're no Eagles fans.
8. More Bosa
The 49ers' pick at No. 2 overall, Nick Bosa, continues to explain some of his questionable social media postings. When Bosa met with the media Friday, his comments were even more in-depth and interesting than what he said Thursday.
When Bosa was asked if he could understand if some of his postings were insensitive, he responded, according to a transcript provided by the team:
"Definitely. I definitely made some insensitive decisions throughout my life. I'm just excited to be here with a clean slate. I'm sorry if I hurt anybody. I definitely didn't intend for that to be the case.
"I think me being here is even better for me as a person because I don't think there's anywhere, any city that you could really be in that would help you grow as much as this one will. I'm going to be surrounded with people, all different kinds. I'm going to grow as a person and be on my own.
"College, you still have that support system around you. Now, I'm here. I'm going to be on my own. I'm going to grow up. I'm going to learn a lot of new things. I'm excited."
Then Bosa was asked: "You said about former 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick: You called him a clown, as a black man who was giving a voice to people who don't have a voice. Do you still feel that same way?"
“No. It wasn't directed towards that," Bosa said. "It's not like I'm saying his stance and what he was doing, that's not what I was calling or talking about at all. It was just me, a specific thing that happened, and me as a young kid, a thought popping into my head, and boom, decided to tweet it out.
"Bad, bad decision. I respect what he's done. If it empowers anybody, then he's doing a good thing. I apologize for that.”
Mike Freeman covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @mikefreemanNFL.
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