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Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bengals risk being only NFL team with 1st-round pick unsigned
Not that the Cincinnati Bengals pay much attention to outside public opinion, but the team is now one of just two franchises yet to sign their first-round pick this year. The Bengals with Shemar Stewart and the Denver Broncos with cornerback Jahdae Barron are the two teams left standing without a signature from their first-round picks. Advertisement Jacksonville shoved the Bengals into this bucket over the weekend by signing Travis Hunter, the No. 2 overall pick. RELATED: Bengals, Shemar Stewart nuclear option includes 2026 NFL draft route The Bengals had to watch as Stewart bashed the organization publicly before leaving minicamp early recently. According to reports, the Bengals want to reset contractual language regarding guarantees, starting with Stewart as the first. The defensive end and his reps, naturally, don't want to be the first. It's hard to imagine the standoff bleeds too far into training camp, but it's equally hard to imagine the Bengals care that they're just one of two teams yet to wrap up what should be nothing more than a minor offseason bit of work. RELATED: Bengals standouts after mandatory minicamp includes surprises This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Bengals risk being only NFL team with 1st-round pick unsigned
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Steve Sarkisian Sends Strong Three-Word Message on Texas
Steve Sarkisian Sends Strong Three-Word Message on Texas originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Why not play for the Texas Longhorns? Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian certainly made a compelling pitch for high school athletes across the country to consider the Longhorns. Sarkisian joined the 3rd & Longhorn podcast this week, hosted by several former Texas players, and discussed what makes his football program and the university itself so great. Advertisement "If I know nothing, who's the one school that's gone to back-to-back College Football Playoffs and back-to-back College Football Playoff semifinals?," Sarkisian began. "Who is the one school their first year in the SEC went to the SEC Championship Game? Who has the most draft picks in the NFL Draft the last two years? Who's had six defensive lineman drafted in the last three years and five running backs drafted in the last three years?" Sarkisian didn't stop there. He kept spewing off numerous accolades Texas has reached over the last few years. "Who's had a receiver taken in the first round the last two years? Who has, last year, signed the No. 1 class in the country? The year before that a top-three class in the country," Sarkisian said. Advertisement "All the while, that's occurring at a top-five public institution in the United States. All the while, being part of an athletic department that has won four of the last five Director's Cups." The podcast interview quickly made its rounds on social media and Sarkisian had a simple three-word response. "The Total Package," he said. Sarkisian could potentially land another No. 1 in 2026 as the Longhorns are currently trending for several other five-star prospects. Related: Texas Trending for Several More Five-Star Recruits in 2026 Class This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 26, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Louis Riddick Blasts Miami Dolphins for Drafting Quinn Ewers
Louis Riddick Blasts Miami Dolphins for Drafting Quinn Ewers originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Former Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers entered the 2024 season as someone who draft experts viewed as a potential top pick in the 2025 NFL draft. However, he had a poor season by his standards, that was also impacted by injuries, and fell to the seventh round of the draft before he was selected by the Miami Dolphins. Advertisement On Thursday, analyst Louis Riddick appeared on Dolphins Talk to discuss Ewers in Miami as a possible long term option as the QB2 behind Tua Tagovailoa. "A long term number two, yeah. I would say off of what I've seen. I was admittedly not a big fan. That's not being disrespectful. That's just being honest. It's interesting, people want you to give your honest opinion as long as it's in accordance with what their opinion is and as long as it's positive." Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers (3) against the Clemson Tigers during the CFP National playoff first round at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial J. Rebilas-Imagn Images "Look Quinn, I don't know Quinn, I just know Quinn from watching a lot of UT film and being a big Longhorns fans. Could he be a good No. 2, yeah. Do I think he has the horsepower as far as body twitch, arm strength, to be a starting caliber QB to really level up Miami? No, I didn't see that. That's why I was very lukewarm to say the least on the draft selection." Advertisement Heading into his first NFL season, Ewers is listed as the third-string QB. Tagovailoa is the starting QB, followed by Zach Wilson. As a result, Ewers is unlikely to earn playing time this season unless there are significant injury issues in Miami. Related: Quinn Ewers Breaks Silence on NFL Draft Disappointment This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 26, 2025, where it first appeared.
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Why the NFL cannot follow the NBA's draft timing model
The 2025 NBA Draft is now in the books, less than a week after the 2024-25 season finished with the Oklahoma City Thunder holding up the Larry O'Brien Trophy as the league champs. For NFL Draft aficionados, that tiny timeframe between the end of the playoffs and the draft seems insanely brief. The NFL does the draft process quite differently, of course. There were over 10 weeks between the Super Bowl in early February and the NFL Draft in late April in 2025, the customary timeframe for each. Critics of the NFL and its prolonged draft process point to the NBA as a shining example of how much superfluous time goes by in those 10-plus weeks. While that's true, it's not so simple. For starters, the NBA season is far longer than the NFL. Tipoff for the last NBA season began back on October 22nd and ran through June 22nd, exactly eight months later. That's three full months longer than the NFL's time between Week 1 and the Super Bowl. The NBA necessarily has to speed into the draft to get the teams ready for the next season. The players drafted into the NBA this week report to Las Vegas for the summer league in a little over a week, with the exhibition season running from July 10th through the 20th. These aren't unpadded walkthroughs focused on teaching and acclimation like the NFL rookies get in minicamp and OTAs; NBA Summer League games are real basketball, full-speed and full-contact competitions. Basketball can do that because, well, it's basketball. It's an inherently simpler game than football, with five guys on the floor doing the same basic things they've been doing since they were 6-year-olds in rec leagues. The NFL — perhaps unnecessarily — is a different form of football than even the highest-level college game. Divergent rules about defensive contact, multiple formations and personnel groupings for the 11 men on both sides of the ball, and intensely specialized coaching for every individual position group to elevate skills and strategies from the college game require considerable time and training in the NFL. The NBA Draft process eschews the pro day circuit and the postseason all-star exhibitions that serve as de facto scouting functions. There is an NBA Scouting Combine in Chicago, which took place over a week in mid-May this year. You might have missed that as an ardent NFL fan, as it took place during the rookie minicamps or early OTAs a couple of weeks following the NFL Draft. Unless you're glued to NBA TV or Sirius XM NBA Radio, you're unlikely to ever hear it mentioned. By contrast, all the major networks, sports or otherwise, base their operations in Indianapolis in the final week of February for the annual NFL Scouting Combine. In short, the NBA's longer season, abbreviated offseason and comparatively simpler and smaller gameplay afford that league the ability to jump straight from the finals to the draft. The NFL could certainly shave a couple of weeks off between the Super Bowl and the draft, no doubt. But the NFL Draft is its own entity, a profitable offshoot of the league itself that the league happily facilitates and benefits from. That's not going away, nor is the NFL's (perhaps unnecessary) quest to dominate the sports news cycle even in the depths of its offseason.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Eagles Icon Jason Kelce Named Best NFL Draft Steal of the Millennium
Eagles Icon Jason Kelce Named Best NFL Draft Steal of the Millennium originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Philadelphia Eagles have built a reputation as one of the NFL's most consistent drafting powerhouses, with stars like Jalen Hurts, DeVonta Smith, Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean emerging in recent years. But according to Eric Edholm, one pick stands far above the rest—not just in Philadelphia, but across the entire league this century. Advertisement That pick? Jason Kelce, the 191st overall selection in the sixth round of the 2011 NFL Draft. In his recent ranking of the top five offensive line draft steals of the millennium, Edholm placed Kelce at No. 1, calling him 'one of the most decorated blockers of his generation' and highlighting the extraordinary value the Eagles found in the undersized Cincinnati center. The ranking cements Kelce's legacy not just as an Eagles legend, but as one of the greatest late-round picks in league history. 'The Eagles took a chance on the undersized Kelce late in the 2011 draft, the team's eighth selection that year,' Edholm wrote. 'He was their third OL pick in 2011.' That class included first-round bust Danny Watkins and fifth-rounder Julian Vandervelde, both of whom flamed out quickly. Kelce, however, immediately seized a starting role and never looked back. From the moment he stepped on the field as a rookie starter in 2011, Kelce embodied the grit, leadership and football intelligence that would define his career. Over 13 seasons, he earned seven Pro Bowl nods, six First-Team All-Pro selections, and a Super Bowl LII title. Known for his quickness, elite communication skills and unparalleled awareness, Kelce anchored one of the NFL's best offensive lines for more than a decade—transforming from afterthought to franchise cornerstone. Advertisement 'But Kelce planted a flag in the middle of the Philly offensive line as a 16-game rookie starter and held that role for 13 years,' Edholm noted. 'One of the most decorated blockers of his generation, Kelce used his IQ, quickness and technique to earn seven Pro Bowl nods and six First-Team All-Pro honors.' Perhaps the defining moment of Kelce's career came during the Eagles' championship run in the 2017 season, where he helped lead Philadelphia to a Super Bowl LII victory over Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. Kelce's iconic mummers-suit speech at the championship parade remains one of the most unforgettable moments in franchise history—and a perfect embodiment of his underdog legacy. "He would have been a candidate for this list as a second- or third-round pick," Edholm concluded, "but achieving all of this as a late sixth-rounder puts him on a different tier.' Kelce officially announced his retirement in March 2024, capping a career that spanned three different head coaches, two eras of Eagles football, and countless offensive linemates. His emergence, especially in contrast to the failed high-round picks of that same draft class, is a testament to the vision of the Eagles' scouting department—and to the philosophy that value can be found in any round. Advertisement As Philadelphia builds for the future with young talents like Cam Jurgens and Jordan Mailata anchoring the trenches, the standard set by Jason Kelce will serve as both blueprint and inspiration. Even in retirement, he continues to elevate the Eagles' legacy as one of the league's savviest drafting organizations. Related: Adoree Jackson Embraces Old-School Coaching Style in Eagles Secondary Related: Eagles' Jalen Carter Reveals Plan to Join NFL's Elite This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 25, 2025, where it first appeared.
