NFL Draft random thoughts on the Bucs, Blake Bortles and more

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

The story of the NFL this week is that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are benching quarterback Josh Freeman in favor of rookie Mike Glennon. The Bucs took Glennon with the 73rd pick of the draft this year.

It should come as no surprise Freeman is being benched. Little was done to re-sign him before the season. The Buccaneers were hot after Carson Palmer before settling on Glennon. As for what Glennon can do, we'll see. The longer Glennon holds the ball, the worse the results were for him at North Carolina State. Without a legitimate tight end option in Tampa Bay, it's hard to see Glennon having a lot of success, especially early. This is a good move so the franchise can get a feeling about what they have in Glennon. It won't be surprising to see the Buccaneers draft a quarterback in the first round next year.

Most are going with the notion that this is it for head coach Greg Schiano in Tampa Bay. But general manager Mark Dominik could come under fire as well. From Bucs Nation:

Once the Bucs trade Josh Freeman they will have no players from 2009 draft on their roster, and just four from 2010.
— Sander Philipse (@Bucs_Nation) September 25, 2013

That's not good. Consider the players Dominik has drafted since 2009. He's had 36 picks over that time, and has had far more outs than hits. Dominik's 2012 draft that featured Mark Barron, Doug Martin and Lavonte David was his best showing.

• It's far too early for this to even matter, but the Washington Redskins currently have the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NFL Draft. Of course, because of the Robert Griffin III trade, that pick goes to the St. Louis Rams. The New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings would flip a coin for picks two and three. The Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers would flip for four and five. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers would have the sixth pick. Again, still way too early to think about draft order, but interesting nonetheless.

• Here's a fun hypothetical: Lets say the Redskins finish the year with a bad record and the Rams get a top five pick. Would St. Louis consider taking a quarterback? Sam Bradford has two (expensive) years left on his contract, but has a career 58.6 completion percentage. It's a unique scenario because it's not the Rams' own pick. Normally if a team is drafting high, it's because they need a quarterback. But if the opportunity presents itself in May, the Rams will have a difficult decision to make.

• It looks like there will be an abundance of quarterbacks in next year's draft. Where they fall will change the NFL due to the value of the position. One of the harder quarterback prospects to gauge is Derek Carr of Fresno State. Here is some indication from former Philadelphia Eagles scout John Middlekauff:

Talking with some NFL scouts - most feel when it's all said and done Carr will end up somewhere in the 1st.
— John Middlekauff (@JohnMiddlekauff) September 21, 2013

To be clear on the Carr statement - most guys I have talked to have 2/3rd grades, but they all mentioned how he will rise jan-may
— John Middlekauff (@JohnMiddlekauff) September 21, 2013

• Chris Burke of Sports Illustrated put out a new mock draft this week. Check it out here. Four of the first five picks are quarterbacks. They all make sense. There's an interesting spot for Johnny Manziel. I'm considering putting together a mock draft database to keep track of things. Would that be something you might be interested in?

• We told you before the season to keep an eye on Central Florida quarterback Blake Bortles. He's an athletic 6-foot-4, 230-pound junior off to a hot start. In three games, Bortles has seven touchdowns compared to just a single interception while completing 71.4 percent of his passes for 816 yards. But Bortles told the Orlando Sentinel this week he's not thinking about the NFL Draft. Of course. If he plays well against South Carolina on Saturday, though, Bortles should expect more NFL talk to come his way. Look for Bortles to be a big riser on our next rankings adjustment.

• NFL.com's Bucky Brooks (who is excellent) has a theory about Missouri quarterback James Franklin. With his athleticism, Franklin may get drafted as an offensive weapon similar to Denard Robinson. It makes sense considering how many quarterbacks there will be and how not good Franklin is as a passer.

• Here is your bad news of the week:

#UF senior DT Dominique Easley injured his knee at practice yesterday according to sources. It is believed to be a torn ACL. #Gators
— Zach Abolverdi (@ZachAbolverdi) September 25, 2013

This is developing as I finish this up for the week, so make sure to follow SB Nation's college football page for the latest. If true, that's unfortunate for Easley. He was starting to look like the second coming of Gerald McCoy. While Easley may not have risen to the third pick in the draft like McCoy, he's a similar lightning-quick gap shooter.

It's worth mentioning that Easley also tore his ACL in 2011. Two torn ACLs almost assuredly means he could slide in the draft. Maybe not out of the first round. His former coordinator at Florida, Dan Quinn, has the same position with the Seattle Seahawks.