One week after NFL.com's Jeff Darlington told the "ATL Debate Club" he expects the Miami Dolphins to take an aggressive approach to the draft, we're hearing the same from NFL.com's Daniel Jeremiah.
The former league scout pegged the Dolphins as one of three teams poised to trade up. Miami, in theory, wants to hop in front of the San Diego Chargers at No. 11 for the chance to land one of the draft's top three offensive tackles. "All signs point toward" the Kansas City Chiefs grabbing Texas A&M's Luke Joeckel at No. 1, according to Jeremiah, but that still leaves Central Michigan's Eric Fisher and Oklahoma's Lane Johnson.
Jeremiah also sees the Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers as candidates to trade up.
Here's what else we're hearing:
» San Francisco's desire to climb from No. 31 might boil down to two words: Tavon Austin. The West Virginia wide receiver will visit the 49ers for a pre-draft visit, according to The Sacramento Bee. NFL Films senior producer Greg Cosell believes the electrifying Austin might not escape the top 10, but with five picks in the first three rounds and 14 overall, San Francisco has the fire power to make a move.
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»Stephen Holder of the Tampa Bay Times calls it a "near certainty" the Buccaneers will select a cornerback with the 13th pick. Even if Tampa pursues Darrelle Revis, Holder reports the team is "underwhelmed" by the free-agent cornerback market and remains committed to drafting talent in the secondary.
» Jeremiah tweeted Wednesday that the Rams have been doing their homework on the draft's top receivers and he would be "shocked" if St. Louis doesn't grab a pass-catcher at No. 16 or 22.
» A source told NFL.com's Ian Rapoport that SMU defensive lineman Margus Hunt"won't get past the first round." The Estonian native is seen as a big-bodied terror who, at 6-foot-8, is faster than he looks and is a potential nightmare for quarterbacks everywhere. The source described Hunt as a "guy who can step in physically immediately."
» Cosell's lukewarm view on Matt Barkley is no state secret. After grading the USC quarterback as a fourth-round talent (and he's not alone on that front), Cosell wrote Thursday on Yahoo! Sports that Barkley "will struggle to be anything more than a mid-level starter in the NFL. He just does not have enough arm. His ball tended to hang and lose energy on the back end, even on 18-25 yard throws ... Overall, he's an average athlete without the kind of lower body explosiveness that you'd like to see, the kind that defines a quarterback like Drew Brees."
Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.
