NFL Player News

Newsome now faces a tougher battle for snaps after the Bears drafted Velus Jones, Adam Jahns of The Athletic reports.

After being selected in the sixth round of the 2021 Draft, Newsome played in just three games, catching two passes for 23 yards. With the team looking to add speed to the receiver group, it added Byron Pringle and Equanimeous St. Brown in free agency along with Jones in the draft. Newsome will likely need to have an impressive training camp in order to earn significant snaps in the regular season.

St. Brown may face an uphill battle for playing time after the Bears selected Velus Jones in the third round of the 2022 Draft, Adam Jahns of The Athletic reports.

In the Bears' quest to add speed to their receiver room in the offseason, St. Brown and Byron Pringle were added in free agency. However, now that the Bears used the No. 71 pick in the draft to select Jones, who ran a 4.31 40-yard dash, St. Brown is expected to enter training camp outside the top three receivers on the depth chart.

The Eagles hope Smith will be helped by the acquisition of A.J. Brown, Tim McManus of ESPN.com reports.

Smith is a smaller receiver at 6-foot, 170 pounds while Brown is much larger at 6-foot-6 and 340 pounds, and coach Nick Sirianni views the duo as complementary to one another. Brown's addition to the receiver room should at the very least draw defensive focus from the 2021 first-round pick as well as create more opportunity for the whole offense by lengthening drives. Quez Watkins, Zach Pascal, Jalen Reagor and Greg Ward will likely now function mostly as afterthoughts in what was a run-first offense in 2021.

The Browns selected Bell in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft, 99th overall.

Before the combine, Bell was considered a fringe first-round prospect after putting up impressive numbers in three seasons at Purdue. Bell stepped into the No.1 role in the offense in place of the injured Rondale Moore as a true freshman and recorded 86 catches for 1,035 yards and seven touchdowns on 131 targets. He had a strong season in the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign and was impressive again as a junior with 93 catches for 1,286 yards. Despite the strong track record of production from an early age, Bell's testing sent his stock tumbling. Bell ran a 4.65 in the 40-yard dash and tested below the 40th percentile in his jumps at 6-foot-1, 212 pounds. Bell will be an interesting test case because of the combination of his stellar production and concerning lack of athleticism. Cleveland already has Amari Cooper and Donovan Peoples-Jones, but Bell could eventually carve out a role as a possession receiver in the underneath game.

The Cowboys selected Tolbert in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft, 88th overall.

Tolbert (6-foot-1, 194 pounds) lacks overall size, but his athleticism is just above average (4.49-second 40-yard dash) and his production in college was compelling. Tolbert's senior year for South Alabama was particularly memorable, as he recorded 82 receptions for 1,474 yards and eight touchdowns on 136 targets. He heads to Dallas as its likely fourth wide receiver behind CeeDee Lamb, Michael Gallup and free-agent signee James Washington, but Gallup's return from an ACL tear and Washington's less-than-convincing NFL production leave open the the slight possibility of an immediate impact from Tolbert.

The Chiefs selected Moore in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, 54th overall.

Moore (5-foot-10, 195 pounds) is a bit short but well-built, and he pairs that dense frame with 4.41 speed to make for an explosive downfield threat at receiver. Moore might fit best in the slot, where his lack of height is less of an issue, but he should also be a viable fit at outside receiver thanks to his speed. Moore was highly productive at Western Michigan, where he was easily a better prospect than former teammate and 2021 second-round pick Dee Eskridge. Moore will compete with Mecole Hardman and Marquez Valdes-Scantling for targets behind Travis Kelce and de facto No. 1 wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster.

The Steelers selected Pickens in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, 52nd overall.

Pickens (6-foot-3, 195 pounds) was a highly convincing producer at Georgia, where as a true freshman, he blazed his way to a team-leading 49 receptions for 727 yards and eight touchdowns on 77 targets (63.6 percent catch rate, 9.4 yards per target). He was off to another big season as a sophomore but tore his ACL in the eighth game, which kept him out until the final month of his 2021 junior season. Pickens fell this far largely because of his volatile on-field temperament, but his exceptional on-field results indicate he has no issues with his work ethic.

The Colts selected Pierce in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, 53rd overall.

Pierce becomes Indianapolis' first selection of this draft and he fills an immediate need. The Cincinnati product was the alpha of the Bearcats' receiving corps and commanded a 22 percent target share in 2021, which he converted into 52 grabs for 884 yards and eight touchdowns with a 10.4 YPT average. Pierce boosted his stock with a standout combine performance where he checked in at 6-foot-3 and 211 pounds with 4.41 speed and a 40.5-inch vertical. Having Pierce opposite Michael Pittman gives Matt Ryan a pair of tall vertical threats on the outside.

The Patriots selected Thornton in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, 50th overall.

Thornton is slight of frame (6-foot-2, 180 pounds) but extremely fast (4.28-second 40-yard dash), and he was a convincingly productive player at Baylor. Durability struggles wrecked his 2020 season, but between 2019 and 2021, Thornton produced 107 receptions for 1,730 yards and 15 touchdowns on 182 targets (58.8 percent catch rate, 9.5 yards per target). Even if just serving as a decoy, defenses will have to approach the Patriots' offense differently when Thornton and his blazing speed are on the field.

The Giants selected Robinson in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, 43rd overall.

This is an interesting pick for the Giants as Robinson is a versatile piece who was not quite expected to go this high. Robinson began his career at Nebraska, where he split time between running back and receiver. He transferred to Kentucky for 2021 and was the engine of the Wildcats' passing game, catching 104 of 144 targets for 1,334 yards and seven touchdowns. Robinson is on the smaller end at 5-foot-8 and 178 pounds, but he's a tough runner with 4.44 speed. Per PFF, Robinson forced 22 missed tackles at Kentucky. Kadarius Toney, who is reportedly being shopped by the Giants, has a similar skill set where his best trait is running after the catch, so Robinson could be a viable replacement if the latter is moved before the season.