FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. – Today's Early Bird Report includes Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff's history of draft-day trades as well as Robert Griffin III getting another chance in the league.
Enjoy!
FALCONS HEADLINES FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY
*AJC: *Thomas Dimitroff's draft trading record
Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff isn't afraid to make a move on draft day to get his guy. He's shown time and again a willingness to move up in the draft and take a player he likes or trade further down in the draft and try to pick up more value before making a selection.
With the draft quickly approaching, *The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's *D. Orlando Ledbetter sifted back through each of Dimitroff’s drafts with the Falcons to determine just how often he makes a draft-day deal.
Most recently, Dimitroff traded the Falcons' 31st-overall pick, a third-round pick and a seventh-round pick to the Seattle Seahawks to move up to the No. 26 spot in the draft and select pass rusher Takkarist McKinley. After his rookie season, that appears to be a good decision. McKinley played in all 16 games for the Falcons and registered six sacks, improving with each passing week and making an impact for Atlanta in the postseason.
The trade Falcons fans likely remember the most occurred in 2011, when the team sent five draft picks to the Cleveland Browns to move up from No. 27 in the draft to No. 6, where they selected wide receiver Julio Jones. Again, that is a trade that worked out in the Falcons' favor, as Jones has become one of the premier players in the NFL.
To see the entire list of draft-day trades Dimitroff has made with the Falcons, click here.
Here are more articles for Falcons fans:
BIGGEST NEWS FROM AROUND THE NFL
NFL.com: Robert Griffin III, Ravens agree on one-year contract
After a one-year absence from the league, RGIII is back in the NFL. The former Heisman Trophy winner signed a one-year deal with the Baltimore Ravens on Wednesday. According to NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport, the deal has a base salary of $1 million with a small signing bonus.
"He's a very talented quarterback who's had a lot of success in this league early on," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said, according to NFL.com’s Kevin Patra. "So we're excited about it. We felt like we needed a No. 2 quarterback. You look at the veteran quarterbacks out there ... I mean, where we're at right now, I'm pretty excited about this player. I'm really feeling like we got a steal."
Griffin has had moments of brilliance in his career, and he was named Offensive Rookie of the Year over Andrew Luck in 2012 after throwing for 3,200 yards with 20 touchdowns and only five interceptions and rushing for another 815 yards and seven scores.
An ACL injury at the end of his rookie season de-railed his career, and many criticized the Redskins for handling his rehabilitation from that injury poorly.
Here are some more articles from around the league:
- *Sports Illustrated: *One crucial question for each top draft QB
- CBS Sports: Titans unveil new uniforms with navy blue helmet
- The Ringer: The Rams are taking a win-now experiment to its limit
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