FRIDAY, APRIL 22, 2022
TRENT BAALKE: (On the state of the NFL with the offseason trades and teams lacking a first-round pick in this year’s draft) “The league’s about trends. I don’t know that there’s a right or wrong answer to that question, whether it continues or not. It’s supply and demand a lot of times, so I think we’ll follow it and see where it goes if the wide receiver position continues to keep its value. If you remember a few years ago, it was the running back position that was like this, so times change.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On the evenness of the top ten draft prospects) “Again, we worry about our board and how we have players valued. I really don’t pay much attention to what other people are thinking or saying because you don’t know. You don’t know what’s fact. You don’t know what’s fiction at this point. This is a unique period where I think there’s a lot of guys that are valued very similar, the quarterback position is what it is this year, so it’ll be interesting how the top ten lay out when it’s all said and done.”
DOUG PEDERSON: (On coming to a consensus on draft picks as an organization) “From the coaching standpoint of it, I mean there’s so much collaboration honestly, so many meetings. As a staff, we look at the film along with [General Manager] Trent [Baalke]and his guys, they look at the film and we come together and just have numerous conversations about everything. That’s where we become more closely engrained on players at the talent level. That to me has been I think the number one thing that’s really [important] in this whole process is just that communication that we’ve had from my staff, the coaches and then obviously the personnel side.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On who the team will take with the number one pick) “That’s still a work in progress.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On the process of finalizing the first overall draft pick) “We still have several meetings to go through, a lot of discussion between the coaching staff, the personnel staff. We’re continuing to dig up [information] and do research on these guys. The pick doesn’t have to be made today, so there’s no sense in forcing it right now. We’ve got plenty of time. We’re ahead of last year’s schedule in terms of preparation. We’ve worked hard to get there. The decision doesn’t have to be made right now, so why make it?”
TRENT BAALKE: (On the difference having the first overall pick this year versus last year) “I think you go in every year, even last year, you go in, you do your due diligence, you work hard, you bring in all the information, gather as many facts as you can, put it together, and make decisions off of those. There’s so much that goes into these decisions that it’s not just the film, it’s all the other things that go into that guy having success or not having success. Most of the time they don’t fail because they’re not physically gifted. They fail for other reasons, so making sure that we’ve done all of our due diligence in those areas is critical to the decision-making process.”
DOUG PEDERSON: (On the first overall pick being able to make an instant impact) “You better be right and that person is going to come in and start. That’s why you pick him at one. Whether you’re picking first overall, or in our case a couple years [in Philadelphia] ago second overall, we moved ourselves up in the draft to do that, there are going to be guys that are going to get in the mix right away.”
DOUG PEDERSON: (On the wide receivers in this year’s draft) “It’s a good group, maybe not as deep as it’s been I think in years past. The top of the list is pretty good. There are some guys that have obviously been nicked up coming out of the college season and what not. Again, it just goes back to us evaluating
them as a player, their talent, and not so much how can they fit us, but where are they from a talent standpoint. Once you get down the road a little bit, there’s a little bit of a drop off, but there’s still guys that can come in and compete and compete for roster spots, play special teams. You look at that value as well from a coaching perspective and how much special teams have they played during college. That’s kind of been with the receiver group, we look at it the same kind of every year and there are some guys there that can make a difference.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On overthinking the decision of the first overall pick) “He tells me that every day, ‘Don’t overthink it.’ Yeah, I think you can. I think at some point you just have to get away from the board and I think we’re at that point right now. We’re at a good period and a good place I should say with it. We had our final meetings with the coaching staff. I wouldn’t say final meetings, but the offensive and the defensive staff has met with the personnel staff the last two days. [I] feel good about where we’re at, probably get away from it for the weekend and come back to it on Monday and see if someone moved any cards around.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On how a versatile draft prospect like DL Travon Walker fits in the NFL) “Well that’s the fun part is listening to the coaches because every scheme is a little bit different, coaches use them a little bit differently. So where does that guy fit in our scheme versus where he might fit in another scheme? That’s talked about a lot and you really leave that up to the coaches. You have a vision as a personnel guy where you think a guy could play or should play and then you just give him to the coaches and you hear them out and that’s how you just kind of put the pieces together that way.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On if he values production or physical traits more in a prospective draft pick) “No, I don’t think you do. I think when you look at both those players, they’re both productive in their own way. [They’re] used differently, totally different schemes, used differently within those schemes. Again, you’re looking at them, you’re looking at how they made their plays, how they were used, and then you have a vision for how you can use them. All of that plays a part, but traits are important, production is important. You weigh it all.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On teams calling to negotiate trading for the first overall pick) “We’ve let people know for over a month ago I think we’ve talked about that, and we let people know we were open to discussions. You always are, you never say never. Maybe last year when you’re sitting there with the first pick and the quarterback’s there that you’re going to take, that’s not negotiable. Most of the time, that is negotiable so we’re willing to listen. To answer your question, no, nobody has called directly.”
DOUG PEDERSON: (On interacting with the fans for the first time next week at the draft party) “I’m excited. Next week’s going to be exciting in a lot of different aspects because it’ll be the first time that our players, with the offseason program, we get to actually go on the field and do some field activities next week with our current roster. Then of course the draft is right on the heels of that and then we get a chance to see our fans and interact with our fans and see the enthusiasm and the excitement that they
have for our team moving forward in 2022. For me, it’s almost like a game day scenario where you kind of feed off of the enthusiasm and the emotion of the crowd.”
DOUG PEDERSON: (On preparing for training camp at Episcopal High School) “First of all, hats off to Episcopal for allowing us to come over there and thanking them for letting us use their fields. Those fields will be ready for us this summer. There are some logistical things with travel and what not to get over there and back. We’re also in the business where we don’t make a lot of excuses for the things that we’re dealt, we just go to work. It kind of brings your team together a little bit more because we’re going to be on busses a little bit, we’re going to be around each other a little bit more, and you get to know guys a little bit better. From that aspect, I’m looking forward to it and we’ll make it work.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On this year having talent deep into the late rounds of the draft) “It depends who you listen to. I’ve heard it all, it’s a deep draft, it’s not a deep draft, it’s light at the top. You hear everything. I think we have players valued at every round that we feel good about. You have to have a little luck for the draft to fall the way you want it to fall, but you also have to put the right players in the right positions and value them correctly. I think we’re in a good place, like I mentioned earlier. I think we’ll let the board sit for the weekend. We’ll revisit it on Monday, but I think we’re probably 95-97 percent there relative to the board. We have one more major meeting we have to go through that could bump some guys up or move some guys down, but for the most part the board’s set.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On the flexibility of having 12 picks in this year’s draft) “It’s nice to have day three picks. You can either use them to move up, you can package them to turn them into one pick if you want to chase a player up the board. My history’s usually to trade back, not up, but we’re certainly going to look at anything we can relative to making this team better. If we need to move up to secure someone, we have the ammunition to do that.”
DOUG PEDERSON: (On having the players back in the building this week) “I’ll tell you, it’s been really exciting. Listen, we understand too as a staff and as an organization that the offseason program is a voluntary program and we’ve had really good participation these first two weeks. Again, it’s the first
time we’ve really put names and faces together for us and for them as the players. There’s been a lot of good enthusiasm and energy in the building and we’re just going to continue that next week and on for the rest of the offseason program.”
DOUG PEDERSON: (On coaches advocating for specific players and positions) “You see it every year. My five years in Philly, a coach wiill stand on the table for their guy. It’s just the way it is, but one of the things I’ve appreciated about what Trent and his staff has done and really the coaching staff is just being able to listen to everything. This is our team and it’s not one specific personnel group or about a coach or anything like that. The players we eventually draft next week are going to be ours, they’re going to be Jaguars and we’re going to welcome them in and they’re going to fit in to any room that we select a player at. It is kind of commonplace though for a coach to kind of stand on the table for their guys and we just say at the end of the day they’re going to be ours.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On how many of the draft picks will be immediate starters) “It depends how the board falls. We’ve got guys valued and that’s how you value guys that are going to come in and we feel can step in and start immediately versus guys that maybe are going to take a little bit of time, whether that’s a half a year, or a year. You’d like to think that you can get out of the first couple picks for sure with guys that are going to step on the field and play and play a significant role, and then from there it depends on the board.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On the team’s 33rd pick) “We’ve had some really good discussions on that second pick. That second pick usually carries a lot of value because you sit there and 31 other teams have all day or the rest of the evening or all day the next day to think about that pick, who they may want. Generally, that’s a good pick for trade purposes. If our player’s there, and we have a couple in mind, I doubt whether we move out of that spot, but we certainly may consider it. I think it gives us time to think it through and talk it through as a staff.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On working on an extension for OL Cam Robinson and its impact on preparing for the draft) “Well it certainly impacts it. A two-part question, right? The first part, we’re continuing to work and have had some great discussions with Cam [Robinson] and his agent, so I think that’s moving in the right direction. We’re going to continue to move down that road and see what we can get done. As far as preparing, we’re looking at who can help this football team the most. Some people have said we have Cam tagged so we’re not looking at the tackle position, I wouldn’t go down that road. Right now, everybody’s fair game as far as this draft is concerned and every position.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On managing need versus value in the draft) “We had that discussion today with the coach, and yesterday. This league’s about having the best players and sometimes you have a need, and you want to force a need and you get a lesser player. When you’re in that circumstance, my thought process has always been [to] take the best player available. You’re hoping that need and best player available come together, but when they don’t, you take the best player. You never go wrong making one room stronger, so that’s how we’ve always approached it. We’ve had that discussion with the coaching staff, and I think I’ll let [Head Coach] Doug [Pederson] speak to that as well from a coaching perspective.”
DOUG PEDERSON: (On managing need versus value in the draft) “That goes back to the earlier question. The coach comes in, wants to stand on the table for his guy thinking there’s a need at that position, but it’s not necessarily the case. Just to [General Manager] Trent [Baalke]’s point, [it’s about] selecting the best player for us and the one that might be graded a little bit higher on our board or whatever it might be. If you can make one position group better than another, there’s value there and it does strengthen your team. You’re looking at the big picture as opposed to one specific aspect of your team.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On the state of college football and COVID years affecting the depth of this year’s draft) “I think we all envisioned that happening where there’d be another 150, 200 players available coming into the draft, ‘x’ number of those would be draftable players. I think we’re seeing that in some positions. I don’t think we’re seeing that across the board. There are some positions that are heavier than others, but it’s not across the board.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On using the fifth-year option on DE/OLB Josh Allen) “We haven’t had that discussion yet.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On the talent at running back in the draft) “At the running back position, I don’t think at the top end there’s that one guy or two guys that are first round type considerations. I think both those backs, talking about the Michigan State [RB Kenneth Walker III], Iowa State [RB Breece Hall], both those guys are good football players. There’s some quality depth in the middle of the draft we feel. I don’t know if it’s necessarily a deep draft at the running back position, but I do think there’s going to be some quality backs that come out of especially the middle rounds of this draft.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On the talent at offensive guard in the draft) “[I] like some of the players at that position obviously. Again, I don’t think it’s a particularly deep draft at offensive guard or really big bodies. I think there’s some guys at the upper end of the curve, there’s a few in the middle, and then you’re taking developmental guys from that point forward. I wouldn’t call it an extremely deep draft for the interior line.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On wavering on who the number one pick will be over the last year) “As I look back on the process, I don’t think you ever go into it and target a guy as the number one pick in October. Again, there’s so many factors that go into whether that player is going to have success or not have success, so
we look at it and try to compartmentalize it. We grade the physical aspects of the player, we grade the mindset of the player, the character of the individual and try to keep those separate. Then you have to look at the medical background on the player and the psychological makeup. There’s so many things that go into that. There’s certain players you really like on film, and you say that guy could be in consideration. I think that was no different this year. There were certain guys we looked at in October that we felt would be in consideration and those are the ones that are still in consideration.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On how many players having been taken off the board for character reasons) “Anywhere from 20 to 30 probably, somewhere in that neighborhood.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On Michigan DE Aidan Hutchinson having potential and being a safe pick) “I think every player that comes out of college has upside. To say somebody’s tapped out when they’re 21, 22 years old is a little hard to say. Again, you look at all the factors that go into it, fit, versatility, production, traits. All those things are weighed into it. Aiden [Hutchinson]’s a good football player. There’s other good football players in this draft. Who’s going to be the best player when it’s all said and done. Heck, if we knew that we’d go to Vegas and lay the money down. That’s how I’ve always looked at this. You do the work, that’s all you can do. Do the work, watch the film, study the guy, study the character of the guy, try to make the best fit for your organization and that’s what we’re doing.”
DOUG PEDERSON: (On Michigan DE Aidan Hutchinson fitting the team’s culture) “To answer your question, it can also be a broad question because we’ve talked to a lot of players and we’ve talked to a lot of players in the last three or four weeks and they’re all good fits. He [DE Aidan Hutchinson] is a person that would fit culturally, good person and a great leader. All of that stuff really fits the makeup and chemistry that we’re looking for.”
DOUG PEDERSON: (On knowing the pick when no one else does) “I don’t tell my family anything when it comes to picks. I have three boys and they’re all athletic boys. [I] love them to death, but they don’t even know. We don’t know, how do they know? I’ll say this, from a coaching perspective, I don’t want to put words in Trent [Baalke]’s mouth, but hopefully this is the last time we pick one overall. If we’re doing our jobs, then we’re having success on the football field and we’re not in this position much. To me, that’s a sign of the hard work that the coaches, the personnel staff put in obviously making the right decisions and then we have to go prove it on the field.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On making the first pick overall again this year) “I’m pretty confident that this will be the last time that I’ll be making the first pick.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On reports that 49ers Vice President of Player Personnel Ethan Waugh will be joining the staff) “I saw that report. Obviously, I know Ethan [Waugh] well, worked with Ethan for years in San Francisco and have a lot of respect for him, but that’s news to me. He’s certainly a guy that again I have
great respect for. We are going to add to the personnel department after the draft, but our focus right now is on the draft and not on what we’re going to do after the draft.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On how many players are being considered for the number one pick) “Four.”
TRENT BAALKE: (On concerns the college transfer portal brings for draft picks) “I think it’s going to be an interesting question as we move forward. When I first broke into the league with Coach [Bills] Parcells, dealing with a transfer, you didn’t do it. You didn’t draft someone who transferred. That was one of Coach’s things. If they transferred, they didn’t have to stick-to-itiveness that he was looking for. Nowadays, I don’t know that you could say that because they transfer for so many different reasons: opportunity to get on the field, guys are leaving college a lot earlier than they ever did before. I think it’ll be an interesting question a couple years from now to see what this all does to the players and how it affects them as they move forward. Right now, there’s just not a track record to it. You have to figure out why he left, sometimes it’s just opportunity. If a guy’s a multi-transfer guy and he’s leaving every year for a new stop, that would be concerning obviously. I don’t know that we have enough history to know how this thing’s going to affect players as they move forward. I don’t think it’s a good thing though.”
