ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The Latest on the NFL draft (all times local):
10:35 a.m.
As the traveling road show that the NFL draft has become settles in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, the league has added a new fan touch: the Inner Circle.
More than 1,600 fans — at least 50 from every franchise — will be in AT&T Stadium for the selections, and the festivities that go with them.
Each team selected its “draft ambassadors,” and the list of attendees ranges from locals who just happen to root for, say, the Eagles or Bills or Jets, to fans who will travel to North Texas (Falcons, Ravens). Many are season ticket holders.
The Inner Circle will feature team rivalry zones and chances for fans to celebrate the club’s selections with NFL players and former team standouts. On Thursday night, some of these fans will be visited by their newest team members after they are selected on stage.
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Dave Gettleman has learned many lessons as an NFL executive. The new general manager of the New York Giants has one mantra in the draft room.
He says teams must “stay with the value.” They “can’t get too cute” or hope for a player to be around in a later round.
The Giants pick second Thursday night after the Cleveland Browns. The New York Jets go third, followed by the Browns and Denver Broncos.
Plenty of top quarterbacks are available: USC’s Sam Darnold, Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield, UCLA’s Josh Rosen and Wyoming’s Josh Allen. There’s also Penn State running back Saquon Barkley and North Carolina State defensive end Bradley Chubb.
Analyst and former NFL general manager Phil Savage says the Giants are in the “catbird seat” and can go in many directions, but he encourages them to consider Barkley.
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