Teddy Bridgewater isn’t the only 2014 quarterback prospect who received a dire prognosis from former Buccaneers G.M. Mark Dominik on Friday. Via Rotowold, Dominik also had some bad news for Johnny Manziel.
Dominik, who now works for ESPN, said on the air that Manziel “will fall a little more than people think” in the draft.
This assessment presumes that a consensus currently exists as to where Manziel will go. It doesn’t.
As time passes, it seems less likely the Texans would use the first overall pick in the draft on Manziel. After that, it gets fuzzy. Could a team spring in front of Jacksonville (No. 3) and Cleveland (No. 4) to get Manziel with the No. 2 selection currently held by the Rams? Possibly.
If he gets past No. 2 (and he likely will), the hot spots become Jacksonville, Cleveland, Oakland at No. 5 (very unlikely), Tampa Bay at No. 7, Minnesota at No. 8, and Tennessee at No. 11.
The Cowboys at No. 16 could be very intrigued by Manziel. Perhaps sufficiently intrigued to trade up.
If Manziel makes it past the first half of the round, the question then becomes whether a team from round two would trade up in front of the Browns at No. 26, if the Browns don’t take a quarterback at No. 4. After the Browns, it then becomes possible if not probable that a team springs into the first round, where a four-year contract and a one-year option would apply.
We’d be shocked if Manziel isn’t taken in the first round. His actual placement in round one, whatever it may be, won’t be a surprise.