The NFL trade market has moved more than usual this offseason and as the draft comes up, teams like the Houston Texans, San Francisco 49ers, Oakland Raiders, Cleveland Browns, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Atlanta Falcons and Minnesota Vikings could be in the mix to trade up for players like Mike Evans and Jadeveon Clowney in the NFL draft in May.
The San Francisco 49ers are one team that has been identified as a possible option to trade up, as they are coming into things with double digit picks again and if the past is any indication, they have no qualms about making moves. The team traded up for Colin Kaepernick and they did the same last season for their pick and now Jim Harbaugh could do it again, as the team is very high on wideout Mike Evans, but since he could be a top 10-15 pick, it might be too much for the Niners to move up.
The top of the draft has some big names in Johnny Manziel, Jadeveon Clowney and Blake Bortles, while names like Sammy Watkins and Evans have teams salivating for the chance to pick them. This year could see an unusual amount of moves, as the players at the top of the draft are very coveted and that could force some teams to try and move up to ensure they get the players they want. The Houston Texans reportedly will consider trading the number one overall pick in the draft, while ESPN.com writes that the St. Louis Rams are likely to consider trading their number two pick, as they could get a ton of value in a trade and still have a decent draft pick in the first round.
The Falcons have been mentioned as a team that likes Clowney and could trade up, while the Buccaneers could be doing the same. The Texans, Browns, Jaguars and Oakland Raiders all could be in the mix for one of the quarterbacks at the top of the draft and that could spark some moves, as Oakland could look to move up to take Manziel or Bortles, while the Browns also may want Teddy Bridgewater or Bortles as their pick.
The Niners have a need at wide receiver despite bringing back Anquan Boldin, as he is getting up there in age and Michael Crabtree is still a year removed from surgery and if they can't get their hands on Evans or Sammy Watkins, they could go after someone like Allen Robinson or Marqise Lee instead. The Niners are at pick 30, so to move into the top 10 they will need to give up a nice amount and they could opt to get into the top 12 to 18 to try and get Evans and that would cost a bit as well. Last season the team went from No. 31 to No. 18 to get their man in Eric Reid and now they could look to trade again. Ben Tate joined the Browns, so they likely will be looking at QB or WR in the top part of the draft and they could look to move up or down as well, while the Niners are very likely to trade at some point.
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