NFL head coaches and front-office executives stepped to the microphone Wednesday at the scouting combine.
Here were some of the news and notes from the day:
- Head Coach John Harbaugh provided updates on the Ravens' soon-to-be free agents. He said the team is negotiating with Brandon Williams, Rick Wagner and Kyle Juszczyk, but also said the franchise tag would not be an option for any of them.
- Some have speculated that veteran receiver Mike Wallace could be a salary-cap casualty, but Harbaugh said his "anticipation is that Mike Wallace will be a part of our team, and I know he's working to be a part of our team, and I'm planning on having him back next year."
- Cleveland Browns dynamic wide receiver Terrelle Pryor looks like he's going to hit the free-agent market. The deadline for teams to apply the franchise tag is 4 p.m. Wednesday, and the Browns have decided not to tag their young wideout. Browns Vice President of Football Operations Sashi Brown told reporters that trying to keep Pryor "is a priority," but "we won't panic if he's not on our roster.''
- Another Browns receiver is also in the news, as Josh Gordon is planning to apply for reinstatement from the NFL. Gordon has dealt with off-the-field drug problems and hasn't played a game since 2014. When asked if Cleveland would welcome Gordon back, Brown said he has yet to seriously discuss the issue with Head Coach Hue Jackson. If the league reinstated Gordon and Cleveland released him, then he could draw suitors on the market considering he led the NFL with 1,646 receiving yards in 2013, and he's still just 25 years old.
- Cleveland is in the market for a quarterback, but that doesn't necessarily mean they'll use their No. 1-overall pick to draft one. The Browns also have the 12th-overall pick in this year's draft, and Brown said he'd listen to offers for that No. 1 spot.
- Bengals Vice President of Player Personnel Duke Tobin said that wide receiver A.J. Green has been 100 percent cleared from the hamstring injury that sidelined him at the end of last season. Green missed both matchups against the Ravens last year, but the Pro Bowl receiver is now fully healthy.
- Bengals backup quarterback AJ McCarron has been mentioned in a handful of trade talks, and Cincinnati could net a nice haul by parting ways with the former Alabama quarterback. The Bengals will listen if teams want to inquire about McCarron, as Tobin said "the phones in our office work." But Tobin also cautioned teams that the asking price for McCarron wouldn't be cheap. "If somebody wants to call and talk to us, call and talk to us. But they're going to find out that we value AJ McCarron quite a bit," he said.
- Steelers General Manager Kevin Colbert said that outside linebacker "is probably the most difficult" position to project to Pittsburgh's defense. That explains part of the reason Pittsburgh later in the day announced a two-year extension for 39-year-old outside linebacker James Harrison.
- Colbert had an interesting take on the how the league's free-agent pool has evolved over the years. An increased salary cap has allowed teams to keep more of their home-grown talent, and as a result, Colbert said, "you're seeing less and less quality free agents. There's an inherent danger in that, because some of the players who are hitting the market with the number of dollars that are available, might not be quite worth what they're going to get paid because of the supply and demand."
