March 29, 2024

QBs Goff and Wentz soar in draft, OT Tunsil takes bizarre tumble

CHICAGO (AP) — California love for Jared Goff, and Philadelphia pride for Carson Wentz.

It was all about the quarterbacks before Laremy Tunsil’s bizarre tumble down the board at the NFL draft.

Goff went No. 1 overall to the Rams on Thursday for their first pick since they moved to Los Angeles in the offseason. Wentz was the No. 2 selection by the Eagles after a successful career at North Dakota State in the second tier of college football.

“I’m taking it as an honor and something I’m going to have to prove them right,” Goff said.

After the top quarterbacks were off the board, the focus quickly turned to the slide by Mississippi offensive tackle Tunsil, once thought to be a potential first overall selection. He fell all the way to Miami at 13 after a pair of damaging posts to his social media accounts.

A video shared on Tunsil’s Twitter account Thursday night showed him smoking marijuana out of a bong-gas mask contraption. His Instagram account reportedly showed a text-message exchange indicating he took money from coaches at Ole Miss, something he acknowledged during his news conference after he was selected by the Dolphins.

“Somehow, somebody got in my photos and hacked my Twitter account and somebody hacked my Instagram account, so it’s crazy,” Tunsil said. “I can’t control that, man. I can control what I control.”

Miami was happy to have him.

“He’s a smart kid,” general manager Chris Grier said. “He’s very football intelligent. This guy is one of those grinders. There’s no doubt this guy loves football.”

There was little doubt about the position of the top picks after Los Angeles and Philadelphia each made a big trade to get into the draft’s top two slots. It’s the second straight year two QBs were the first names off the board and the seventh time in the modern era of the draft since 1967.

A third quarterback went in the first round when Denver moved up to No. 26 to take Paxton Lynch of Memphis, making him a possible successor for Peyton Manning with the Super Bowl champion Broncos.

After Goff and Wentz, it was an Ohio State parade to the podium. San Diego grabbed defensive end Joey Bosa at No. 3 with the first real wild card of the night, and Dallas selected running back Ezekiel Elliott with the fourth pick.

Cornerback Eli Apple went to the New York Giants at No. 10, putting three Buckeyes in the top 10 for the first time in school history. Offensive tackle Taylor Decker to Detroit and speedy linebacker Darron Lee to the Jets ran the Ohio State total to five of the top 20.

Elliott, who rushed for 1,878 yards last season, made quite a fashion statement when he showed off his midsection while walking the red carpet before the draft. But his dress shirt under his blue suit was in place by the time he was drafted by the Cowboys.

“I wanted to be a little different than everyone else,” said Elliott.