On Monday, Art Stapleton of NorthJersey.com reported hearing that the San Francisco 49ers were "linked to" the top free agent guard about to hit free agency, Andrew Norwell.
Now, Stapleton is hearing that Norwell has narrowed down his choices to three finalists, which includes the 49ers. The two other teams are the Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants.
Hearing All-Pro guard Andrew Norwell is down to three finalists: #49ers, #Colts and #NYGiants, per league source. More on #NYG free agent targets: https://t.co/l1tVU3M2KE
— Art Stapleton (@art_stapleton) March 13, 2018
I'm told #NYGiants still confident they will land Norwell, but they've got to beat out 49ers and Colts.
— Art Stapleton (@art_stapleton) March 13, 2018
"All in on Norwell" is how one league source described it when I asked about NYG action today. https://t.co/m4BwHHHLQd
Speculation had linked the Panthers guard to the New York Giants because of general manager Dave Gettleman, who held the same role with Carolina when Norwell signed in 2014.
"Norwell represents Gettleman's greatest hit as GM in Carolina, as he has ascended from undrafted free agent out of Ohio State to All-Pro status in a contract year in 2017," wrote Stapleton on Monday morning.
As Stapleton points out, Norwell joined the Panthers in 2014 as an undrafted free agent. He was named a first-team All-Pro in 2017 and has started all but one of his 55 game appearances over his four NFL seasons, including 16 starts in each of the last two seasons.
Norwell did not allow a sack, was Pro Football Focus' third-highest graded guard, and the top-graded pass-blocking guard in 2017. In 2016, Norwell allowed just two sacks for the season.