Josh Rosen has no hard feelings toward former coach Jim Mora after surprising comments
Josh Rosen, expected to be among the top picks Thursday in the NFL draft, said former UCLA football Jim Mora is “caught in a sticky situation" after Mora’s pre-draft comments about Rosen, who played for Mora the past three seasons at UCLA.
Mora has said he thinks Rosen is the best quarterback in the draft — but only after his eyebrow-raising appearance on NFL Network on March 26.
“So coach (Mora) actually texted me the night before," Rosen told Paste BN’s Sports Pulse. “He said, ‘Hey, I’m about to say some kind things about you on the NFL Network. I hope you tune in and watch and stuff.’ "
Mora said USC quarterback Sam Darnold was a better “fit" than Rosen for the Cleveland Browns, who have the No. 1 overall pick in the draft.
“I would take Sam Darnold if I were the Cleveland Browns," Mora said. “I think that blue-collar, gritty attitude, I think his teammates will love him. I think the city will love him. He’ll say the right things. He’ll come in and he’ll represent well. I think he kind of represents what Cleveland is.
“And then if I was one of the New York teams I’d take Josh.’’ So what did Rosen think?
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“I was definitely surprised,’’ he said. “But at the end of the day, he has his opinions and hopefully I get picked on Thursday and all of those opinions won’t really matter anymore."
But Rosen also indicated he feels no ill will toward Mora, who was fired Nov. 19, the day after UCLA lost to USC for the third consecutive year.
“I never really butted heads with coach Mora too much,’’ he said. “I mean, he’s been awesome. He helped me grow up and become a man."