AFC East
New York Jets - A-
Favourite pick: Devin Smith, WR (2nd round)
Questionable pick: Bryce Petty, QB (4th round)
Not many people would have expected the best overall player in the draft, Leonard Williams, to fall all the way to six you can’t really credit Mike Maccagnan for that but if Geno Smith can’t get the job done with his namesake Devin this year, then maybe picking up their sixth quarterback in 10 drafts makes some more sense.
New England Patriots – B+
Favourite pick: Malcom Brown, DT (1st round)
Questionable pick: Joe Cardona, LS (5th round)
It’s always tough picking towards the back end of each round but the Patriots are well used to it at this stage and can’t have believed their luck to see Malcom Brown — a pro-ready replacement for Vince Wilfork — fall to them at 32 overall. Taking a long snapper in the fifth round though was a strange choice.
Miami Dolphins - B
Favourite pick: Tony Lippett, CB/WR (5th round)
Questionable pick: Jay Ajayi, RB (5th round)
The selection of DeVante Parker in the first round will obviously be a massive help but far more interesting is the selection of Lippett who not only has the chance to become a star in the Dolphins secondary but provides depth a wide receiver too. Ajayi is a steal IF he can stay healthy.
Buffalo Bills - D
Favourite pick: Nick O’Leary, TE (6th round)
Questionable: Karlos Williams, RB (4th round)
If you’ve ever played fantasy football you know how hard it is to have a good draft if you’ve traded away a first round pick but that doesn’t excuse the Bills for failing to even attempt to address some of the many holes in their roster while adding yet another running back to the FIVE currently rostered with a forth round pick.
AFC North
Cincinnati Bengals - A
Favourite pick: Tyler Kroft, TE (3rd round)
Questionable pick: None
The Bengals aced this year’s draft because they came in to it without any massive holes in their roster and managed to strengthen areas — offensive line, linebacker — they were already pretty good in and without having to stretch for a single player. Kroft is no Gronk but expect him to be Andy Dalton’s release valve if any pressure does manage to break through that impressive front five.
Pittsburgh Steelers - B
Favourite pick: Bud Dupree, DE/LB (1st round)
Questionable pick: Sammie Coates (3rd round)
There were any number of mock drafts that had Dupree going in the top ten because of his versatility and he really suits Pittsburgh’s 3-4 defensive scheme much more than he does a number of the teams who let him slide. Coates drops one in every five passes that comes his way, a third round pick was too high a price to pay for that level of inconsistency.
Baltimore Ravens - B-
Favourite pick: Maxx Williams, TE (2nd round)
Questionable pick: Bresahd Perriman, WR (1st round)
A lightning quick wide receiver with questionable hands, Perriman was more a Raiders pick than a Ravens one but Baltimore made up for it slightly with the addition of Williams on day two. Getting Carl Davis in the third round when he was projected to go in the second was a nice bit of business too.
Cleveland Browns - C+
Favourite pick: Danny Shelton, DE/LB (1st round)
Questionable pick: Cam Erving OL (1st round)
When you have two first round picks, the bar is set quite high in terms of expectations. While the Browns nailed it with the addition of an automatic starter in Shelton, using the 19th overall pick of the draft of a guy (Erving) who won’t be able to play in his best position for his first season in the league was a complete let down.
AFC South
Jacksonville Jaguars - A+
Favourite pick: Michael Bennett, DT (6th round)
Questionable pick: None
Even though I was surprised they overlooked both Amari Cooper and Leonard Williams at number three, the Jags hardly put a foot wrong all weekend. Getting a legit threat to Andrew Luck in Folwer at three and Bennett — projected to go high in round two — in the sixth is great but the rest of the draft shows this a team ready to build itself around a young, exciting offence.
Tennessee Titans - A-
Favourite pick: Dorial Green-Beckham, WR (2nd round)
Questionable pick: Marcus Mariota, QB (1st round)
Marcus Mariota is a great quarterback but he’s not a Ken Whisenhunt quarterback. That said, the Titans added two receivers, two running backs and two offensive linemen all with the express purpose of helping the former Heisman Trophy winner make Tennessee relevant again. This draft was the very definition of betting the farm.
Indianapolis Colts - C-
Favourite pick: Henry Anderson, DE (3rd round)
Questionable pick: Phillip Dorsett, WR (1st round)
While I liked Anderson — especially where they got him — his size suggests he is a 3-4 DE but doesn’t always play like one and he has that, to use a soccer analogy, John O’Shea no idea what his best position is feel about him. However, what I can’t get past is picking drafting a wide receiver in the first round when even Andrew Luck would argue the Colts’ biggest problem remains the defensive side of the football.
Houston Texans - D
Favourite pick: Jalen Strong, WR (3rd round)
Questionable pick: Kevin Johnson, CB (1st round)
Strong is solid third round pick-up but lets get right to Johnson, selected at 16 overall by the Texans. Per PFF, the Wake Forest cornerback allowed receivers make 60% of passes that came his way last season. A whopping 89 draft eligible CBs had a better record than that. Watch Andrew Luck, Marcus Mariota and Blake Bortles take full advantage of that next season.
AFC West
Oakland Raiders - A
Favourite pick: Clive Walford, TE (3rd round)
Questionable pick: Mario Edwards Jr. (2nd round)
Would you look at that, the Raiders with a consistently good draft over all three days. Wonders will never cease. Picking up Clive Walford is not as flash as Amari Cooper in round one but Derek Carr now has some serious weapons to aim at. Edwards has weight issues — don’t we all — and was a bit of a reach in the second round considering he doesn’t even know what his best position is but his potential upside remains quite high.
Kansas City Chiefs - B-
Favourite pick: Mitch Morse, C (2nd round)
Questionable pick: Steven Nelson, CB (3rd round)
Morse is not a sexy pick by any stretch of the imagination but, in all likelihood, he’ll still be playing in the NFL in ten years time and that’s as much a compliment as you can give to any interior lineman. My concern with Nelson, especially in a division of top-tier wide receivers, is his habit of giving away penalties in man coverage, especially on deep throws.
San Diego Chargers - C+
Favourite pick: Denzel Perryman, LB (2nd round)
Questionable pick: Melvin Gordon, RB (1st round)
I totally understand that Gordon represents a glaring positional need for the Chargers, but trading away a fourth and fifth round pick to move up two places is never a good idea. Perryman, at least, ensures they’ll be a bit more competent defending the run but to pay that price for a running back in a league that chews them up and spits them out so readily could haunt San Diego.
Denver Broncos - C-
Favourite pick: Ty Sambrailo, OL (2nd round)
Questionable pick: Shane Ray, DE/LB (1st round)
As daunting a prospect as facing a trio of DeMarcus Ware, Von Miller and Shane Ray sounds, the versatile defender hardly represented a big need for Denver who almost certainly overpaid. While the addition of Sambrailo should help Peyton Manning in the passing game, it’ll be interesting to see if the veteran QB regrets staying on for one more year after this year’s Draft.
We’ll have our NFC rankings tomorrow.
