#32 NEW ORLEANS SAINTS Many reaches, many players I just personally don't think can see a lot of success. My favourite pick is Will Clapp who could see an immediate impact but it was their last pick. I really like Marcus Davenport but giving up 2 1sts including a future 1st to move up means that he'll have to at least be the next Von Miller for it to be worth it. And what about QB, any QB?
#31 KANSAS CITY CHIEFS I simply don't like their first 3 picks and those are the ones that matter most. They all seem like reaches. And I am not a big fan of Armani Watts like some are. I do like the potential of Tremon Smith but it seemed a little late to get corner help. And it almost feels like they drafted McKenzie, when they already took Nnadi, just to screw with the Raiders.
#30 DETROIT LIONS This is one where many will disagree but I have the Lions' draft more than a tier better than the last 2 teams. I am not as high on Ragnow as others and I am not high on Kerryon Johnson either, although I wouldn't call them reaches, especially since the Lions had to take a center before the Bengals. Tyrell Crosby was great value but Tracy Walker seemed like a major reach and I don't understand why they traded a 2019 3rd round pick to the Patriots to draft Da'Shawn Hand.
#29 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS This was another tough one. Let's start with the good. They picked up a 2019 2nd and 3rd round pick with their trades. And they got the next stereotypical Pats WR in Braxton Berrios. That alone would make you think they are gonna get a good ranking but the picks themselves leave a lot to be desired. Ja'whuan Bentley was a head-scratching selection. They seemed to draft Isaiah Wynn as a tackle more on need and the pick of Sony Michel is peculiar considering how the Patriots utilize and treat their RBs. I wonder what Belichick will do once he fumbles. The trade up for Dawson was also a bit perplexing. I thought there were better corners and what about a QB? I mean I didn't expect them to take one in the 1st but with other QBs falling I was surprised they didn't take one with real starting potential. A Patriots friend of mine thinks Belichick wants to leave McDaniels without a QB when he retires. Amusing at least.
#28 LOS ANGELES RAMS This is another one many will disagree with. The best thing the Rams did was trade their 1st round pick for Brandin Cooks. And that was really good. They used their first pick on OT Joseph Noteboom. The Rams are likely hoping to develop him but I felt they could have gotten a more immediate player with their 1st selection, especially in such a weak OT class when some value was still on the board. I liked the Kiser and Okoronkwo picks and although I am not a fan of Kelly he is good depth. However, I would have liked them to have made some more selections I would have liked considering all the picks they had. Actually, considering the state of the Rams, I think they should have been more aggressive in trading up. Their ranking took a hit mainly based on that.
#27 CLEVELAND BROWNS Just kill me now for being honest. This will be long since there is a lot to talk about. Baker Mayfield was the right selection, even if I question if he was their guy the Monday before the draft. But then they go with Ward over Bradley Chubb or even Nelson to protect their new QB. Ward could be a top talent in this draft but at the top of the draft every spot on a big board matters more and while Ward could be #4 in the draft that is without accounting for QBs that go at a premium. I still like him but to me it's mismanagement of resources. In the 2nd they go for Corbett who could play decent anywhere over a much better talent such as Will Hernandez that is great at 1 position. Nick Chubb felt like a reach and not a feature back and I wonder if he was their main target or if they missed out on Michel. If so they had enough assets to trade up a few spots and get him. Antonio Callaway? I don't think I need to explain, but without the red flags this is where he should go, but he has the flags and you'd think the Browns would avoid him. Every other pick was a reach as well or players I simply don't like, except for 1. I really like Genard Avery and guessed the pick for them before they made it. Great value and should be able to contribute immediately if they let him. This is Cleveland's floor in the rankings since they took who I thought they should take #1 and Ward is still a solid player despite what I think is a devaluing of their resources. R.I.P. me.
#26 SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS This was a need draft. And I am not totally against that. I appreciate the philosophy on minor reaches for teams trying to solidify their team into a contender. That is what has this draft higher than the Rams in the rankings. They spent mega money and a pick on Jimmy G and they got him protection with Mike McGlinchey. There is no guarantee they get him or any other tackle they would be happy with if they traded down. I didn't like the Dante Pettis pick with all the other WRs available, plus they traded up for him. Fred Warner was a minor reach but considering the depth of the position in the draft he may have been BPA at the position at that point and I do like him. The same could be said about Tarvarius Moore but I like him even more. DJ Reed and Justin Taylor are decent late picks as well. All in all this is not a bad draft but the slight reaches add up, especially with Pettis, dropping them some. If McGlinchey, 1 other solid starter plus a key contributor come out of this draft then it would be a rousing success.
#25 NEW YORK JETS You've gotta hand it to the Jets. They had some surplus of picks and they used it to move up from 6 to 3 before draft night and resisted the urge to move up to #2. In the end they got Darnold without moving up again. I am not a fan of Darnold (not a fan is a phrase you tend to hear on lowly-ranked teams) but it did not affect my grade here negatively. I give them full marks on how they handled it to get their QB. However I felt they reached on DT Nathan Shepard. The Jets need to find better value after trading so many picks to get their QB. Chris Herndon on the other hand was a solid choice as he's one of my favourite TEs outside the top tier. Beyond that, Nickerson was decent value and I don't know if I find it foolish or wise that they decided to double-down on DT.
#24 PITTSBURGH STEELERS The Terrell Edmunds pick was a reach and James Washington seemed like one too with the WRs still on the board. Mason Rudolph was an absolute steal and is now the QB of the future. If this was the 1st round pick and the other 2 picks were bumped back a selection each it wouldn't look so bad. The Steelers then selected some high upside picks with Okorafor and Allen. Jaylen Samuels is also an interesting piece but how does he fit in?
#23 LOS ANGELES CHARGERS Derwin James was a gift, especially after the top DTs were gone. Nwosu though not only felt like a reach but he was a depth selection behind the team's 2 best players on defense. Justin Jones was the DT need selection they couldn't make earlier but it felt like a reach considering who was still on the board. Kyzir White and Scott Quessenberry were decent value and Justin Jackson could quickly find time behind Melvin Gordon.
#22 CINCINNATI BENGALS The Bengals had to take care of the problems on their Oline. Billy Price may not have been my choice at center but he's a day 1 starter. They didn't take anybody else until late but they do have some prospects already in the system. Jesse Bates was a good addition at safety. They got great value in Sam Hubbard by waiting on DE. I felt he is an interesting talent but was severely overrated by the media heading into the draft, but at #77 they didn't overpay for his talent. I however am completely against Malik Jefferson. He is all athleticism and little production and don't think he's worth more than a late-round flier. Walton seems to have been taken to see if he can replace Giovani Bernard and although I don't like the odds I can really appreciate this move. As for a few later picks I like, Andrew Brown seemed like decent value and Logan Woodside can easily establish himself as the QB2.
#21 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS The Seahawks' draft is one everyone seems to be down on but it's actually pretty good. Rashaad Penny was a bit of a surprise in the 1st round but he could instantly become the feature back. I had him tied at RB3 with Sony Michel who went a few picks later so it isn't a major reach. Rasheem Green is alright and Dissly is a good blocking TE but it's the later picks where their draft shines through. Shaquem Griffin, Trey Flowers and Michael Dickson (yes, a generational punter in the 5th is great value) are all excellent players that could contribute that went about a round later than they probably should have. Their best value pick though may have been Jamarco Jones. He needs a year with the coaches but he could be a key swing tackle in 2019 and push for a starting role shortly after. The Seahawks could easily have been ranked higher but this is around where the good drafts start to come out.
#20 JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS If it wasn't for the Tavon Bryan selection the Jags would get a much higher placement. Many considered him a steal but I consider him a reach. Many had him as the 3rd best DT so I felt that a team would take him while they could if they wanted a DT. The next DT didn't come off the board until about a full round later. The Jags clearly wanted to beef up that DL rotation but they could have addressed some major needs. Even if they were high on him, this felt like a luxury selection. They did do that at great value and need with DJ Chark in the 2nd and got a steal with Ronnie Harrison in the 3rd. Will Richardson seemed worth a gamble in the late 4th considering the lack of depth in the OT class. The rest of their picks aren't anything to write home about.
#19 MINNESOTA VIKINGS Mike Hughes was a great selection at the end of the 1st round and Brian O'Neill was as good an OT selection as any at the end of the 2nd round. Jalyn Holmes seemed like a bit of a reach and not the best of scheme fits but they got great value later with Ade Aruna who may need some time to develop. I have no problem with them taking the best kicker in the draft in the 5th round.
#18 HOUSTON TEXANS You don't need to have early picks to have a decent grade here. The Texans got a 1st round talent in the 3rd round in Justin Reid. Safeties in this draft aren't being that valued, just like the veteran free agents. I don't know what is going on. His brother being Eric Reid might have scared some teams from taking him early as well. Their loss. Martinas Rankin was also a solid 3rd round selection to protect their QB and while it seemed like a reach, TE Jordan Akins has potential if he puts the effort in. They hedged their bet with another TE in the late rounds. Duke Ejiofor was great value and I'm not gonna knock scheme fit on a pick in the 6th round that I thought could have gone in the 3rd round. All in all there were quite a few reaches but it's solid when your first 2 picks, both in the 3rd round, feel like they were used on 1st and 2nd round prospects and they got another steal later in the draft.
#17 TENNESSEE TITANS The Titans traded up for Rashaan Evans because he was the last "1st-round" inside linebacker on the board. This was a need selection and I get why they traded up but I so don't like trading up for need for a player that probably isn't a true 1st round talent unless it's a QB. This is just like Bryan earlier but with giving up more assets. The good news is that by trading up they didn't have to reach even further for a guy at the position like the Steelers did with Edmunds. They then made an aggressive move to the early 2nd round from the late 2nd by giving up their 3rd to select Harold Landry. This was who many thought they traded up for in the 1st. Great value here and it would have made more sense if the picks were reversed but then Evans doesn't get by the Steelers. They had only 2 picks left after those moves and made the first one count with Cruikshank and then they took a minor steal in Luke Falk to likely be their backup QB. They could have gotten some other needs filled there but it's the 6th and, with Mariota's health an issue, a backup QB is a solid selection.
#16 OAKLAND RAIDERS The Raiders are a team I had all over the place when I started these rankings. I felt there were some minor reaches on the offensive line but they were nothing too big, especially in this class. I really liked Hall and the rest of the picks all seemed like excellent value, even if there are a few red flags. I wouldn't say there was a single bad pick in the bunch and they really took care of the trenches. I gotta respect that and they sneak in to the top half of the rankings.
#15 TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS The Bucs did a solid job upgrading their defensive line before the draft and went back at it by taking Vita Vea after trading down. While Ronald Jones wouldn't have been my first choice they did well to address the need at RB after parting ways with Doug Martin and then double dipping at CB. Cappa is my favourite developmental OT in this class but he could still see the field early. The last 3 picks they made were also solid players with a decent chance to stick. Outside of what I think is reaching on Stewart, I don't see a bad pick in he bunch.
#14 BALTIMORE RAVENS The Ravens really wanted Hayden Hurst. They needed a tight end and were smart not to take him at 16th overall. Instead they traded down twice while gaining a 3rd and 4th for a 5th and 6th. Not the greatest value but Baltimore was clearly glad to take anything when they felt their man was going to be available. They then traded their 2nd and a future 2nd to get their QB of the future in Lamar Jackson. If he is what they expect him to be then that is excellent value. Now onto the elephant on the field. I do not like Orlando Brown. Everyone says to ignore the combine and watch the tape. Well the tape shows inconsistency and laziness, not domination. Doubling up on TEs when you lack an offensive identity works too, as does getting 2 WRs later including an athletic freak like Jaleel Scott. Averett and Senat were great value and DeShon Elliott may be the steal of the draft. This is where we start getting into the really good drafts.
#13 CHICAGO BEARS Roquan Smith should go a long way to making the Bears' defense feared again and Iyiegbuniwe adds more depth to a LB unit that needs it. James Daniels was excellent value as well and should have a future as a starter but may need to play guard instead of center at first. I'm not going to fault the Bears for trading a 4th and future 2nd to pick Anthony Miller in the 2nd round. It's pretty much a lateral move and the Bears realize they need to get Mitch Trubisky as many weapons as they can sooner rather than later. They also added another WR late in the draft. Chicago also made a couple of quality picks on the DLine before the draft was through.
