Best and Worst of the Draft

[sportznutt]

Which teams had the best and worst overall drafts and individual picks?

[TyPenn613]

I don't know if any team could touch what the Chiefs did, but I think they had by far and away the best. The only way to deny that will be a few years down the road if another team has built a dynasty. Patience in round one lands them Glenn Dorsey (DT, LSU) with the #5 overall, and behind McFadden could easily be the best player out of the draft. Using their pick from Minnesota, they trade up two spots to get Braden Albert, who was the only natural OG that could be argued as worth taking on day one.

Round two, they grab Brandon Flowers #4, a first round cornerback. In round three, they have another three picks, the first being from the Minnesota trade. Here they selected Jamaal Charles (RB, Texas), who was arguably a top five back going into this draft. Better than Chris Johnson (1st round), potentially better than Ray Rice (2nd), the Chiefs take him in the third.

Other good teams:

• Buffalo Bills grab the best cornerback of the draft (McKelvin) by waiting for him at #11. Then they grab one of the best WR of the draft (James Hardy) by waiting for him in the second round.
• Miami Dolphins do what they needed to do to fill holes. Taking Jake Long first overall solidifies their offensive line. However, the Dolphins followed it up by grabbing Phillip Merling in the second round for defensive end. Merling was arguably a top 15-20 pick.
• Pittsburgh didn't address their offensive line, but grabbed two very key players with Rashard Mendelhall and Limas Sweed.
• The Cowboys I really thought messed up when they passed on Mike Jenkins (CB, USF) to draft Felix Jones, especially because Mendenhall was still available. They do trade up with their next pick and grab Jenkins, so in the end they get an extra back, and a top notch cornerback, so it worked out in a round about way. I still think Mendenhall should have been selected over Jones though.

I still stand by the fact that I think Matt Ryan will be a bust, and even if he isn't I don't think any QB was worth that early a pick (3rd overall) this year. That said, when the Atlanta Falcons followed it up by drafting Sam Baker, an offensive tackle from USC who was projected to go late 2nd early 3rd, but Atlanta takes him in the 1st as well, I think it immediately gave them the worst draft of day one.

Other bum picks:

• Baltimore Ravens selecting Joe Flacco by trading up in the first round. They made a great trade early on to trade down, but immediately negate it by this.
• Tennessee Titans selecting Chris Johnson in the first round. The guy is not a first round pick, nor does he really help the Titans where they needed it.
• St. Louis Rams selecting Donnie Avery as the first wide receiver off the board.

[NEsince92]

My Patriots did a pretty good job of filling holes.

3 Linebackers
2 Cornerbacks
1 Wide Receiver
1 Quarterback

Now they've signed a UFA LB and I haven't checked yet today to see who else they've signed.

[Korrupt]

I agree with most of what Ty mentioned. I do agree that Dallas should've just picked Mike Jenkins instead of picking Jones then trading back up. I think that Jones vs. Mendenhall is debatable. I think there's little doubt that Mendenhall is the superior back; however, as a changeup and backup to Marion Barber III, Felix Jones might've been a better fit.

I don't like Matt Ryan as a pick over Glenn Dorsey and I don't like Joe Flacco as a pick in the first round. I don't think that any QB was worthy of the first round this year.

Jacksonville trading up, and probably overpaying, to grab Derrick Harvey was a bad mistake.

The Bengals taking Jerome Simpson instead of some of the bigger name receivers was questionable, but I suppose understandable. I assume character issues were at play with this pick. They did get a good first round player in Keith Rivers, but I think they messed up badly by getting beaten to their guy, Sedrick Ellis. I don't like Florida receivers, and ergo dislike Andre Caldwell as a pick. I think that Cincinnati also never learns and their pick of NT Jason Shirley in the fifth was a bad mistake.

I don't like New England's draft, but I suppose they deserve the benefit of the doubt, for now.

I like how the Redskins didn't overpay for a marquee WR name and instead picked up Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly, as well as TE Fred Davis.

I don't know if I like Philly trading to pick DeSean Jackson.

I like Cleveland's late pick of receiver Paul Hubbard. Ditto for the Giants' pickup of QB Andre Woodson. I think I like Indy's Mike Hart pick, though I could be wrong.

I like Detroit getting Kevin Smith where they did. I don't think I like them taking Gosder Cherilus where they did.

I like Pittsburgh not reaching for need picks and instead grabbing guys like Rashard Mendenhall and Limas Sweed.

I like teams like Green Bay and Pittsburgh who when for BPA late and got guys like Matt Flynn and Dennis Dixon.

I think Tennessee badly reached for William Hayes.

[slagonia]

I agree with most of what Ty said, especially when it came to the Chiefs. That was a stellar draft for them.

As a Jets fan, I hate to admit it, but the Giants had a great draft also. Philips was a steal at #31, and Manningham was a 1st round estimate picked on day two!

The Ravens made the best trade of the draft, but the Flacco thing ruined it. I know the guy can throw, but aren't they just replacing one Kyle Boler for another?

I think the Pats looked awful. Who picks a middle linebacker in the top-10? Especially when he's not exactly a fantastic MLB. He wasn't even atop my draft board for his position, and the first MLB I had going was late in the second! And drafting a QB? The only reason you draft a QB is because you think he has a future as a starter. Now, you know I have no love for Brady, and think he's the most over-rated man in football, but give me a break, he's not going anywhere!

My Jets had a fairly predictable draft, and did decently. Gholston was a no-brainer, but even though I like Keller, and he's a great fit for the team, why did we trade up to get him? I'm almost certain he would have still been available in the second for us.

[NEsince92]

Originally Posted by slagonia

I think the Pats looked awful. Who picks a middle linebacker in the top-10? Especially when he's not exactly a fantastic MLB. He wasn't even atop my draft board for his position, and the first MLB I had going was late in the second! And drafting a QB? The only reason you draft a QB is because you think he has a future as a starter. Now, you know I have no love for Brady, and think he's the most over-rated man in football, but give me a break, he's not going anywhere!

The Patriots drafted a QB because they need a suitable backup to Brady, and apparently they aren't happy with Cassel or Guitterez. Besides, this guy might eventually replace Brady... he's not exactly a young guy anymore. Maybe that's what's wrong with organizations who don't have a good quarterback... they keep thinking they can take a guy from the draft and plug him in with immediate results. BB and Co know better. If Brady is ready to retire in 4 or 5 years, this guy would then be well-groomed and ready to take over.

As for the Mayo pickup, they must have seen something in this guy, and he obviously wouldn't be there in the second round.

Sure, they could have traded down a little further and gotten him later, but I'm guessing they didn't want to chance missing out on him. Tedy and Junior are not going to be around much longer, and there wasn't a suitable replacement. We needed a good MLB.

[slagonia]

Originally Posted by NEsince92

The Patriots drafted a QB because they need a suitable backup to Brady, and apparently they aren't happy with Cassel or Guitterez. Besides, this guy might eventually replace Brady... he's not exactly a young guy anymore. Maybe that's what's wrong with organizations who don't have a good quarterback... they keep thinking they can take a guy from the draft and plug him in with immediate results. BB and Co know better. If Brady is ready to retire in 4 or 5 years, this guy would then be well-groomed and ready to take over.

As for the Mayo pickup, they must have seen something in this guy, and he obviously wouldn't be there in the second round.

Sure, they could have traded down a little further and gotten him later, but I'm guessing they didn't want to chance missing out on him. Tedy and Junior are not going to be around much longer, and there wasn't a suitable replacement. We needed a good MLB.

I understand that they liked him, but he would still have been there in the mid-second, and when you have so many holes in your secondary, and impact corners available, I don't see why you pick a second-round talent.

As for the QB, if you want a back-up, you pick one up via FA. The pool is full of them. You draft a QB because you want him to be a starter, and I don't think Brady will be retiring any time soon. If they keep the best OL in football working, then there's no reason for him to retire. He barely gets touched now, so you don't need to worry about him breaking down.

[TyPenn613]

Originally Posted by Korrupt

I think that Jones vs. Mendenhall is debatable. I think there's little doubt that Mendenhall is the superior back; however, as a changeup and backup to Marion Barber III, Felix Jones might've been a better fit.

I agree here that Jones fits the bill better for the Cowboys. I guess my thought process is that the Cowboys are responsible for the run of runningbacks there (three in a row). Maybe in retrospect you could argue, but at the time there was no reason for the Cowboys to select Jones at #22 when you had another pick at #28, and all those backs were there. I think you have to take Jenkins at #22, with the expectations that one of those guys, Jones or Mendenhall make it to #28, or in this case #25 where the Cowboys traded up to. Can't fault them much since it worked out, but I think they were very lucky as well.

I like Detroit getting Kevin Smith where they did. I don't think I like them taking Gosder Cherilus where they did.

I meant to comment on this, but completely forgot. I like the late pick of Kevin Smith, but more so I dislike the pick of Cherilus that high. It is interesting because the run of offensive tackles, a deep position this draft, began late, but took most of them. Cherilus I thought was a borderline first round pick at best. He certainly wasn't a middle of the first round type guy.

[TyPenn613]

As a Jets fan, I hate to admit it, but the Giants had a great draft also. Philips was a steal at #31, and Manningham was a 1st round estimate picked on day two!

Agree the Giants did well, with both pick mentioned. However, Manningham wasn't a first round pick. Probably a second rounder at best.

The Ravens made the best trade of the draft, but the Flacco thing ruined it. I know the guy can throw, but aren't they just replacing one Kyle Boler for another?

I agree here. The trade they made was a steal. They didn't get Ryan who they wanted, so instead they got extra picks. In recent years, it appears it is much more about quantity than quality in the draft just because of how much question there is on each player. That said, it was a great move, until they followed it up with a not so great move. Did they really feel Tampa Bay was going to select him? Flacco was not a first round pick to begin with, but trading up to get him in the first round? That is ridiculous. Tampa Bay was not selecting him. If they wanted a QB in the first round, they would have select Brohm afterwards since he was the only one of the top-three QBs not taken yet, and he was also the one the Bucs expressed a lot of interest in. Terrible move by Baltimore, but I guess the upside is that they didn't use their #8 for Flacco.

My Jets had a fairly predictable draft, and did decently. Gholston was a no-brainer, but even though I like Keller, and he's a great fit for the team, why did we trade up to get him? I'm almost certain he would have still been available in the second for us.

Agree and agree again. Gholston was a no-brainer as you put it. Basically the backup plan if McFadden didn't fall. As for Keller, tight ends generally are not first round material. I can't see why the Jets wanted to trade up to get him. Maybe they were afraid the Giants would take him in preparation of Shockey being traded? I doubt it, and even so, Phillips was a much better pick for the boys in blue.

[House of Steel]

I really like your observation there, TY. Very well done.

The Steelers really surprised me by going away from the needs and picking up Rashard Mendenhall (Now, I am very ecstatic with this pick). Rashard and Willie has made a very unique situation in Pittsburgh to where we may see ourselves going back to the Pony Tail Formation that was very successful with Franco Harris and Rocky Beiler in the 1970s. Rashard and Willie is going to be a terror from the Steel Furnace when the defense got to go for both. Limas Sweed pick was a steal for us and it is exactly what Big Ben ordered, a deep threat and a very reliable receiver. I am very much happy with how the Steelers done.

I think the Falcons screwed it up the most. I couldn't believe Detroit took Gosder Cherilus as I thought for sure, he would fall to Pittsburgh. I guess this worked out for the better. The Patriots did pretty well in my estimates. Hubbard was a darn good pickup late for the Browns, I think he is going to pan very well for them. The Ravens also get a downfall grade from me for that Flacco trade, what the heck was they thinking?