3 days of bedlam otherwise known as the NFL Draft finished up on Saturday at Radio City Music Hall. Now that dust has settled, here my picks for the best/worst overall team hauls, biggest steals, reaches, sleepers, potential busts, and, my updated list of top 50 prospects from the 2014 draft class.
Biggest Steal: Darqueze Dennard, cornerback (Round 1, 24th overall, Cincinnati Bengals)
The Bengals got an absolute gift when Darqueze Dennard fell into their laps in the latter stages of the first round. Dennard is a physical corner that can do anything that's asked of him on the football field. He should be an immediate starter and sure up one of the very few weaknesses the Bengals have.
Biggest Reach: Ja'wuan James, tackle (Round 1, 19th overall, Miami Dolphins)
There were a lot of picks that came out of left field in the first round of this draft, but none was more puzzling than the Dolphins selecting Ja'wuan James with the 19th overall pick. Tackle was an obvious need for them after their abysmal offensive line play in 2013, but taking an average player who would've easily been there when they picked in the second round simply because of a need at the position doesn't make any sense.
Best Team Overall in Draft: St. Louis Rams
The Rams cleaned house once again. They used their two top 15 picks to draft elite players (tackle Greg Robinson and defensive tackle Aaron Donald) made their already talented lines on both sides of the ball that much better. Their later round picks were equally savvy as they got steals in cornerback/safety LaMarcus Joyner (round 2), running back Tre Mason (round 3) and defensive end/outside linebacker Michael Sam (round 7). Les Snead and Jeff Fisher have drafted about as good as anyone in football over the last few years and in the tough NFC West, the development of that young talent will eventually lead to a playoff berth.
Worst Team Overall in Draft: Kansas City Chiefs
I don't what the hell was going through the head of general manager Jeff Dorsey during this draft. The Chiefs had limited picks in this draft because of the Alex Smith trade and did not use then wisely. The team lost three starting offensive lineman this offseason (including both guards), but didn't draft any lineman until the sixth round. They also did nothing to address their lack of a number two wideout behind Dwayne Bowe. Instead, the Chiefs spent their only two picks in the first three rounds reaching on a pass-rusher they don't need (Dee Ford) and a raw cornerback that is going to need a whole of developing before getting a shot at starting (Phillip Gaines) Even a potential steal in quarterback Aaron Murray couldn't salvage just how awful the Chiefs draft was.
Top 5 Sleepers:
1.Gabe Jackson, guard (Round 3, 81st overall, Oakland Raiders)
2.C.J. Fiedorwicz, tight end (Round 3, 65th overall, Houston Texans)
3.Aaron Murray, quarterback (Round 5, 163rd overall, Kansas City Chiefs)
4.Lache Seastrunk, running back (Round 6, 186th overall, Washington Redskins)
5.Kevin Pierre-Louis, outside linebacker (Round 4, 132nd overall, Seattle Seahawks)
Top 5 Most Likely Busts:
1.Johnny Manziel, quarterback (Round 1, 22nd overall, Cleveland Browns)
2.Kelvin Benjamin, wide receiver (Round 1, 28th overall, Carolina Panthers)
3.Ja'wuan James, tackle (Round 1, 19th overall, Miami Dolphins)
4.Marcus Smith, outside linebacker (Round 1, 26th overall, Philadelphia Eagles)
5.DeMarcus Lawrence, outside linebacker/defensive end (Round 2, 34th overall, Dallas Cowboys)
Top 50 Prospects:
1.Khalil Mack, defensive end/outside linebacker (Buffalo) Selected 5th overall (Oakland Raiders)
2.Mike Evans, wide receiver (Texas A&M) Selected 7th overall (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
3.Jadeveon Clowney, defensive end (South Carolina) Selected 1st overall (Houston Texans)
4.Greg Robinson, tackle (Auburn) Selected 2nd overall (St. Louis Rams)
5.Sammy Watkins, wide receiver (Clemson) Selected 4th overall (Buffalo Bills)
6.Jake Matthews, tackle (Texas A&M) Selected 6th overall (Atlanta Falcons)
7.Aaron Donald, defensive tackle (Pittsburgh) Selected 13th overall (St.Louis Rams)
8.Eric Ebron, tight end (North Carolina) Selected 10th overall (Detroit Lions)
9.Taylor Lewan, tackle (Michigan) Selected 11th overall (Tennessee Titans)
10.Justin Gilbert, cornerback (Oklahoma State) Selected 8th overall (Cleveland Browns)
11.HaHa Clinton-Dix, safety (Alabama) Selected 21st overall (Green Bay Packers)
12.Calvin Pryor, safety (Louisville) Selected 18th overall (New York Jets)
13.Brandin Cooks, wide receiver (Oregon State) Selected 20th overall (New Orleans Saints)
14.Darqueze Dennard, cornerback (Michigan State) Selected 24th overall (Cincinnati Bengals)
15.Blake Bortles, quarterback (Central Florida) Selected 3rd overall (Jacksonville Jaguars)
16.Kyle Fuller, cornerback (Virginia Tech) Selected 14th overall (Chicago Bears)
17.Zack Martin, tackle/guard/center (Notre Dame) Selected 16th overall (Dallas Cowboys)
18.Anthony Barr, outside linebacker (UCLA) Selected 9th overall (Minnesota Vikings)
19.Derek Carr, quarterback (Fresno State) Selected 36th overall (Oakland Raiders)
20.Odell Beckham Jr., wide receiver (LSU) Selected 12th overall (New York Giants)
21.Bradley Roby, cornerback (Ohio State) Selected 31st overall (Denver Broncos)
22.Xavier Su'a-Filo, guard (UCLA) Selected 33rd overall (Houston Texans)
23.Ryan Shaizer, outside linebacker (Ohio State) Selected 15th overall (Pittsburgh Steelers)
24.C.J. Mosley, inside linebacker (Alabama) Selected 17th overall (Baltimore Ravens)
25.Jason Verrett, cornerback (TCU) Selected 25th overall (San Diego Chargers)
26.Kyle Van Noy, outside linebacker (BYU) Selected 40th overall (Detroit Lions)
27.Jeremy Hill, running back (LSU) Selected 55th overall (Cincinnati Bengals)
28.Cody Latimer, wide receiver (Indiana) Selected 56th overall (Denver Broncos)
29.Ra'Shede Hageman, defensive tackle/end (Minnesota) Selected 37th overall (Atlanta Falcons)
30.Kony Ealy, defensive/outside linebacker (Missouri) Selected 60th overall (Carolina Panthers)
31.LaMarcus Joyner, safety/cornerback (Florida State) Selected 41st overall (St. Louis Rams)
32.Carlos Hyde, running back (Ohio State) Selected 57th overall (San Francisco 49ers)
33.Marqise Lee, wide receiver (USC) Selected 39th overall (Jacksonville Jaguars)
34.Jimmy Garoppolo, quarterback (Eastern Illinois) Selected 62nd overall (New England Patriots)
35.Dee Ford, defensive end/outside linebacker (Auburn) Selected 23rd overall (Kansas City Chiefs)
36.Louis Nix III, defensive tackle (Notre Dame) Selected 83rd overall (Houston Texans)
37.Weston Richburg, center (Colorado State) Selected 43rd overall (New York Giants)
38.Jimmie Ward, safety (Northern Illinois) Selected 30th overall (San Francisco 49ers)
39.Stephon Tuitt, defensive end (Notre Dame) Selected 46th overall (Pittsburgh Steelers)
40.Timmy Jernigan, defensive tackle (Florida State) Selected 48th overall (Baltimore Ravens)
41.Austin Seferian-Jenkins, tight end (Washington) Selected 38th overall (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
42.Teddy Bridgewater, quarterback (Louisville) Selected 32nd overall (Minnesota Vikings)
43.Davante Adams, wide receiver (Fresno State) Selected 53rd overall (Green Bay Packers)
44.Jace Amaro, tight end (Texas Tech) Selected 49th overall (New York Jets)
45.Morgan Moses, tackle (Virginia) Selected 66th overall (Washington Redskins)
46.Joel Bitonio, tackle/guard/center Selected 35th overall (Cleveland Browns)
47.Allen Robinson, wide receiver (Penn State) Selected 61st overall (Jacksonville Jaguars)
48.Dominique Easley, defensive tackle (Florida) Selected 29th overall (New England Patriots)
49.Deone Buccannon, safety (Washington State) Selected 27th overall (Arizona Cardinals)
50.Cyrus Kouandjio, tackle (Alabama) Selected 44th overall (Buffalo Bills)
Team Grades (Here is a link to each team's individual draft hauls http://www.nfl.com/draft/2014/tracker/by-round#dt-tabs:dt-by-team):
Arizona Cardinals: B
Atlanta Falcons: B+
Baltimore Ravens: B
Buffalo Bills: B+
Carolina Panthers: B-
Chicago Bears: A-
Cincinnati Bengals: B+
Cleveland Browns: B
Dallas Cowboys: C
Denver Broncos: A-
Detroit Lions:A-
Green Bay Packers: B+
Houston Texans: A
Indianapolis Colts: C-
Jacksonville Jaguars: A-
Kansas City Chiefs: D+
Miami Dolphins: C-
Minnesota Vikings: B+
New England Patriots: B+
New Orleans Saints: B
New York Giants: B+
New York Jets: A-
Oakland Raiders: A
Philadelphia Eagles: C
Pittsburgh Steelers: A-
San Diego Chargers: B-
San Fransisco 49ers: A-
Seattle Seahawks: B-
St. Louis Rams: A
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: A-
Tennessee Titans: A-
Washington Redskins: B
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