OUR GRADES FOR EVERY NFL TEAM’S DRAFT
TEAM-BY-TEAM REPORT
AFC EAST Buffalo: B+
■ Best pick: Zay Jones. Got to love the former Austin High Maroon, who smashed FBS records in 2016 with 158 catches for 1,746 yards at East Carolina. He can be the No. 2 guy to Sammy Watkins.
■ Worst pick: Matt Milano. The Boston College LB is an overachiever who’s small and slow and probably isn’t much more than a special teamer.
■ Overall: Bonus points for the Bills for making a good haul and adding a 2018 first-round selection. No picks in rounds three and four held them back from earning an “A.” LSU first-round CB Tre’Davious White has Pro Bowl ability, Temple run-blocking OG Dion Dawkins could start in a hurry and Pitt QB Nathan Peterman is a good late-round flyer.
Miami: B+
■ Best pick: Charles Harris. The Mizzou DE racked up 10 sacks, 18 QB hits and 34 hurries in 2016. Facing SEC linemen, that’s a bunch. Now he can learn from wise, old Cameron Wake.
■ Worst pick: Sorry, can’t find one we don’t like.
■ Overall: There are no stars in this group, and the Dolphins didn’t do anything to help QB Ryan Tannehill, but the depth here is so impressive. Ohio State MLB Raekwon McMillan, Clemson CB Cordrea Tankersley (a thirdround bargain) and Utah G Isaac Asiata all are keepers.
New England: C-
■ Best pick: Derek Rivers. Bo Pelini’s Youngstown State had more players (2) drafted than his old team, Nebraska, Texas, Penn State and Georgia. Rivers is an edge rusher who shined when presented the opportunity to play FBS opponents.
■ Worst pick: Antonio Garcia. The Troy OT is a project, a third-round reach, but he won’t be thrown to the wolves, and he will be well-coached.
■ Overall: The toughest of all to grade. On the surface, it looks like slim pickings. But if you add WR Brandin Cooks and DE Kony Ealy, acquired in trades for the Patriots’ firstand second-round selections, then the Super Bowl champs might deserve an “A.”
N.Y. Jets: C
■ Best pick: Jamal Adams. Without question, the LSU alum was the best all-around safety, and he immediately upgrades the team’s shaky secondary.
■ Worst pick: Ar-Darius Stewart. The Alabama WR is good after the catch but was a definite reach in the third round with better options available.
■ Overall: The Jets took a pass on the passers, so they’ll take a longer look at Baylor ex Bryce Petty and Christian Hackenberg and await the 2018 QB bounty.
AFC NORTH Baltimore: B
■ Best pick: Tim Williams. The Alabama ex, who lasted until round three because of offthe-field issues, could be a scary good pass rusher if he stays out of trouble. Had 18½ sacks over the last two seasons.
■ Worst pick: Chris Wormley. The thirdround DT has the upside of a rotational player. FYI: He’s one of a nation-high 11 draft picks from Michigan and, yes, that’s one more than Alabama.
■ Overall: We usually instinctively give Ozzie Newsome an “A” for his hauls. The guy knows talent, and he landed two Crimson Tide studs in Williams and first-round CB Marlon Humphrey.
Cincinnati: B+
■ Best pick: Jordan Willis. The Kansas State DE, nabbed with the 73rd overall choice, outshined No. 1 pick Myles Garrett in the Texas Bowl. Easily. Prediction: Willis will one day be a double-digit sack guy.
■ Worst pick: John Ross. The Washington WR ran the fastest-ever 40 in the combine, 4.22 seconds. Yep, you can’t teach speed. You also can’t teach height, toughness and ball security.
■ Overall: All kinds of high-upside picks here — Oklahoma RB Joe Mixon and Auburn DE/ OLB Carl Lawson in addition to Ross and Willis. Even sixth-round Oklahoma ILB Jordan Evans. Also more red flags than a Chinese convention.
Cleveland: B-
■ Best pick: Myles Garrett. They couldn’t screw this one up, right? Well, it’s the Browns. In the end, sanity reigned, and they took the Texas A&M pass-rush monster whom everyone had No. 1 on their boards.
■ Worst pick: David Njoku. They gave up a valuable fourth rounder to move up for a raw, athletic TE from Miami who drops too many passes, then they cut reliable Gary Barnidge.
■ Overall: It’s impossible to figure these guys out. Can’t blame them for passing on this year’s weak QB class and stockpiling for next year when USC’s Sam Darnold, UCLA’s Josh Rosen, Oklahoma State’s Mason Rudolph and Louisville’s Lamar Jackson are eligible. Then they pull the trigger on Notre Dame project QB DeShone Kizer in round two. Huh?
Pittsburgh: B-
■ Best pick: James Conner. A sentimental pick here for the hometown Pitt RB who beat cancer, returned to the field and rushed for 1,092 yards and 16 TDs in 2016. A thirdrounder with first-round grit and determination.
■ Worst pick: JuJu Smith-Schuster. We just love saying that name. The USC WR was taken too early (second round) and at a position where the Steelers already are well-fortified.
■ Overall: T.J. Watt just feels like a Steeler. The younger brother of Houston superstar J.J. has a nasty streak and plays with passion. He broke out at Wisconsin last year with 11½ sacks, 15½ tackles for loss and 30 QB hurries.
AFC SOUTH Houston: B-
■ Best pick: D’Onta Foreman. A 2,000-yard rusher shouldn’t last until the 89th pick, even if he can’t catch passes. Some are surprised to learn that the big guy forced 64 missed tackles in 2016.
■ Worst pick: Julie’n Davenport. Hard to see how the OT from little Bucknell will see the field much for a few years.
■ Overall: This draft — heck, the future of the franchise — will rise or fall with the fortunes of Deshaun Watson. Will he be the Clemson QB who shredded Alabama’s defense in backto-back national title games? Or the kid who threw 30 interceptions over the last two seasons despite superior talent all around him? There are no do-overs next year: Houston forfeited its No. 1 and No. 2 picks to fix the QB mess.
Indianapolis: C
■ Best pick: Malik Hooker. The Colts are thanking their lucky horseshoe the Ohio State safety was available at No. 15. The ultimate center fielder, Hooker picked off seven passes in 2016.
■ Worst pick: Grover Stewart. The Albany State DT is strictly a projection at this point.
■ Overall: The Colts will continue having trouble keeping Andrew Luck upright. This year’s top three choices are a safety, corner and edge rusher. OT Zach Banner, a fourth rounder from USC, was the only o-lineman, and he struggles with pass protection.
Jacksonville: B+
■ Best pick: Dede Westbrook. The Biletnikoff Award winner from Oklahoma, by way of Cameron Yoe, lasted until the 110th pick because of character concerns. His 62.5 percent catch rate on deep balls was No. 2 in this class.
■ Worst pick: Dawaune Smoot. A third rounder with a fifth-round grade, the Illinois pass rusher lacks consistency.
■ Overall: Clearly, both the Jaguars and Titans want to load up their young quarterbacks with more weapons. The Jags, upgrading all around Blake Bortles, started their draft with LSU RB Leonard Fournette, who should be a franchise back, then got a bargain on Westbrook.
Tennessee: B
■ Best pick: Corey Davis. The high-volume WR from Western Michigan is a great fit for Marcus Mariota and his short-to-intermediate passing game. The only question: Should Davis have been chosen before Clemson’s Mike Williams?
■ Worst pick: Jonnu Smith. Again, the Titans opted for another Mariota helper, but the third round felt too high for the TE from Florida International.
■ Overall: Western Kentucky WR Taywan Taylor, an excellent route-runner, is yet a third addition to the receiving tree in this class. Mariota probably cannot wipe the smile off his face. Second-round CB Adoree’ Jackson of USC is an exciting playmaker.
AFC WEST Denver: B-
■ Best pick: DeMarcus Walker. It’s hard to figure why so many teams ignored the Florida State DE who racked up 16 sacks last year. He went 51st. We’re betting the Broncos will cash in here.
■ Worst pick: Carlos Henderson. The thirdround WR from Louisiana Tech lacks technique and appears to take plays off.
■ Overall: The Broncos offensive front collapsed in 2016, and they had that in mind when making T Garett Bolles of Utah the first o-lineman off the board. But was he the top OL? John Elway’s crew usually has it figured out.
Kansas City: C+
■ Best pick: Patrick Mahomes. Give Andy Reid credit for identifying the QB he liked best as a long-term fit and doing what it took to go up and grab the Texas Tech gunslinger. Mahomes has a big arm and intangibles.
■ Worst pick: Mahomes. The Chiefs paid a steep price in premium picks to move all the way up to 10th for a player generally graded in the 25-40 range by other teams. He’s a backyard player who’ll have to be retrained.
■ Overall: It’s curious a contender like KC ignored current needs (CB, LB, OL) to play for the future. Second-round pick DE Tanoh Kpassagnon of Villanova is a ways from contributing, too. But Chiefs fans can rejoice that Reed and GM John Dorsey obviously are in it for the long haul.
L.A. Chargers: A
■ Best pick: Mike Williams. The big, physical Clemson WR is outstanding at catching in traffic and combines the possession game with downfield ball skills. He had 98 snags for 1,361 yards for the national champs.
■ Worst pick: Rayshawn Jenkins. The Miami S is a low-upside player who missed tackles on 26 of 144 attempts in 2015-16.
■ Overall: Philip Rivers might want to stick around for five more years. Not only can he throw early and often to Williams, but his decrepit line was vastly improved with No. 2 pick Forrest Lamp (G, Western Kentucky) and No. 3 Dan Feeney (G, Indiana).
Oakland: C+
■ Best pick: Gareon Conley. This comes with one big caveat. The highly skilled Ohio State CB is under investigation for sexual assault. If that is cleared up, he’s quite the bargain, going 24th.
■ Worst pick: David Sharpe. Anyone see Florida’s offensive line last year? It was awful. The fourth rounder has trouble run blocking.
■ Overall: The Raiders started the draft with three high-ceiling/low-floor players — Conley, UConn S Obi Melifonwu, who has a great physique but lacks instincts, and UCLA DT Eddie Vanderdoes, a former five-star recruit whose career has regressed.