1. Houston Texans: Jadeveon Clowney, DE, South Carolina
Clowney and J.J. Watt are going to give opposing offensive coordinators nightmares. Andrew Luck be warned! The Texans also didn’t panic and draft a QB out of a class that quite frankly isn’t that impressive.
Grade: A
2. St. Louis Rams (via Washington): Greg Robinson, OT, Auburn
Jeff Fisher and the Rams picked up one of the best blocking tackles in the draft. He’ll provide protection for Sam Bradford and open up the running lanes for their backs.
Grade: A-
3. Jacksonville Jaguars: Blake Bortles, QB, UCF
Being a Jacksonville Jaguars fan just got a little tougher. The Jags have so many other needs and could have taken a player rated higher to address any one of those needs. Instead they take a QB in Bortles who could be good down the line but simply isn’t NFL ready. The pressure is on being taken third overall.
Grade: D+
4. Buffalo Bills (via Cleveland): Sammy Watkins, WR, Clemson
Watkins was an extremely good player in college and will definitely spark that Buffalo offense. However the Bills gave up their No. 9 pick this year, plus a first-rounder and fourth-rounder next year, all for a player at a position that doesn’t really pan out in the top 10.
Grade: C-
5. Oakland Raiders: Khalil Mack, OLB, Buffalo
The Raiders got lucky with Jacksonville being Jacksonville and taking a QB. The Raiders didn’t over think things, much like Houston and took arguably the best player in the draft.
Grade: A
6. Atlanta Falcons: Jake Matthews, OT, Texas A&M
They addressed their offensive line to the delight of Matt Ryan with one of the safest picks in the draft. Need had, need taken care of.
Grade: B
7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Mike Evans, WR, Texas A&M
With Mike Williams gone the Bucs had a huge need at the wide out spot. Mike Evans is a nice pick and one they didn’t have to mortgage the future to acquire.
Grade: B
8. Cleveland Browns (via Minnesota): Justin Gilbert, CB, Oklahoma State
I the fleecing of the Bills for the fourth pick but didn’t think they needed to trade up one spot to get Gilbert. He would have been there. Nonetheless they still get a very good zone corner that many say could be the best in the draft.
Grade: B-
9. Minnesota Vikings (via Cleveland): Anthony Barr, OLB, UCLA
Anthony Barr is very athletic and despite being a little thin with Allen gone the Vikings made out nicely the UCLA OLB who very well could be a three-down mainstay.
Grade: B+
10. Detroit Lions: Eric Ebron, TE, North Carolina
Eric Ebron is a big TE that plays more like a wide receiver and will cause defensive mismatches. That’s what’s good about this pick. The downside is I may be starting in that Detroit secondary this upcoming season.
Grade: D+
11. Tennessee Titans: Taylor Lewan, OT, Michigan
The Titans got a guy who very well could have fallen into the top five in last year’s draft. One thing that’s kind of perplexing though is the team giving Michael Oher a four-year, $20 million deal, though.
Grade: B-
12. New York Giants: Odell Beckham Jr., WR, LSU
The Giants needed weapons and they got one in Beckham Jr. who is more complete than some might think.
Grade: B
13. St. Louis Rams: Aaron Donald, DT, Pittsburgh
Aaron Donald was one of the most dominant defensive tackles in college football last year. He now joins a St. Louis defensive line that consists of three other first round picks. QB’s in the NFC West have been put on notice.
Grade: A
14. Chicago Bears: Kyle Fuller, CB, Virginia Tech
With Major Wright gone and Peanut Tillman and Tim Jennings not getting any younger this was almost a no-brainer for the Bears. They got a solid guy too that can play the nickel before fully taking over that backfield.
Grade: B+
15. Pittsburgh Steelers: Ryan Shazier, OLB, Ohio State
Pittsburgh could have gone a number of different directions with this pick. However the settle on a guy that can drop back into coverage, come off the edge and play some special teams. Not bad.
Grade: B-
16. Dallas Cowboys: Zack Martin, G/T, Notre Dame
Jerry Jones passes on Johnny Football to give his current QB a little more support. Martin is very versatile and quite frankly a responsible pick for Dallas.
Grade: B
17. Baltimore Ravens: C.J. Mosley, LB, Alabama
Baltimore may have had one of the easiest picks on the night. Mosley is one of the smartest guys coming into the draft and you may not find a better fit for that defense in Baltimore.
Grade: A
18. New York Jets: Calvin Pryor, S, Louisville
Pryor is a huge hitter that Rex Ryan is going to love. Not to mention he addresses a need in a division that currently has plenty of scary weapons.
Grade: A-
19. Miami Dolphins: Ja’Wuan James, OT, Tennessee
After what happened last season it almost seemed inevitable that the Dolphins draft an offensive lineman. The problem though is they got a guy that they may of been able to get in the second round.
Grade: C-
20. New Orleans Saints (via Arizona): Brandin Cooks, WR, Oregon State
Cooks is electric and one of the best WR’s in college football last year. He can cover a lot of ground horizontally but will lose battles vertically. Still not a bad pickup for the Saints.
Grade: B
21. Green Bay Packers: Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, S, Alabama
It’s almost not fair. The Packers sit outside the top 20 and have arguably a top 10 player fall to them. Ha Ha will be a huge asset as well in a pass heavy division like the NFC North.
Grade: A
22. Cleveland Browns (via Philadelphia): Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M
Finally Manziel is off the board! Cleveland not only lands Justin Gilbert but probably the most athletic QB in the draft in Manziel. Aside from the tickets he’s going to sell all of Manziel’s on the field flaws are very coachable. The only question mark is can he stay focused on and off the field when times are tough?
Grade: A-
23. Kansas City Chiefs: Dee Ford, DE, Auburn
The Chiefs could have used a receiver but given how deep that position is this year Reid opted for the pass rusher. Ford isn’t a horrible pick but is still raw with a lot to improve on.
Grade: C
24. Cincinnati Bengals: Darqueze Dennard, CB, Michigan State
Again another top 15 guy falls to the benefit of the Bengals. Dennard is probably the most physical man-to-man corner in the draft and fills a huge need for Cincinnati.
Grade: A
25. San Diego Chargers: Jason Verrett, CB, TCU
Verrett is a guy that can play inside, outside and is a true ball hawk. His size may be a bit of a problem nonetheless though San Diego is coming away with a very good corner.
Grade: B
26. Philadelphia Eagles (via Cleveland, Indianapolis): Marcus Smith, LB, Louisville
Needed a corner but reached a bit for Marcus Smith at 26.
Grade: C
27. Arizona Cardinals (via New Orleans): Deone Bucannon, S, Washington State
Burcannon is another hard-hitting safety that may have been a little bit of a reach as well for the Cardinals. Nonetheless they needed more help in the secondary and Bucannon wasn’t probably going to be there for them on Day 2.
Grade: B-
28. Carolina Panthers: Kelvin Benjamin, WR, Florida State
Cam needed a receiver and got one in Benjamin who has excellent size and will overwhelm defenders at times. He’s still raw though, especially when it comes to yards after the catch. It will take some time for him to fully come around.
Grade: B
29. New England Patriots: Dominique Easley, DT, Florida
The Pats get a guy that will pay off for them down the road and probably would have been a top 15 pick if he was fully healthy. He’s definitely one of the better defenders to come out this year.
Grade: B+
30. San Francisco 49ers: Jimmie Ward, S, Northern Illinois
San Franciso was already loaded to begin with so they could afford to reach a bit for a guy like Ward. Still he’s a bruiser that can cover a lot of ground something that will make the Niners defense even deeper.
Grade: A-
31. Denver Broncos: Bradley Roby, CB, Ohio State
Roby fell a bit and Denver benefited. He has good upside but he tends to get lazy out in coverage. If he can keep the motor going he’ll be a very nice asset in that Broncos defensive backfield.
32. Minnesota Vikings (via Seattle): Teddy Bridgewater, QB, Louisville
Yes, Bridgewater had a touch few months leading up to the draft but there’s nothing wrong with Minnesota taking him where they did. Too many people seemed to fall into the category of him being some average prospect with a low ceiling. His game film however tells you otherwise. He’ll make his mistakes there’s no question about that but he’ll also leave you speechless with the plays he can make. Bottom line he can burn teams with the feet and the arm.
Grade: A
