WINNERS:
Seattle Seahawks
Top to bottom the Seahawks got probably the most interesting class.
Zabel is an instant starter. Emmanwori is hyper athletic and productive, but we’ll have to see if Macdonald can get him to play more physically. Arroyo is possibly the most talented TE in the class and could be a massive steal if his knee is fine. Milroe is crazy athletic with a rifle arm. He just needs to ride the bench for a couple of years and continue developing. It would not be crazy if he got better and became something approximating Jalen Hurts. Tory Horton is a useful 3rd receiver. Cabeldue is very athletic and has starting potential someday. Damien Martinez is good RB depth. And one of my favorite players in the class, Ricky White, is at worst a special teams ace, and I still believe there’s Antonio Brown/Diontae Johnson potential as well.
Super interesting group of players that will need a little luck to hit its peak but should provide good value even if it doesn’t.
Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs might fall off a little this year as some of their rivals continue to rise, but it won’t be because of the draft class. Much like the Seahawks they may not have gotten any outright stars, but they brought in a bunch of solid role players at critical positions.
Simmons, when healthy, might be the best offensive tackle in the class. Norman-Lott is an undersized pass rush specialist that will rotate in next to Chris Jones. He’s going to have a lot of 1-on-1s this year and I could see him getting into the DROY conversation if he can replicate what Braden Fiske did last year. Gillotte is an athletic edge rusher that will fit into their rotation. Nohl Williams is good depth at corner with potential to be a starter in a year or two. Royals was an absolute steal in the 4th and gives them a short-term replacement for a Rashee Rice suspension to start the year and a long term replacement for Hollywood Brown. Bassa is a fantastic coverage linebacker and a perfect complement for Nick Bolton. And Brashard Smith brings some added speed to their RB room.
Every single pick is useful. Can’t ask for more than that.
New England Patriots
I kind of overlooked the Patriots a bit after days 1 and 2, but they ended up with another really solid and deep class overall.
They finally got their left tackle in Will Campbell and if he can’t hang at tackle he can move to guard where he’d be an easy Pro Bowler. TreVeyon Henderson adds speed and a nice third down back to their rotation. Kyle Williams is a game breaking option that finally gives Drake Maye a downfield option for his big arm. Jared Wilson is good depth at guard and center with the potential to take over at center eventually. Joshua Farmer is a good run defender at defensive tackle. Bradyn Swinson reminds me of Arden Key and should develop into a pretty good pass rusher. They even got Borregalas who many people think was the top kicker available.
Overall, a meat and potatoes class from a meat and potatoes draft.
LOSERS:
Green Bay Packers
I genuinely have no idea what the Packers were thinking. It’s like they took all their draft principles and threw them out the window.
I’ve said my piece about Golden enough times. There were receivers drafted in the 3rd and 4th rounds with the same skillset. Anthony Belton is slow and heavy-footed. Savion is a great athlete but can’t catch and I don’t trust the Packers coaches to just get him the ball however they can. How is he even getting on the field with Josh Jacobs and the 18 other receivers they already have? And the rest of their picks are mildly interesting, but I don’t see any real hope for. Brinson and Oliver are projects at best.
This group didn’t help the Packers make up any ground on Minnesota and Detroit, and it might have gotten them caught by the Bears. Could we see a 4th place Packers NFC North finish this year? We might.
Los Angeles Rams
Well…I think we might have our answer to the secret sauce behind the Rams recent draft success because they absolutely blew this right after losing James Gladstone (who had a fantastic draft for the Jaguars).
I like Josaiah Stewart although RC doesn’t, but the rest of this group leaves a lot to be desired. Terrance Ferguson is athletic but very soft and can’t block at TE. I’ve never understood the Jarquez Hunter love. He looks like an undersized two-down grinder back to me. And Chris Paul is a good athlete and fantastic leader but plays completely out of control.
This was not the draft they needed to inspire confidence in our OVER and NFC winner bets. In fact, I think they just let the Cardinals and Seahawks very much back into the conversation.
Philadelphia Eagles
It’s become fashionable to fawn over every Eagles draft class because Howie Roseman is such a genius, but I’m not seeing it with this one.
Jihaad Campbell is fine but is still learning the inside linebacker position. Andrew Mukuba does nothing for me...it looked like he benefited from all the talent around him at Texas. Ty Robinson is probably my favorite player from this group...he’s big, fast, and strong but can only play in a straight line. Smael Mondon is athletic but never stood out at Georgia. Most people think Kyle McCord is just a backup and they are probably right. Drew Kindall and Antwaun Powell-Ryland are massive projects. And Cameron Williams is a big, slow tackle that will have to move to guard to have any chance and he still might not be athletic enough to play inside.
The Eagles had a real chance to cement themselves as contenders for the next 3-4-5 years if they hit on some cheap talent in this draft to offset the rising cost of their star players, but I think they totally whiffed.
