The NFL Draft was crazy last night. So many trades going on, it was hard to keep track at the bar. However, what we do know is that QBs were a premium with 4 selected involved in some kind of trade all except the #1 Overall selection.
Here is the list of picks:
1 – Cleveland – Baker Mayfield, QB – Oklahoma – bit of a surprise before yesterday, but rumors were swirling this was the pick in the morning yesterday.
2 – NY Giants – Saquon Barkley, RB – Penn State – No surprise here, best player in the Draft and they didn’t trade out of the spot.
3 – NY Jets – Sam Darnold, QB, USC – with Baker going at 1, Darnold was the obvious choice here. Jets fans should be happy.
4 – Cleveland – Denzel Ward, CB – Ohio State – this was shocking. Ward is the best CB, but with Chubb and Nelson available, I’m not sure what they were thinking
5 – Denver – Bradley Chubb, DE – NC State – I’m sure they considered trading out, but after Chubb wasn’t selected, they are salivating with Miller and Chubb on each side of the defense.
6 – Indianapolis – Quenton Nelson, OG – Notre Dame – Colts had to do this. He is a Top 3 player in the Draft. Project Luck with this guy.
7 – Buffalo – Josh Allen, QB, Wyoming – Buffalo was going to trade up and they did with the Bucs to grab the strong armed QB from Wyoming.
8 – Chicago – Roquan Smith, LB, Georgia – Another top prospect who was just there for the Bears. They could have traded back, but with Buffalo jumping up, maybe just picking BPA was the idea.
9 – San Francisco – Mike McGlinchey, OT, Notre Dame – Not a fan of this pick, yes McGlinchey was the best OT, but he is not a Top 10 guy. He is the first of several reaches on OL in this Draft.
10 – Arizona – Josh Rosen, QB, UCLA – Arizona jumps ahead of Miami to take arguably the best pure passer in this Draft. Now, Rosen will play with a chip on his shoulder. Good selection.
11 – Miami – Minkah Fitzpatrick, S, Alabama – Miami was probably stunned by the trade up by AZ, so they took BPA here. Fitzpatrick is the most versatile DB in the class.
12 – Tampa Bay – Vita Vea, DT, Washington – Bucs make a deft move here dropping back and getting a great piece to their defense. No issue with the pick.
13 – Washington – Da’Ron Payne, DT, Alabama – I’m pretty sure Washington wanted Vea and then took the #2 DT in the class. I think they could have traded back for him, but he’s a good player.
14 – New Orleans – Marcus Davenport, DE, UTSA – I thought Green Bay wanted this player, but they deftly traded out to pick up picks. Saints get a raw pass rusher.
15 – Oakland – Kolton Miller, OT, UCLA – Raiders trade back to take the 2nd OT, but I still think it was too early for this player. Really tall and athletic, but not really a Top 15 guy.
16 – Buffalo – Tremaine Edmunds, LB, VA Tech – Buffalo trades up again with the Ravens this time to take a Top 10 talent. Edmunds is young and athletic. Good move.
17 – Los Angeles Chargers – Derwin James, S, Florida State – James was a potential Top 10 like Edmunds who fell, so Chargers get a very good player here. That defense is going to be scary.
18 – Green Bay – Jaire Alexander, CB, Louisville – Green Bay trades back up from the Saints spot to grab a very highly rated CB. Not a bad pick.
19 – Dallas – Leighton Vander Esch, LB, Boise State – I was off here. I thought they would go WR, but they want a Sean Lee replacement here. Maybe a little early, but fits the need.
20 – Detroit – Frank Ragnow, C, Arkansas – Detroit does need OL, but I’m not sure this was a great pick. Ragnow as tied to Bengals late, so he was going around here. I’m surprised they didn’t go RB.
21 – Cincinnati – Billy Price, C, Ohio State – Price was not in a lot of mock drafts in the 1st. A very good player, but 2 Centers selected before a WR is a coup. With Ragnow gone, they went here over Daniels of Iowa.
22 – Tennessee – Rashaan Evans, LB, Alabama – Another trade here, with Baltimore trading the Buffalo pick to Titans. Titans defense was poor, so Evans is a good selection.
23 – New England – Isaiah Wynn, OG, Georgia – Patriots use the Rams selection to fortify their OL. Wynn may play OT, like in college, but can play inside, too. Really good player.
24 – Carolina – DJ Moore, WR, Maryland – Finally a WR off the board. Carolina gives Cam a good weapon on the outside. Good pick, although Ridley was available, too.
25 – Baltimore – Hayden Hurst, TE, South Carolina – Ravens need a better offense for sure. Hurst is a good target. Again, they should have taken Ridley, but went TE instead.
26 – Atlanta – Calvin Ridley, WR, Alabama – Atlanta needs defensive lineman, but Ridley shouldn’t have fallen to 26. They had no choice but to take another Bama WR with Jones.
27 – Seattle – Rashaad Penny, RB, San Diego State – Seattle kept moving back to pick a 2nd round player. With Guice and Michel on the Board, I’m not sure what they are thinking here. Penny is a productive player, but probably the 6th best RB in the Draft. Poor pick here.
28 – Pittsburgh – Terrell Edmunds, S, VA Tech – Brother of Tremaine Edmunds, but Terrell wasn’t even listed on my Top 10 at the position. I’m missing something here. Hope the kid plays well, but with Joshua Jackson a tall CB available and at least 3 other better safeties, the Steelers are reaching here for a 3rd to 4th rounder.
29 – Jacksonville – Taven Bryan, DE, Florida – A great value here for Jags. Another pass rusher for an already menacing front.
30 – Minnesota – Mike Hughes, CB, UCF – I’m a little surprised Hughes was taken over Jackson here, but Hughes may fit the Vikings’ scheme better. Great defense got deeper.
31 – New England – Sony Michel, RB, Georgia – Patriots get another versatile playmaking back for that offense.
32 – Baltimore – Lamar Jackson, QB, Louisville – Ravens were wheeling and dealing all day. They take the best athlete in the Draft, and he can learn behind Flacco.
That was 16 trades either before the Draft or tomorrow. That’s crazy.
Some key players/1st Round talents still available:
- Harold Landry, DE, Boston College
- Will Hernandez, OG, UTEP
- Joshua Jackson, CB, Iowa
- Dallas Goedert, TE, South Dakota State
- Derrius Guice, RB, LSU
- James Daniels, C, Iowa
Ok, so let’s see how we did. Here is my sheet.
Wegs Draft Sheet
So, I missed just 4 players in the 1st round. Pretty good. No one did better than that. Walterfootball was the only expert who would beat me in the scoring system. They got the correct slot on a crazy 7 players.
Here is how the standings would be:
WalterFootball – 49 (28+21)
Wegs – 40 (28+12)
Daniel Jeremiah – 40 (25+15)
Todd McShay – 40 (28+12)
Mel Kiper – 38 (26+12)
Charlie Casserly – 37 (28+9)
Mike Mayock – 33 (27+6)
Bucky Brooks – 27 (27+0)
Chris Trepasso – 24 (24+0)
Ok, so tonight we get the 2nd and 3rd Rounds and Saturday 4-7.
Now, I’ll see how many I get in the 1st 3 rounds. How did you do?
Wegs