Grade your team's draft from 2013 (1 Viewer)

[Hooper31]

The return of my annual thread.

Did this last four years. 

Link to the grades from the 2012 draft. Seattle grade = A
Link to the grades from the 2011 draft. Seattle grade = A
Link to the grades from the 2010 draft. Seattle grade = A
Link to the grades from the 2009 draft. Seattle grade = F

Draft excitement is just around the corner, less than three weeks away. I keep saying it, but I guess it doesn't mean much. The fact that John Schneider hasn't won a GM of the year award is weird. What? Has he been too good? Everyone else is jealous? WTF?

If you wish to participate please include the following:
1. List of drafted players. LINK to DraftHistory.com
2. Players still with team
3. Starters
4. Potential future starters
5. Pro-bowls
6. Positives
7. Negatives
8. Grade


Seattle Seahawks 2013 draft

2.30  Christine Michael    RB    Texas A&M
3.25  Jordan Hill    DT    Penn State
4.26  Chris Harper    WR    Kansas State
5.4    Jesse Williams    DT    Alabama
5.5    Tharold Simon    DB    Louisiana State
5.25  Luke Willson    TE    Rice
6.26   Spencer Ware    RB    Louisiana State
7.14   Ryan Seymour    G    Vanderbilt
7.25   Ty Powell    DE    Harding
7.35   Jared Smith    DT    New Hampshire
7.36   Michael Bowie    T    NE Oklahoma State




Players still with team: 4
Starters: 1
Potential future starters: 2
Pro-bowls: 

Positives: Jordan Hill looks the part to replace Brandon Mebane in the middle of the defense. Luke Willson (no relation) has become a reliable second TE. Really liked the Ware pick and the folks in KC are probably glad that Seattle has had a stacked roster causing them to let go of talent. Bowie started a few times in replacing an injured Okung and was signed by the Browns in the offseason, but wasn't someone anyone sees as a regular starter. 

Negatives: Where to start with Christine Michael? He will go down at this generation's Onterrio Smith (remember the Whizzenator?). How many guys inspire enormous threads like he did in the Shark Pool with nothing to show but untapped potential. Weirder even still Seattle got a pick out of Dallas for him, and now he's back on the roster in Seattle. 4th round pick Harper didn't even make it out of camp. Seattle dumped their first rounder on Minnesota in the Percy Harvin fiasco. Well, to be fair Seattle did win the super bowl in a blow out. Maybe the Harvin deal wasn't that bad? The roster was so stacked that it didn't matter much. 

Grade: C- (Thought about the D, but that's just emotions talking. The reality is this group wasn't that bad overall). 

 

[Hooper31]

bump

 

[thriftyrocker]

Philadelphia Eagles

1.4 Lane Johnson
2.3 Zach Ertz
3.5 Bennie Logan
4.1 Matt Barkley
5.3 Earl Wolff
7.6 Joe Kruger
7.12 Jordan Poyer
7.33 David King


Players still with the team: 3

Starters: 3

Other Potential Starters: 0

Pro bowls: 0

Positives: All first 3 picks are hits. Not home runs but starters and long term NFL players. Both Johnson and Ertz were extended this offseason. Lucked out that Dion Jordan went one pick above Johnson, as this was Chip's first draft and it seemed a lock he would take the Oregon DE. Johnson is probably a top 5 player from the draft still if you re-drafted, so that's a hit, even though he's stayed at RT almost exclusively. Logan is a very good run stopper, and I think he'll do better in 4-3 than he did as an undersized NT. As fantasy players, you know Ertz has been up and down, but he at least has been solid. Kelce and Reed went after him in the same draft, but still not a bad pick by any means.

Negatives: Traded up to get Barkley in a classic "Eagles brain trust" move. "See we don't need a running QB." "I coached against Matt in the Pac 12." Everything that was bad about the Chip Kelly era echoes in that trade up + pick. Still it's a 4th round pick so taking a stab at QB isn't the worst thing. Needed secondary help and they punted on the position. Wolff was a decent player but couldn't get healthy, and was basically cut because Kelly was sick of him being hurt.. Could have taken Mathieu over Logan but with the health issues that's a wash.

Grade: B+ (if drafted hurt Kelly at all it was questionable picks in '14 and '15 and finger pointing about who messed up)

 

[Buffaloes]

1(28) DT Sylvester Williams

2 (58) RB Monte Ball

3(90) CB Kayvon Webster

5(146) DE Quanterus Smith

5(161) WR Tavarres King

6(173) OT Vinston Painter

7(234) QB Zac Dysert

notable UDFA:

RB CJ Anderson

DE/OLB Lerentee McCray

players still with team: 3

starters: 2

potential future starters (other than the 2 already starting): 0

positives

CJ Anderson jumps out as the biggest value making up for the 2nd round pick, which ended up being a bust, used on Ball. Sylvester Williams has been a solid, albeit not a flashy, NT that has helped anchor against the run. His pass rush ability, which was seen as a strength entering the draft, hasn't been a major asset thus far, but he's helped solidify the interior of the best defense in the NFL. Webster has been a special teams maven who looked like a modern-day Steve Tasker during the playoff run this past year. McCray was a solid depth edge rusher who played well on special teams and earned a 2nd contract with Green Bay this past offseason.

negatives

This is probably the biggest 'meh' draft of the Elway era. Ball busted out of the league pretty quickly. Smith was seen as a potential HR pass rusher, but never seemed to get over his knee injury that helped see him fall to the 5th round. Painter didn't make it out of TC iirc and neither King nor Dysert are with the team.

grade: B-

as underwhelming as it may be, there are players who contributed significantly to Denver's Super Bowl win this past season. Williams was a steady presence at NT that helped keep the OL from getting to the 2nd level. Webster was absolutely huge in flipping the field against Pitt, ne and Carolina during the Super Bowl run. And while he hasn't been a huge impact player at CB behind Harris/Talib/Roby, his impact was notable. Anderson showed up in big games with huge runs against ne, Cincy, and again in the playoffs when he racked up a 30-yard run in each playoff game. So while there were some misses in the draft, it did produce a handful of key players who had a hand in Denver's recent success.

 

[Deamon]

Philadelphia Eagles

1.4 Lane Johnson
2.3 Zach Ertz
3.5 Bennie Logan
4.1 Matt Barkley
5.3 Earl Wolff
7.6 Joe Kruger
7.12 Jordan Poyer
7.33 David King


Players still with the team: 3

Starters: 3

Other Potential Starters: 0

Pro bowls: 0

Positives: All first 3 picks are hits. Not home runs but starters and long term NFL players. Both Johnson and Ertz were extended this offseason. Lucked out that Dion Jordan went one pick above Johnson, as this was Chip's first draft and it seemed a lock he would take the Oregon DE. Johnson is probably a top 5 player from the draft still if you re-drafted, so that's a hit, even though he's stayed at RT almost exclusively. Logan is a very good run stopper, and I think he'll do better in 4-3 than he did as an undersized NT. As fantasy players, you know Ertz has been up and down, but he at least has been solid. Kelce and Reed went after him in the same draft, but still not a bad pick by any means.

Negatives: Traded up to get Barkley in a classic "Eagles brain trust" move. "See we don't need a running QB." "I coached against Matt in the Pac 12." Everything that was bad about the Chip Kelly era echoes in that trade up + pick. Still it's a 4th round pick so taking a stab at QB isn't the worst thing. Needed secondary help and they punted on the position. Wolff was a decent player but couldn't get healthy, and was basically cut because Kelly was sick of him being hurt.. Could have taken Mathieu over Logan but with the health issues that's a wash.

Grade: B+ (if drafted hurt Kelly at all it was questionable picks in '14 and '15 and finger pointing about who messed up)

Beat me to it.  Great analysis.  I would say that Ertz might be close to home run status if he has a huge year this year.  But ya, definitely dropped off after the top 3 rounds

 

[imjackdupp]

N.O. Saints

1.15 Kenny Vaccaro DB - Texas

3.13 Terron Armstead T - Arkansas Pine Bluff

3.20 John Jenkins DT - Georgia

5.11 Kenny Stills WR - Oklahoma

6.15 Rufus Johnson DE - Tarleton State

Notable UDFA: Tim Lelito

                         Josh Hill

Still with the team: 4

Starters: 3

Potential Starters: 1

Positives: Vaccaro has proven himself after a bit of a sophomore slump and picked up as a 5th year option. I consider this a huge win for the Saints who have had a horrific time with Db evalutations in the past. Armstead has solidified his spot on the left side and is playing at Pro Bowl levels. Jenkins became a key part of the defensive line in 2015.  Stills had a sizable role in the Wr rotation in both his seasons with the Saints and brought us back a reserve LB in Ellerbe and a 3rd round pick from Miami which turned into CB P.J. Williams who has starter potential if he can stay on the field.  Tim Lelito made 13 starts in 2015, primarily at left guard and may have the inside track on a starting job in training camp and fellow UDFA TE Josh Hill has shown flashes, and signed to a 3 year extension,  however he was outplayed by Ben Watson and will again take a back seat to new addition Coby Fleener but could be called upon to fill a starting role. 

Negatives: I would never consider a 6th rnd pick who is no longer with the team but still in the lg a negative so I would have to say besides only having 5 picks there really weren't any. 

Grade: B+        

 

[ghostguy123]

Browns.  F.  Don't even need to look.  F every year.

 

[Bri]

Titans

Guard Chance Warmack 1st

WR Justin Hunter 2nd (34th)

CB Blidi Wreh Wilson 3rd

LB Zaviar Gooden 4th

C Brian Schwenke 5th

DE Lavar Edwards 6th

CB Khalid Wooten 7th

S Damion Stafford also 7th

*************

The best Titans draft to fill needs and not over-shoot in such a long time. Top 3, 5, and 8th all got starts.

This was the first year of Whisenhunt cleaning house (which was unnecessary as Munchak liked hustlers and who doesn't?) and what seems to embody his time in Ten more than any other fact- totally inept player development.

Curiously all of these players could reasonably be traded during the current draft.

The top five are almost quite literally as good as when they came into the league, minus their egos getting crushed.

Warmack is one of the most athletic guards ever. Guards don't go #10 in drafts often. As a rookie he could be dominant one play and made to look almost foolish the next. Three seasons later, this hasn't changed. They are stuck- Anyone they draft will not be as talented and probably won't look as good in practice BUT they probably won't be inefficient on game day either.

Justin Hunter is a first round WR talent that went just outside the first due to a WR heavy draft and unsubstantiated rumors about a poor work ethic that came in just before the draft for the some terrible timing of such a rumor. Famously vocal WR coach Shawn Jefferson did get on him often his rookie year to "push him" more n more. It wasn't lazy it was more learning to go full tilt every play, every drill, every...everything. As a rookie, he was a classic sort of go deep target and occasional red zone target. He maybe had a dozen catches and five for TDs. You saw the great leaping ability and my ball mentality and ...he was to be their #1 traditional WR in year two with very little experience. Britt was sent packing, as was Damian Williams, Marc Mariani and others. Year two was brutal. 12 of 16 games the Titans didn't throw to the WR from near the start of the 2nd Q til near the start of the 4th. Whisenhunt wanted the line to run block better, QBs to go to the TE ala Gates, and Sankey to run tough like he did in college. Consequently, Hunter ran a zillion deep routes as if it would always draw coverage away from a predictable run play. He only had 30ish catches. After starting camp being forced to wear a J.A.G. jersey for just another guy (as opposed to the lofty expectations "everyone" had for him) he'd end most games catching the ire of Whis for not running his 110th pointless deep route at full speed. At times he had some drop issues and also had a nice game against top CB Haden of the Browns. 100 yards I think. That was more like a rookie season. Whisenhunt had gotten to he and Sankey (and others) and less confidence, agitation or frustration, and other things were obvious. Year three he had a bogus legal issue which got throw out at the end of camp. He was at risk to be cut and responded by being near perfect in the offseason. He learned all three WR positions and was their top WR in camp according to many. Best shape, great studious attitude....it was all there. Whis brought Hakeem Nicks to play with the 1s much of camp then be cut to waste everyone's time and Douglas to just annoy everyone and not have a distinct role. Who did what? As their line struggled yet again, they went with a 2 and 3 TE set as their base offense most weeks. That limited Hunter greatly and if he played it wasn't often thrown his way. Guess what? He's only 24. He is younger than some rookies in the current draft. He is one of many Titans that I would guess flourish without Whis around. He could be traded but we'll see. He is a regular at the top of preseason receiving lists and ...real shame they never put the effort into him like DGB last year. DGB did benefit from 3 WRs getting injured and thrust into the starting lineup and focal point role but that was good for him. Hunter's age makes him very hmmm....If he, Wright, and DGB lived up to their draft statuses they'd be one of the best WR corps in football. They haven't. They have a WR coach as OC and a former OC as WR coach so it should be good for him to get a new perspective. Best WR in camp last year, arguably best two years ago- I doubt he's cut if he's not traded.

Blidi has become known as "bleeding." He is a very athletic CB,a nice nice pick on paper. He runs alongside WRs and does nothing. He doesn't react or make a play on the ball. He's the closest fan. I wouldn't be surprised if he is statistically one of the worst CBs in NFL. He lost his starting job last year and was expected to be cut but wasn't. Maybe just maybe their two new secondary coaches can fix him. He IS right there on countless plays, so I guess it's possible but my guess is he needs a new start somewhere. 

Zaviar Gooden has been meh. Nice athlete, doesn't do anything to stand out.

Schwenke was a steal- starting center in 5th round is sweet. He always gets hurt and is average til he gets dinged up then he plays below average and ultimately sits. The Titans signed the Texans Center so Schwenke should win the battle for backup C. If he keeps staying with the team, it's still a fine pick.

Lavar Edwards is a backup 4-3 DE in the sixth round. He was with the Titans one season then traded for a conditional pick when they switched to 3-4 set. The Cowboys cut him a few weeks into that season so the Titans didn't get their 7th round conditional pick. He'd bounce around the league and be back with the Cowboys a year later. He's currently on the Bills. With low expectations of 6th rounders, never mind 6th round DEs, it's a pretty good pick if he's still in the league.

Wooten spent a year on the Titans practice squad and would be bounced for the flavor of the week. IIRC He and Rusty Smith were commonly amidst this dance.He's out of the league.

Daimion Stafford was a fine college safety. He showed up to the combine 20-30 pounds overweight and scared everyone away even though he was a fine college player at Nebraska. At his pro day he lost the weight and tested fine. I think he dropped from a 4.8 40 to 4.5/4.6 range. He's been with the Titans ever since. He's a sub that fills in well and even goes unnoticed-which is exactly what you want from a sub. When the Titans hadn't addressed Michael Griffin's spot, he was rumored to be the starter and there was only mild concern. He's pretty decent. Last year he took over as the dime-backer and did really well in that role. He's fine depth. I'm concerned if they draft a Safety(besides a top guy) he'll beat the new guy out. He could do better in coverage but he's fine as an outfielder and can really hit if the situation arises. I wouldn't be surprised if he is always their backup S and plays 8-10 years then retires. An excellent second 7th round pick. The Titans added some former Steelers DBs but not quality ones, ones the Steelers didn't want. If he beats them out, yeah chalk him up to retiring as a Titan. All the "experience in Lebeau's system" about Steelers players ignores that Titans have one (arguably two) year in that very system. It's no hands down win for former Steelers in a camp battle.

 

[Brisco54]

Bengals

Pick 21 - Eifert - VG (possible stud) starter. Pro Bowl

Pick 37 - Giovani Bernard - Starter/RB rotation, VG regular player

Pick 53 - Margus Hunt - still with team, but probably not for much longer.  Project that never came through.

Pick 84 - Shawn Williams - about to assume the role of starting safety, a role he earned with very good play last year.

Pick 118 - Sean Porter - IR rookie year, never recovered, waived, now with Jags practice squad.

Pick 156 - Tanner Hawkinson - waived in 2015, now retired

Pick 190 - Rex Burkhead - consistent special teams and rotational back and slot WR contributor.

Pick 196 - Cobi Hamilton - off and on various practice squads, currently with the Panthers.

Pick 240 - Reid Fragel - signed off the Bengals practice squad by Browns, bounced around practice squads, currently with Chiefs.

Pick 261 - TJ Johnson - sometimes starter and dependable backup

Ten picks, (an extra 2d and 2 extra 7ths):

9 of 10 still on NFL rosters

6 of 10 still with the Bengals

3 of 10 starters with the Bengals

1 of 10 Pro Bowler

Other than the miss with Hunt in the 2d, this was a very good draft for the Bengals.  A-

Great follow up to the 2012 draft that netted the Bengals six starters:  Zeitler, Kirkpatrick, Sanu, Marvin Jones, George Iloka, and all star UDFA Vontaze Burfict, plus back up Brandon Thompson.

 

[krsone21]

.

 

[FUBAR]

Titans

Guard Chance Warmack 1st

WR Justin Hunter 2nd (34th)

CB Blidi Wreh Wilson 3rd

LB Zaviar Gooden 4th

C Brian Schwenke 5th

DE Lavar Edwards 6th

CB Khalid Wooten 7th

S Damion Stafford also 7th

*************

The best Titans draft to fill needs and not over-shoot in such a long time. Top 3, 5, and 8th all got starts.

This was the first year of Whisenhunt cleaning house (which was unnecessary as Munchak liked hustlers and who doesn't?) and what seems to embody his time in Ten more than any other fact- totally inept player development.

Curiously all of these players could reasonably be traded during the current draft.

The top five are almost quite literally as good as when they came into the league, minus their egos getting crushed.

Warmack is one of the most athletic guards ever. Guards don't go #10 in drafts often. As a rookie he could be dominant one play and made to look almost foolish the next. Three seasons later, this hasn't changed. They are stuck- Anyone they draft will not be as talented and probably won't look as good in practice BUT they probably won't be inefficient on game day either.

Justin Hunter is a first round WR talent that went just outside the first due to a WR heavy draft and unsubstantiated rumors about a poor work ethic that came in just before the draft for the some terrible timing of such a rumor. Famously vocal WR coach Shawn Jefferson did get on him often his rookie year to "push him" more n more. It wasn't lazy it was more learning to go full tilt every play, every drill, every...everything. As a rookie, he was a classic sort of go deep target and occasional red zone target. He maybe had a dozen catches and five for TDs. You saw the great leaping ability and my ball mentality and ...he was to be their #1 traditional WR in year two with very little experience. Britt was sent packing, as was Damian Williams, Marc Mariani and others. Year two was brutal. 12 of 16 games the Titans didn't throw to the WR from near the start of the 2nd Q til near the start of the 4th. Whisenhunt wanted the line to run block better, QBs to go to the TE ala Gates, and Sankey to run tough like he did in college. Consequently, Hunter ran a zillion deep routes as if it would always draw coverage away from a predictable run play. He only had 30ish catches. After starting camp being forced to wear a J.A.G. jersey for just another guy (as opposed to the lofty expectations "everyone" had for him) he'd end most games catching the ire of Whis for not running his 110th pointless deep route at full speed. At times he had some drop issues and also had a nice game against top CB Haden of the Browns. 100 yards I think. That was more like a rookie season. Whisenhunt had gotten to he and Sankey (and others) and less confidence, agitation or frustration, and other things were obvious. Year three he had a bogus legal issue which got throw out at the end of camp. He was at risk to be cut and responded by being near perfect in the offseason. He learned all three WR positions and was their top WR in camp according to many. Best shape, great studious attitude....it was all there. Whis brought Hakeem Nicks to play with the 1s much of camp then be cut to waste everyone's time and Douglas to just annoy everyone and not have a distinct role. Who did what? As their line struggled yet again, they went with a 2 and 3 TE set as their base offense most weeks. That limited Hunter greatly and if he played it wasn't often thrown his way. Guess what? He's only 24. He is younger than some rookies in the current draft. He is one of many Titans that I would guess flourish without Whis around. He could be traded but we'll see. He is a regular at the top of preseason receiving lists and ...real shame they never put the effort into him like DGB last year. DGB did benefit from 3 WRs getting injured and thrust into the starting lineup and focal point role but that was good for him. Hunter's age makes him very hmmm....If he, Wright, and DGB lived up to their draft statuses they'd be one of the best WR corps in football. They haven't. They have a WR coach as OC and a former OC as WR coach so it should be good for him to get a new perspective. Best WR in camp last year, arguably best two years ago- I doubt he's cut if he's not traded.

Blidi has become known as "bleeding." He is a very athletic CB,a nice nice pick on paper. He runs alongside WRs and does nothing. He doesn't react or make a play on the ball. He's the closest fan. I wouldn't be surprised if he is statistically one of the worst CBs in NFL. He lost his starting job last year and was expected to be cut but wasn't. Maybe just maybe their two new secondary coaches can fix him. He IS right there on countless plays, so I guess it's possible but my guess is he needs a new start somewhere. 

Zaviar Gooden has been meh. Nice athlete, doesn't do anything to stand out.

Schwenke was a steal- starting center in 5th round is sweet. He always gets hurt and is average til he gets dinged up then he plays below average and ultimately sits. The Titans signed the Texans Center so Schwenke should win the battle for backup C. If he keeps staying with the team, it's still a fine pick.

Lavar Edwards is a backup 4-3 DE in the sixth round. He was with the Titans one season then traded for a conditional pick when they switched to 3-4 set. The Cowboys cut him a few weeks into that season so the Titans didn't get their 7th round conditional pick. He'd bounce around the league and be back with the Cowboys a year later. He's currently on the Bills. With low expectations of 6th rounders, never mind 6th round DEs, it's a pretty good pick if he's still in the league.

Wooten spent a year on the Titans practice squad and would be bounced for the flavor of the week. IIRC He and Rusty Smith were commonly amidst this dance.He's out of the league.

Daimion Stafford was a fine college safety. He showed up to the combine 20-30 pounds overweight and scared everyone away even though he was a fine college player at Nebraska. At his pro day he lost the weight and tested fine. I think he dropped from a 4.8 40 to 4.5/4.6 range. He's been with the Titans ever since. He's a sub that fills in well and even goes unnoticed-which is exactly what you want from a sub. When the Titans hadn't addressed Michael Griffin's spot, he was rumored to be the starter and there was only mild concern. He's pretty decent. Last year he took over as the dime-backer and did really well in that role. He's fine depth. I'm concerned if they draft a Safety(besides a top guy) he'll beat the new guy out. He could do better in coverage but he's fine as an outfielder and can really hit if the situation arises. I wouldn't be surprised if he is always their backup S and plays 8-10 years then retires. An excellent second 7th round pick. The Titans added some former Steelers DBs but not quality ones, ones the Steelers didn't want. If he beats them out, yeah chalk him up to retiring as a Titan. All the "experience in Lebeau's system" about Steelers players ignores that Titans have one (arguably two) year in that very system. It's no hands down win for former Steelers in a camp battle.

Good analysis.  You're kinder than I was going to be to this draft. My initial thought was simply :X

 

[whoknew]

I was ready to give the Lions an F (just assumed). But it turns out they did really well. 

Ziggy Ansah - 14.5 sacks last year. Definitely an up and coming pass rusher.

Darius Slay - Lions #1 corner. Definitely a bright outlook and future pro bowler.

Larry Warford - Was really good as a rookie but pretty disappointing last year. Jury is still out.

Devin Taylor - Had like 7 sacks last year and will probably start this year. Pretty good for a 4th round pick.

Sam Martin - Really solid punter. 

Theo Riddick in the 7th - Steal.

Good draft overall. Hopefully someone else will do the details but that seems pretty good.

 

[steelers1080]

Steelers

• 1 - Jarvis Jones, OLB - Solid against the run, but hardly any sacks.  Had 2014 season cut short due to injury.
  
• 2 - Le'Veon Bell, RB - A steal.
  
• 3 - Markus Wheaton, WR - Solid WR, good 3rd round value
  
• 4 - Shamarko Thomas, S - Bust, never got it between the ears.
  
• 4 - Landry Jones, QB - Passable backup QB
  
• 5 - Terry Hawthorne, CB - Injured in training camp and never recovered.
  
• 6 - Justin Brown, WR - Looked like a solid WR but had a problem with drops when called upon.
  
• 6 - Vince Williams, ILB - Very solid run-stuffing ILB. Not great in coverage.  Great value in the 6th.
  
• 7 - Nicholas Williams, DE - Never panned out
  

Overall, solid draft.  I give it a B+ purely because Le'Veon is amazing and we got 3 solid starters (Jones, Wheaton, Williams), an ok backup (Other Jones), and a special teams body (Shamarko) in addition to him.  Having 6 people from that draft still on the team means that it was a pretty solid draft and anytime you get a star a draft can be considered a success.

 

[SaintsInDome2006]

The Saints are not complicated it was a small draft.

1. Vaccaro - S - starter since rookie season, an important reliable cog, but not a turnover generator or run stopper of the sort justifying his first round selection - just extended.

3a. Armstead - T - starter, very promising future, extremely effective on the screen, has Brees' blindside, I don't recall him giving up any glaring sacks since a fairly shaky entry as starter late in his rookie year.

3b. Jenkins - DT - Third starter in 3 picks, which is great, but he has been considered part of the problem in a sieve like defensive front which has been completely ineffective especially against the run 2 years in a row now. His position is a high priority in this upcoming draft.

5. Stills - WR - He was at times extremely effective as a deep threat and reliable replacement for Lance Moore, but possibly due to locker room issues he was traded away. Arguably like Armstead a steal for where he was drafted but only 2 years of production for the team that actually drafted him.

6. Rufus Johnson - DE -  I can't recall what happened to Rufus at this point, injuries I believe, but he never emerged, largely a wasted pick at a position of need.

Overall I think 4/4 on the first 4 picks generating starters is impressive, though what level of starters do we have here? I think given the need and production you still have to give this a B+ but I think a B would be justifiable.

 

[massraider]

The Saints are not complicated it was a small draft.

5. Stills - WR - He was at times extremely effective as a deep threat and reliable replacement for Lance Moore, but possibly due to locker room issues he was traded away.

Have a fun little tidbit for you:  I was at London game last year, and met Kenny Stills' mom in elevator (she had TD ball with her).  She was very emotional, talking about what a nice kid he was.  She gets off elevator, and this guy is like, ''Yeah right!  That kid is a nightmare!''  He was the team driver/chaperone, and he said Kenny is always partying.  

That's my theory as to why they traded him, and good for them for getting something (3rd rounder, I thought?).

 

[SaintsInDome2006]

Have a fun little tidbit for you:  I was at London game last year, and met Kenny Stills' mom in elevator (she had TD ball with her).  She was very emotional, talking about what a nice kid he was.  She gets off elevator, and this guy is like, ''Yeah right!  That kid is a nightmare!''  He was the team driver/chaperone, and he said Kenny is always partying.  

That's my theory as to why they traded him, and good for them for getting something (3rd rounder, I thought?).

That's a cool story. Ha yeah I'm sure his mama thought he was a good boy. 2014 was weird in that the team collapsed from within the locker room and Stills was pegged as a core trouble maker. They got Ellerbe and a 3rd which IIRC became CB PJ Williams who is considered promising and might make an impact this year. That together with Stills' first 2 seasons is good production out of a 5th round pick. 

 

[stbugs]

Carolina Panthers 2013 draft1.14  Star Lotulelei, DT

2.12 Kawann Short, DT

4.11 Edmund Kugbila, G

5.15 AJ Klein, LB

6.14 Kenjon Barner, RBPlayers still with team: 3Starters: 2.3 (Klein has started 16 games in 3 years)Potential future starters: 3 (Klein will start somewhere else)Pro-bowls: 1Positives: In one draft we went from having a huge weakness in the interior of our D-line to have one of the best tandems in the NFL. Star is a run-stuffer/space eater so he's likely always going to be overshadowed by Short, but he is a heckuva player even if he doesn't get the pro-bowl nods. Short on the other hand is a disruptor like Suh or Sapp. He can takeover games. AJ Klein is a very good LB. He likely will see higher grades either when Thomas Davis retires or on another team. He filled in very well for Kuechly when he was hurt. In 3 starts without Kuechly last year he had 23 tackles and 1 INT. He isn't Kuechly, but don't be surprised to here about him next off-season when he signs a nice deal.Negatives: The other two picks were complete misses. Looking back at the draft I didn't see more than a couple names after Kugbila, so it looks like that area just wasn't great for picking, but after Barner I see Andre Ellington and Spencer Ware, both of whom would have much better picks and contributed quite a bit.Grade: A - I might be a little high, but they really did hit on 3 of 5 picks with 2 gigantic hits in Star/Short. It's no coincidence that Carolina has been to the playoffs all 3 years of those two's career. Again, AJ Klein is a solid LB and has played a lot, but with Kuechly there, he's not going to make much noise.

 

[sho nuff]

Packers

1.26  Datone Jones

2.29  Eddie Lacy

4.12  David Bakhtiari

4.25  JC Tretter

4.28 Jonathon Franklin

5.26 Micah Hyde

5.34 Josh Boyd

6.25 Nate Palmer

7.10 Charles Johnson

7.18  Kevin Dorsey

7.26 Sam Barrington

Players still with team: 7Starters: 2ish (Barrington has started and may start...Tretter is capable but lost out to Linsley when he got hurt...Hyde has started)...Potential future starters: 3 (as mentioned above...Barrington may start at ILB...Jones could slide in with Raji gone and Guion in the middle)Pro-bowls: 1 (Lacy as an alternate to Peterson when he dropped out of it in 2013)

Lacy has been up and down (#s wise and weight now).  Great rookie year and has shown flashes...but last year was not great.  Bakhtiari is similar.  He has not been a big liability or anything...but is not necessarily the anchor at LT at all.  Still solid and good value in the 4th.  Jones has been disappointing and hurt a lot.  But has started contributing more.  Tretter was pretty good, but lost his starting gig when he got hurt and Linsley filled in well for him.  He now provides quality depth at C and G.  Franklin showed flashes  before succombing to a career ending neck injury.  Interned with the team in the front office and now works for Notre Dame.  Hyde has started...but is now more just depth and in sub packages and special teams.  Never great, never terrible.  Decent for a 5th rounder.  Boyd played a little as rookie and even a few starts in 2014.  Hurt most of last year.   Palmer was blah when he came in after injuries...no longer with the team.  Johnson did nothing while here...then moved on to get some hype elsewhere.  Dorsey was similar...but did even less after his hype.  Barrington hurt last year and figures to compete for a starting ILB job this season.

Average draft really...could get very good if Lacy's weight being down helps him regain form.  Getting an LT and starting caliber C in the 4th round is pretty darn good.  Jones can make this a much better draft too (and anything out of Barrington and Boyd at this point is gravy).

Solid B- draft?  With potential to be even better...or to drop it to C- range.

 

[JoeSteeler]

Love the word "maven".

 

[IndyHavoc]

2013    Indianapolis Colts Draft
    1    1    24    24    Bjoern Werner    DE    Florida State
     2    3    24    86    Hugh Thornton    G    Illinois
     3    4    24    121    Khaled Holmes    C    USC
     4    5    6    139    Montori Hughes    DT    Tennessee-Martin
     5    6    24    192    John Boyett    DB    Oregon
     6    7    24    230    Kerwynn Williams    RB    Utah State
     7    7    48    254    Justice Cunningham    TE    South Carolina

Players still with Team: 2

Players still on NFL roster(s): 5

Starters: 1.75 (Thorton, + 1/2 for Holmes, + 1/4 for Werner)

Note: 2nd rounder traded for Vontae Davis (CB)

Not a lot from me on OL analysis. It's not been a strength, so I'm assuming neither Thorton or Holmes are world beaters.  Werner was a huge bust. Anything that the rest of the draft does in the NFL will be for other teams; as the Colts either released or practice squad'd and got swiped up.  I'd say using the 2nd rounder for Vontae was an excellent move overall, but the players actually picked in the draft have been extremely underwhelming.

Grade: C- maybe even D+

 

[Hankmoody]

Oakland Raiders

1.12    D. J. Hayden     Cornerback
Poor pick thus far.  Can't cover the news and can't tackle so a move to safety is unlikely.

2.37    To CIN for Carson Palmer
Trade done by previous regime, can't fault 2013 draft grade for this one.

2.42    Menelik Watson     Offensive tackle
On and off player.  Hasn't grasped the many chances he's had defaulted to him.  Not awful though and in 2013 era Oakland, that's something.

3.66    Sio Moore     Linebacker
Flashed great things before an injury.  Fell out with coaches and was dumped on Indy for a late 2016 pick.  Still hasn't fully recovered.

4.100    To TBB for 4.112 and 6.181
Move down 12 spots and picked up a 6th

4.112    Tyler Wilson     Quarterback
And then failed the follow-up pick.  Might be the fastest an early 4th has been out of the league.

6.172    Nick Kasa     Tight end
Solid blocking TE.  Nice find in the 6th

6.174    From ARI (Carson Palmer)    To HOU for 6.184 and 7.233
The return we got for Carson Palmer.  Awful move

6.181    Latavius Murray     Running back
Solid pick.  This was the payment for moving down 12 spots in the 4th so with as bad as that pick was, at least the reward paid off.  Missed rookie year, flashed 2nd year, very solid 1k yards third season.  An average/slightly above average talent that's likely to be replaced, but has been much better than anyone else at the position for us in the meantime.  Solid return for a 6th round pick.

6.184    Mychal Rivera     Tight end
Useful receiving TE for a couple of years but they upgraded in 2015 draft (Clive Walford)

6.205    Stacy McGee     Defensive tackle
Solid contributor at DT

7.209    Brice Butler     Wide receiver
Flashed and dumped on Cowboys for a solid move-up in 2016 draft.

7.219    From CAR (Louis Murphy)    To ARI w/ Palmer for 6.174
Part of the Palmer trade to ARI.  Give up Palmer, move from a 7th to a 6th.  Did I mention this was awful?  If not - it's awful.

7.233    David Bass     Defensive end
Still in the league but not with Oakland.  Roster filler.
 

Summary
An OK OT, a solid RB, a contributing rotational DT, and some late 2016 draft love.  Terrible.

C- only because they didn't waste the 2nd themselves.

 

[Kiddnets]

Jets drat 2013 - Idzick 's tenure

First Round, 9th Pick (9th overall): CB Dee Milliner, Alabama - Terrible pick - only made because they traded Revis....guy never showed top 10 talent and couldnt stay on the field....will be cut after this year.

First Round, 13th Pick (13th overall): DL Sheldon Richardson, Missouri - great pick - unless he gets taken out by stupid off season issues this is a great pick and major talent.  

Second Round, 7th Pick (39th overall): QB Geno Smith, West Virginia - started some games but never developed or showed off any franchise QB skills.  

Third Round, 10th Pick (72nd overall): OG Brian Winters, Kent State - mediocre backup caliber OG

Fifth Round, 8th Pick (141st overall): OT Oday Aboushi, Virginia - mediocre backup caliber OT

Sixth Round, 10th Pick (178th overall): OL William Campbell, Michigan - gone

Seventh Round, 9th Pick (215th overall): FB Tommy Bohanon, Wake Forest - started as FB - solid 7th rd pick

Team also traded a 4th rder for Chris Ivory which was great deal. 

Team grade:  I'll give them a C+  Whiffed on Millner and Geno....landed a stud in Sheldon along with some backup OL and a FB....I was thinking C but the Ivory deal raises it to the C+  

 

[Bri]

Good analysis.  You're kinder than I was going to be to this draft. My initial thought was simply :X

thanks. Sorry if I stole your thunder. If you look again at 2013 picks, I do think it is entirely possible they draft the same positions again. If that happens, if these guys get cut...this could quickly be a horrible draft. They're on the team today though.

 

[stbugs]

2013    Indianapolis Colts Draft
    1    1    24    24    Bjoern Werner    DE    Florida State
     2    3    24    86    Hugh Thornton    G    Illinois
     3    4    24    121    Khaled Holmes    C    USC
     4    5    6    139    Montori Hughes    DT    Tennessee-Martin
     5    6    24    192    John Boyett    DB    Oregon
     6    7    24    230    Kerwynn Williams    RB    Utah State
     7    7    48    254    Justice Cunningham    TE    South Carolina

Players still with Team: 2

Players still on NFL roster(s): 5

Starters: 1.75 (Thorton, + 1/2 for Holmes, + 1/4 for Werner)

Note: 2nd rounder traded for Vontae Davis (CB)

Not a lot from me on OL analysis. It's not been a strength, so I'm assuming neither Thorton or Holmes are world beaters.  Werner was a huge bust. Anything that the rest of the draft does in the NFL will be for other teams; as the Colts either released or practice squad'd and got swiped up.  I'd say using the 2nd rounder for Vontae was an excellent move overall, but the players actually picked in the draft have been extremely underwhelming.

Grade: C- maybe even D+

Wow, that is a pretty bad draft when ignoring the trade.

I feel bad for Luck. Go back and look at the Colts drafts from 2007 to 2015 and it isn't very kind at all. You find a few good guys like Hilton and Castonzo, but more often you see 1st round picks like Donald Brown, Anthony Gonzalez, Werner, Dorsett and Jerry Hughes (playing great for Buffalo). The Colts need a big talent infusion (someone posted in the mock draft that they are the oldest team by average age?) and they've been pretty bad at it for years except with Luck where they had no choice.

 

[Dan Hindery]

Bengals

Pick 21 - Eifert - VG (possible stud) starter. Pro Bowl

Pick 37 - Giovani Bernard - Starter/RB rotation, VG regular player

Pick 53 - Margus Hunt - still with team, but probably not for much longer.  Project that never came through.

Pick 84 - Shawn Williams - about to assume the role of starting safety, a role he earned with very good play last year.

Pick 118 - Sean Porter - IR rookie year, never recovered, waived, now with Jags practice squad.

Pick 156 - Tanner Hawkinson - waived in 2015, now retired

Pick 190 - Rex Burkhead - consistent special teams and rotational back and slot WR contributor.

Pick 196 - Cobi Hamilton - off and on various practice squads, currently with the Panthers.

Pick 240 - Reid Fragel - signed off the Bengals practice squad by Browns, bounced around practice squads, currently with Chiefs.

Pick 261 - TJ Johnson - sometimes starter and dependable backup

Ten picks, (an extra 2d and 2 extra 7ths):

9 of 10 still on NFL rosters

6 of 10 still with the Bengals

3 of 10 starters with the Bengals

1 of 10 Pro Bowler

Other than the miss with Hunt in the 2d, this was a very good draft for the Bengals.  A-

Great follow up to the 2012 draft that netted the Bengals six starters:  Zeitler, Kirkpatrick, Sanu, Marvin Jones, George Iloka, and all star UDFA Vontaze Burfict, plus back up Brandon Thompson.

Nice writeup. 2013 is one of the few drafts in recent years where the Bengals didn't find much on Day 3. Definitely a little disappointing considering they had 6 picks and Burkhead is the only one who ever made any impact (and a pretty minor one at that). 

But going 3/4 on the early picks was huge and Eifert could end up being one of the top players to come out of that draft. So definitely an A-/B+ type of grade. 

 

[FUBAR]

thanks. Sorry if I stole your thunder. If you look again at 2013 picks, I do think it is entirely possible they draft the same positions again. If that happens, if these guys get cut...this could quickly be a horrible draft. They're on the team today though.

not at all, you wrote much gooder than me.

 

[massraider]

not at all, you wrote much gooder than me.

That's rare, I normally cannot follow Bri's posts.  It's like a stream of conciousness thing that my linear brain cannot handle.

 

[5Rings]

1(18). Eric Reid, Safety, LSU.  Very good young S, above average starter.
2(40). Cornellius "Tank" Carradine, Defensive End, Florida State.  Hasn't done a damn thing.  Last chance with a move to LB looming....might be a bust.
2(55). Vance McDonald, Tight End, Rice.  Supposed to be a receiving TE; hands so far make VD look like ODB.  Last chance but looking like bust.
3(88). Corey Lemonier, Outside Linebacker, Auburn.  Hasn't done a damn thing.  BUST.  Roster spot in questions.
4(128). Quinton Patton, Wide Receiver, Louisiana Tech.  Hasn't done a damn thing, has a chance again this year to step up.  Doubt it.  Bust.
4(131). Marcus Lattimore, Running Back, South Carolina.  Nice story on paper.  Retired.
5(157). Quinton Dial, Defensive Lineman, Alabama.  Very solid starting DL.  Just re-upped.
6(180). Nick Moody, Linebacker, Florida State.  Had a chance, couldn't take advantage, cut and recently arrested.
7(237). B.J. Daniels, Quarterback, South Florida.  Gone.
7(246). Carter Bykowski, Offensive Tackle, Iowa State.  Gone.
7(252). Marcus Cooper, Defensive Back, Rutgers.  Still in league with KC.

Typical Balke draft.  Missed on both 2nd rounders, 3rd, and 4ths.  Dial was the best pick after Reid.

Players still with Team: 6

Players still on NFL roster(s): 7

Starters: 2 Reid, Dial.  2 maybe Vance, Patton on paper for now.

Grade D

 

[Chicago Hooligan]

Packers

1.26  Datone Jones

2.29  Eddie Lacy

4.12  David Bakhtiari

4.25  JC Tretter

4.28 Jonathon Franklin

5.26 Micah Hyde

5.34 Josh Boyd

6.25 Nate Palmer

7.10 Charles Johnson

7.18  Kevin Dorsey

7.26 Sam Barrington

Overall I agree with the B- rating. A draft high on value but low on flash. Going into the draft the roster gaps were pretty obvious as Chad Clifton was released and Nick Collins confirmed he would not return to football.

Datone Jones must be considered a bust with 8.5 sacks in 3 years and now he'll start playing at OLB. If he can't learn a thing or two from Julius Peppers then his best hope is going to a different team next year--which seems likely.

Lacy's career to date is well-known but I'd argue that he was a great pick even with the dud third year. Recall that that the best Packers RB between Ahman Green and Lacy was Ryan Grant, who was only good for 2.5 years himself. I hope Lacy stays in town.

Bakhtiari was drafted to be the RT but immediately had to start at LT when Bulaga was lost for the year. He has mostly been good (enough to move Bulaga back to RT).

Hyde was just a solid value pick. Great in extra DB formations, no ability to start. Weird combination of slow-ish coverage speed but enough gas to take 3 punts back for TDs.

Barrington would be a great find as a 7th rounder if he makes it back to starting form. Only a question mark for now.

 

[Bri]

That's rare, I normally cannot follow Bri's posts.  It's like a stream of conciousness thing that my linear brain cannot handle.

Ouch. I know I ramble but...alright probably need to take a sec n pause before I post some long winded thing. Probably helpful, thanks

 

[Hooper31]

The thing I appreciate most about this thread every year is it gives me some perspective on what an average draft looks like. I think people WAY over-value 2nd and 3rd draft picks. Guys that make a serious impact taken in those rounds exist, but they're not near as frequent as we like to think they are. Later round picks are nearly throw-away items. I'm guessing the number of successful UDFAs are way more plentiful than guys taken in the 6th and 7th rounds. Yes, its a much larger volume of players, but still...

 

[stbugs]

The thing I appreciate most about this thread every year is it gives me some perspective on what an average draft looks like. I think people WAY over-value 2nd and 3rd draft picks. Guys that make a serious impact taken in those rounds exist, but they're not near as frequent as we like to think they are. Later round picks are nearly throw-away items. I'm guessing the number of successful UDFAs are way more plentiful than guys taken in the 6th and 7th rounds. Yes, its a much larger volume of players, but still...

I think the thing I appreciate is having a great GM (Gettleman) now. Marty Hurney wasn't awful at drafting, he took Kuechly, got Norman in the 5th, Greg Hardy in the 6th (people forget his 26 sacks in 2012/13 before we put him on the shelf), etc. His biggest issue was bad contracts and trading up too often and always for the wrong guy.

I posted this in another thread, but it fits here. When you can hit on picks at this rate, you can take a team led by Newton/Kuechly/Davis from a 6-10/7-9 team into 3 straight playoff appearances and a 17-2 season.

2013: Lotulelei, Short and Klein (5th) (crappy 4th and 6th, 3rd and 7th traded)

2014: Benjamin, Ealy, Turner, Boston, Beniwickere, (6th was crap pick)

2015: Thompson, Funchess, Williams (4th), Mayo (5th), Artis-Payne (5th) (traded away 3rd, 6th and 7th)

That's 2 pro-bowlers, 2-3 potential future pro-bowlers, 4-5 solid contributors who should be starting in 2016 and 3 backups who will contribute on special teams and hopefully not have to, but could start with injuries. 3 bad picks in 3 years. I'd be more than happy to have him use some of our extra picks and move up to continue to grab some of the gems he has the past few years. Newton, Kuechly and Norman got a huge amount of the press last year and obviously played a big part, but drafts like these are the reason we went to the SB when we weren't picked as a contender instead of bowed out early the previous two playoffs..

 

[massraider]

The thing I appreciate most about this thread every year is it gives me some perspective on what an average draft looks like. I think people WAY over-value 2nd and 3rd draft picks. Guys that make a serious impact taken in those rounds exist, but they're not near as frequent as we like to think they are. Later round picks are nearly throw-away items. I'm guessing the number of successful UDFAs are way more plentiful than guys taken in the 6th and 7th rounds. Yes, its a much larger volume of players, but still...

Doesn't make them less valuable, it just points out how difficult predicting football success is.

Most 2nd or 3rd rounders don't become impact players.  Well, OK, where do they come from?  

The teams that drafted best in the first three rounds have the best teams, year in and year out.  There are always teams that find talent late, and that makes a good team great, but it doesn't mean that they are less valuable.  

 

[Tau837]

Chargers:

• 1.11 (11) - DJ Fluker, T, Alabama
  
• 2.6 (38) - Manti Teo, LB, Notre Dame
  
• 3.14 (76) - Keenan Allen, WR, Cal
  
• 5.12 (145) - Steve Williams, CB, Cal
  
• 6.11 (179) - Tourek Williams, DE/OLB, Florida International
  
• 7.15 (221) - Brad Sorenson, QB, Southern Utah
  

Players still with team: 5 (for now... not sure if Tourek Williams will make the team this year)

Starters: 3

Potential future starters: 3

Pro-bowls: 0

Positives:

• Allen is the gem of this draft, particularly since he was only 21 when drafted. He would have made the Pro Bowl last season if he didn't get hurt.
  
• Steve Williams showed flashes last season, which is promising, but he is at best the team's 4th corner right now and for the near term future, barring injuries ahead of him. (Yes, I am reaching for positives here.)
  

Negatives:

• Some would say that 3 starters and 5 players on the roster represent a good draft. The problem I have with that is that the Chargers had a lot of holes on their roster at the time of this draft (and, sadly, that is still true today). Any competent GM should have been able to draft 3 starters and 5 players who made the roster for 3 seasons.
  
• Used a high first round pick on Fluker to address a position of need (RT), and his play has been below average, to the point that the Chargers signed Barksdale to play RT last offseason and moved Fluker inside to RG, with mixed results. IMO the team did not get a good return on this pick.
  
• Traded up in the second round to draft Teo, giving up their fourth round pick in the process. Teo has been average at best to date and has missed 13 games in 3 seasons. He has 2 interceptions, 1 forced fumble, 0 fumble recoveries, 1.5 sacks, and 149 tackles in 3 seasons. IMO the team did not get a good return on these picks.
  

Grade: D. Drafting Allen in the third isn't enough to offset getting poor return on first, second, and fourth round picks and no real gems in the later rounds.

 

[moleculo]

Denver Broncos 2013 draft

1(28) DT Sylvester Williams

2 (58) RB Monte Ball

3(90) CB Kayvon Webster

5(146) DE Quanterus Smith

5(161) WR Tavarres King

6(173) OT Vinston Painter

7(234) QB Zac Dysert

notable UDFA:

RB CJ Anderson

DE/OLB Lerentee McCray

players still with team: 3

starters: 2

potential future starters (other than the 2 already starting): 0

positives

CJ Anderson jumps out as the biggest value making up for the 2nd round pick, which ended up being a bust, used on Ball. Sylvester Williams has been a solid, albeit not a flashy, NT that has helped anchor against the run. His pass rush ability, which was seen as a strength entering the draft, hasn't been a major asset thus far, but he's helped solidify the interior of the best defense in the NFL. Webster has been a special teams maven who looked like a modern-day Steve Tasker during the playoff run this past year. McCray was a solid depth edge rusher who played well on special teams and earned a 2nd contract with Green Bay this past offseason.

negatives

This is probably the biggest 'meh' draft of the Elway era. Ball busted out of the league pretty quickly. Smith was seen as a potential HR pass rusher, but never seemed to get over his knee injury that helped see him fall to the 5th round. Painter didn't make it out of TC iirc and neither King nor Dysert are with the team.

grade: B-

as underwhelming as it may be, there are players who contributed significantly to Denver's Super Bowl win this past season. Williams was a steady presence at NT that helped keep the OL from getting to the 2nd level. Webster was absolutely huge in flipping the field against Pitt, ne and Carolina during the Super Bowl run. And while he hasn't been a huge impact player at CB behind Harris/Talib/Roby, his impact was notable. Anderson showed up in big games with huge runs against ne, Cincy, and again in the playoffs when he racked up a 30-yard run in each playoff game. So while there were some misses in the draft, it did produce a handful of key players who had a hand in Denver's recent success.

I don't know if I'd go that high.  Whiffing on Ball was pretty bad.  Really, the only thing keeping this from a solid D is CJ Anderson, and technically, he wasn't drafted.

 

[Bri]

The thing I appreciate most about this thread every year is it gives me some perspective on what an average draft looks like. I think people WAY over-value 2nd and 3rd draft picks. Guys that make a serious impact taken in those rounds exist, but they're not near as frequent as we like to think they are. Later round picks are nearly throw-away items. I'm guessing the number of successful UDFAs are way more plentiful than guys taken in the 6th and 7th rounds. Yes, its a much larger volume of players, but still...

Teams only get 2 or 3 6th n 7th round players but 10-20 UDFAs so there's some probability there.

There's a common theory that some 6th and much of 7th is about drafting guys that are unlikely to agree to be a UDFA on your team. Old timey GMs don't subscribe to this thinking. 

One thing people assume is that 7th rounders make more than UDFAs. That's not always the case, not at all.

For the Titans and original 2015 contracts-

WR Tre McBride(7th) made a smidge less than WR Andrew Turzilli (UDFA)

LB Deiontrez Mount (6th) made about 100 grand less (389k) than UDFA LB JR Tavai and LB Yannick Cudjoe Virgil (480k each)

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Vikings

1.23 - Sharrif Floyd DT Florida 

1.25 - Xavier Rhodes DB Florida State 

1.29 - Cordarrelle Patterson WR Tennessee 

4.120 - Gerald Hodges LB Penn State 
San Fran

5.155 - Jeff Locke P UCLA 

6.196 - Jeff Baca G UCLA 
UFA

7.213 - Michael Mauti LB Penn State 
Saints

7.214 - Travis Bond G North Carolina 
UFA

7.229 - Everett Dawkins DT Florida State
UFA

Still with team: 4

Starters: 2.5 (punter counts for a half)

Pro Bowls: A couple, I think

Positives: Floyd and Rhodes are developing into awesome players.

Negatives: Everything else, especially Patterson who is an epic disappointment.

Overall grade: C-

 

[Buffaloes]

Denver Broncos 2013 draft

I don't know if I'd go that high.  Whiffing on Ball was pretty bad.  Really, the only thing keeping this from a solid D is CJ Anderson, and technically, he wasn't drafted.

if Denver hadn't won the Super Bowl this past year, I'd probably agree. I initially had it at a C+/B-, but the homerism is still so strong right now

I'd say this looks like the weakest draft of the Elway as GM era though

 

[Long Ball Larry]

FWIW, here is what I get for AV from PFR for each team's draft from 2010-2013.


Row Labels


2010


2011


2012


2013


Grand Total


SEA


190


180


199


31


600


DEN


192


149


86


28


455


CIN


139


136


106


46


427


NWE


189


104


75


50


418


PIT


186


72


71


71


400


HOU


96


150


92


52


390


MIA


140


82


114


45


381


GNB


153


79


43


100


375


PHI


117


77


112


59


365


SFO


177


113


17


50


357


ARI


109


104


65


70


348


CLE


117


108


103


17


345


DAL


99


134


38


72


343


KAN


127


95


64


54


340


STL


100


62


108


69


339


CAR


91


89


105


52


337


WAS


78


107


106


36


327


BUF


65


120


79


48


312


SDG


90


89


64


63


306


MIN


56


69


113


58


296


TEN


75


111


59


51


296


TAM


98


54


93


49


294


OAK


120


78


27


66


291


DET


116


33


54


86


289


BAL


56


101


70


58


285


IND


78


42


123


34


277


ATL


78


98


34


49


259


NYJ


33


95


65


58


251


NOR


88


70


33


57


248


CHI


59


65


47


64


235


JAX


51


46


55


71


223


NYG


81


43


44


37


205


Grand Total


3444


2955


2464


1751


10614

 

[bud29]

Chiefs:

Eric Fisher, Travis Kelce, Knile Davis, Nico Johnson, Sanders Commings, Eric Kush, Braden Wilson, Mike Catapano

Players still with team: 3 (Fisher, Kelce, Davis)

Starters: 2 (Fisher, Kelce)

Potential future starters: 0

Positives: Kelce, Kelce, Kelce. Great 3rd round pick. Davis is a good kick returner.

Negatives: Fisher is a solid starting LT, but not the stud you would want from 1.01. That being said, he's turned out better than the next two picks (Joeckel and Jordan), so I guess we did OK. Past Davis, none of the players are on the team any more.

Grade: B-. GM John Dorsey's first draft with KC, and he pretty much hit with his first two picks (one being a stud TE), so you can't complain a whole lot. Would've been nice to get a solid contributor from one or two of those late round picks.

 

[tommyGunZ]

San Diego Charger 2013 draft

• 1.11 (11) - DJ Fluker, T, Alabama
  
• 2.6 (38) - Manti Teo, LB, Notre Dame
  
• 3.14 (76) - Keenan Allen, WR, Cal
  
• 5.12 (145) - Steve Williams, CB, Cal
  
• 6.11 (179) - Tourek Williams, DE/OLB, Florida International
  
• 7.15 (221) - Brad Sorenson, QB, Southern Utah
  

Players still with team: 5Starters: 3Potential future starters: 3Pro-bowls: 0Positives: Fluker has been a solid starter since day 1 on the right side, starting at T for the first two years and then moving inside to G last year.  Teo started 13 games as a rookie, then suffered through an injury plagued 2nd year before really coming into his own in 2015, leading the team in tackles despite only playing 12 games due to injury.  He's poised to be the team leader on defense moving forward with Weddle gone. 3rd rounder Keenan Allen would likely be a top 5-10 pick if the 2013 draft was done today. He finished 2nd in offensive ROY voting in 2013 based on his 71 catches for > 1000 yards.  After a team leading 77 catches in year 2014, Allen started 2015 on a tear with 62 catches in the Chargers first 7 games, leading the entire NFL at that point before having his kidney lacerated in week 8.  A Pro Bowl, if not All Pro season was ruined, but it's safe to say the Chargers Rd 3 pick in 2013 was perhaps the best pick in the entire 2013 draft.  

Steve Williams has provided depth at corner and shown flashes of being starter quality at times.  Tourek Williams has provided roster depth but not much else.  Sorenson has provided 3rd QB depth going back and forth between the roster and practice squad numerous times. Negatives: Negative nannies will nit-pick and argue that Fluker isn't an annual Pro Bowler and Teo is injury prone, but both are very solid starters who are 25 years old now and a big part of the Chargers future.  Allen is obviously the pick that makes this draft a special one.Grade: A 

ETA:  Yesterday SI posted a "2013 draft analysis" based on the 3 years of data we now have.  They rated the Chargers has having the best draft in the entire NFL and gave San Diego an "A+".  Hat tip to Maurile for the link.

 

[cheese]

Bengals would be better if Eifert would stay on the field.  

Grade C

2 regulars which might become 3 this year

Hunt was a disaster and Gio has been pretty good.  Williams looks interesting, but we're going on year 4 and he still hasn't started a game.  I can't crush them any worse than C though because they basically hit on the top 2 picks.  I can't grade them higher than this just based on a guy with 1,000 yrds over 3 years.  

 

[tommyGunZ]

The thing I appreciate most about this thread every year is it gives me some perspective on what an average draft looks like. I think people WAY over-value 2nd and 3rd draft picks. Guys that make a serious impact taken in those rounds exist, but they're not near as frequent as we like to think they are. Later round picks are nearly throw-away items. I'm guessing the number of successful UDFAs are way more plentiful than guys taken in the 6th and 7th rounds. Yes, its a much larger volume of players, but still...

Agree with this 100%.  At draft time, folks get WAY overhyped about players beyond round 2-3.  I've seen Tom Telesco eviserated for using his 4th rounders to move up and take players he targeted earlier in drafts, while the data suggests that 4th rounders rarely impact a roster.  Of course at draft time data doesn't matter, because "WE COULD HAVE REALLY SOLIDIFIED OUR DL WITH THAT 4th ROUND DT IF TELESCO WASN'T AN IDIOT!!!!" rules the day.  

 

[Tau837]

Chargers:

• 1.11 (11) - DJ Fluker, T, Alabama
  
• 2.6 (38) - Manti Teo, LB, Notre Dame
  
• 3.14 (76) - Keenan Allen, WR, Cal
  
• 5.12 (145) - Steve Williams, CB, Cal
  
• 6.11 (179) - Tourek Williams, DE/OLB, Florida International
  
• 7.15 (221) - Brad Sorenson, QB, Southern Utah
  

Players still with team: 5 (for now... not sure if Tourek Williams will make the team this year)

Starters: 3

Potential future starters: 3

Pro-bowls: 0

Positives:

• Allen is the gem of this draft, particularly since he was only 21 when drafted. He would have made the Pro Bowl last season if he didn't get hurt.
  
• Steve Williams showed flashes last season, which is promising, but he is at best the team's 4th corner right now and for the near term future, barring injuries ahead of him. (Yes, I am reaching for positives here.)
  

Negatives:

• Some would say that 3 starters and 5 players on the roster represent a good draft. The problem I have with that is that the Chargers had a lot of holes on their roster at the time of this draft (and, sadly, that is still true today). Any competent GM should have been able to draft 3 starters and 5 players who made the roster for 3 seasons.
  
• Used a high first round pick on Fluker to address a position of need (RT), and his play has been below average, to the point that the Chargers signed Barksdale to play RT last offseason and moved Fluker inside to RG, with mixed results. IMO the team did not get a good return on this pick.
  
• Traded up in the second round to draft Teo, giving up their fourth round pick in the process. Teo has been average at best to date and has missed 13 games in 3 seasons. He has 2 interceptions, 1 forced fumble, 0 fumble recoveries, 1.5 sacks, and 149 tackles in 3 seasons. IMO the team did not get a good return on these picks.
  

Grade: D. Drafting Allen in the third isn't enough to offset getting poor return on first, second, and fourth round picks and no real gems in the later rounds.

Here is some more data:

PFF on Fluker:

• 110 players played snaps at OG in 2015; Fluker's PFF grade ranked #93 among that group.
  
• 81 players played at least 300 snaps at OG in 2015; Fluker's PFF grade ranked #67 among that group.
  
• Fluker had below average grades in both graded categories (run blocking, pass blocking).
  

Fluker has been below average in every season since he was drafted. He disappointed enough in his first two seasons that the team signed a replacement RT in Barksdale and moved Fluker to RG, a position that is generally regarded as a lower value position. That is not good return on the #11 pick in the draft. Sure, he hasn't been a complete bust... is that how low the bar has been placed to call a first round pick successful now? Not to me.

PFF on Teo:

• 177 players played snaps at LB in 2015; Teo's PFF grade ranked #173 among that group. Bottom 5 out of 177 players.
  
• 97 players played at least 300 snaps at LB in 2015; Teo's PFF grade ranked #93 among that group. Bottom 5 out of 97 players.
  
• Teo had below average grades in each graded category (run defense, pass rush, pass coverage) and had the 4th worst grade at run defense among all players graded.
  

Teo most assuredly did not "come into his own" in 2015 and is certainly not "poised to be the team leader on defense moving forward." In fact, the opposite is true, which is presumably why Telesco felt compelled to draft ILBs Perry and Brown in this year's draft, despite having drafted ILB Perryman in 2015 and Teo in 2013. Teo will be a UFA after this season, and the team will very likely let him go if he doesn't completely turn things around this season.

As I said in my first post on this, Allen was a great pick. The rest of the draft was bad, period. That SI article used a poor methodology to come up with questionable rankings.

 

[Tau837]

The thing I appreciate most about this thread every year is it gives me some perspective on what an average draft looks like. I think people WAY over-value 2nd and 3rd draft picks. Guys that make a serious impact taken in those rounds exist, but they're not near as frequent as we like to think they are. Later round picks are nearly throw-away items. I'm guessing the number of successful UDFAs are way more plentiful than guys taken in the 6th and 7th rounds. Yes, its a much larger volume of players, but still...

Regarding the bolded, sure, there are many people who overrate those picks. Yet those picks are still very valuable.

Approximately 30% of the starters in the league are drafted in the 2nd and 3rd rounds combined, roughly the same as are drafted in the first round.

Approximately 23% of the All Pros in the league were drafted in the 2nd and 3rd round combined, about half as many as are drafted in the first round.

Also, you are correct that more UDFAs than 6th and 7th rounders are successful, though, as you point out, the reason for that is probably in the numbers.

See Tracking NFL Draft Efficiency: How Contingent Is Success To Draft Position?

 

[Tau837]

San Diego Charger 2013 draftGrade: A