Its the morning after the first round of the draft, I honestly fell asleep after the 12th pick partly because I’m an old man and partly because the guys I was curious about had largely gone. So having done ZERO research on what others are saying and no real research on it, I’m just gonna give you my off the cuff first impressions of the first ten picks. Remember, no research, no fact finding, this is gut check time:
- Baker Mayfield to the Browns: I had been advocating that the Browns could have gone Barkley in this spot and still gotten the guy they wanted and I think I was right. Mayfield might have gone to the Jets at 3 if he had been there, but that would still leave at least 2 of the Rosen, Darnold, Allen group to choose from and that is presuming the Giants don’t take Chubb with the second overall pick, in which case they would all be there and there is a decent chance the Jets would have passed on Mayfield to begin with. All in all, its a terrible pick in my opinion, Mayfield is a talented young man but he was not the best QB in this draft, let alone the best available player at that moment. Pick Grade: D
- Saquon Barkley to the Giants: I loved this pick. This kid moves like Barry Sanders when avoiding tackles, can shrug off solo tackles like Jerome Bettis and has nothing but positive said about him. He was, in my opinion, the best offensive player in the draft and the Giants wasted no time going to get him. This was the pick they had to make. The criticism that they need to find Eli’s successor is valid, but you can’t pass up a guy like this. Pick Grade: A
- Sam Darnold to the Jets: It was crystal clear when they moved up here that they were looking at QB. This pick shocked no one. I think the only question was which QB they would select and ultimately they chose Darnold. I would have gone with Josh Allen personally, but the Jets are clearly looking at a guy with a lot of upside in this pick. The Jets have almost as bad a history as the Browns do with first pick Quarterbacks and the concern that passing on Allen for Darnold smells a lot like passing on Marino to draft O’Brien is valid, but I think ultimately they did what they had to do and time will tell us if they made the right call. Pick Grade: B-
- Denzel Ward to the Browns: I’m sure Denzel Ward is a great guy and he’s obviously a tremendous talent. I’m equally sure the Browns looked at their secondary at the end of the season and had major concerns, but what in the H$%^ H$#@ is this H@#$% S@!$?!? Are you kidding? With Bradley Chubb sitting there and a pass rush that, in fairness, got better as the year went on but is still below average. With Quenton Nelson sitting there and a fresh new franchise QB to protect. With a run stopping LB that has been compared to Ray Lewis in Roquan Smith. The Cleveland Browns selected a corner back. I get it, their secondary is terrible, but their whole defense needed help and you just lost the best OL in your history to retirement in Joe Thomas. This was a ridiculous pick that smells of panic and poor planning. I can only assume that they were trying desperately to trade out of that pick and failed miserably. I sincerely hope Ward goes on to have a tremendous career and be a game changer, but you passed over guys you needed a lot more than a cornerback. Pick Grade: F
- Bradley Chubb to the Broncos: In my mind’s eye, I imagine the coaches sitting around with John Elway discussing what they are gonna do when Cleveland takes Chubb at 4. They of course had a plan, they had months to plan, they likely had a name in mind, maybe one of the QBs or an OL from Notre Dame, they were just waiting for Cleveland to make their pick and then they would make their move to improve their team on the offensive side of the ball. Then the pick comes in from Cleveland, and I imagine someone in the room did a spit take with their coffee. Somehow, someway, Bradley Chubb had survived to them. The Giants had gone with Barkley and set the stage for Cleveland to grab Chubb and it simply didn’t happen. Thats what I imagine happened. What then definitely happened is the Broncos saw a player they likely did not expect to reach them, drop to their slot and they did not hesitate to grab him. This will make Von Miller very happy and will improve the Denver defense by a ton. In a division with Melvin Gordon and Kareem Hunt, this is a pick that makes them instantly better. Pick Grade: A
- Quenton Nelson to the Colts: A team that had a bunch of needs on defense took a look at the board and said, ‘If Andrew Luck is coming back, we cannot let him get hit anymore’ and drafted appropriately. Clearly the best OL in the draft and right around where I’ve seen him go in most mock drafts, its a good building block for a team that sorely needs to rebuild. Pick Grade: B
- Josh Allen to the Bills: It was no secret that Tampa wanted defense in this draft and that the Bills wanted a QB. So when Josh Allen was still sitting here and the phone rang, Tampa was more than happy to accommodate the Bills request for a trade. ‘Move down five spots, you say? You have a bunch of extra picks to work with you say?’ A lot of folks had Allen as the best QB in the draft and the scary and stupid tweets that emerged are a question mark, but he was worry free in Wyoming and in a small market like Buffalo, they should be able to keep him out of trouble. Pick Grade: A-
- Roquan Smith to Da Bears: I liked this pick almost as much as I liked Barkley to the Giants. The Bears offense is trying to get its feet under it with Trubisky and doesn’t really need more uncertainty. Established players and incoming veterans make this the ideal time to focus on their terrible defense and they did that with a guy who may end up being the next Brian Urlacher. Pick Grade: A-
- Mike McGlichey to the 49ers: Another Notre Dame lineman in the first round. Well they just spent a ton of cash on their QB, I guess its time to protect him. I’m not sure how I feel about this pick, I think the defense could have used a boost here and there was some decent first round talent. This feels like a pick for 2019 rather than right now. In the first round, I’m usually focused on right now so I m not a hug fan of this pick. Pick Grade: C+
- Josh Rosen to the Cardinals: So at this point, the Oakland Raiders stand up and point to their phone, then point at Rosen and then point back at their phone and the Cardinals ring in with a really solid offer. Probably concerned that the Dolphins might be looking at Tannehill and Taylor and worrying a little bit, they moved up and it was a good move. Rosen will have growing pains and I was not thrilled how he handled the media going 10th, but if he can get his legs under him, it could be a good start. Never forget, both Mannings started their first season and struggled before winning Super Bowls. Pick Grade: B
So there are my thoughts on the first ten picks. There are other guys I’d like to discuss but I’l save that for the Podcast. Don’t forget to leave us a review on ITunes or wherever you get your Fignuts on.
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