Looking at the grades below, I have to feel like I’d be the dream college professor. But these are honest assessments of the guys the AFC North teams picked in the draft with the caveat that you can’t really judge a draft for about three seasons. My first urge, looking at these draft rosters, was to give all the teams an A+ grade and roll on.
But there was enough to parse with these picks to vary the grades some. Still, the entire AFC North did excellent work over the weekend and, if a certain quarterback works out, this will be a decade-defining draft for some of these teams.
Cincinnati Bengals
The Haul: Round 1: John Ross, WR, Washington, Round 2: Joe Mixon, RB, Oklahoma, Round 3: Jordan Willis, OLB, Kansas State, Round 4: Carl Lawson, OLB, Auburn, Round 4: Josh Malone, WR, Tennessee, Round 4: Ryan Glasgow, DT, Michigan, Round 5: Jake Elliott, Kicker, Memphis, Round 5: J.J. Dielman, Center, Utah, Round 6: Jordan Evans, LB, Oklahoma, Round 6: Brandon Wilson, RB, Houston, Round 7: Mason Schreck, TE, Buffalo
Grade: A+
The Bengals let the draft come to them and ended up with my No. 2-rated wide receiver, No.3-rated running back and No. 5-rated defensive end. The Tennessee Titans overvaluing Corey Davis allowed Ross, who could be the fastest player ever in the NFL, to land with the Bengals. Mixon will be the best running back on the Bengals roster from day one. Willis and Lawson are both starters and Josh Malone will see the field early in the slot as a deep threat to go with the three other speedsters in Cincinnati’s wideout corps.
Jordan Evans and Brandon Wilson both bring a lot of value in the sixth round. I had higher grades on both guys.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Haul: Round 1: T.J. Watt, OLB, Wisconisin, Round 2: JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, USC, Round 3: Cameron Sutton, CB, Tennessee, Round 4: James Conner, RB, Pittsburgh, Round 4: Joshua Dobbs, QB, Tennessee, Round 5: Brian Allen, CB, Utah, Round 6: Colin Holba, long snapper, Louisville,Round 7: Keion Adams, OLB, Western Michigan
Grade: A
The Steelers never make moves in the draft, preferring to just stay in their spots and select the guys from their board. It keeps them stocked up every season and might be a good lesson for the rest of the NFL to take. Watt has the potential to be a super star at outside linebacker in Pittsburgh’s 3-4 system. Smith-Schuster was my No. 3-rated wide receiver, two spots ahead of Corey Davis and will probably run Martavis Bryant out of town, regardless of what Bryant tweets. James Conner is an interesting pick.
Running back is far from a need for the Steelers, so this signals they’d like to move on from bringing back DeAngelo Williams as their back up running back.
You’re going to see and read a lot about Joshua Dobbs being the “quarterback of the future” for the Steelers, but I don’t expect that to happen. He’s probably the smartest player in this draft and the best future astronaut to ever play in the NFL, but he tops out as a very good back up quarterback. The search for Roethlisberger’s replacement should continue in the next draft.
What’s with the long snapper pick? Odd choice to wast a sixth rounder on a spot every other team fills with undrafted free agents. Is he that good? I can honestly say I did no evaluation at all on long snappers in my draft prep.
Cleveland Browns
The Haul: Round 1: Myles Garrett, DE, Texas A&M, Round 1: Jabril Peppers, Safety, Michigan, Round 1: David Njoku, TE, Miami, Round 2: DeShone Kizer, QB, Notre Dame, Round 3: Larry Ogunjobi, DT, NC State, Round 4: Howard Wilson, CB, Houston, Round 5: Roderick Johnson, OT, Florida State, Round 6: Caleb Brantley, DT, Florida, Round 7: Zane Gonzalez, Kicker, Arizona State, Round 7: Matt Dayes, RB, NC State
Grade: A-
I questioned whether to give the Browns this grade, considering they had the chance to grab Deshaun Watson at No. 12 after passing on him at No. 1 and didn’t pull the trigger. Instead, the Houston Texans got the best quarterback in this draft and the Browns accrued more picks, including an extra first rounder next season. It’s not a bad move, but if Watson turns into the next Dak Prescott, and I think he will, the Browns will have to answer the Carson Wentz questions all over again.
Howard wilson was a solid value pick in the fourth round and Roderick Johnson in the fifth will probably be a starter at right tackle in a year.
The key to this draft is Kizer. Obviously Garrett, if he’s motivated, should be a star defensive end and I think Peppers and Njoku were outstanding gets later in the first round. With the Browns cutting Gary Barnidge over the weekend, Njoku is already penciled in as the starter at tight end. The entire key to this draft is Kizer. All the physical tools are there. Can Hue Jackson develop him into an NFL quarterback? It won’t happen this year and since the Browns just used a second round pick on him, it doesn’t have too. Jackson can roll with Brock Osweiler or Cody Kessler this season and still has two first round picks to spend next year. I just think they’ll regret passing on Watson, especially when he takes the Texans to the playoffs this season.
Baltimore Ravens
The Haul: Round 1: Marlon Humphrey, CB, Alabama, Round 2: Tyus Bowser, OLB, Houston, Round 3:, Chris Wormley, DE, Michigan, Round 3: Tim Williams, OLB, Alabama, Round 4: Nico Siragusa, OG, San Diego State, Round 5: Jermaine Eluemunor, OG, Texas A&M, Chuck Clark, CB, Virginia Tech
Grade: A-
The Ravens already had a solid draft grade in the bag with their first three picks, but adding Tim Williams to the mix late in round three really put this one over the top. I like Williams better than Bowser, but both should be deadly outside pass rushers for Baltimore for the next four years. Humphrey was my No. 2 corner behind Marshon Lattimore from Ohio State and they didn’t have to move a spot to get him.
Wormley from Michigan will be in the rotation from day one and probably take over a starting spot by season’s end. Siragusa and Eluemunor both have the capability to develop into solid NFL guards.
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