We’re still handing out 2016 NFL draft grades. Let’s get to it.
New York Giants
The haul: Eli Apple, CB, Ohio State – Round one, Sterling Shepard, WR, Oklahoma – Round two, Darian Thompson, Safety, Boise State – Round three, B.J. Goodson, OLB, Clemson – Round four, Paul Perkins, RB, UCLA – Round five, Jerrell Adams, TE, South Carolina – Round six
The Giants opened the draft with a shocker, taking Ohio State cornerback Eli Apple with their first pick. The controversy didn’t come from Apple not being a first-round talent, he was, but that the Giants didn’t put their focus on another player or trade down later in the round and then pick Apple. As it is, he was obviously their guy and they didn’t want to take the chance on missing him. I’ve made it clear that nobody knows anything about quarterbacks and the draft, but it really goes for every position. Everyone thought Sammy Watkins and Mike Evans were the best wide receivers in the 2014 draft. Turns out it was Odell Beckham Jr. and it’s not even been close. So the Giants have a history of picking against the pundits and winning.
Shepard is a solid pick up in round two and Thompson is probably a round two talent the Giants nabbed in round three. My favorite pick out of the later rounds is Paul Perkins out of UCLA. I see Perkins as a dual threat, all-around running back who could very well be starting for the Giants midway through the season.
Grade: B-
New York Jets
The haul: Darron Lee, OLB, Ohio State – Round one, Christian Hackenberg, QB, Penn State – Round two, Jordan Jenkins, OLB, Georgia – Round three, Juston Burris, CB, N.C. State – Round four, Brandon Shell, OT, South Carolina – Round five, Lac Edwards, Punter, Sam Houston State – Round seven, Charron Peake, WR, Clemson – Round seven
Just like the last draft the Jets had to come out of this one with a quarterback. And just like the last draft, they picked the wrong one. And, again, I know none of us know anything about quarterbacks, but come on. Pro Football Focus didn’t even give Hackenberg a draftable grade. He’s so far away from where he needs to be as a pro it’s hard to see what Todd Bowles and the Jets were thinking. Especially with Connor Cook and Dak Prescott sitting right there. The Jets are far from the only team making a mystery decision at quarterback in this draft, but to waste a second round pick doing it definitely makes them unique.
I’m not sure how much competition the Jets would have on Lac Edwards either. Drafting a punter always seems like a waste since there are so many available and undrafted and even regular free agents every year. You could probably count the punters who have heard their names counted on draft day over the last five years on one hand and have fingers left over. Charron Peake is an interesting prospect at wide out and may end up being the second best player, after Lee in the first round, the Jets landed here.
Grade: D
Oakland Raiders
The haul: Karl Joseph, Safety, West Virginia – Round one, Jihad Ward, DE, Illinois – Round two, Shilique Calhoun, DE, Michigan State – Round three, Connor Cook, QB, Michigan State – Round four, DeAndre Washington, RB, Texas Tech – Round five, Cory James, OLB, Colorado State – Round six, Vadal Alexander, OG, LSU – Round seven
Defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr.’s fingerprints are on this draft. He learned to coach in Seattle and convinced the team to spend a first round pick on a safety, even though no safety I saw had a first-round grade. That doesn’t mean Joseph won’t be a good player and if he’s anything like Kam Chancellor or Earl Thomas, then the Raiders will be laughing all the way to the playoffs.
Oakland went defensive end on their next two picks, a position they definitely needed an upgrade. Connor Cook is an interesting pick in the fourth. Not only because he was my No. 3 ranked quarterback, but that he was a lot of people’s No. 3 or No. 4-ranked quarterback. The Raiders use a fourth round pick on some injury insurance for Derek Carr and maybe some trade bait as Cook develops. It’s what Green Bay has been doing for years.
Grade: C+
Next: Eagles, Steelers and Chargers
