More 2016 draft grades? We’re not done yet.
Philadelphia Eagles
The haul: Carson Wentz, QB, North Dakota State – Round one, Isaac Seumalo, OG, Oregon State – Round three, Wendell Smallwood, RB, West Virginia – Round five, Halapoulivaati Vaitai, OT, TCU – Round five, Blake Countess, CB, Auburn – Round six, Jalen Mills, Safety, LSU – Round seven, Alex McCalister, DE, Florida – Round seven, Joe Walker, ILB, Oregon – Round seven
The Eagles made their mammoth trade for a quarterback and still managed to keep some picks in this draft. How well they used those picks is an entirely different issue. Philadelphia’s weird quarterback situation aside, this was an odd draft all the way around until round five of all places. They picked all over the place until settling into what looked to be the best SEC player left on their board. Not a lot to complain about there.
The whole draft, and probably the Doug Pederson regime, is going to be judged on what becomes of Carson Wentz. There’s a couple of thoughts on when Wentz will play. It seems crazy for me to sit a No. 2 pick for a year, or even two, if you feel he’s ready. Wentz, more than Goff or maybe anybody in this draft, was ready to take over immediately. The Eagles said, at least back when they made the trade, that Sam Bradford was still their starter. How long will that last? It’s difficult to tell. The Chargers sat Philip Rivers when they had Drew Brees. Aaron Rodgers carried a clipboard for years, but he was behind Brett Favre. Bradford hasn’t shown himself to be either of those guys. My guess is probably half a season unless he unleashes some kind of Kurt Warner/Drew Brees stat show and win streak.
Grade: C+
Pittsburgh Steelers
The haul: Artie Burns, CB, Miami – Round one, Sean Davis, CB, Maryland – Round two, Javon Hargrave, DT, South Carolina State – Round three, Jerald Hawkins, OT, LSU – Round four, Travis Feeney, OLB, Washington – Round six, Demarcus Ayers, WR, Houston – Round seven, Tyler Matekevich, OLB, Temple – Round seven
The Steelers seem to find a way to puzzle me on every draft day. Picking Burns makes sense if you just value speed, but he didn’t have higher than a second-round grade anywhere that I can find. In fact, my guess is Davis, their second rounder, graded out higher than Burns on plenty of boards. On the bright side, it’s not like they weren’t draftable players with NFL talent. But if that’s the best you can say, then it’s not saying a lot.
Pittsburgh’s draft got less inspired as it rolled on. There doesn’t seem to be any gems here and no one, not even the first and second rounders, that looks like they’ll be ready to start on day one. The Steelers have some of the best coaches in the business and can probably turn all these guys into something down the road. It would have been nice to pick a guy or two that would be an impact player this season.
Grade: D
San Diego Chargers
The haul: Joey Bosa, DE, Ohio State – Round one, Hunter Henry, TE, Arkansas – Round two, Max Tuerk, Center, USC – Round three, Joshua Perry, ILB, Ohio State – Round four, Jatavis Brown, OLB, Akron – Round five, Drew Kaser, Punter, Texas A&M – Round six, Derek Watt, FB, Wisconsin – Round six, Donavon Clark, OG, Michigan State – Round seven
The Chargers stunned the world when they took Joey Bosa with the No. 3 pick in the draft. Everybody thought they’d take Laremy Tunsil, including me. I was so sure Tunsil would be a Charger that in four mock drafts I never put him with another team. Now. maybe if someone in Tunsil’s life hadn’t sabotaged his draft day by hacking his twitter and instagram they would have, but we’ll never know. Hell, Bosa didn’t even have a clue himself.
If Mike McCoy is on his last legs in San Diego, he’ll have a hell of a team to sink with. Bosa has the potential to be anything from Chris Long to J.J. Watt or anywhere in between. Henry is an instant starter in two tight end sets and will make a seamless transition from Antonio Gates when he finally retires. Tuerk and Perry could both end up starting before the year’s out. And speaking of J.J. Watt, the Chargers drafted his brother to play fullback. I don’t get the punter pick in the sixth, but if you need one, you need one and by drafting him you lock him in for at least four years on a cheap contract.
Grade: A
