While the following teams didn’t merit the “A+” ranking of the Best of the Best, there’s plenty of reasons to celebrate their draft boards coming together. These teams improved cross the board with a couple instantly putting themselves in a potential playoff hunt.
Who gets a gold star sticker on their draft board? Let’s take a look.
Jacksonville Jaguars
The haul: Dante Fowler Jr. (OLB, Florida, round one), T.J. Yeldon (RB, Alabama, round two), A.J. Cann (OG, South Carolina, round three), James Sample (SS, Louisville, round four), Rashad Greene (WR, Florida State, round five), Michael Bennett (DT, Ohio State, round six), Neal Sterling (WR, Monmouth, round seven) and Ben Koyack (TE, Notre Dame, round seven)
Teams fell in love with Fowler in a way that shocked me. The Jaguars weren’t the only team to have him ranked above Leonard Williams on their board and to hear the Redskins tell it, there were tons of trades in the works if Fowler were to fall to them at No. 5. The Jags added two more starters in rounds two and three, with Cann a plug-and-play guard that can back-up Week One and be ready to start by Week Nine. Yeldon is a bruising running back and will be a much-needed weapon for the Jaguars on offense. Sample is one of the most underrated players in this draft and getting Michael Bennet in the sixth round is completely ridiculous.
Grade: A-
Miami Dolphins
The haul: DeVante Parker (WR, Louisville, round one), Jordan Phillips (NT, Oklahoma, round two), Jamil Douglas (OG, Arizona State, round four), Bobby McCain (CB, Memphis, round five), Jay Ajayi (RB, Boise State, round five), Cedric Thompson (FS, Minnesota, round five) and Tony Lippett (WR, Michigan State, round five)
With three fifth round picks, it would be difficult to not hit an RBI at least with one of them, but I think the Dolphins nabbed at least two potential starters in Lippitt and Ajayi. Parker in the first round was a complete no-brainer pick, based again on my established rules, and plugging Phillips in on the defensive line next to Ndamukong Suh should scare everybody.
Grade: B+
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The haul: Jameis Winston (QB, Florida State, round one), Donavan Smith (OT, Penn State, round two), Ali Marpet (C, Hobart &William Smith, round three), Kwon Alexander (OLB, LSU, round four), Kenny Bell (WR, Nebraska, round five), Kaelin Clay (WR, Utah, round six) and Joey Iosefa (FB, Hawaii, round seven)
The Bucs pulled the trigger on Jameis Winston and then did everything they possibly could to help him be successful over the next few rounds. They added speedster wideout Kenny Bell in the fifth round to put with Vincent Jackson and Mike Evans, giving them three home run threats in the passing game. Smith and Marpet are two of the higher graded offensive linemen and will add depth early, if not start a month into the season on the line. Alexander is a steal in the fourth round and will push Bucs starter Danny Lansanah right out of the gate. This draft, of course, all comes down to Winston and whether he’ll mature as a man, or continue down his current path. On talent alone though, you can’t argue with the pick and if he pans out, the Bucs are set for the next 15 years.
Grade: A-
New York Giants
Ereck Flowers (OG, Miami, round one), Landon Collins (SS, Alabama, round two), Owagbe Odighizuwa (DE, UCLA, round three), Mykkele Thomspon (S, Texas, round five), Geremy Davis (WR, UConn, round six) and Bobby Hart (OG, Florida State, round seven)
The Giants made the biggest move of round two, trading with the Titans to get the top pick and immediately selecting Landon Collins, the best safety in the draft. Their best pick came in the third round, stealing Owagbe Odighizuwa off the table when I had him as a high second rounder. Returning defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo will have plenty of toys to work with and the offense gets a needed starter on the line.
Grade: A-
Oakland Raiders
The haul: Amari Cooper (WR, Alabama, round one), Mario Edwarts Jr. (DT, Florida State, round two), Clive Walford (TE, Miami, round three), Jon Feliciano (OG, Miami, round four), Ben Heeney (ILB, Kansas, round five), Neiron Ball (OLB, Florida, round five), Max Valles (OLB, Viginia, round six), Anthony Morris (OT, Tennessee State, round seven), Andre Debose (WR, Florida, round seven) and Dexter McDonald (CB, Kansas, round seven)
The Raiders didn’t listen to any of the pre-draft presumptions about Kevin White being the better pro prospect. Instead, they went with the guy that proved it on the field over and over again in Cooper. Adding Edwards in the second round puts two big-time starters on the Raiders’ roster and Andre Debose brings blazing speed to a suddenly deep wide receiver corps.
Grade: B+
Minnesota Vikings
The haul: Trae Waynes (CB, Michigan State, round one), Eric Kendricks (ILB, UCLA, round two), Danielle Hunter (DE, LSU, round three), T.J. Clemmings (OT, Pittsburgh, round four), MyCole Pruitt (TE, Southern Illinois, round five), Stefon Diggs (WR, Maryland, round five), Tyrus Thompson (OT, Oklahoma, round six), Austin Shepherd (OT, Alabama, round seven) and Edmond Robinson (OLB, Newberry, round seven)
The Vikings didn’t get two eventual starters out of this draft. They didn’t get three starters or four. Instead, when I look at that draft board I see five guys (Waynes, Kendricks, Hunter, Clemmings and Pruitt) that will start on opening day 2016 and if that doesn’t make it a great draft, I don’t know what could.
Grade: A
