2014 NFL Draft Recap

The NFL Draft has come and gone, and this year proved to be as engaging as any. Johnny Manziel plummeted into the late first round and it made for must watch T.V. as the former Heisman trophy winner watched the Browns pass on him twice before selecting him 22^nd overall (that will be addressed a little later). Jacksonville certainly had no issue selecting their quarterback, and while many have already criticized the selection of Blake Bortles, 3^rd overall, but there is little denying that this move will either make or break the franchise (Bye bye northern Florida and hello southern California!).  Buffalo made a bold move, Dallas assured that their defense will be even worse than last years, and New England drafted their apparent “heir apparent”. There were engaging stories throughout the entire draft, all the way up to the selection of the first openly gay football player Michael Sam in the seventh round to the Rams. Never before has there been a draft with so many story lines, and many of them will be address here in my 2014 NFL Draft Recap.

3 Winners

St. Louis Rams

1^st: Greg Robinson, OT, Auburn

1^st: Aaron Donald, DT, Pittsburgh

3^rd: Lemarcus Joyner, CB, Florida State

4^th: Tre Mason, RB, Auburn

5^th: Mo Alexander, S, Utah State

6^th: EJ Gaines, CB, Missouri

6^th: Garrett Gilbert, QB, SMU

7^th: Mitchell Van Dyk, C.B. Bryant, Michael Sam, Demetrius Rhaney

Why They Are Winners:

            I love when teams who are on the brink continue to improve on what they already do well. The Rams are an incredibly tough team on the defensive side fof the ball, and they continued to get stronger by adding the second best defensive player in the draft at the 13^th spot. Aaron Donald as I am sure you have heard time and time again, is the best three technique in the draft, and to pair him with one of the best sackers in the game in Robert Quinn was a obvious/brilliant move by Jeff Fisher and the front office. But with the first pick, the Rams committed to their offensive line and running game by selecting what may be the next best run-blocker in NFL history, in Greg Robinson. The Rams are clearly going after what they believe their identity needs to be. Tough, mean and nasty…if these picks work out, the Rams may be able to beat the 49ers and Seahawks at their own game.

Buffalo Bills

1^st: Sammy Watkins, WR, Clemson

2^nd: Cyrus Kouandjio, OT, Alabama

3^rd: Preston Brown, ILB, Louisville

4^th: Ross Cockrell, CB, Duke

5^th: Cyril Richardson, OG, Baylor

7^th: Randall Johnson, LB, Florida Atlantic

7^th: Seantrel Henderson, T, Miami

Why They Are Winners:

            Buffalo needed another impact player on offense and they were able to get the best impact player on offense in Sammy Watkins. While many have went after the Bills for surrendering a first round pick next year, a year that promises better quarterbacks, it is important to understand the status of the Bills right now. First thing is first, the Bills are in no way thinking of selecting a quarterback in the 2015 NFL Draft. E.J. Manuel was a bold pick in last year’s draft, and his first year was littered with injuries. When Manuel was not hurt, he played ok to say the best, but no where near bad enough to declare him a bust. He was too hurt to declare him anything. First round quarterbacks get at least three years to prove what they are, the Bills will be giving EJ more time. They are still in that honeymoon phase with Manuel, and their goal is to continue to surround him with impact players. Watkins is one of those guys. The Bills now have one of the fastest teams in the league, with Manuel, Spiller, Watkins manning the skills spots on the offense.

            The Bills then continued to provide relief to the offensive line, finding great value in their picks of Cyrus Kouandijo and Cyril Richardson, who were both once considered first round selections. Both have their issues, but talent is not one of them. If Buffalo can maximize their abilities, they will have strengthened their biggest weakness in a very efficient way. Now these moves may not vault the Bills into Super Bowl or even playoff status, but if these moves work out, 7-9 or 9-7, are very realistic expectations.

Houston Texans

1^st: Jadeveon Clowney, DE, South Carolina

2^nd: Xavier Su’a-Filo, G, UCLA

3^rd: C.J. Fiedorowicz, TE, Iowa

4^th: Louis Nix, DT, Notre Dame

5^th: Tom Savage, QB, Pittsburgh

6^th: Jeoffrey Pagan, DE, Alabama

6^th: Alfred Blue, RB, LSU

6^th: Jay Prosch, FB, Auburn

7^th: Andre Hal, CB, Vanderbilt

7^th: Lonnie Bellantine, DB, Memphis

Why They Are Winners:

            I think Bill O’Brien did a very good job in his first draft, despite the fact that the Texans were unable to trade out of the number one spot. Simply put, if Clowney decides to fully commit himself to his trade, the move works out in a great way. But even if it does not, the Texans did a great job finding value throughout the draft to fill important holes. Su’a-Filo is the best guard in the draft hands down, and he has the character and intangibles to be one of the best in the NFL. Fiedorowicz, Nix, and Savage were all great picks, based on need and where they fell in the draft. Nix was not just projected to be a first round, he should have been a first round pick, and the Texans were able to grab him in round 4! Savage could have been the 4^th quarterback off the board, and he was taken in the 5^th round. There is a lot fo the Texans to be excited about besides having potentially the best pass rusher since Bruce Smith.

3 Losers

Miami Dolphins

1^st: Ja’Wuan James, T, Tennessee

2^nd: Jarvis Landry, WR, LSU

3^rd: Billy Turner, T, North Dakota State

4^th: Walt Aikens, CB, Liberty

5^th: Arthur Lynch, TE, Georgia

5^th: Jordan Tripp, OLB, Montana

6^th: Matt Hazel, WR, Coastal Carolina

7^th: Terrance Fede, DL, Marist

Why They Are Losers:

            Even though the Dolphins finished with an 8-8 record a year ago, and were on the cusp of making the playoffs, there is a vast difference between the Dolphins and the Rams. The Dolphins are much further away from being a playoff threat. The AFC, a much weaker conference than the perennial NFC, is very top heavy, as it was a year ago when Miami nearly made a dramatic run at a wild-card berth. But so were the Jets, Steelers, Ravens, and Titans. The Jets, Steelers, and Ravens were calculating in their selections, selecting positions of needed while getting great value, but also selecting players who can be immediate impacts. The Dolphins did not do that. Instead they drafted a right tackle in the first round, and only left tackles should be taken in the first (James was a projected 2^nd-3^rd rounder). They selected Jarvis Landry in the second, where the position should have been addressed in the first round. Or they could have taken a cornerback that they desperately needed like a Jason Verrett. Whereas the rest of the AFC East had either excellent drafts, or big off-seasons’, Miami had an unproductive offseason.

Dallas Cowboys

1^st: Zack Martin, G, Notre Dame

2^nd: Demarcus Lawrence, OLB, Boise State

4^th: Anthony Hitchens, LB, Iowa

5^th Devin Street, WR, Pittsburgh

7^th: Ben Gardner, Will Smith, Ahmad Dixon, Ken Bishop Terrance Mitchell

Why They Are Losers:

            The Dallas Cowboys were historic last year in terms of how bad their defense was. So with the first pick for the Dallas Cowboys…they select a guard. While all eyes were on Dallas as Johnny Manziel, which many would say would have been an awful decision, and rightfully so, instead of Jerry Jones shooting himself in the foot by picking “Johnny Football”, he decided to shoot himself in the ankle instead. Zack Martin is a terrific football player, who can play guard, tackle, and maybe even a little center but he was a player Dallas did not need at that spot. And then the Cowboys made moves, like trading up for Demarcus “My Last Name Is Not Ware” Lawrence to try and emulate what Demarcus Ware used to be. But that was a major reach in the second round, which I think plagued the Cowboys throughout the rest of the draft. The Cowboys, with this defense they will roll into camp with, will be historic once again. Poor Tony Romo.

Carolina Panthers

1^st: Kelvin Benjamin, WR, Florida State

2^nd: Kony Ealy, DE, Missouri

3^rd: Trai Turner, G, LSU

4^th: Tre Boston, S, North Carolina

5^th: Bene Benwikere

6^th: Tyler Gaffney, RB, Stanford

Why They Are Losers:

            The Panthers most glaring hole was at the wide receiver position, and in a draft so epically deep at that position, the Panthers just completely ignored the obvious. I actually liked the selection of Benjamin, while he is very raw, he does have drop issues (but a lot do in this WR class) he is very athletic, he is a big target that Cam Newton can find in the red zone, and he has more physical tools than most receivers in this class do. It might have been early, but Benjamin would not have been around for the Panthers second selection. But with the second pick, the Panthers decided to go with Ealy from Missouri, who is a good rusher, but not an are that needed to be filled. Allen Robinson was on the board, he would have been a great fit, or Donte Moncrief from Ole Miss. The Panthers really emerged a season ago, but the other NFC powers (Seahawks, 49ers, and Packers) filled and improved major holes and weaknesses, Carolina rolls into 2014 with the same ones from a year ago.

Other Notables

New England Patriots

            Drafting Dominique Easley was a typical Bill Belichick pick, everyone had an idea of what position he would want to address, but no clue who that person would be. Easley was a monster at Florida before two ACL injuries, it was those injuries that scared a lot of teams away, which is why he was projected to go in the second or third round. But that apparently did not scare the Patriots front office, as Easley will look to provide some relief to Vince Wilfork, who is nearing the end of his career.

            Then the Patriots finally pulled the trigger on selecting “The Brady Successor” by drafting Jimmy Garoppolo in the second round. Ryan Mallet is coming to into the final year of his deal, but he has not impressed in many of his preseason outings. Make no mistake Garoppolo was a selection for the future, and at age 37, “L.A.B. (Life After Brady)” needed to be addressed.

            The Patriots addressed the issues on the line by selecting Bryan Stork and Cameron Fleming to fill some holes and add some depth. Then they selected to very productive college players in James White (4^th Round) and Jeremy Gallon (7^th). But the Patriots did not address the Tight End position, and if Gronkowski cannot stay healthy and if Aaron Dobson and Kembrell Tompkins can’t make giant steps forward, the Patriots offense will take another step backwards.

Grade: C+

New York Jets

            It is very rare that I like what the Jets do, but not the Patriots. But the Jets had a very nice draft. Their first two selections I thought were safe and logical selections; Pryor provides much needed safety help, and his style of play matches what Rex Ryan style: aggressive and hard-hitting. Jace Amaro was the most productive tight end in college football, and while Eric Ebron and Austin Seferian-Jenkins have a high ceiling because of their size and athletic ability, you know what you are going to get out of Amaro. Amaro has sure hands, a big frame and he will provide Geno Smith/Michael Vick with a solid red-zone threat.

            I even like the selections of Jalen Saunders and Shaquelle Evans. The Jets were very weak in the wide receiver department, and while they added Eric Decker during free agency, the Jets lacked receiver depth. Saunders and Evans both experienced success in major conferences against stiff competition. While neither are projected to amount to alittle more than a 3^rd or 4^th receiving option, both have different attributes that can be utilized. Saunders is a good route runner, with good speed, where Shaquelle Evans is a large target who can win a lot of jump balls.

Grade: B

New York Giants

            Odell Beckham Jr. was high on a lot of teams boards, and apparently the Giants by selecting him 12 overall. He provides the Giants with another weapon but he is the same style player as Victor Cruz. But Beckham and Cruz are undersized guys who depend on getting separation in order to make big plays, however the Giants needed a different weapon. The running and blocking (both run block and pass blocking) needed to be addressed and the Giants failed to do so. Richburg is a solid center, but the Giants could have benefitted from drafting a Zach Martin from Notre Dame.

            Then the defense needed to be tackled as well. Aaron Donald would of fit perfectly but the Giants decided to go with Beckham. And the Giants were unable to land a defensive player who they can count on in 2014-2015 to produce. The rest are purely projects.

Grade: C

Cleveland Browns

            The Cleveland Browns were the story of the draft by trading back, then trading up, and then selecting Johnny Manziel. While the rest of Cleveland is excited about the potential of Manziel electrifying the Dog Pound, there was a lot that went wrong here. Cleveland passed on drafting Manziel twice, and not even Nastradamus himself could have predicted that not one team would have jumped before the Browns to select him. Simply put, if “Johnny Football” was their quarterback of the future, they would not have passed on him twice. Ownership wanted Manziel, and the coaching staff wanted Justin Gilbert from Oklahoma State, so the front office satisfied both, and created a potential, even longer, soap opera. Jay Gruden already has experience dealing with when ownership and the coaching staff disagree over the quarterback, and he seems to have inherited the same issue.

            If Josh Gordon is suspended for the 2014-2015 season, the Browns skill positions are weak to say the least. Quarterback incumbent Brian Hoyer may win the job by Week 1, but the lack of weapons, and the desire by ownership and the fans to throw Manziel into the fire will be too much for the new coaching staff. This has disaster written all over it.

Grade: C-

2015 NFL Mock Draft

Pick	Team	Player	College	Position
1	Tennessee	Marcus Mariota	Oregon	QB
2	Houston	Jameis Winston	Florida State	QB
3	Miami	Brett Hundley	UCLA	QB
4	Minnesota	Shillique Calhoun	Michigan State	DE
5	Jacksonville	Cedric Ogbuhei	Texas A&M	OT
6	Washington	Amari Cooper	Alabama	WR
7	Cleveland	Todd Gurley	Georgia	RB
8	Oakland	P.J. Williams	Florida State	CB
9	Dallas	Bryce Petty	Baylor	QB
10	Pittsburgh	Devonte Fields	TCU	DE/OLB