NFC West Draft Review

NFC West Draft Review

The Rams rule the roost out west in the NFC with the Seahawks trying to keep pace. Both teams have taken a few hits to the roster while Arizona is in full rebuild mode and San Francisco is waiting for Jimmy G to get back so they can get their rebuild back on track. This draft changed the course of the Cardinals, the 49ers stayed the course, the Seahawks tried to supplement the Russell Wilson led roster and the Rams found a few helpful pieces.

Arizona Cardinals

(1) Kyler Murray QB
(33) Byron Murphy CB
(62) Andy Isabella WR
(65) Zach Allen DE
(103) Hakeem Butler WR
(139) Deionte Thompson S
(174) KeeSean Johnson WR
(179) Lamont Gaillard OL
(248) Joshua Miles OL
(249) Michael Dogbe DL
(254) Caleb Wilson TE

Immediate Impact: QB Kyler Murray, CB Byron Murphy, WR Andy Isabella
For better or for worse Kyler Murray is going to make an immediate impact on the Cardinals and they hope it’s a positive and long-lasting one. I’ve been pretty clear about my feelings towards Murray as a prospect but here he is and Kliff Kingsbury better get the best out of him or this franchise will be set back about five years. Byron Murphy was slated to be the nickel back behind Patrick Peterson and Robert Alford but with Peterson’s 6 game suspension to start the season Murphy will be counted on to start right now. He’s a solid prospect and I wouldn’t be surprised if he stays in the lineup when Peterson returns. Kingsbury’s offense is going to be predicated and speedy WR’s taking Murray’s passes and making something from them, that’s Isabella’s game, he will excel.

Best Value: S Deionte Thompson
Thompson entered the college season as a potential first-round pick and even after the season he looked like a potential first-round pick. A wrist injury hurt him a little bit and the fact that he didn’t make a ton of plays for Alabama knocked him back a bit but the Cardinals stole him in the fifth round. That’s crazy, he’s got great talent and if I were a betting man, I would bet he ends up starting at safety for this team for a large part of the season. They have Budda Baker but their other starter is DJ Swearinger and he’s not exactly a modern coverage safety. Thompson might be the best value pick of the entire draft.

Sleepers: WR Hakeem Butler, TE Caleb Wilson
Butler was a fourth-round pick but he brings a dimension to the WR corps no one else brings. He’s a huge target at 6’6 227 lbs. and he’ll make a great red zone target. The Cardinals are not deep at WR and Butler will make them better. He has some consistency issues with catching the ball but that can be developed. TE Caleb Wilson was the last pick of the draft but he will outplay that draft slot. He’s a good pass catcher who played on a pretty rough UCLA squad. The Cardinals TE position is a mishmash of odd ball players. Ricky Seals-Jones is a converted WR, Charles Clay can’t seem to stay healthy, and Maxx Williams never lived up to his draft slot in Baltimore. There is room to move up on this TE chart and Wilson is talented enough to do it.

Overall Analysis
I don’t like the Murray pick, but I actually love the rest of this draft. Byron Murphy wasn’t my favorite CB in this draft but he was a very solid 2nd round pick. Andy Isabella was one of my favorite WRs in the draft and was a steal in round three. DE Zach Allen isn’t a flashy pick but he’s a good one and he’ll be a contributor on the defensive line. Hakeem Butler in the fourth round and Deionte Thompson in the fifth round were fantastic picks, no one else did that well with their fourth and fifth round picks combined. KeeSean Johnson adds depth at WR which is something Kliff Kingsbury’s offense really needs. The offensive linemen, Lamont Gaillard and Joshua Miles, are really just developmental players but that’s okay at that point. The team did address offensive line with a free agent (JR Sweezy) and a trade (Marcus Gilbert). Michael Dogbe might add some competition to the end of the roster for training camp but he probably won’t stick. Caleb Wilson was Mr. Irrelevant at the draft but he won’t be irrelevant for the Cardinals.

Los Angeles Rams

(61) Taylor Rapp S
(70) Darrell Henderson RB
(79) David Long CB
(97) Bobby Evans OT
(134) Greg Gaines DT
(169) David Edwards OT
(243) Nick Scott S
(251) Dakota Allen LB

Immediate Impact: RB Darrell Henderson
On a team that went to the Super Bowl there are not a lot of holes to be filled and they didn’t really address their biggest ones early in the draft they did it in free agency. That said, Todd Gurley had some issues at the end of last season and the team had to rely on CJ Anderson, a street free agent. Anderson did well but now he’s off to Detroit so they will need someone to take some pressure off Gurley. Henderson is a different sort of back, he’s smaller with explosive speed. He can play in place of Gurley or just complement him, either way he’s the most likely rookie to make an impact next season.

Best Value: OT Bobby Evans
Evans is probably a little shorter than your typical LT but he has the ability to play the position. He’s excellent in pass protection and the team has an aging LT. Evans should backup Andrew Whitworth this season and he could eventually take over at the position next season. A potential starting LT in the 3rd round is pretty good value.

Sleeper: OT David Edwards
Well if Bobby Evans doesn’t work out it’s possible Edwards ends up starting at OT for the Rams someday. Wisconsin offensive linemen aren’t a bad investment, especially late in the draft. Edwards is solid but unspectacular but the last Wisconsin o-lineman the Rams drafted started at RT in the Super Bowl last year, Rob Haverstein. At the very least, Edwards is a very solid swing tackle for a long time.

Overall Analysis
The Rams first pick came in round two and they took S Taylor Rapp who was a highly productive college player who had a terrible workout at the combine that really hurt him. It was also a good safety class overall so he dropped a bit. For now, he’ll back up free agent signee Eric Weddle but Rapp has long-term starting potential for sure. Henderson will be a useful change-of-pace back at the least. CB David Long isn’t a great athlete but he’s a solid player. With the long-term future of Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib in doubt Long has a chance to be a future starter. He’s a good coverage guy who doesn’t jump off the page but does a steady job. OTs Evans and Edwards are good depth at the least and potential starters down the road. The team needed to get help at DT and they took Greg Gaines but it wasn’t until the fourth round and he’s not going to replace Ndamukong Suh. I don’t think S Nick Scott is going to make the roster but LB Dakota Allen brings a nice skill set and he has a good shot to stick around.

San Francisco 49ers

(2) Nick Bosa DE
(36) Deebo Samuel WR
(67) Jalen Hurd WR
(110) Mitch Wishnowsky P
(148) Dre Greenlaw LB
(176) Kaden Smith TE
(183) Justin Skule OL
(198) Tim Harris CB

Immediate Impact: DE Nick Bosa, WR Deebo Samuel
They probably drafted the best player in the draft in Bosa. You can make an argument for Quinnen Williams or Josh Allen but Bosa probably wins the argument in the end. The team has spent a lot of early draft capital over the past several years on the defensive line (DeForest Buckner, Solomon Thomas, Arik Armstead) but Bosa is a playmaker. This is a great pick. Samuel doesn’t look like a WR who is going to beat you, he’s not tall (he’s only 5’11), he’s not particularly fast or even quick but he will beat you, just wait for it. He’s one of my favorite players in this draft, he just knows how to play the position and get open. Jimmy G is going to love this kid. He can line up anywhere and be effective. He has a legitimate chance to lead t he 49ers in catches this year (although George Kittle will be hard to beat).

Best Value: Samuel
He was my favorite WR in this draft and they got him in round two. He was expected to go around the range of where he went but he’s a steal.

Sleeper: CB Tim Harris
The team has Richard Sherman at one CB spot and he played well last year. However, Ahkello Witherspoon took a step back last year, Jimmie Ward is really only a nickel guy and newly signed Jason Verrett has a long injury history. Harris is a long, athletic CB who had injury problems in college but if he can stay healthy, he could really make a move here.

Overall Analysis
The first two picks, Bosa and Samuel, will be starters on opening day. These two are just simply better than any veteran alternative the 49ers currently have. Bosa is a double-digit sack guy and Samuel is headed to an 80-catch season, minimum. I didn’t like the Jalen Hurd pick, there were better and more accomplished WRs available; Terry McLaurin, Mile Boykin, Hakeem Butler and Riley Ridley to name a few. The 49ers need more help at WR right now, Hurd is a bit of a project. The team needed a punter but they have plenty of other holes to fill and drafting one in the fourth round is not wise. The team clearly wants to get smaller and faster at LB with the signing of Kwon Alexander so drafting Dre Greenlaw fits the new mold. TE Kaden Smith isn’t the most natural route runner and he probably won’t play much with Kittle and Garrett Celek in front of him but he’s not a bad investment in the future of the position in round six. Not sure if OT Justin Skule will make the team but they aren’t very deep at OT and Skule did start in the SEC. He’s not the prettiest blocker but he was effective. Harris was the typical really good athlete with injury problems that teams take a shot on late in the draft, they could have done worse. This draft was hit and miss but Bosa and Samuel are excellent picks.

Seattle Seahawks

(29) LJ Collier DE
(47) Marquise Blair S
(64) DK Metcalf WR
(88) Cody Barton LB
(120) Gary Jennings WR
(124) Phil Haynes OL
(132) Ugochukwu Amadi S
(142) Ben Burr-Kirven LB
(204) Travis Homer RB
(209) Demarcus Christmas DL
(236) John Ursua WR

Immediate Impact: None? Unless my sleeper comes through (more on that in a minute)
I’m not a fan of the top of their draft. Collier will now have to sit behind Ziggy Ansah until Ansah gets hurt. Blair is alright but he was the third safety off the board and he shouldn’t have been. DK Metcalf is big and fast but he lacks innate WR skills and he will struggle against NFL coverages.

Best Value: LB Ben Burr-Kirven
Burr-Kirven is a fantastic LB with great coverage skills and his skill set will work well in the NFL. He’s always around the ball and he was an absolute steal in the fifth round. He’s going to have a hard time finding time right away unless one of the starters gets injured.

Sleeper: WR Gary Jennings
The team just lost Doug Baldwin to retirement and while many are penciling in DK Metcalf to start opposite Tyler Lockett, I have my doubts. If a WR in this draft is going to make a splash I think it’s Jennings. He was the “other” WR at West Virginia to David Sills III but he was highly productive and if anyone is going to fill the Doug Baldwin role in Seattle it’s him. Russell Wilson will find him very reliable and highly effective. He’s not the biggest, not the tallest and not the fastest WR but he’s just solid all-around, kind of like Doug Baldwin.

Overall Analysis
I didn’t think Collier was the best DE available, I know Blair wasn’t the best safety available and while DK Metcalf was a solid choice late in the second round, he is a better athlete than he is a WR at the moment. The team took both Cody Barton and Ben Burr-Kirven at LB and while LB didn’t look like a huge need these are two really good picks. They are very modern LBs. Jennings is my favorite pick of this draft. OG Phil Haynes is not a well-known name but he could really give them some good depth at OG and if Mike Iupati’s age catches up with him or DJ Fluker has issues Haynes could be a valuable piece. Ugochukwu Amadi is a small defensive back who is more of a nickel back and could find a place but I wouldn’t count on it. RB Travis Homer is a decent back but they have a lot of decent backs and I don’t think he’ll be able to beat them out. DT Demarcus Christmas is probably just a run-stuffing interior player but those guys can find a role in the NFL so he just might in Seattle. WR John Ursua has a chance to make the roster but there are a lot of bodies fighting for position on the roster so it will be an uphill battle.