Chicago Bears
(11) Justin Fields QB Ohio St
(39) Teven Jenkins OT Oklahoma St
(151) Larry Borom OL Missouri
(217) Khalil Herbert RB Virginia Tech
(221) Dazz Newsome WR North Carolina
(228) Thomas Graham Jr. CB Oregon
(250) Khyiris Tonga DL BYU
Immediate Impact: QB Justin Fields, OT Teven Jenkins
The team can say what they want about easing Fields in at QB, they can talk up Andy Dalton as a veteran influence on the team, it’s all hot air. Fields will start sooner rather than later and they should probably just give him the job right away. You don’t trade that much to move up for a guy and then sit him, Patrick Mahomes was the exception, not the rule. Jenkins is going to get thrown into the deep end at LT after the team released Charles Leno Jr. Jenkins is a good player and he can handle the LT spot but it will be a big move for him.
Best Value: WR Dazz Newsome
I like Newsome. He can be an excellent return man and he will fight for snaps as a slot receiver. The team recently signed veteran Marquise Goodwin but I think drafting Newsome makes him expendable. Newsome could also push Riley Ridley off the roster, he can be a useful #4 WR and a return man. Great value at pick 221.
Sleeper: CB Thomas Graham Jr.
Desmond Trufant is aging like milk left outside on a hot day and Artie Burns wasn’t that good before he tore his ACL. Jaylon Johnson is a good young CB but he’s going to need some help. The Bears didn’t get anyone early but they took a late round flyer on Graham. He’s not the biggest, he’s not the fastest and he’s not the most athletic guy but he can cover. Graham knows how to get his hands on the ball and I think he plays quite a bit unless Trufant finds the fountain of youth or Artie Burns all of the sudden becomes good.
Overall Analysis
The Bears made a major trade up to get the best QB they have had in 70 years, look it up, it was Sid Luckman. And don’t tell me Jim McMahon or Jay Cutler were good, that’s nonsense. Fields is a franchise guy, he’s legit. Now it’s up to Matt Nagy and Bill Lazor not to screw him up. The truth is they are only going to get one shot at it, if they screw it up, they’re gone. Love the move, love the player. Jenkins was a gift of epic proportions in round two. He instantly upgrades the line and he brings a nasty attitude the Chicago Bears offensive line should have. Larry Borom is a big dude who should move inside and if Germain Ifedi or Elijah Wilkinson don’t get the job done, he could steal an OG job sometime next season. I only know RB Khalil Herbert from watching Christian Darrisaw film but he’s a ball of energy who never gets knocked over, he’s tough to take down. The Bears have David Montgomery but both Tarik Cohen and Damian Williams are smaller backs so Herbert could make the roster. Love Newsome and Graham, they make the team and contribute. Tonga goes on the practice squad until they need an injury replacement up front.
Detroit Lions
(7) Penei Sewell OT Oregon
(41) Levi Onwuzurike DT Washington
(72) Alim McNeill DT North Carolina St
(101) Ifeatu Melifonwu CB Syracuse
(112) Amon-Ra St. Brown WR USC
(113) Derrick Barnes LB Purdue
(257) Jermar Jefferson RB Oregon St
Immediate Impact: OT Penei Sewell
I don’t know if the Lions will just simply put Sewell at RT knocking Tyrell Crosby out of his spot or if they will go the more complicated route of letting him play LT and moving Taylor Decker. Decker has been entrenched at LT for years but I think Sewell will end up there. They may not want to ask Decker to move. Either way, Sewell will start and he’s a dominant player immediately.
Best Value: DT Alim McNeill, CB Ifeatu Melifonwu
These two were the Lions 3rd round picks and I think both of them play a lot. McNeill is a big-bodied DT who can spell Michael Brockers as the big man inside if he doesn’t end up starting next to him. Melifonwu isn’t going to find the CB corps all that difficult to navigate. The Lions need Jeff Okudah to be a #1 but Melifonwu could end up the #2 guy. He has size and skill and that combination is lacking from the CB spot.
Sleeper: WR Amon-Ra St. Brown
They signed veterans Tyrell Williams and Breshad Perriman but that’s about all they have. St. Brown can play in the slot or outside which makes him very valuable. Williams also gets hurt a lot and there is simply no other depth here. St. Brown could become a go-to guy for Jared Goff just by staying on the field.
Overall Analysis
GM Brad Holmes and head coach Dan Campbell went big early with OT Penei Sewell, DT Levi Onwuzurike and DT Alim McNeill, which isn’t surprising. Campbell is trying to reset the roster in Detroit and build a power team. Sewell is a cornerstone OT almost every team desires. Onwuzurike is a smaller DT that I was a little worried about until they drafted McNeill. McNeill is the bigger guy and he can take the pressure off Onwuzurike and allow him to do what he does. Melifonwu has starter potential with his size and athleticism. St. Brown may have been a third-day pick but he went to a team that desperately needs some WRs. Derrick Barnes looks like an undersized pass rusher and he may find it hard to stick to a roster but Detroit isn’t stacked at LB or stacked with pass rushers so don’t count him out. Jermar Jefferson doesn’t look like he’s going to make a roster but maybe he sticks around on the practice squad until Kerryon Johnson gets hurt and then he’s the 3rd RB.
Green Bay Packers
(29) Eric Stokes CB Georgia
(62) Josh Myers C/G Ohio St
(85) Amari Rodgers WR Clemson
(142) Royce Newman OL Mississippi
(173) Tedarrell Slaton DT Florida
(178) Shemar Jean-Charles CB Appalachian St
(214) Cole Van Lanen OL Wisconsin
(220) Isaiah McDuffie LB Boston College
(256) Kylin Hill RB Mississippi St.
Immediate Impact: CB Eric Stokes, WR Amari Rodgers
Eric Stokes isn’t the most polished CB in the draft but he’s better than Kevin King and I see him unseating King and his one-year contract from the starting job opposite Jaire Alexander pretty quickly. They didn’t draft him in the first round to sit. Amari Rodgers isn’t the type of WR who wows you with his speed, but he has quickness and he’s extremely adept in the slot. The Packers have a lot of bigger WRs and Rodgers offers them a different type of player and he’ll take the starting slot receiver spot over rather quickly. If Aaron Rodgers is still around next season, he’ll love Amari Rodgers.
Best Value: WR Amari Rodgers
He’s a frickin’ steal. 85th overall? I don’t know how that happened. He was Trevor Lawrence’s one-man WR corps at times last year, every opponent knew it and they couldn’t stop him. Now he plays with Davante Adams. That’s unfair.
Sleeper: RB Kylin Hill
Yes, they re-signed Aaron Jones. Yes, they drafted AJ Dillon last year. However, they lost Jamaal Williams in free agency and while they might think Dillon can replace him, he’s not the same type of back. Hill has good hands and he knows how to get up the field once he has the ball. He’ll make a move and get going. The Packers will know how to utilize his strengths.
Overall Analysis
The Packers draft was massively overshadowed by the Aaron Rodgers news on the first day of the draft but I’m going to just assume he’s the QB next season because anything else feels weird. The Stokes pick was necessary if you saw Kevin King get roasted by Tom Brady in the playoffs last season. Stokes starts…starting tomorrow. Josh Myers has a chance to compete as a starter. He’s not my favorite center but he could play there if the Packers don’t want to move Elgton Jenkins to center to replace Corey Lindsley. I think they will move Jenkins; he was a center in college, and then Myers competes for one of the guard spots. He might win one. Amari Rodgers is going to be good. The best thing for him is the Packers have so many outside receivers he gets to stay inside and they don’t ever need him to play on the outside. He’s so good in slot. Royce Newman and Cole Van Lanen are developmental offensive linemen. Newman has shot to become something but I’m skeptical of Van Lanen, he just lacks athleticism and the Packers have other developmental linemen. Tedarrell Slaton is a gigantic human who might be worth keeping around to help out Kenny Clark. CB Shemar Jean-Charles might stick but he’s going to have to knock a few guys off the end of the Packers depth chart at CB. Green Bay’s LB room is a little thin so McDuffie has a chance to stick around. I like Hill, he can play in the NFL.
Minnesota Vikings
(23) Christian Darrisaw OT Virginia Tech
(66) Kellen Mond QB Texas A&M
(78) Chazz Surratt LB North Carolina
(86) Wyatt Davis OG Ohio St
(90) Patrick Jones II DE Pittsburgh
(119) Kene Nwangwu RB Iowa St
(125) Camryn Bynum DB California
(134) Janarius Robinson DE Florida St
(157) Ihmir Smith-Marsette WR Iowa
(168) Zach Davidson TE Central Missouri
(199) Jaylen Twyman DT Pittsburgh
Immediate Impact: OT Christian Darrisaw, OG Wyatt Davis, WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette
Darrisaw immediately steps in at LT, he has no real competition there because he allows the team to put Ezra Cleveland inside at LG. The reason I think Cleveland plays LG is that I think Wyatt Davis becomes an immediate starter at RG. Davis is a mauler at RG and next to Brian O’Neill they will make a devastating run blocking tandem on the right side. The Ihmir Smith-Marsette pick isn’t a homer pick for the Iowa Hawkeye. Smith-Marsette should immediately become the Vikings return man on kickoffs and the depth chart at WR behind Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen is less than stellar. Chad Beebe, Bisi Johnson and KJ Osborn isn’t exactly a murder’s row. Smith-Marsette becomes the gadget guy and can play on the outside allowing Jefferson or Thielen to find favorable matchups inside.
Best Value: Darrisaw and Davis
They got a starting LT at #23 after trading down and picking up multiple picks. Then they drafted arguably the best OG in the draft in the third round with one of the picks they picked up in that trade back. That’s genius. That’s how you play the draft perfectly.
Sleepers: DE Patrick Jones II, DE Janarius Robinson, DT Jaylen Twyman
I could list about half of this draft class but I’m just going to go with the defensive line to make it easier. The Vikings have DE Danielle Hunter, assuming he’s fully healthy and DT Dalvin Tomlinson, the rest of the group are fairly non-descript. Jones II is a high-motor guy, he isn’t the best technician but he never stops coming. Robinson is long, lean and athletic, he’s basically the Danielle Hunter-starter kit. Twyman isn’t flashy but he’s thick and comes off the line quick. Any one of these guys could make a move and become a major part of the solution up front.
Overall Analysis
The trade back in round one could not have worked out better, they picked up valuable picks and still got the starting LT they needed, and a damn good one at that. Love Darrisaw. The two 3rd round picks they got in the trade turned into QB Kellen Mond and RG Wyatt Davis. The Mond pick is interesting because Kirk Cousins is really expensive for a guy who just runs the offense and doesn’t necessarily make anyone better. Mond has potential, can the Vikings tap into it? Davis will be a starter rather quickly, he battled an injury at Ohio St. last year, otherwise he would have gone sooner. LB Chazz Surratt could have been my sleeper, he’s pretty good for a guy who was a QB a few years ago. He’s athletic and just starting to figure it out at LB. Eric Kendricks isn’t getting any younger and Surratt is a solid investment. See my Sleeper section for my thoughts on the defensive line prospects, they were needed. RB Kene Nwangwu is a better athlete than anything else, he never really became a legit RB. Special teamer? Maybe. Camryn Bynum was actually announced as a safety, not as CB like he played in college. He could be a sleeper too. The team only has Xavier Woods to pair with Harrison Smith, Bynum is a solid athlete who could really take to the position. Love the Smith-Marsette pick, he will outperform his draft slot for sure. TE Zach Davidson will have a hill to climb coming from Central Missouri but he’s a good-looking athlete and beyond Irv Smith Jr. the Vikings aren’t exactly stacked at TE.
The Hott Read 