Buffalo Bills
(30) Gregory Rousseau DE Miami
(61) Carlos Basham Jr DE Wake Forest
(93) Spencer Brown OT Northern Iowa
(161) Tommy Doyle OT Miami (OH)
(203) Marques Stevenson WR Houston
(212) Damar Hamlin S Pittsburgh
(213) Rachad Wildgoose CB Wisconsin
(236) Jack Anderson OL Texas Tech
Immediate Impact: DE Gregory Rousseau, DE Carlos Basham Jr
The Bills don’t need much help from their rookie class but Jerry Hughes and Mario Addison aren’t providing the pass rush they need. The rookies were drafted to juice up the pass rush so they need to have an impact. Rousseau and Basham are both big and strong and have proven they can get to the QB. Not sure if it will be just one or both that will help out but they may make Hughes or Addison expendable pretty quickly.
Best Value: Basham
Basham was a highly effective pass rusher at Wake Forest and yet he was a late second round pick. The Bills had already grabbed a pass rusher in round one but Basham was way too good of a value pick to pass up.
Sleepers: OT Spencer Brown, OT Tommy Doyle
Clearly the Bills had a thing in this draft for really tall OTs. Brown is 6’9 and Doyle is 6’8. Both guys are long and lean, well as lean as guys who weigh over 320 lbs. can be. Neither is ready to start in the NFL tomorrow but the team has Dion Dawkins and Daryl Williams so there is no need to start tomorrow. These are long-term developmental players who both could pay off down the road.
Overall Analysis
The Bills biggest need was to find pass rushing and they did that with gusto. Rousseau and Basham are guys who can help right now and should be good for quite some time. Added to last year’s second round pick AJ Epenesa, the Bills DE position looks strong. The back-to-back developmental OTs was a bit strange, they just signed Daryl Williams to a 3-year contract and Dion Dawkins is only 26, they could have used at least one of those picks on a guy that might help them sooner at CB or S or somewhere else. WR Marques Stevenson is going to have to earn a spot on special teams. He’s a return man so he has a shot but the WR corps will be tough to crack. S Damar Hamlin and CB Rachad Wildgoose are not exactly guys who are going to help right now. Hamlin gives a little bit of depth at safety but Wildgoose isn’t better than some of the other options deep on the depth chart. The Bills really could have used a little earlier help in the secondary, especially at CB. OL Jack Anderson probably doesn’t make the roster this year, he’s a potential practice squad guy.
Miami Dolphins
(6) Jaylen Waddle WR Alabama
(18) Jaelen Phillips DE Miami
(36) Jevon Holland S Oregon
(42) Liam Eichenberg OT Notre Dame
(81) Hunter Long TE Boston College
(231) Larnel Coleman OL UMass
(244) Gerrid Doaks RB Cincinnati
Immediate Impact: WR Jaylen Waddle, DE Jaelen Phillips, OT Liam Eichenberg
I hope DeVante Parker and Will Fuller don’t take offense but Jaylen Waddle is the best WR on the Dolphins’ roster. His ceiling is Tyreek Hill and if Tua is healthy and Waddle is healthy, he’s catching 80 balls and winning offensive rookie of the year. Again, no offense to the pass rushers on the Dolphins but they all suck and Jaelen Phillips is better than all of them. Emmanuel Ogbah had nine sacks last season and that was his career high, I think Phillips breaks double digits. Eichenberg has a chance to step in at RT. The Dolphins traded Ereck Flowers, Robert Hunt should move inside to LG and Eichenberg can slide into the RT spot.
Best Value: Phillips
I think he’s a double-digit sack guy and they got him at 18. The only question is his past health issues and that’s the reason he didn’t go higher. I would have given it to Eichenberg, he’s a potential starting OT at 42 overall but they actually traded up to get him.
Sleeper: TE Hunter Long
Long isn’t an uber athlete like Kyle Pitts but he was amazingly productive at Boston College. Mike Gesicki is going to be the “pass catching” TE now while Long does the dirty work but don’t sleep on Long. He may not be flashy but he is an all-around TE that will draw plenty of single coverage because of Waddle, Parker, Fuller and Gesicki and he may become an easy target for Tua to find.
Overall Analysis
Waddle has a chance to be one of the best WRs in the league, that’s not an exaggeration. Phillips could be a special pass rusher. I didn’t love the Jevon Holland pick. They needed help at safety but they took Holland as the first safety off the board. I would have taken Trevon Moehrig. Holland isn’t bad but Moehrig brings more skills. Eichenberg and Long are not the flashy players but they are foundational pieces to a team. The Dolphins draft was top heavy with all of those picks in the first three rounds and then two picks in round seven. A developmental OL Larnel Coleman and a RB from Cincinnati Gerrid Doaks. Those two aren’t making this roster.
New England Patriots
(15) Mac Jones QB Alabama
(38) Christian Barmore DT Alabama
(96) Ronnie Perkins DE Oklahoma
(120) Rhamondre Stevenson RB Oklahoma
(177) Cameron McGrone LB Michigan
(188) Joshuah Bledsoe S Missouri
(197) William Sherman OL Colorado
(242) Tre Nixon WR UCF
Immediate Impact: QB Mac Jones
The Patriots didn’t make a move and yet they ended up with the QB that best fits their team. Mac Jones isn’t the most athletic guy and he doesn’t have the strongest arm but he is highly intelligent and incredibly accurate. Josh McDaniels’ offense is built for a QB like Jones. The Patriots have Cam Newton under contract for next season but I think his inaccuracy is going to lead to Bill Belichick and Josh McDaniels turning to Jones early on. The Patriots didn’t spend all that free agent money on TEs and WRs to have a QB who can’t get them the ball.
Best Value: DT Christian Barmore
Barmore was only a one-year starter at Alabama and he wasn’t dominant every play but he turned it on at the end of the season when it counted the most and they were playing against the best competition. It’s hard to fault Barmore for only being a one-year starter considering Alabama is almost always stacked on the defensive line. He did play for Nick Saban so I trust Bill Belichick has a keen understanding of Barmore given their friendship. He is the exact type of d-lineman Belichick loves and he had 1st round potential so getting him in round two was great.
Sleeper: LB Cameron McGrone
McGrone is a young player without a lot of experience and he injured his knee towards the end of the season. It’s completely possible McGrone takes a “redshirt” year his rookie season to rehab from his knee injury. The Patriots have plenty of ILBs with the return of Dont’a Hightower, the signing of Raekwon McMillan and still having Ja’Whaun Bentley around. McGrone does have a ton of talent and Hightower is getting older so McGrone is a solid investment in the future.
Overall Analysis
For the first time in a while, I actually like the Patriots draft. I didn’t think Mac Jones was worth the 49ers trading three first round draft picks to move up to #3 to get him but he was well worth the 15th pick. The Patriots didn’t trade down, they made the right move and got a competent QB. I think Jones starts by week 4 at the latest. Barmore was a steal and while he may not start this season, he will be a contributor and a future starter. DE Ronnie Perkins doesn’t look like your conventional pass rusher but neither did Rob Ninkovich, Trey Flowers or a number of other guys Belichick has used over the years. RB Rhamondre Stevenson doesn’t seem like a need but that’s only if you believe in the health of Sony Michel and Damien Harris, I don’t. I like Harris as a RB but he gets banged up and the Patriots are trying to rebuild their offense to have a power running game. Stevenson fits that mold and he would team well with Harris to share the load. Michel is coming towards the end of his rookie contract and I doubt the Patriots plan to keep him. McGrone is a nice investment in the future of the ILB group. Joshuah Bledsoe was Bill Belichick taking his obligatory safety he thinks he can turn into a player. It works about once every ten years; this will be one of the other nine. William Sherman is a practice squad player at best. The only WR they took was Tre Nixon in round seven. The Patriots WR corps isn’t great but it’s deeper than it was a year ago and Nixon isn’t making the roster.
New York Jets
(2) Zach Wilson QB BYU
(14) Alijah Vera-Tucker OG USC
(34) Elijah Moore WR Mississippi
(107) Michael Carter RB North Carolina
(146) Jamien Sherwood S Auburn
(154) Michael Carter II S Duke
(175) Jason Pinnock CB Pittsburgh
(186) Hamsah Nasirildeen S Florida St
(200) Brandin Echols CB Kentucky
(207) Jonathan Marshall DL Arkansas
Immediate Impact: QB Zach Wilson, OG Alijah Vera-Tucker, WR Elijah Moore
Clearly, they think Wilson can be the franchise. The Jets are doing as much as they can to give him the coaching and talent around him to succeed. Mike LaFleur is bringing the Kyle Shanahan offense to New York and they are building up the offense around Wilson. One of the pieces to the offensive puzzle is Alijah Vera-Tucker. Vera-Tucker is a fantastic player and while the Jets are getting kudos from so many for trading up to get him, I have an issue with it. I’ll get to that later. WR Elijah Moore is another piece of the puzzle. He’s a master in the slot and he can be a dominant player with his speed, his shiftiness and his ability to get open.
Best Value: RB Michael Carter
The RB from North Carolina is a great player in space and he brings a lot to the offense. He can catch out of the backfield and he adds a dimension to the Jets offense they don’t really have at the moment. Considering they got him in round four, he’s a steal.
Sleeper: DL Jonathan Marshall
Marshall is a big nose tackle who offers size the Jets could really use inside against the run game. They don’t have a lot of depth at DT, Quinnen Williams is good but they signed Sheldon Rankins to start next to him inside and Rankins has an injury history that doesn’t inspire confidence. After those two there isn’t much depth as the team is likely switching over to a 4-3 defense. Marshall’s size and run stuffing ability might come in handy.
Overall Analysis
I like Wilson as a prospect and there is plenty to love about his game. He is taking a major life step after spending his life in Utah and now moving to New York City but the Jets are doing everything they can to make sure he succeeds, must drive Sam Darnold crazy. The Jets traded up for Alijah Vera-Tucker and I like him as a player but I question the wisdom of the trade. The Jets gave up pick #23 and two third-round picks to the Vikings to move up to 14th overall to take Vera-Tucker. The Vikings took LT Christian Darrisaw with the 23rd pick and with the two third-round picks they took QB Kellen Mond and RG Wyatt Davis. Obviously, if the Jets had kept those picks, they don’t take Mond but if they had stayed put and taken Darrisaw to play RT for them, taken Wyatt Davis in round three and taken another offensive lineman, cornerback or wide receiver with the Mond pick, that’s a lot. If Vera-Tucker turns into the next Larry Allen at LG that’s still not worth three potential starters. There were a lot of good players in round three and the Jets could have had a couple of them.
WR Elijah Moore is a star in the making and he probably makes Jamison Crowder expendable. RB Michael Carter will be a great gadget guy and playmaker out of the backfield. Starting in round five the Jets took five straight defensive backs but I’m not sure any of them make a huge difference. Hamsah Nasirildeen is a big safety out of Florida St. who could move to LB and that might help them with some speed there. Michael Carter II (the Jets did draft two different players named Michael Carter and luckily one of them already was Michael Carter II) may have been taken a little early, or a lot early depending on who you believe. None of the secondary guys stand out but the Jets secondary isn’t exactly stacked so these guys could end up winning jobs and sticking on the roster. I think DT Jonathan Marshall has a solid chance to stick around and maybe actually play.
The Hott Read 