Houston Texans
(2) CJ Stroud QB Ohio St.
(3) Will Anderson Jr. Edge Alabama
(62) Juice Scruggs C/G Penn St.
(69) Nathaniel “Tank” Dell WR Houston
(109) Dylan Horton Edge TCU
(167) Henry To’o To’o LB Alabama
(201) Jarrett Patterson G/C Notre Dame
(205) Xavier Hutchinson WR Iowa St.
(248) Brandon Hill S Pittsburgh
Immediate Impact: QB CJ Stroud, Edge Will Anderson Jr., C Juice Scruggs
Two years of Davis Mills was enough and the Texans simply took the best QB left on the board at #2, CJ Stroud. He’s the day one starter and I think he’ll be pretty good. It’s going to take some time and he needs better weapons, however, these guys aren’t as terrible on offense as you might think. If new offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik can bring a little Shanahan offensive magic with him, Stroud is the guy who can thrive in it. Anderson isn’t a Von Miller level pass rusher but he’s an amazing all-around defensive edge player. He’ll set the tone on defense and give this team an identity. Scruggs probably went a little high but he has no competition in front of him for the center job. He and Stroud can find some early chemistry and that will help the offense as a whole.
Best Value: None
It’s tough to find a good value pick. I like plenty of their choices but they all were either where they should go or a little higher than they should have gone. For example, I like Tank Dell, but there were other WRs left I like better and he may have gone a round early given his size.
Sleeper: WR Xavier Hutchinson
We’re going to forgive Hutchinson for going to Iowa St for just a minute and look at the player. He’s an athletic 6’2 210 lbs. WR who’s really good after the catch and he has played with a target on his back as the Cyclones top receiver for a while. This team’s outside WRs are guys like Nico Collins, Noah Brown, and John Metchie or Robert Woods, depending on who plays the slot. Hutchinson can be better than those guys and he will have all the same opportunities to create chemistry with Stroud.
Overall Analysis
The Texans are taking it on the chin pretty hard for everything they gave up to move up to three to take Will Anderson after taking Stroud second. Its’ a fair point, especially giving up a potential top five pick in next year’s draft. However, let me argue the other side for just a second. This team has been wandering in the wilderness for too long and they need direction. DeMeco Ryans is a start at head coach but he needs cornerstone players. They took Stroud to finally give their offense an identity, Anderson does the same for the defense. Anderson sets the tone Ryans wants with his talent, his work ethic, and his character. This franchise needs these two guys in ways that go way beyond the field.
After that, they got some good guys who can contribute. Scruggs was a bit of a reach but this team needed a center and Bobby Slowik’s offense needed a guy to pull the rest of this line together. If Scruggs is just an average center, he’s a huge upgrade and he makes this a pretty decent line. Tank Dell is tiny but he’s got speed and playmaking ability this WR corps is lacking. I actually really like him and Hutchinson as pass catchers and if two years from now Hutchinson, Dell, and John Metchie are three of the top four WRs on this team, I won’t be shocked.
Dylan Horton isn’t setting the world on fire but for a team as devoid as this one on the edge, he can make this team and at least add depth. Henry To’o To’o is an undersized LB with some flaws but he’s a LB from Alabama, at worst he’s a special team’s demon. I like the starting offensive line if Scruggs is solid but the backup group is rough. Jarrett Patterson started on the inside at Notre Dame, he adds some nice depth and versatility there. Normally seventh round safeties who aren’t that good at anything in particular don’t feel like threats to make the roster but this is the Texans roster so Brandon Hill has a shot.
Indianapolis Colts
(4) Anthony Richardson QB Florida
(44) Julius Brents CB Kansas St.
(79) Josh Downs WR North Carolina
(106) Blake Freeland OT BYU
(110) Adetomiwa Adebawore DL Northwestern
(138) Darius Rush CB South Carolina
(158) Daniel Scott S California
(162) Will Mallory TE Miami
(176) Evan Hull RB Northwestern
(211) Titus Leo LB Wagner
(221) Jaylon Jones CB Texas A&M
(236) Jake Witt OT Northern Michigan
Immediate Impact: QB Anthony Richardson, CB Julius Brents, WR Josh Downs
The Colts might act like Anthony Richardson is going to have to win the QB job but let’s be realistic, Gardner Minshew isn’t standing in his way. Richardson needs reps to get better and he has the ability to run a Shane Steichen offense right away. Brents immediately steps in as the top outside CB. He has the size and athleticism they don’t have at the position. Downs gives them a player unlike anyone they have at WR. They have two big outside guys in Michael Pittman Jr and Alec Pierce, Downs is the smaller slot receiver who should become a favorite target of Richardson’s. He’s a great route runner and he catches everything you throw to him, unlike Richardson’s targets at Florida.
Best Value: WR Josh Downs
He’s not the biggest WR but he’s a gamer. Downs is a contested catch monster which is surprising given his size. His hands are like glue and Richardson will use him a lot.
Sleeper: CB Darius Rush
Cam Smith was the South Carolina CB who got all the pub but Rush is a player. He has great size at 6’2 200 lbs. and he’s a great athlete. I was surprised he lasted until the fifth round after the pre-draft workouts he put up and his Senior Bowl week. Rush has starter potential and on this Colts team, he could be starting opposite Brents on the outside very quickly. He might end up being a sleeper and their best value pick.
Overall Analysis
The Colts might have more hits in this class than any draft class this year but it will all come down to Richardson. He has an incredible ceiling if he can reach it, he’s the most athletic person to ever play QB. If he hits, he sets this franchise up for the next fifteen years. Brents is going to be a really good CB with the potential to be an elite player if he keeps progressing. He’s had his ups and downs but he never lets the bad plays keep him down. Downs is an elite slot receiver. He completes the starting WR group quite nicely, he should give Richardson a chance to succeed.
The Colts didn’t address offensive tackle early but they did take Blake Freeland and he’s a long, athletic tackle who has some potential. He needs to get stronger and learn how to get lower, his height can be used against him. However, those are things that can be addressed and he has starter potential. They took another athletic specimen in Adetomiwa Adebawore, an undersized defensive tackle from Northwestern who can also play outside. He has a strange body type for an interior player but he should help this defensive line. Love the Darius Rush pick, he’s a keeper.
They drafted a couple of more big, athletic defensive backs in S Daniel Scott and CB Jaylon Jones, the team has a type. These guys have a shot to stick because the Colts secondary leaves a lot to be desired. They also drafted two offensive players who might fill roles. TE Will Mallory is an athlete you can really like at the position. RB Evan Hull doesn’t wow you but he’s a player and he has a really nice skill set to complement Jonathan Taylor. LB Titus Leo will have to be special team’s guy. OT Jake Witt is a project with the type of size and athleticism that’s worth taking seventh round flyer on.
Jacksonville Jaguars
(27) Anton Harrison OT Oklahoma
(61) Brenton Strange TE Penn St.
(88) Tank Bigsby RB Auburn
(121) Ventrell Miller LB Florida
(130) Tyler Lacy DL Oklahoma St.
(136) Yasir Abdullah LB Louisville
(160) Antonio Johnson S Texas A&M
(185) Parker Washington WR Penn St.
(202) Christian Braswell CB Rutgers
(208) Erick Hallett II DB Pittsburgh
(226) Cooper Hodges OT Appalachian St.
(227) Raymond Vohasek DL North Carolina
(240) Derek Parish Edge Houston
Immediate Impact: OT Anton Harrison, TE Brenton Strange
Cam Robinson is suspended to start the season and that likely means Walker Little will start the year at LT. Harrison will be first in line at RT and if it seems to be working out when Robinson gets back, not sure Robinson gets his job back. The Strange pick seemed odd (I just couldn’t the Strange pick is strange), there were TEs I liked better, that said, they will use him. Evan Engram isn’t signed long-term and Strange step in as the backup and give them the ability to use two-TE sets.
Best Value: S Antonio Johnson
Johnson has his limitations in coverage down the field but he’s a great athlete, who can cover TEs, and come up in the box and play going towards the line of scrimmage. He has coverage skills even if he’s not the best against the smaller, shiftier receivers. Considering this was not a great safety draft, getting Johnson in round five is pretty good. With some coaching and improved technique, he has the skills to be a starting SS in the NFL.
Sleeper: WR Parker Washington
Washington isn’t tall a 5’10 but he’s got a thick build at 207 lbs., he’s basically Christian Kirk. He has great hands, average speed, and he’s tough to take down. His contact balance is exceptional which makes him great over the middle and catching balls in traffic. Washington is tough after the catch and he will add something to the Jaguars offense. The team has it’s three starting WRs (Calvin Ridley, Zay Jones, Christian Kirk), but they have no real depth behind them. Washington will earn playing time.
Overall Analysis
This is a huge draft class and despite years of this team not being great, they have actually turned their roster into a pretty solid one in the past couple of years. Harrison is a day one starter and I don’t think he gives the job up when Robinson comes back, he’s that good. I didn’t like the Strange pick because I liked other TEs better but he can be a useful player. RB Tank Bigsby was never a guy I liked all that much and there were better backs on the board. With Travis Etienne as the starter Bigsby is battling for backup snaps and I’m not sure he overtakes JaMychal Hasty or D’Ernest Johnson.
LB Ventrell Miller is a small ILB who they took too high. He doesn’t do anything particularly well and he’s stiff and not good in coverage. DL Tyler Lacy gives them a body at DE for depth. LB Yasir Abdullah is an undersized pass rusher with some twitch. They have Travon Walker and Josh Allen starting at OLB but Abdullah could be a subpackage pass rusher, he can’t be worse than K’Lavon Chaisson and at least he was only a fifth-round pick, not a first-round pick. I like the Johnson and Washington picks, that’s taking shots on guys who have actual skills that can translate to the NFL.
CB Christian Braswell gives them a guy to compete at the slot position and Erick Hallett II is a versatile defensive back who gives them depth. Their three seventh round picks aren’t making this roster, that’s just too many rookies for a roster that isn’t in bad shape. They had a ton of picks because they did a lot of trading, I would have preferred they use some of those later round picks to move up in earlier rounds and get more quality players. The draft didn’t fall well for them after taking Harrison in round one. They could have passed on Strange in round two and taken a CB but there weren’t a lot of good ones left. I have never been a fan of GM Trent Baalke and this draft isn’t going to change that opinion.
Tennessee Titans
(11) Peter Skoronski OL Northwestern
(33) Will Levis QB Kentucky
(81) Tyjae Spears RB Tulane
(147) Josh Whyle TE Cincinnati
(186) Jaelyn Duncan OT Maryland
(228) Colton Dowell WR Tenn-Martin
Immediate Impact: OL Peter Skoronski
The Titans offensive line was terrible last year and while they signed Andre Dillard and Daniel Brunskill in free agency, that’s not solving all the problems. Skoronski will be the best offensive lineman on the team this year and he’s arguably the best option to start at each of the five positions, and he’s only ever been a LT at Northwestern. He probably starts out at LG next to Dillard at LT but we’ll see how everything goes.
Best Value: QB Will Levis
I’m definitely not a huge Levis fan but he does have skills to work with. This also happens to be the perfect situation for him. As a second-round pick there is no urgency to start him right away but it’s clear he’s Ryan Tannehill’s eventual replacement. When you can get your future starting QB in round two (even if you had to trade up for him), that’s value. There were rumors the Titans could take Levis in round one, round two is a steal.
Sleeper: OT Jaelyn Duncan
I don’t know what I’m missing here. How did Duncan fall to round six, that’s crazy. He has future starting LT written all over him. I have to assume there were either medical questions or character questions, however, if both of those things are fine moving forward, Duncan is a starting LT at some point. He’s massive, he’s athletic, he’s got great hands, and great feet. There is a real possibility the future starting left side of the Titans offensive line is Duncan at LT and Skoronski at LG. Andre Dillard did nothing in Philadelphia to make me think he’s going to finally be some great LT; he also was beaten out there by Jordan Mailata who was a former seventh round pick. At least this time it might be a sixth rounder who takes his job.
Overall Analysis
For a small class, only being six players, all of them have a chance to do something here. Skoronski’s floor is being a perennial Pro Bowl guard. Levis is the future at QB, they hope. There is a legitimate chance Levis is a bust but he was well worth the move up in round two to get a guy who can run your offense much like Tannehill has since he arrived. Levis is also the perfect QB for Mike Vrabel and Vrabel is the perfect head coach for Levis. Vrabel is never going to have an offense based around his QB, he wants to be a tough, physical run-first team with a QB who can make a play here and there. That’s what Levis needs, don’t ask him to carry the team, just do the job.
RB Tyjae Spears is a great all-around player who runs hard, catches passes, and generally does good things on the field. He’s probably not cut out to carry the load Derrick Henry has for so long (no one is). The one issue is Spears has some medical issues with his knees, that could be a problem, but he’s a talented guy who’s worth a shot. Josh Whyle isn’t a flashy guy at TE and he’s not going transform your offense by any means. However, Tennessee is in need of warm bodies at TE and Whyle can do some things to help the offense, like block. He can catch some passes too but he’s not a high-volume pass catcher.
The Duncan pick is fantastic, unless there is some underlying issue, he’s going to be a good offensive tackle in the NFL. Normally, I wouldn’t give a small school WR in round seven much of a chance to make a team unless he’s a special team’s demon, but have you seen the Titans WR depth chart? Colton Dowell from Tennessee-Martin? I’m not counting him out.
The Hott Read 