Arizona Cardinals
(6) Paris Johnson Jr. OT Ohio St.
(41) BJ Ojulari Edge LSU
(72) Garrett Williams CB Syracuse
(94) Michael Wilson WR Stanford
(122) Jon Gaines II OL UCLA
(139) Clayton Tune QB Houston
(168) Owen Pappoe LB Auburn
(180) Kei’Trel Clark CB Louisville
(213) Dante Stills DL West Virginia
Immediate Impact: OT Paris Johnson Jr, CB Garrett Williams
Johnson is going to start somewhere on this line. He has the versatility to play guard if they want. They have DJ Humphries at LT, he’s fine but Johnson will be better and will take that job eventually. For now, maybe he plays RT, Kelvin Beachem is 34, maybe he plays LG, they aren’t stacked at guard. It’s too bad he’s not a center, they still need one of those. Williams is a projection by me. He’s coming off an ACL tear from last October, that would be the only thing that could stop him from taking a starting CB job on this defense. When healthy, he’s better than every corner they have.
Best Value: OT Paris Johnson Jr.
This one takes a little explaining. The Cardinals traded back from three to twelve and picked up extra picks from Houston including the Texans’ first-round pick next year and a second-round pick this year (plus more). They took the twelfth pick and the extra second round pick and traded back up to get Johnson, they guy they wanted all along. That’s a smart move by new GM Monti Ossenfort. In one draft, with two moves, he proved he’s better at this than Steve Keim ever was. That extra first-round pick gives them a ton of options moving forward and Johnson gives them a new LT for the next decade. Well played Mr. Ossenfort.
Sleeper: CB Kei’Trel Clark
There’s a decent chance they don’t have to wait long to see this “sleeper” pay off. Clark could be their slot corner from day one. They use Isaiah Simmons as a nickel guy but Clark is your more traditional nickel corner. He’s good enough to be their third corner immediately. If their top three corners next season are rookies Garrett Williams and Kei’Trel Clark with Marco Wilson, it wouldn’t be surprising at all.
Overall Analysis
Monti Ossenfort did a solid job overall by getting solid players and grabbing more picks for next season. The Cardinals are probably not going to be very good next year with Kyler Murray missing a lot of the season with his knee injury. If things go really bad the team will have the option to draft a new QB, send Kyler on his way, and start over, not a terrible idea. Johnson will be a solid starting LT, he many never be Trent Williams, but he’s at least as good as DJ Humphries. Edge rusher BJ Ojulari is a solid pass rushing prospect who probably needs a little time to get better, this team can give him that time.
If Williams gets back from his knee injury, he’s got starter potential. WR Michael Wilson is a guy who was injured a lot at Stanford. He looks the part of a big, physical WR but he just didn’t stay on the field. He could also be a core special team’s guy if he stays healthy. I almost picked Jon Gaines II as my sleeper, he played all five positions at UCLA and he might just compete for the center job if they let him. I really like the Clayton Tune pick at QB. With Murray injured it looks like Colt McCoy will be the starter and Tune might be the backup. With McCoy’s injury history, Tune might get a shot at some point.
The last three picks were used on defensive players. Often, players taken this late are for depth or just training camp bodies but these guys might make a difference on this bad Cardinals defense. I think Clark can win the nickel job. LB Owen Pappoe is a gamer. He can compete with Zaven Collins and Kyzir White at ILB, he has some skills they can use. DL Dante Stills might not start but he’s built to play end on their three-man front line and they don’t have much depth.
Los Angeles Rams
(36) Steve Avila G/C TCU
(77) Byron Young Edge Tennessee
(89) Kobie Turner DL Wake Forest
(128) Stetson Bennett QB Georgia
(161) Nick Hampton Edge Appalachian St.
(174) Warren McClendon OT Georgia
(175) Davis Allen TE Clemson
(177) Puka Nacua WR BYU
(182) Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson CB TCU
(189) Ochaun Mathis Edge Nebraska
(215) Zach Evans RB Mississippi
(223) Ethan Evans P Wingate
(234) Jason Taylor II S Oklahoma St.
(259) Desjuan Johnson DL Toledo
Immediate Impact: G/C Steve Avila, Edge Byron Young, P Ethan Evans
The Rams roster is decimated, especially on defense, so there are going to be rookies playing all over. If you go look at their depth chart, the second team is just rookies everywhere. Avila has a chance to start at guard but with Brian Allen’s injury history, Avila might be needed at center. He seems like a strange scheme fit but he’s a mauler and this team needs some toughness on the line. Young is an underdeveloped pass rusher who’s really athletic but doesn’t finish plays all that well. That won’t matter in LA, this team needs pass rushers badly. If the Rams offense is anywhere near as beat up as it was last season, they are going to need a good punter. Evans is a big dude from a small school, I hope his leg has stamina.
Best Value: DL Kobie Turner
Turner isn’t a household name because he played defensive line at Wake Forest, however, this team’s defensive line outside Aaron Donald is horrid. There’s an outside shot Turner ends up starting on the line with Donald. He has the size and is a scheme fit on their front and there isn’t much in front of him. Turner was a late third-round pick and he might end up a starter, good value.
Sleeper: RB Zach Evans
The Rams top two RBs are Cam Akers and Kyren Williams. Williams was banged up last year and Akers nearly quite football because he didn’t want to play for Sean McVay anymore. McVay eventually needed Akers so he ended up playing but Evans is a great fit for the Rams offense. He’s a one cut and go runner. Evans was a major recruit coming in to college and just never found the right fit at TCU or Mississippi. If McVay can harness some of that natural running ability, Evans will certainly outplay his draft slot.
Overall Analysis
This is a huge class which is strange for a team that was saying “Fuck them picks” just a couple of years ago. This roster is in bad shape and its paper thin, usually I would say a team with 14 draft picks is dumb because there’s no way 14 rookies make a roster, that’s not true here. I’m not saying all 14 will make the opening 53-man roster, but 11 or 12 isn’t inconceivable. Avila, Young, Turner, and Evans could be day one starters. I’m not a big fan of Stetson Bennett but he’s a friend of Matt Stafford and his competition for the backup job is Brett Rypien, I’m not betting against him as the backup QB.
Edge rusher Nick Hampton might struggle to make other teams’ rosters but this team has no edge rushers worth mentioning so he’s in. OL Warren McClendon was a solid starter at Georgia, this team has zero depth on the o-line, as everyone who watched them last year can attest to, he’s on the roster. TE Davis Allen might not make the roster but only because they picked up Hunter Long in the Jalen Ramsey trade and they will feel dumb is he’s not at least their third TE behind Tyler Higbee and Brycen Hopkins. Allen ends up on the practice squad.
Puka Nacua is an unspectacular WR, he’s going to fit right in behind Cooper Kupp with guys like Van Jefferson, Ben Skowronek, and Tutu Atwell. Tre Tomlinson (aka Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson) might end up the starting slot corner. He’s really small but he’s LaDainian’s nephew so I’m not betting against him, oh and his competition is some dude named Cobie Durant. Ochaun Mathis is an edge rusher, I already covered this, all new edge rushers are making the team. Zach Evans is coming for Cam Akers’ job and Ethan Evans (no relation) is the new punter.
CB Jason Taylor II isn’t related to the former Dolphin’s great but that doesn’t matter, this defense can’t turn down any help. DL Desjuan Johnson is a defensive end from Toledo who may only be a pass rush specialist, he would be the fifth rookie as an edge/defensive end player. He still has a chance to make the roster, it’s that rough.
San Francisco 49ers
(87) Ji’Ayir Brown CB Penn St
(99) Jake Moody K Michigan
(101) Cameron Latu TE Alabama
(155) Darrell Luter Jr CB South Alabama
(173) Robert Beal Edge Georgia
(216) Dee Winters LB TCU
(247) Brayden Willis TE Oklahoma
(253) Ronnie Bell WR Michigan
(255) Jalen Graham LB Purdue
Immediate Impact: K Jake Moody
The 49ers didn’t have a first or second round pick and this is a pretty good roster so finding guys to contribute immediately is tough. That said, they used one of their third-round picks on a kicker and they don’t have a kicker so it’s Moody’s job. He’s a good, consistent kicker who isn’t going to set any distance records but he’s going to be pretty automatic inside 50 yards.
Best Value: None
There really wasn’t a great value pick. They have multiple sleepers but no one who went way lower than they should.
Sleepers: CB Darrell Luter Jr, WR Ronnie Bell
Luter is a small school guy from South Alabama who has plus athleticism and good size for a boundary corner. The 49ers are good at uncovering these lesser-known corners and getting the best out of them. Luter has a chance to become one of those guys. Bell had some injury issues at Michigan that may have sapped his explosiveness a bit but he’s a yards-after-the-catch type of WR and that’s what San Francisco majors in. They love a guy who gets the YAC and Bell could stick on the end of the depth chart initially and then when others get older and more expensive, he’s in place to get some playing time.
Overall Analysis
The 49ers traded away their first and second round picks so they were starting from behind, however, they had three third-round picks, that’s not nothing. One problem, they had a glaring hole at RT (for now it’s Colton McKivitz’s job) and they didn’t address RT. They used three picks on a DB, a kicker, and a TE, no RT. Here’s the OTs that went in round four they could have had; Nick Saldiveri, Blake Freeland, Dawand Jones, Sidy Sow, Braeden Daniels, and Carter Warren. Not all of those guys are scheme fits, but all of those guys could beat out McKivitz.
As for the guys they took in round three. Ji’Ayir Brown is a versatile DB who could replace Jimmy Ward, solid choice. Jake Moody is a kicker; I would have waited. TE Cameron Latu was probably a reach and you could have had a comparable TE later in the draft, oh wait, you did with Brayden Willis in round seven. In the fifth round they bet on some good athletes. Luter has some promise and Robert Beal was an underutilized guy at Georgia (it’s Georgia, the other guys were better but that doesn’t mean he’s bad).
Dee Winters and Jalen Graham aren’t world beaters but they give them some young depth at LB, they should also help on special teams. TE Brayden Willis and WR Ronnie Bell are just depth pieces on offense and may never really pan out but they could be useful in limited roles for now.
Seattle Seahawks
(5) Devon Witherspoon CB Illinois
(20) Jaxon Smith-Njigba WR Ohio St
(37) Derick Hall Edge Auburn
(52) Zach Charbonnet RB UCLA
(108) Anthony Bradford OG LSU
(123) Cameron Young DL Mississippi St.
(151) Mike Morris Edge Michigan
(154) Olusegun Oluwatimi C Michigan
(198) Jerrick Reed II S New Mexico
(237) Kenny McIntosh RB Georgia
Immediate Impact: CB Devon Witherspoon, WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Edge Derick Hall, RB Zach Charbonnet
The Seahawks had a great draft last year and this one has a chance to be just as good if not better. Witherspoon isn’t the physical profile we are used to seeing in Seattle but he’s more than his physical profile. Witherspoon brings the attitude the Seahawks are looking for on defense in addition to his considerable coverage skills. He starts opposite Tariq Woolen and it’s Woolen who will be the CB2. Smith-Njigba is the perfect complement to Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf. JSN is the quintessential slot receiver and that’s exactly what this offense needs. He plays the inside better than most and he completes the passing offense for Geno Smith.
I wasn’t the biggest Derick Hall guy, but he’s a player for this team. They need some juice on the outside of their pass rush and he can give them that. Charbonnet doesn’t look like a huge impact guy at first glance with Kenneth Walker being the starter. However, Walker is a boom or bust type of runner while Charbonnet is a more consistent player who almost always gets positive yards.
Best Value: WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba
This might be a questionable pick considering JSN was a first rounder but it’s the value he brings to the offense as a whole. He’s the missing piece of the passing game. The Seahawks have been trying to find the third guy in the passing game for years. They tried Dee Eskridge, he wasn’t it, they tried TE Noah Fant, he’s not it either. JSN is the slot receiver they need to take coverage away from DK Metcalf going deep and Tyler Lockett in the intermediate area.
Sleeper: OG Anthony Bradford
An offensive guard drafted in the fourth round would definitely be a sleeper. The interior of the Seahawks offensive line leaves a bit to be desired and Bradford is a pretty solid guard prospect. He could win the right guard job pretty early. He’s a mauler and he would be an improvement over Phil Haynes and could really help solidify the offensive line.
Overall Analysis
The first four picks were exceptional, all of them will contribute in a big way. Bradford was the fifth choice and I think he has a chance to start too. DT Cameron Young isn’t a flashy player but you rarely get that in a big-bodied nose tackle. He has the beef this team needs inside on the defensive line. DE Mike Morris is built to be an end in a 3-4 defense because he too has the beef they need up front. Morris is never going to be a pass rush star but he’s a tough guy up front.
Center Olu Oluwatimi isn’t my favorite center prospect; I think he’s athletically limited and isn’t as great as he gets credit for. That said, he could win the center job in Seattle as they aren’t stacked at that position. Evan Brown doesn’t present a big roadblock as the penciled in starter right now. Jerrick Reed II might stick around as a nickel corner. RB Kenny McIntosh is a nice depth piece. After losing both Rashad Penny and Travis Homer in the backfield, they needed to replenish their depth. McIntosh played at Georgia and while he was never the bell cow back, he can be a useful player.
The Hott Read 