Winners
Arizona Cardinals
First-round LB Haason Reddick (Temple) is a versatile, disruptive defender with great speed and athleticism. He also shows good coverage skills. Washington S Budda Baker is undersized but is a good all-around safety. Fourth round OG Dorian Johnson (Pitt) will be a starter for the next 10 years. Fifth-rounder Will Holden (Vanderbilt) should turn out to be a steal. The weak QB class didn’t sway Bruce Arians to select a signal caller this year.
Indianapolis Colts
The Colts spent almost their entire draft on defense. They drafted a playmaker in S Malik Hooker (Ohio State) in the first round. He has great instincts, terrific range, and very good ball skills. Second rounder CB Quincy Wilson (Florida) is a tough, physical press corner. Third round pick DE Tarell Basham (Ohio) has size and athleticism. RB Marlon Mack (South Florida) drafted in the fourth round is a home run threat with soft hands. Fifth rounders CB Nate Hairston (Temple) and LB Anthony Walker (Northwestern) should turn out to be steals.
Oakland Raiders
They got great value in CB Gareon Conley (Ohio State) who dropped in the first round because of the allegations that came out against him right before the draft. He has the size, speed and ball skills. Second round pick safety Obi Melifonwu (UConn) has great size, speed, and athleticism. He is very good in run support. Third rounder DL Eddie Vanderdoes (UCLA) is a powerful run stopper. Seventh-rounder safety Shalom Luani (Washington State) should turn out to be a steal.
Losers
Chicago Bears
They gave up too much in a trade to move up from No.3 to No.2 in order to select QB Mitchell Trubisky (North Carolina). This was a desperate move for a player who has only started for one year. He shouldn’t have been drafted in the top 10. With the players on the board, I thought that TE Adam Shaheen (Ashland) was a reach in the second round.
Seattle Seahawks
I hate to disagree with John Schneider and Pete Carroll because they always do a good job in the draft. I wasn’t thrilled with this draft class. The Seahawks had 11 overall picks, but quantity doesn’t always mean quality. Second rounder DT Malik McDowell (Michigan State) is a very talented player, but his effort was questioned. He reminds of Robert Nkemdiche. They reached for CB Shaquill Griffin (UCF), S Delano Hill (Michigan), DT Nazair Jones (North Carolina) and WR Amara Darboh (Michigan) in the third round. Their best pick was C Ethan Pocic (LSU) in the second round.
*The above is a guest post from our friends at NFL Draft Blitz.
