Chris Giraldo | Multi-Sport Writer
The NFL draft is an exciting process. The mock drafts, the anticipation and the uncertainty are what makes it so much fun. There was something different about this year's draft. It seemed that many teams and analyst were skeptical about a bunch of the top prospects. In year’s prior, there was a better sense of what would transpire. Last night however, we saw many surprises and the unexpected happened.
Don’t get me wrong, this draft class is deep. The first round was loaded with players full of upside and ready to be immediate impacts. That does not mean, that there were not any head scratchers.
The Bears trading up for Trubisky was a major shock to kick off the night. I truly believe that Chicago had no reason to trade up. Unless they wanted Solomon Thomas, trading up was just a waste of picks. The consensus was that Thomas would go 2nd to the Niners. For the last few weeks there was hardly any talk of San Francisco going with Trubisky at #2. The new 49ers GM John Lynch deserves a ton of credit for what he did. Sliding down one spot, acquiring multiple 3rd and 4th round picks and still getting their guy? Beautiful move.
I was high on the three projected 1st round receivers (Davis, Williams and Ross). But never did I think they would all be top 10 picks. Honestly, I didn’t think any of them were top 10 picks. As the top 10 moved along, I was stunned by some of the defensive studs still on the board. Jonathan Allen, Malik Hooker and Marshon Lattimore all falling out of the top 10? Unbelievable. I can understand why Tennessee took Davis, giving Mariota another weapon. Cincinnati pairing up the speedy John Ross with AJ Green will create matchup nightmares for opposing defenses. But, the Chargers move makes no sense to me. Mike Williams has the potential to be incredible WR in the NFL. Los Angeles’ problem is not offense. Keenan Allen, Hunter Henry, Antonio Gates, Melvin Gordon and Tyrell WIlliams are more than enough. The Chargers missed out on the opportunity to pair up Jonathan Allen with Joey Bosa. They could have added one of the stud OSU DBs, which would have been a huge boost to a suspect secondary.
Those were a few of the head scratchers. There were however, many great picks.
The NFC east did a great job last night. Philly added DE Derek Barnett, who many scouts compare to Brandon Graham; the man he will be lining up opposite of. Philly’s defensive line is loaded. The Redskins had a gift handed to them. Jonathan Allen slid all the way to the 17th pick. Most people would agree that Allen was a top 7 pick. Now, he will be in the same defensive line as Ryan Kerrigan. The Dallas Cowboys also added a pass rusher. Taco Charlton will add much needed force to the weak Cowboys d-line. While inconsistent on tape, Charlton can get to the QB and disrupt plays. The New York Giants drafted a Tight end. No it was not OJ Howard (they really missed the opportunity to trade up for him), nor was it not David Njoku. With the latter on the board, they went with Evan Engram from Ole Miss. While many are split on whether or not he’s really a tight end, he’s another weapon for Eli Manning. Like Mike Mayock said “ forget about the label”, he can play. His speed and leaping ability will fit in well in an already loaded Giants offense.
Props to the Cleveland Browns. They were terrific last night. From the start, Myles Garrett was the best player in the draft and passing up on him would have been ludacris. They now own the Texans first and second round picks next year. After trading down to 25, they got a unique player in Jabrill Peppers. Gregg Williams can now get creative with him. Toward the end of the night the Browns made another trade and moved into the first round again. All it cost them was their first 2nd round pick tonight and a 4th rounder tomorrow. With Green Bay’s pick, they got TE David Njoku. So in one night, they added two playmakers on defense, a special tight end and more picks.
The Raiders took a risk by drafting Gareon Conley. If he is innocent, than good for him and good for Oakland. If the acquisition were to be false than he should not lose millions of dollars because of that. Now, if he actually did commit such a disgusting act, than he does not deserve to collect a single check in the NFL. The Raiders would forever live with picking a player who committed a horrible crime. Only time will tell, but for now, all signs point at Conley being innocent and the Raiders getting themselves a much needed Cornerback.
Round one was wild. Round 2 will be loaded with guys who could have easily been 1st rounders. Let the excitement of the draft continue.
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