Quarterback:
1. Jared Goff
2. Connor Cook
3. Dak Prescott
4. Carson Wentz
5. Paxton Lynch
6. Cardale Jones
7. Brandon Doughty
8. Jacoby Brisset
9. Christian Hackenberg
10. Jeff Driskel

Running Back
1. Ezekiel Elliot
2. Derrick Henry
3. Devontae Booker
4. Jordan Howard
5. CJ Prosise
6. Kenneth Dixon
7. Alex Collins
8. Paul Perkins
9. Tyler Ervin
10. Byron Marshall
11. Keith Marshall
12. Jonathan Williams
13. Daniel Lasco
14. Josh Ferguson
15. Kenyan Drake
16. Kelvin Taylor
17. Deandre Washington
18. Marshaun Coprich
19. Wendall Smallwood
20. Tre Madden
21. Peyton Barber
22. Dwayne Washington
23. Keenan Reynolds
24. Shad Thornton
25. Brandon Wilds
26. Aaron Green
27. Devon Johnson
28. Tra Carson
29. DJ Foster
30. Jhurrel Pressley

Wide Receiver Ranks
1. Corey Coleman
2. Josh Doctson
3. Laquon Treadwell
4. Leonte Caroo
5. Sterling Shepard
6. Will Fuller
7. Rashard Higgins
8. Pharoh Cooper
9. Tajae Sharpe
10. Keyarris Garret
11. Tyler Boyd
12. Mitch Matthews
13. Braxton Miller
14.Byron Marshall
15. Michael Thomas (Southern Miss)
16. Jakeem Grant
17. Hunter Sharp
18. Aaron Burbridge
19. Michael Thomas (OSU)
20. Nelson Spruce
21. Demarcus Ayers
22. De’Runnya Wilson
23. Cody Core
24. Geronimo Allison
25. Roger Lewis
26. Malcolm Mitchell
27. DJ Foster
28. Daniel Braverman
29. Mekele McKay
30. Dom Williams
31. DJ Foster
32. Charone Peake
33. Paul McRoberts
34. Bralon Addison
35. Jay Lee
36. Ricardo Louis
37. Kolby Listenbee
38. Alonzo Russell
39. Jalin Marshall
40. Jordon Payton
41. Devon Cajuste

Tight End
1. Hunter Henry
2. Austin Hooper
3. Jerrel Adams
4. Nick Vannet
5. Ryan Malleck
6. Kivon Cartwright
7. Tyler Higbee
8. Bryce Williams
9. David Grinnage
10. David Morgan

ˇ
Quarterbacks

1. Marcus Mariota
2. Jameis Winston
3. Garret Grayson
4. Brett Hundley
5. Connor Halliday
6. Bryce Petty
7. Nick Marshall
8. Cody Fajardo
9. Blake Sims
10. Shane Carden

Running Backs

1. Todd Gurley
2. Jay Ajayi
3. Duke Johnson
4. Melvin Gordon
5. David Johnson
6. Jeremy Langford
7. Ameer Abdullah
8. Tevin Coleman
9. Javorius Allen
10. Zach Zenner
11. TJ Yeldon
12. Mike Davis
13. David Cobb
14. Karlos Williams
15. Malcolm Brown
16. Trey Williams
17. Thomas Rawls
18. Tyler Varga
19. John Crockett
20. Terrell Watson
21. Malcolm Agnew
22. Jahwan Edwards
23. BJ Catalon
24. Akeem Hunt
25. Mike Dyer
26. Marcus Murphy
27. Terris Jones-Grigsby
28. Dee Hart
29. Matt Jones
30. Joey Iosefa

Wide Receivers

1. Amari Cooper
2. Dorial Green-Beckham
3. Kevin White
4. Jaelen Strong
5. Devante Parker
6. Devante Davis
7. Breshad Perriman
8. Nelson Agholor
9.Chris Conley
10. Phillip Dorsett
11. Tre McBride
12. Devin Funchess
13. Tyler Lockett
14. Stefon Diggs
15. Darren Waller
16. Tony Lippet
17. Deandre Smelter
18. Devin Smith
19. Justin Hardy
20. Titus Davis
21. Vince Mayle
22. Rashad Greene
23. Jamison Crowder
24. Ty Montgomery
25. Kenny Bell
26. Jake Kumerow
27. Deontay Greenberry
28. Antwan Goodley
29. JJ (Jarmarcus) Nelson
30. Kasen Williams
31. Tella Luckett
32. Kaelin Clay
33. Da’Ron Brown
34. Matt Miller
35. Ezell Ruffin
36. Josh Harper
37. Bud Sasser
38. Dres Anderson
39. Davaris Daniels

Tight Ends

1. Clive Walford
2. Maxx Williams
3. Nick O’Leary
4. Jesse James
5. Mycole Pruitt
6. Tyler Kroft
7. CJ Uzomah
8. Wes Saxton
9. Gerald Christian
10. Jeff Heurman

Jeff Janis destroyed the NFL combine, got drafted by the Green Bay Packers and is now someone you NEED on your fantasy football team. Read more at Rotoviz.com

If you are a fantasy football degenerate desperately trolling the Fantasy Football Twitter for training camp updates, you already know Dennis Pitta dislocated his hip, and as of this writing, is reported to have had surgery for the injury. Pitta was in line for a big fantasy football season after the departure of Anquan Boldin left a gaping hole at the WR2 position. I looked at some of the options that the Ravens have to fill that slot, but regardless, Pitta was going to heavily involved. His injury opens the door for more opportunity, this time for third year tight end Ed Dickson.

The Ravens drafted Dickson in the 3rd round in 2010 and he has played mostly an ancillary role, while Pitta become more of the focus in the Ravens passing game. In their rookie seasons, Dickson was actually more a part of the offense, and was clearly more prodcutive in the players’ second season. Dickson gained 528 yards and scored 5 times, but a dramatic shift occured last year. Pitta outsnapped Dickson 848 to 695 and was out targeted 90 to 31. Clearly, the Ravens were planning on utilizing Pitta much more than they were Dickson moving into 2013.

Plans changed suddenly, however. The question now is if Dickson is capable of fulfilling some of what the Ravens had in mind for Pitta. These are Dickson’s measureables coming out college, compared to Pitta.

Make no bones about it, Pitta’s .19 upgrade in 40 time makes him a superior prospect, but alot of the measureables are strikingly similar, including height, vertical, and broad jump. They all paint a picture of relatively similar prospects. Therefore, it would be helpful to take a look back and see what the 2 players did in college, because that was the only time the 2 players haven’t ate into each others value.

Things get interesting now. In their penultimate seasons in college (when a player should theoretically be the most developed versus their competition), Pitta had more targets, yards per target, and a truly elite 47% red zone touchdown rate, but Dickson was far superior in the metrics that truly correlate to NFL success. As a tight end, Dickson accumulated a .31 dominator rating, compared to Pitta’s paltry .23. As I have referenced many times in my pieces, Shawn Siegele’s Dominator Rating index would indicate that Dickson was a more valuable NFL prospect. While we have already seen Dennis Pitta be a fantasy football-viable player, I’m not sure that it’s impossible that Dickson returns value if he gets to play Pitta’s role.

One huge hindrance to Dickson’s value could be his complex relationship with Joe Flacco. On average, Flacco hasn’t been very effective throwing to Dickson. Using Rotoviz’s excellent QB/WR Efficiency app, we know that for his career, Flacco has only averaged 5.55 adjusted yards per attempt while throwing to Dickson, and a much better 7.35 when throwing to Pitta.

Luckily for Dickson, Flacco might not have much of a choice. The last 3 years, Flacco has targeted a tight end 356 times, or 22% of his total attempts. This surely means an uptick in targets for Torrey Smith, Ray Rice and even Bernard Pierce, as well as incrased importance on who eventually becomes the 2nd wide receiver, but I can tell you that Billy Bajema isn’t going to be threat. Dickson is going to be on the field alot, and just based on that, could probably fall out bed and get 80 targets.

In Dickson’s sole year outsnapping Pitta, Dickson converted 12 redzone targets for 5 touchdowns. That blows his college rate out of the water to the tune of a 41% redzone TD rate. There were chunks of the season where he disappeared, but the same was true of Pitta last year. The real question to Dickson’s fantasy value was this: Is he capable? The answer is yes. He isn’t the sort of stiff that you normally find at back up tight end. Even last year, as a clear back up to Pitta, he still out snapped players like Jared Cook and was in the same range of players like Delanie Walker. It is no doubt discouraging that he was so uninvolved in the offensive game plan, but what choice do the Ravens have? This is a player who has consistently been on the field for them, was listed as the starter for the Super Bowl (for whatever that’s worth), and knows the offense. Tommy Streeter, Deonte Thompson and Aaron Mellette can’t say any of that. Even Tandon Doss, who has been on the team for as long as Dickson, hasn’t been able to prove to the coaching staff that he deserves the playing time. While WR2 will likely feature some sort of rotation, Dickson is the Ravens only option at starting tight end and worth a selection for your fantasy squad. If he doesn’t pan out, he won’t cost you much of anything, as I’m pretty sure the Ed Dickson hype train will never be a thing, and you can move on to streaming the next tight end; but out of all of the options after Graham and Gronk, Dickson is one of the few players that has a real likelihood to enter the realm of 90 or more targets over the course of the season.

2013 Wide Receiver Rankings

Hitting on wide receiver in 2013 fantasy football is going to prove to be incredibly important to your fantasy teams sake. Deciding to take Calvin Johnson or Dez Bryant at the top of your draft dramatically shifts your strategy for the rest of the season, or deciding to wait on Vincent Jackson or Marques Colston as your WR1 will have the same impact on how you play the waiver wire and trades all season.

More than other position, Wide receiver is subject to wild variation in out put from week to week, which means that players who consistently are targeted and a part of the teams offense in the Redzone are incredibly valuable. Every year, players with no track record of excellence are selected far too high, and the same goes for older players with declining athleticism. Finding the perfect mix of upside and safety at wide outwill define the success of your fantasy squad.

Players I Like Versus ECR

Vincent Jackson– Coming off of a career year, I see more of the same for Vincent Jackson. Josh Freeman is a classic bad ball quarterback and V-Jax is a classic bad ball wide receiver. He is the teams #1 option in the red zone and after a finish of WR for 2012, the Rotoviz projection machine loves him in 2013. His median projection places him in elite territory.

Marques Colston– Colston’s finishes over the last 4 seasons: WR11, WR11, WR19, and WR13. He is boring, but he is mister consistency. That is why he is consistently drafted and ranked lower than his value. Getting Sean Payton back will get the offense back into top gear, and Colston will be the 1B to Jimmy Graham’s 1A.

Cecil Shorts– Short’s game log is something that fantasy football pornography is made off. His points per game average from week 7 on in standard leagues: 11.9 points. Over that period, he only had 2 games under double digit fantasy points. The worries of Blaine Gabbert and Chad Henne won’t stop him if he is seeing 8 targets a game, but the concussion problem is bothersome and one to monitor.

Pierre Garcon– When he is playing, he will be a WR1. Garcon and the chemistry with Robert Griffin was absolutely outstanding and this is the type of guy who can make a fantasy season. The risk of injury is priced into his ADP and makes him an attractive buy.

There are some others, and there will be pieces on Rotoviz coming soon to explain why that is. Now on to the black clouds.

Players I Don’t Like Versus ECR

Larry Fitzgerald– I’m not buying the come back. Check this article on Rotoviz for the full explanation. The points are pretty basic. Fitz has only ever been a true stud with Kurt Warner throwing him the ball, and I’m not buying into the Cardinals offensive line being improved enough to provide Carson Palmer enough time to make Fitzgerald a sure-fire WR1.

Wes Welker– Welker being drafted before Eric Decker strikes me as pretty insane. Welker is not efficient in the redzone (17 touchdowns on 57 targets the last 3 years) and is not going to keep getting his record breaking number of targets. He is being drafted and ranked high based on name value alone.

Greg Jennings– C’mon, guys. Greg Jennings is 30 years old and playing with a quarterback with a career adjusted yards per attempt is 5.5 yards. The only reason Percy Harvin had consistent fantasy value with Ponder at the helm is a a crazy amount of targets and his run after catch ability. The same won’t be true with Jennings.

Keep an eye out here and on Rotoviz for more of wide receiver loves and hates.

I really hope you guys have been following with the Vincent Brown saga. It started with this piece, moved over to the Football Guys forum and then a piece published on Rotoviz about historical aberrations in relation to 40 times and fantasy production.

Sigmund Bloom of Football Guys made an interesting point worth addressing on twitter this morning:

@BalesFootball @DavisMattek i would be interested to see how many combine 4.65+ WRs were even drafted. Criner is one i know

— Sigmund Bloom (@SigmundBloom) July 24, 2013

That was a really good point that Sig raised. If a WR with a historically below average 40 time is drafted in the upper half of the draft, wouldn’t that suggest they have other skills that could make them relevant to fantasy players? The following table attempts to answer that question. These are players with 40 time’s slower than 4.56, drafted between rounds 1 and 3 from 1999 and on to the present.

The 28 players on list combined for 31 top 30 WR seasons. A few things immediately jump out from table: Deandre Hopkins and Ryan Broyles’ inclusion. Perhaps it is simple recency bias, but I was not expecting either to show up here. Broyles’ poor 40 time is easily explained by the fact that he ran his 40 only several months after tearing his ACL, and speed isn’t really Hopkins’ game. He is big and has record-breaking, Hakeem Nicks-esque handsize (more on this later)

The list of wide receivers who put together top 30 seasons while running slower than 4.56 40 since 1999 is: Anquan Boldin, Mike Clayton, Koren Robinson, Plaxico Burres, Mario Manningham, Bernard Berrian, Chad ‘Ochocinco’ Johnson, Antonio Bryant and Darrell Jackson.

So what do these players have in common that makes them special compared to the other, slower wideouts? Well, they are all taller than 6″2′. The only ones who weighed less than 188 pounds were Mario Manningham and Bernard Berrian, and 15 of the 31 top-30 seasons came from players who weighed more than 209 pounds.

The list is organized by 40 times, descending from slowest to fastest and what you will notice is that the farther down the list you go, the more likely that you will find a top 30 season. Even for players who never reached top 30 status, it’s more likely that the faster the player was, the more likely it was that they gained more yards, i.e played longer, as evidenced by Troy Edwards and Jabar Gaffney.

A potential defense raised by those who believe Brown has fantasy potential was his elite scorings in the 3 cone drill. For running backs, the 3 cone and short shuttle drills are pretty important, but I’m not sure they are for wide receivers. Out of the 9 players who put up top-30 seasons, all of those who recorded a 3 cone time were slower than the average for the list (6.62) and 4 of the nine were slower than 7.34. Chad Johnson is tied with Anquan Boldin for most top-30 seasons on this list, and he posted the slowest 3 cone time out of all 29 players.

So What Did We Learn?

Again. It helps to be fast. You don’t have to be a burner by any strech of the imagination, but take a look at a quotation from Jon Bales‘ book “Fantasy Football For Smart People: What The Experts Don’t Want You To Know” : Thus, it isn’t that being fast doesn’t help receivers, but rather that the speed “cutoff” isn’t as stringent as it is for running backs. Receivers also need two things to maximize their chances of success in the NFL. The first is size (especially height). The second is at least a moderate amount of speed (ideally under 4.55). A bunch of big receivers with moderate speed have succeeded of late—Marshall (4.52), Kenny Britt (4.51), Jordy Nelson (4.51), Dwayne Bowe (4.51), Hakeem Nicks (4.50)—but they’re all very large.”

When looking at our list, this holds true. Anquan Boldin’s fantasy production appears to be a statistical aberration, a data point that can only be explained by his rock solid hands, heart, determination, and playing with Hall Of Fame-worthy Kurt Warner. However, other than Boldin and one-hit wonders Koren Robinson and Mike Clayton (who still had the requisite size), all of the other top-30 players on this were around that 4.55 40 sweet-spot and had either outstanding (Plaxico Burress) or preferred (Chad Johnson, Bryant, Darrell Jackson) size.

After I finished my first set of rankings, I participated in several rookie drafts in a few of my leagues. I quickly found out that I wasn’t adhering to my own set of rankings, thus, a much needed updated. The ‘CHNG’ column gives you the difference in ranking slot from my 1st ranking to the most recent iteration. A few notes before you dig in:

• The top 5 is unchanged, although I wouldn’t fault you if you took Lacy over Bernard.
• The biggest change in my rankings is Christine Michael. I had the 1.06 in one league with Patterson staring at me, and I couldn’t pull the trigger. I would have taken Michael there, but I got an offer to trade down, and I was confident I could get him later on.
• Geno Smith is going to be the key to my late round quarterback strategy this year, and he’s coming at bargain basement prices. In one of my 12 team leagues, he didn’t go until the 3.02. Yes, the third round! Talk about undervalued.
• Latavius Murray keeps rising. I wouldn’t draft him as high as my ranking, because you simply won’t have too (although people are rapidly catching on, thanks DLF!).
• Zac Stacy fell massively after I took a deeper look at his workout and college production. He was the least productive of the Rams running backs in college on a per game basic. Here’s an excellent take on his long road to the starting job over at rotoviz.
• Aaron Dobson is rising. The only real lock for significant playing time on the roster is Danny Amendola, so Dobson could be in line for significant targets early on. He had an up and down college career, but there’s certainly untapped potential here.
• Johnathan Franklin is a tough player to rank. I think both backs will be involved to an extent, but Eddie Lacy is going to be the grinder who gets the touchdowns. I loved Franklin’s tape but the metrics don’t paint a pretty picture, and his situation is really bad.
• There isn’t anyone worthwhile behind Jamaal Charles, so why not take a shot on Kniles Davis?
• Sam McGuffie is a great player to monitor during Oakland’s OTAs. A bigger, more athletic Tavon Austin who didn’t do much on a terrible Rice offense.

Davis Mattek and Coleman Kelly break down and every 2013 NFL Team’s draft and assign grades, as well as projecting all of the offense skill position players for fantasy football 2013.

Sports Wunderkind Royals Preview with Josh Duggan

A couple of thoughts about my Top 40 before you dive in:

• With the recent comments by Todd Haley saying that Le’Veon Bell is “…not a guy that you’d shy away from giving it to him 30 times a game,” he’s moving into my #1 spot. This is a perfect intersection of talent and situation. To all those shouting out Bell as the next Daniel Thomas or Shonn Greene: I could not disagree more.
• I honestly don’t know what to make of the Eddie Lacy/Johnathan Franklin situation in Green Bay. So far, the idea is that Lacy is the 2 down thumper and Franklin is the 3rd down receiving/change of pace back. I don’t think Franklin really fits that receiving back mold, so I ranked him low because of the risk factor. Lacy will probably be the goal line back, but this seems like a quasi-Carolina Panthers situation brewing in Wisconsin. On one hand, Lacy could get the lion’s share of yards and touchdowns, but there is a chance his injury problems catch up with him and that Franklin runs away with the job. I just don’t know.
• Zac Stacy is the best running back on the Rams roster, and it isn’t close. I have no problems taking him in the 1^st round.
• Ranking Marcus Lattimore at 26 means I won’t own him on any of my teams. I think people taking him in the 1st round are wasting their pick; athletes “return to previous levels of function” at a rate of 20-30% according to Scott Peak. Even if he does recover and regains his talent, I don’t think he’s better than Kendall Hunter. I’m rooting for him, but it’s very unlikely you’ll see decent returns on the pick.
• In what world is Latavius Murray not a 2nd round pick? He’s a bigger Darren McFadden, standing at 6’3″, 223, with similar speed, agility, and explosion measurements. McFadden has been consistently injured since he entered the NFL, and is a free agent in 2014. You could be looking at the future starting running back for the Oakland Raiders, and the most you have to spend is a 2nd round pick! I’m making a point to grab all the young running backs who I think can start in 1-2 years, and Murray is a guy I’m adding to that list.
• I’m bullish on Quinton Patton. The 49ers don’t pass a lot, and I’m not sure he’s better than incumbent A.J. Jenkins. Boldin and Crabtree could potentially be gone by 2015, but you can let someone else draft him then buy low in a year or two.
• Christine Michael will be on all of my teams this year. He’s in a bad short term situation, similar to the one C.J. Spiller was drafted into, but the Seahawks can cut Marshawn Lynch for little penalty and save themselves some cap space. Perhaps they know something we don’t about his back or are preparing for some sort of punishment stemming from his pending DUI trial. Combine Michael’s talent with Seattle 264 rushing attempts per game and you have fantasy success.
• Aaron Mellette, the Baltimore Ravens 7th round wide receiver, is a guy I’d be snatching in the 3rd round. The Ravens have a hole opposite Torrey Smith, and I’m not sure Tandon Doss, Tommy Streeter, or Jacoby Jones are the answer. Mellette reminds of Marques Colston in a lot of ways, in playing style and draft position. He could get playing time sooner than people think.

If you any questions or comment, hit me up on twitter. I’m always open to discussing the thought process behind my ideas.

AFC North:

Balitmore Ravens: B

Baltimore is coming off an impressive Supbowl run, and it’s clear the direction the offense is taking with Mr. 120 Million. That being said, they lost almost everything on defense. It was clear what Ozzie Newsome wanted to do with his draft and he a got lucky when Ed Reed’s replacement Matt Elam was there at 32. Newsome then picked up Ray Lewis’s replacement in first-round talent Arthur Brown at 56. Getting John Simon, who Urban Meyer called one of his favorite players of all time, and a gritty undersized pass rusher in the fourth just solidifies the next few years for the Ravens. Kapron Leiws-Moore needs a red-shirt year after blowing out a knee in the national title game, but if he had come out healthy would have likely been late second, early third round selection. If he gets healthy he could be a starter for a long time. Watch out for undrafted free agent wr/qb Trent Steelman, who I think has Julian Edlelman written all over him.

Cincinnati Bengals: B+

The Bengals absolutely killed the first few rounds. Getting Tyler Eifert at 21 could be the steal of the draft. Lord knows what Jay Gruden will dream up for Andy Dalton with Eifert, Green, and Gresham in the passing game. It’s clear that Dalton has no more excuses.  Gio Bernard was my favorite back in the draft; his versatility will allow him to make plays out of any place on the field, including the return game. Margus Hunt has talent beyond talent, and letting him learn from Carlos Dunlap, Michael Johnson, and Geno Atkins will prove very helpful. Later on they got Rex Burkhead who should be a fine special teams player and could force himself into  3^rd down duty with his blocking talent and hands. Reid Fragel is a great developmental tackle, having played tight end until last season at Ohio State. I also love the undrafted free agents signings of Larry Balck Jr. and Onterio McCalebb; Black is a hardnosed defensive tackle that plays hard every down while McCalebb has blazing speed and could be another good return man for the Bengals.

 Cleveland Browns: C+

The Browns didn’t make enough moves to give a damning grade, but they could have made some moves to make bigger splashes. Barkevious Mingo is an incredible talent who needs some work, but if he can find some more pass rush moves and add strength he could be an impact player very early. Leon McFadden has great upside as well, and he gets to learn from one of the best, Joe Hayden. Garrett Gilkey in the seventh round could be a steal as he is a big nasty guy who played outside tackle at Chadron but projects at guard in the NFL. Travis Tannahill should have been drafted, he doesn’t have great movement skills, but he can block and catch with surprising athleticism.

Pittsburg Steelers: C+

The Steelers were much worse than fan expectation in 2012. They couldn’t run, they couldn’t pass when Big Ben was hurt, and they couldn’t slow down opponents when it mattered. They needed to get younger badly, and they did that in typical Steeler fashion with smart picks that fit their system. Jarvis Jones, who was a top five pick based solely on his outstanding SEC tape, fell to them at 17 and they jumped all over him. They can plug him in and count on good pass rush for the next ten years. That’s why they felt comfortable letting Thug Harrison go. Le’veon Bell was over drafted by conventional terms, but when you look at what the Steelers were ready to go to camp with at running back, it’s clear why they took a guy that looks like a Steeler. Some may have hated the Landry Jones pick but he can sit the next few years behind Big Ben and maybe see some spot duty when Ben gets hurt.

AFC South:

 Indianapolis Colts: C+

GM Ryan Grigson and head coach Chuck Pagano have made it clear what kinds of players they want: tough hard workers who have great locker room personalities with proven production. They got the German War Machine Bojern Warner at 24 which may end up being a steal. His ceiling comparison is Jarred Allen, and even if he’s only pretty good, he will give 200% effort and should be the stabilizing force on an evolving defense. Kahlid Holmes started 40 games at USC going back to the Pete Carroll years; he showed gritty play before some late injuries seemed to slow him down. I loved getting John Boyett late. He isn’t the biggest, fastest, or strongest safety on the block, but he is a smart productive player who was the leader of the Oregon defense for the past three years. UDFA Emmett Cleary started almost every game of his career at Boston College; he may prove to be a solid swing tackle in time.

 Houston Texas: A

Rejoice Andre Johnson! The Texas have finally heard your pleas. With their 1st pick, they drafted Clemson’s DeAndre Hopkins who is a fluid athlete and may not have incredible long speed has amazing ball skills. He is still learning the game and has a Roddy White-like ceiling; as long as he gets covered at all he will be doing his job in getting men off Andre Johnson. D.J. Swearinger is a feisty safety who now gets to learn from the greatest of all time in Ed Reed; he is SEC battle tested and was a surprise to last as long as he did. The steal of the class may be Sam Montgomery. Montgomery was a headache for LSU coaches last year and was publicly denounced by a few of them. If the Texans can get him to care at all about football, they got a first round talent in the fourth. The Texans went heavy on UDFA’s and picked up a few that should be good players for them, I don’t know why the hype wasn’t behind Cierre Woods; he has tremendous talent and could be an everyday contributor this year. Syracuse wide receiver Alec Lemon should have been drafted and run great routes after being coached by an NFL guy in college. Zach Boren has versatility being able to play FB, he can catch out of the backfield, he can also play spot duty inside linebacker in the 3-4, and should be a special team’s leader for years. They also signed Hesiman candidate Colin Klein, although it’s unclear what they hope to accomplish.

Jacksonville Jaguars: B-

The Jags were really good really quick when they arrived in 1995, and a lot of that had to do with nobody being able to touch Mark Brunell on account of Tony Boselli. Luke Joeckel can be that for this team. Getting Jonathan Cyprien with the first pick in the second was incredible as he can be the enforcer that the Jags have lacked in recent years. I love Ace Sanders in the fourth because he has real potential to develop as a slot receiver. For all the hype around Tavon Austin, Sanders has similar open field ability. Denard Robinson should play all over for this team the next few years. They brought in both Matt Scott and Jordan Rodgers, who will both get a chance to compete for the quarterback position. Watch out for fellow undrafted guy Kyler Reed from Nebraska; he just has a knack for being in the right place at the right time, plus he made plays with Taylor Martinez as his quarterback.

Tennese Titans: C+

Was it really that long ago that the Titans hasd a dominating offensive line, a 2,000 yard rusher, and a scrappy defense? It feels like ages ago now, but you get the feeling the front office wants to get it back. They took the first top ten guard in almost twenty years with John Cooper from North Carolina; he has elite athleticism for an interior guy. In fact, his biggest issue last year was keeping his weight on. Combine him with fourth rounder Brian Schwenke from Cal, who could start immediately and be good, and free agent guard Andy Levitrie, and the Titans may get CJ2K back. Netting the rail-thin ultra-explosive Justin Hunter early in the second means that Jake Locker has no more excuses this year. Second rounder Blidi Wreh-Wilson has potential to start right now, and seventh rounder Daimion Stafford is a crazy person with big hitting skills. If they can calm him down in coverage he could be the rover for their nickel-blitz packages.

AFC West

Denver Broncos: D+

The Broncos pretty much filled all their pressing needs in free agency this offseason, so they had the luxury of drafting for depth. They took Sylvester Williams from North Carolina with the twenty eighth overall pick. Personally I’ve never been a big fan of Sylvester, but he does a good job filling gaps and stopping the run. Montee Ball has a lot of tread on his tires, but my biggest issue with him is can he catch the ball? He never really had to do it at Wisconsin, and in order to thrive with Manning you need to be able to catch outlet passes. Tavarres King out of Georgia was a great pick as he has freak like athleticism, and should be able to carve out a niche in the Denver offense. Getting Zac Dysert late was a steal. I hate to say I agree with Trent Dilfer, but he has starting potential and shows an ability to run which is at such a premium these days. A few years down he could beat out last year’s third rounder Brock Osweiler for the starting job in Denver.

Kansas City Chiefs: B-

The Chiefs had the first pick and decided against taking Luke Joeckel, instead going with upside and taking Eric Fisher. Fisher has immense talent and should be an immediate starter at one of the tackle spots, assuming they can get rid of Brandon Albert. He should be their blindside tackle by August and could be a quick Pro Bowl selection. Their second round pick was traded for Alex Smith, and that’s where this draft will really be decided. If he proves to be the accurate passer he was the past year and a half he should validate Andy Reid’s choice; if not they passed up on some good players who could change their franchise. Tight End Travis Kelce should be a stabilizing upgrade over the often injured Tony Mokeai. In addition, he also can run wildcat plays, as he was a former QB. Knile Davis was a reach, but if he can come back from the gruesome ankle injury and learn to hold on to the football, his physical measurables say he will be a star. Seventh rounder Mike Capatonao is a guy I had never heard of when he was picked on Saturday. After some research, I found this guy has the potential to be a good pass rusher a few years down the road. UDFA Toben Opurum was the lead rusher at Kansas his freshman year, then was switched to linebacker by Turner Gill. He has great athleticism and could earn some serious playing time if he continues to learn how to play defense.

 Oakland Raiders:  B

Oakland was a mess last year, Carson Palmer proved he is a shell of his former self and the Bengals continue to laugh at Raiders fans anguish. The Palmer deal, however, is a thing of the past and Oakland had a great draft. They needed everything so trading back and picking up a second round pick was huge for them. They got an extra pick and their guy in D.J. Hayden. Hayden has all the making of an elite corner and if his health doesn’t falter could be a day one upgrade over anything they had. Menelik Watson is the fastest linemen in modern NFL history, and he can be a starter from the first day. They took a  flyer on another athletic division two tackle a few years back in Jared “Manhulk” Veldheer, and he became a franchise left tackle. Investing in offensive linemen is always a good way to get better. Third rounder linebacker Sio Moore, and fourth round tight end Nick Kasa were each taken a round after the talent they poses. UDFA wide receiver Connor Vernon just feels like a guy who will find a way to get on the field early, a sort of an Ed McCaffrey type who isn’t flashy but catches the ball when it is thrown to him.

San Diego Chargers: B-

The Chargers are a team in rebuilding mode. They have what they perceive to be a franchise quarterback, but he has no protection and nobody to throw to anymore; so, the Chargers drafted the last of the top tackles and maybe reached a bit on a guy who will never play anywhere other than right tackle. Manti Te’o may not be an internet savvy guy, but he does have a nose for the football. He doesn’t cover particularly well, but he is more than capable of being an above-average run stopper. Depending on who you talk to the Chargers got the best overall receiver in the draft, or took a guy who can’t run in Keenan Allen. Once a top fifteen player, Allen run REALLY SLOW at the combine, but runs smooth routes and never has wasted motions in his game. Kwame Geathers is a steal for the 3-4 defense as an UDFA, and should be able to flourish with proper training and work. Finally don’t sleep on UDFA wide receiver Luke Tasker, son of the greatest special teams player who ever lived.

AFC East

Buffalo Bills: C

Alright, everybody get their laughter out of the way now, yes the Bills traded back to sixteen to get their quarterback and it wasn’t Geno Smith. Now that we got that out of the way, I have to say that while a reach, f you love a quarterback you go get him. And in return they picked up one of the best linebackers in Kiko Alonso, as well as getting the most under rated receiver in the draft in Robert Woods in the second. Meanwhile in the third they went with an Olympic-like athlete in Marquise Goodwin, who Texas just refused to let do anything productive during his time on the field. Late rounds didn’t show any splash picks but added some solid defensive back depth with guys like Duke Williams, and Jonathon Meeks. They also got Da’rick Rogers as a UDFA. Rodgers has first round talent but is still a question after getting kicked out of Tennessee, and underwhelming at Tenn Tech.

Miami Dolphins: C+

The Dolphins made a bold move, trading up to the third overall pick to take pass rusher Dion Jordan. In terms of value the cost of moving way up was pretty minimal, losing only a second rounder, if this pick hits they will have a fierce pass rushing combo with Cam Wake. Dallas Thomas can play immediately inside for this team and help with opening up holes of the running game. Jelani Jenkins may not be the fastest man on the planet, but he was a great player in the SEC, which means something and that he could be a steal as a good two down linebacker. Dion Sims is great versatile player who looks like he could be a starter in a few seasons at the tight end spot.

New England Patriots: D

Now I have a certain distain for Bill Belichek and Tom Brady, but I can say with all certainty that Patriots had a horrible draft. Maybe the Hoodie knows something I don’t, but over drafting players has rarely worked for anybody, just ask the Oakland Raiders. That being said, I do like Jamie Collins for them; he outplayed the entire C-USA conference last season on the worst team in college football and should be a stud for the next eight to ten years. After that pick things get hazy; Aaron Dobson, Logan Ryan, and Duron Harmon were projected to go much later than where they were taken. Once again, maybe I just don’t see it but trading out of your first pick with an aging quarterback, little depth the receiver, and Justin Hunter still on the board does not look good. They did get great value in Rutgers linebacker Steve Beauharnais in the seventh as he had a third round grade by most mock drafts. UDFA receiver T.J. Moe is a guy who looked like the next Wes Welker in 2011. His production slipped mightily afterwards, but he still has great hands and even has a little shake to his step.

New York Jets: C+

The Jets always seem to feel the need to outshine everyone else during the offseason. This time they did so trading the best corner in football for a first rounder and some change. They got jumped for Tavon Autin by the Rams and had read just their plans that gave them the best overall corner in the draft with Dee Milliner who should be plugged in right away. Then the Jets had plenty of options to take at thirteen and theyhey went with Sheldon Richardson, who not only was the third rated defensive tackle by most, but also doesn’t seem to fit the Rex Ryan style of defense. That’s three straight first round picks on defensive linemen for the Jets. They did get lucky and have the best quarterback in the draft Geno Smith fall right to them in the second, but who is he going to throw to? I love the Brian Winters pick, as he should shore up the guard spot that the Jets couldn’t get Matt Slauson/ Vlad Ducasse out of the past few years. Late they got Tommy Bohanon, a versatile fullback out of Wake Forrest; this guy should be a stud on special teams for them and could be a useful piece on offense as a possible short yard back.