Top 5 NFL Teams in the 2017 Draft
With the 2017 NFL draft come and gone, it’s time to explore which teams fared the best and picked up improvements in the areas they needed most. Here is our list of the top 5 teams in this years draft (in no particular order).
The San Francisco 49ers graded between a B and A on various sports sites. The main move of the 49ers from new GM John Lynch was to negotiate with the Bears to get four picks for their pick two and then still got to pick up defensive lineman Solomon Thomas. It was widely considered a shrewd move by draft analysts.
The New England Patriots got wildly varying grades, depending on who you look at. They didn’t pick until the third round and then were able to pick offensive tackle Antonio Garcia who should help in replacing Nate Solder if he leaves. The main thing with the Patriots this year is who they got for their first round pick in WR Brandin Cooks. He could seriously jump-start an offense that already has a ton of firepower. The Pats also picked up a pass rusher in Derek Rivers.
The Cleveland Browns got largely high marks on their draft. They started it with two first round picks and ended up making a total of three. They picked three very athletic guys in DE Myles Garrett, S Jabrill Peppers and TE David Njoku. Many expected the Browns to rush into a quarterback pick as they’ve done in the past, but instead they got a guy who should help them considerably at safety in Peppers and then Garrett who was largely considered the top defensive player in the entire draft. The Browns did pick a quarterback in the second round with DeShone Kizer.
The Washington Redskins were also widely highly graded for their draft. They took Jonathan Allen in the first round at pick 17. Even though he’s had health questions, he stands to vastly improve the Redskins’ pass rush as well as run defense. Washington also needed a cornerback and they got first round ability in Fabian Moreau from UCLA.
The Arizona Cardinals resisted making a run at quarterbacks in the first round and instead took LB Haason Reddick. They later got S Budda Baker by trading up for him. Even though they gave up a lot to get him, they got the picks back later through trades. The only concern is not getting a quarterback to back up the aging Carson Palmer.
All in all it was a great draft and I am very excited to see how each team fairs in the upcoming season. Please feel free to leave your comments and opinions in the comments section!
