Baltimore Ravens
Draft picks: South Carolina TE Hayden Hurst (No. 25 overall), Louisville QB Lamar Jackson (No. 32 overall), Oklahoma OT Orlando Brown (No. 83 overall), Oklahoma TE Mark Andrews (No. 86 overall), Alabama CB Anthony Averett (No. 118 overall), UCLA LB Kenny Young (No. 122 overall), New Mexico State WR Jaleel Scott (No. 132 overall), UCLA WR Jordan Lasley (No. 162 overall), Texas S DeShon Elliott (No. 190 overall), Wagner OT Greg Senat (No. 212 overall), Alabama C Bradley Bozeman (No. 215 overall), Ferris State DE Zach Sieler (No. 238 overall).
Ozzie Newsome did a great job in his final draft. Hurst is a sure-handed tight with toughness. They may have reached a little for him but if he becomes a Greg Olsen type tight end it will be worth it. The also added Andrews at tight end who is used to being on a scoring offense and hopefully can help this struggling one. Giving up a second-round pick in 2019 to get Jackson was a quality play. Jackson is a perfect fit for Baltimore and it didn’t’t cost much for maybe the best athlete in the draft. Brown is the son of the late former Ravens OT Orlando Brown. He’ll likely outperform his workout numbers. I like Averett from Bama. They also added a couple receivers and great value picks. While I hate that they reached for a tight end they did have a good draft
Overall Grade: B+
Cincinnati Bengals
Draft picks: Ohio State C/OG Billy Price (No. 21 overall), Wake Forest S Jessie Bates (No. 54 overall), Ohio State DE Sam Hubbard (No. 77 overall), Texas LB Malik Jefferson (No. 78 overall), Miami RB Mark Walton (No. 112 overall), Illinois State DB Davontae Harris (No. 151 overall), Virginia DT Andrew Brown (No. 158 overall), Western Michigan CB Darius Phillips (No. 170 overall), Toledo QB Logan Woodside (No. 249 overall), Mississippi OG Rod Taylor (No. 252 overall), Florida State WR Auden Tate (No. 253 overall).
The Bengals traded Buffalo for Cordy Glenn and drafted Billy Price. Their line should be greatly improved. They may have jumped the gun on Price but oh well. They chose to address defense 6 of the next 7 picks making Walton the loan offensive player. I actually think Walton will fit nicely into this system. On defense Jefferson could be good value. Harris could also be a sleeper.. Woodside and Tate were good picks. Overall not bad. I think they could of played more best available.
Overall Grade: B
Cleveland Browns
Draft picks: Oklahoma QB Baker Mayfield (No. 1 overall), Ohio State CB Denzel Ward (No. 4 overall), Nevada OG Austin Corbett (No. 33 overall), Georgia RB Nick Chubb (No. 35 overall), Miami DE Chad Thomas (No. 67 overall), Florida WR Antonio Callaway (No. 105 overall), Memphis LB Genard Avery (No. 150 overall), Texas A&M WR Damion Ratley (No. 175 overall), Louisiana-Lafayette CB Simeon Thomas (No. 188 overall).
Browns GM John Dorsey took a huge gamble with both their first round picks. They took Mayfield first passing on some good players. If Mayfield works out then its great but I think he was a reach at #1. They probably had to pick a QB at No. 1 and they did. Picking Ward No. 4 overall, ahead of Bradley Chubb, was pretty crazy. Not getting Chubb made no sense. Corbett will help the line and the other Chubb they didn’t pass on was a solid pick. Thomas is an athletic End who can play right away. The rest of the draft was meh but they used picks for veterans Landry and Taylor so its not so bad. Im basing this grade on they first two picks.
Overall Grade: B-
Pittsburgh Steelers
Draft picks: Virginia Tech S Terrell Edmunds (No. 28 overall), Oklahoma State WR James Washington (No. 60 overall), Oklahoma State QB Mason Rudolph (No. 76 overall), Western Michigan OT Chukwuma Okorafor (No. 92 overall), Penn State S Marcus Allen (No. 148 overall), N.C. State RB Jaylen Samuels (No. 165 overall), Alabama DT Joshua Frazier (No. 246 overall).
The Steelers went safety first but Edmunds was a surprise pick to most, and probably a round early. I do like the Washington/Rudolph combo. They’ll be able to grow them behind Ben and Brown. Okorafor is a solid pick too. Allen helps at safety as well and Samuels is a sneaky good running back that will fit into the Steelers offense nicely.. Frazier is a perfect fit for a team in need of a hardworking nose tackle… Overall I like the Steelers draft. They’ve done some nice things for now and the future.
Overall Grade: B+