OT: Who's your team and how did you like their draft performance?
I know there are many MGoBlogger's with differing NFL rooting interests. I'm curious to hear how fans of different teams that care to weigh in would evaluate their team's draft performance.
Probably like the majority on the board, I am a senseless Lions fan. Seems from what I've gathered opinions related to their selections vary wildly - some think they did an outstanding job, others think by missing out on the two high-level QB prospects on the board, plus a playmaker at WR it was same old Loins massive failure.
I personally am pretty pleased with the way they drafted. I do firmly believe the Lions needed to rebuild their foundation, not just slap some paint on their roster. Starting at the line of scrimmage is the best way to begin the process IMO, and I think the Lions did exactly that, picking up an elite OT prospect in the first round followed by, widely considered, the second best defensive tackle prospect in the draft, and another high upside DT right after.
I think Melifonwu is an excellent value pick in the 4th round and has all the physical tools your looking for in a starting corner. I'm sure he will still require some development though. St. Brown I also think has the potential to be a solid contributor. He shouldn't ever be relied upon as WR1, but I think he could be a productive guy in the slot. The Lions have so many needs, it's impossible to address all of them in one draft. But I think by and large you could see they had a purpose going into the draft - build the foundation at the LOS -and they stayed disciplined and did that. Overall, I would give it a B+ draft, very solid.
How are others feeling about the Lions picks (not the franchise itself), or their favorite franchise to follow on Sunday?
Browns.
Finally nice to have adults run the CLE draft.
FWIW, I thought the Loins draft was solid. Anything after Sewell (who is going to be an excellent player for years) was a bonus.
Yeah the Browns drafted very well again this year. Newsome is a great talent to have available at the end of the first, and I would have been totally onboard with the Loins taking JOK. I think if he's deployed correctly in the Browns defense he can cause a lot of problems.
Lions.
Honestly, I'm neutral, but not because of a lack of opinions on who they drafted.
I'm neutral because this franchise has been such a clown show so I have to hold out hope.
But, if I had to give a hot take; if we focus STRICLTY on the first two rounds, I'm very happy. Sewell is the best player not named Trevor Lawrence, IMO. I think he's going to be an HoFer.
Levi screams upside.
I really like what the lions did having 6 picks in the first four rounds. They need to stack 2 more drafts like this on top of this to rebuild the talent level.
The game is won in the trenches and they picked almost 1000 pounds across 3 picks. (Compare Brady vs. Mahomes in the Super Bowl. 1 guy had time to work, the other was scrambling all day.) The defense was historically atrocious and they started addressing that by getting 4 starters.
A+ Draft in my opinion. I wanted them to draft Sewell, but I didn’t think he’d be available. Best lions draft in my memory.
I agree. It seems like, at least based on this draft, the Lions are finally going to take their time and build a team the right way. They didn't get distracted by any of the "shiny toys" on the board and just executed their plan. The only reason I didn't give them an A in my opinion was I think they didn't come up on the winning end to go get Derek Barnes. That said, it's entirely possible Barnes could be a steal and this point is moot. I do like his upside. Still seems like they gave up more resources than they got in return until we see how Barnes pans out.
Overall though, I think they did an excellent job, and I'll be along for the ride as long as what they're doing makes sense, and they keep building on this draft class.
I didn’t mind the Lions drafting Barnes but still can’t understand why they felt the need to trade up to do it. He likely could’ve been had 1-2 rounds later. I’m also not sure why they drafted a RB in the 7th round. I’ll be shocked if he ever gets to touch the ball. I would have rather seen them draft Dylan Moses and hope that he is good enough to get in to their LB rotation. Other than that, I was happy with the first 4 picks. I think the Lions got a lot tougher and more physical with this draft class.
I wanted Yeboah in round 7. I don’t know if they are set at TE, I just remember seeing him dominate a game at Ole Miss. He’s a weapon, but that ORST RB put up a ton of scrimmage yards.
https://www.theringer.com/2021/5/1/22415236/nfl-draft-team-grades-picks-rounds-tracker
The Ringer agrees with me, lions got an A+ from them. Maybe I’m not just a huge homer.
Lions fan, pretty happy. I liked Wallace over St. Brown, and may have gone with Nico over McNeil in the 3rd due to perceived team needs. But I'm a big fan of the three big guys and the Purdue LB so overall im happy.
Colts
They drafted Kwity. After that, who cares.
They also got Dayo for the DL. Ballard does it again!
Buffalo Bills. Very very happy they were able to pick up Rousseau. Seems like they did well overall too
I like what the Bills are doing/did. Seems like they are basically building up their defense specifically to target Kansas City's strengths and weaknesses.
Lions.
I'd still love to know who they think Goff is going to throw the ball to. Breshad Perriman, Quintez Cephus and St Brown don't exactly blow my shorts off.
Yeah, the passing game is going to be pretty anemic next year unless Perriman or Cephus have some unforeseen revelation. I wouldn't bet on that.
Until they can get someone that can take the top off a defense, they are going to be looking at a lot of 8 or 9 man boexes I would guess. I think next year's draft will be the time to go after some elite skill position players. By the way they drafted, it tells me they want to be able to win at the line of scrimmage first and then upgrade the talent on the outside. By and large I'm okay with that approach because it should pat dividends over time. Next year's offense might be hard to watch though.
You can't build something by focusing on the outside first. Build solid bones, then work outward.
The Lions have the least talented roster in the NFL (according to PFF) so Im not sure why people are so tied up with the WR group. Yes, they are bad. But so is literally every other position group on the team (sans maybe OL now). Every draft is stacked with WR talent with the way the college game has gone. Im not super worried about the Lions ability to find a decent WR by the time theyre trying to be competitive in a couple years.
Good point here too. There will never be a draft devoid of talent at WR. It seems Holmes and Dorsey were willing to accept reality that they need to start rebuilding at square one. An elite WR or franchise QB doesn't do you much good if you can't win at the line of scrimmage. As we Lions fans have literally seen.
It makes sense to secure the line of scrimmage and then go find some playmakers.
I totally agree. No matter who the Lions picked this year, it could be considered as filling a need since the roster is awful. They still would have sucked if they had picked a top WR instead of Sewell. This is a multi-year rebuild. Building in the trenches first is a sound strategy. They have a lot of picks the next 2 seasons. The Lions should be ready to contend in 2023 if they get these drafts right.
Excellent points. Build the foundation. Work on running the ball and stopping the run. The shiny pieces will come next year, along with (maybe?) a QB.
I've mostly stopped watching the NFL because it isn't enjoyable (college football is headed that way but that is a rant for another thread). I can say I liked what the Lions did. I think the offense should be solid despite a sad receiver room. The defense looks pretty suspect but nabbing some interior guys never hurts.
It's Year Zero for Holmes and Campbell. Add some beef, grit, season, and stir.
Barnes and St Brown were both steals given their evaluations.
lions - there are going to be 3 QB studs every year, no need to take one this year. i liked their approach. would have like to see them take the all ACC WR with their final selection in round 7.
Edit: looks like the lions signed that WR as an undrafted free agent, anyway. yes.
I suppose.
I was high on Justin Fields. I wanted him to be a Lion. But, I was basically Fields/Sewell; if they had both guys available, I would have been just fine with PS.
Next year's QB draft class blows. Sam Howell does nothing for me.
I think the best way to win in the NFL is with a QB on a rookie contract. This seems to be the goal for a lot of teams, maximize the seasons you don't have to pay your QB 20+ million.
I think the Lions are still 2 years away from having a roster with enough talent to compete for the playoffs. To me it makes sense to not throw a rookie QB into the fire of this mess of a roster. If we had just drafted a QB by the time the team is ready to compete we would either be needing to sign him to a massive extension or find his replacement because he didnt pan out.
No, but the problem is that we are talking about a new GM and coach not having their future QB in potentially year 3 or 4, which is an issue.
I wanted them to get their guy in the system now.
If the team is struggling for another 2-3 years, and THEN they start building up their new franchise QB? That'll take another 2-3 years. By then, Holmes and Campbell will be out the door.
I suppose I just see it differently. I feel like its been proven you can win with young or rookie quarterbacks if the talent around them is there.
The vast majority of QB's drafted never develop enough to be a franchise QB anyway. Very few franchises actually have a franchise QB. I like the idea of building out from the trenches so whenever a QB is drafted the foundation is there for them to have success.
Plus the QB's available at 7 were Fields & Jones, hard pass on both of them.
That's just it though. The Lions had a solid draft, and this will allow them to start to improve. The 2022 draft will improve them even before. So let Goff play in '21 and then evaluate. Do you want to re-work Goff's deal to lock him up long-term, or do you draft a rookie QB in '22 or '23? If there is incremental improvement, I don't think the Lions would blow it all up again, so Holmes will have a number of years to make this happen.
TL;DR -- the Lions are attempting to rebuild the "right" way. They are a couple years away from anything, so foundations first.
Yep, all good points. The reality is, you can still be a competitive team and not have an elite quarterback.. it certainly makes things much easier from a competitive standpoint, but obviously Goff himself played in a Super Bowl. The Titans made a run with Tannehill because they had a great offensive line, a mac truck at running back and a lethal play action game.
All this is to say, the Lions don't necessarily have to reach or scramble for a quarterback prospect. Like you said, a rookie quarterback isn't going to come into Detroit and transform the Lions into a competitive team until at least his first contract would be close to expiring. That would create a very difficult roster management and cap situation.
Just build the roster and wait for their guy. Once they get him, the foundation will be in place for him to succeed and hopefully allow the Lions to compete for the division.
Titans fan. Hated the draft. Total WTF picks. They drafted CB (a position of need because they let their 2017 first rounder, Adoree Jackson, walk...along with letting Malcom Butler go as well) who has multiple major back surgeries and is a massive liability on the injury front.
The pick after this focused on the RT because this team decided to draft stupid Isiah Wilson last year. Speaking of him, has that loser killed himself yet with his stupid actions? I fully expect to hear that he died within the next few years. And Wilson was drafted last year to replace Conklin, who was drafted in the top 10 in 2016 and was quite good - and yet they let him walk as well.
The other need was WR, because their GM let Corey Davis walk this off-season after 3 solid seasons as a super high end #2/borderline #1 WR...who was also a top 10 pick in 2017. So instead of getting someone good in FA or early in the draft, they picked garbage project WRs in the draft’s middle rounds. Guys who would be there as late 6th rounders or even UDFAs.
Total loss for this draft. Maybe it turns out great, but John Robinson (Titans GM) has totally whiffed on a ton of picks and FAs since taking over in 2016’s draft. 2019 was a solid draft mostly, but 2017 and 2018 are looking bad, and 2020 looks like a complete bust after season 1.
Bucs. I’m more or less happy. They didn’t have any immediate needs, minus maybe figuring out Brady’s heir, because if he goes down Tampa’s entire season goes down with him. Literally all of their starters are back. They could build for 2022 and beyond, and I think they did that.
They drafted JPP’s successor, Brady’s successor, shored up the OL and added another weapon in the receiving corps. Every pick was a luxury pick for them, so probably won’t know how good any of these guys really are for two or three years.
Jets fan here. My thoughts... wanking motion, fart sound.
I was a bit surprised Saleh and Douglas went so heavy on offense, but then I thought they should've kept Darnold and traded down out of #2.
With you on everything.
Lions fan - thought they got a great pick in Sewell and both defensive tackles look like potential starters or at least significant rotation pieces. I actually likes Barnes at LB even though the trade up makes it a bit more expensive of a pick than you'd likes. And Amon-Ra St. Brown is probably a #2/#3 WR, and the Lions need bodies are the bare minimum.
It wasn't the greatest draft by any means, but it felt like the staff has a vision and they're going to follow it, which is something. Hasn't always felt like that's the case.
Bengals here. Which, in and of itself, can be pretty hurtful.
I don't hate this draft. Trading down in the second was solid. Added two more fourth round picks. D-Line was an area of need, so they went out and took three DEs and two DTs. I hope a couple of those guys pan out. They drafted three OL as well. I like the focus on the trenches. That's where the focus needs to be. Protect Burrow. Get to the QB. But outside of the line play, they picked up a WR, RB, and PK. Chase was a good pick. They lost AJ Green, but Chase with Boyd and Higgins should make for a very good WR group.
The thing that stands out to me the most is that zero DBs were drafted. It's not a huge need, but still seems like one out of ten draft picks could have been for secondary depth. That seems...short sighted? I don't know. But overall I'm optimistic. If the lines hold up and Burrow stays healthy, the Bengals could, maybe, possibly? maybe...be good.
Maybe.
Bengals fan, could not agree more. If they had taken Sewell I wouldn’t have complained, but I’m excited about Chase. No real head scratchers which, as a longtime fan, seems so strange. Talking to family that are Browns fans, nobody could really talk any shit. Somehow both organizations had solid drafts.
Niners fan.
I love what we did in the draft. We gained great talent that will contribute immediately at positions of need, and we added depth for a few years down the road. Our draft strategy hinges on Hurd and Ford coming back, and K+L confirmed today that they are very optimistic about those players’ rehabs. All in all, I’m stoked and excited to see what other offseason moves they make!
Green Bay. Most enthused I’ve been about a draft in quite a while!! Still think we could have taken at least one more guy on the interior DL though, but we overall picked up dudes in areas we needed to address, are absolutely stacked at CB and OL, and managed to pick up Amari Rodgers at WR.
We also managed to pick up Carlo Kemp as an undrafted free agent for what it’s worth! Really happy for him!!
Overall solid draft!
Seem pretty upbeat considering your QB says its your GM or him.
Definitely took the edge off the drama. Frankly, there’s a lot I don’t know, I’m just hoping it’s resolved soon.
what can ya do?
The Raiders and it was not great by the standards of functional teams, but top notch by Raider standards.
Colts took Paye but I am not happy with them ignoring tackle and now trying to start warming the fan base up to the idea of Sam Tevi protecting Wentz' blindside.
WFT fan and I’m not thrilled with their picks, but I am happy they didn’t mortgage their future to move up in the draft to take their next bust at QB. I’d give them a C+.
Since they won the division and will have a first place schedule, they will probably be in for a tough season. Maybe they can find their franchise QB next year.
Dolphins...I guess?! My team since I was a kid but it's been tough to root for them. I'm one who, if the organization is complete shit and can't make a team competetive, they don't get my time and money (they aren't missing my measley money, I know), so for Lions and Browns fans, kudos I guess. But you're crazy. Force the owners to sell and quit giving them your money.
But yea...I dunno. Miami maybe got too cute for this draft with the sliding around. Hopefully Waddel turns out to be really good and missing Chase and Pitts isn't a Drew Brees regret in 15 years. I like the pick as we sit here today. Hopefully the YTM d-lineman will be really good too...a miss there will quite annoying. Najee Harris going the pick before the Dolphins pick is another potential future regret.
Too early to tell.
Lions fan here.
Loved the draft. Taking a QB with the Goff money already blowing up that position would have been incredibly stupid given the many many needs on our roster. I was all but certain that would be the way the team would go since it was a dumb move. Instead I'm ecstatic that we put so many resources on both sides of the line. If 2 those guys are hits we are on our way to being relevant in 2 years.
Da Bears.
When they traded up to 11 I was hoping it wasn't for Mac Jones. I really hope Fields doesn't follow in the footsteps of other Suckeye QB's. He was seen as the 2nd QB after Trevor at the end of the season. He played against top competition and did well. I'm not sure why he fell so much. They got a nasty limeman out of OK State and another one a few rounds later. Also a decent CB, a big DT and a couple skill players. Overall pretty happy but the success of this draft depends on Fields and his development.
Pats fan here. I’d give their draft a B+. I would have liked to see them take a WR higher but their picks seemed mostly high value. Mac fell in their laps, which helped. BB always seems to draft that one safety that everyone can see is a dud. Did it again but at least it was late in the draft instead of Rd2.
Another Bears fan here. This whole offseason felt much like Michigan's offseason as I've been writing off this season as lost before it begins and hoping that the front office would be gutted so we could start another rebuild under better management.
But one draft seems to have flipped the narrative entirely and now there's a decent chance we found a franchise QB (or at least 1 who doesn't have the mental capacity of a 3rd grader, no offense to Mitch). I'm absolutely gonna hate having to root for Fields due to his choice of school at the college level, but if he turns out to be halfway decent, I'll let it go (somewhat). Like you said, the 2 offensive linemen are huge (figuratively and literally) and the other picks seem fine too.
It'll take a few years to see if the gamble on Fields pays off but I can't fault the GM for making a bold play to save his job, and right now, it sure seems like a good move.