Tag: NFL Draft grades

Falcons NFL Draft grades: Bralen Trice, EDGE, Washington 74th overall

Falcons NFL Draft grade for selecting Washington EDGE Bralen Trice in the 3rd round

The Atlanta Falcons finally snag a much-anticipated edge defender that many a mock draft had projected they would take in the first round. Instead, Atlanta finds a potential starter at a much-needed position with the selection of Washington edge rusher Bralen Trice early on in the third round.

Trice projects as an immediate contributor on defense. With the Falcons seriously lacking any true difference maker off the edge, Trice is going to have every chance available to prove himself as the guy who can take over that starting job from veterans Lorenzo Carter and Arnold Ebiketie.

Lengthy, refined in his technique, and productive in college, Trice is not going to blow the physical testing out of the water, but has shown time and time again on tape to be an absolute menace off the edge. It was surprising to see Trice last this long given how good he has been for the Huskies, and the Falcons pick up some surprise value for the first time in this class.

Grade: B+

Patriots NFL Draft grades: Caedan Wallace, OL, Penn State

Patriots NFL Draft grade for selecting Penn State OL Caedan Wallace

With the New England Patriots addressing their two biggest needs in quarterback and wide receiver earlier in the draft, they needed to buckle down and add some depth to a shaky offensive line. Penn State offensive lineman Caedan Wallace provides that depth here early in the third round.

Wallace does not project as an immediate starter but rather a developmental depth piece as a player who can play outside at tackle or kick into either guard spot to provide invaluable depth to an offensive line that desperately needs it to protect rookie quarterback Drake Maye.

Experienced, refined, versatile, and physical, Wallace is the perfect piece to snag in the third round as a depth offensive lineman and potential swing tackle. Though not likely to take over the starting role anytime soon, it’s good value at one of the leagues most important positions.

Grade: B-

Jets NFL Draft grades: Malachi Corley, WR, Western Kentucky 65th overall

The New York Jets NFL Draft grade for selecting Western Kentucky WR Malachi Corley in the second round

The New York Jets continue their crusade to bolster a Super Bowl ready roster around their rapidly aging quarterback in Aaron Rodgers. At the top of the third round New York leaped up in a trade with Carolina and secured yet another weapon for this receiving core in Western Kentucky wide receiver Malachi Corley.

Corley projects as an immediate impact player with Garrett Wilson coming off an ACL tear and lacking much depth outside of him and free agent signee Mike Williams. Corley could find himself as an early favorite in a Jets’ offense that needs all the explosion it can get.

A twitchy and explosive run after catch machine, Corley is going to be a threat every time he touches the football for Gang Green. At times looking like a running back with the ball in his hands, Corley is every bit a playmaker that the Jets could have gotten in the third round of a draft. Great value for a sure fire producer at this spot.

Grade: B+

Chiefs NFL Draft grades: Kingsley Suamataia, OT, BYU 63rd overall

Chiefs NFL Draft grade for selecting BYU OT Kingsley Suamataia

One of the more glaring question in the Super Bowl champion’s roster is the tackle position, one that the Kansas City Chiefs attempted to address in the latter half of the second round with the selection of BYU offensive tackle Kingsley Suamataia.

Suamataia projects as a potential starter in year one, locking into a camp battle with last years third round pick Wanya Morris. Given Suamataia’s upside and physical skillset, it wouldn’t be surprising if Suamataia walks away from training camp as the designated starter protecing Patrick Mahome’s blindside.

With ideal size, top level strength, and plenty of upside, Suamataia could potentially develop into a solid starting left tackle at the next level. Though Suamataia’s tape leaves much to be desired, particularly in his technique, there is plenty of room for growth and he could prove to be a steal should he pan out in Kansas City.

Grade: B-

Ravens NFL Draft grades: Roger Rosengarten, OT, Washington 62nd overall

Ravens NFL Draft grade for selecting Washington OT Roger Rosengarten in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft

The Baltimore Ravens went into day two of the draft needing to fill both spots on the right side of their offensive line and were able to find a problem solver for either spot with the selection of Washington offensive lineman Roger Rosengarten at the bottom of the second round.

Rosengarten projects as an immediate starter at either the guard or right tackle position for this Baltimore offensive line and has shown in his time at Washington that he is a reliable starter with refined technique that is ready to go day one. Whether the Ravens opt to kick Rosengarten inside at guard or keep him at tackle will ultimately be up to if he can overcome his less than ideal length.

An experienced blindside protector for his former left handed quarterback Michael Penix Jr., Rosengarten has shown time and time again as a two year starter to be very reliable. With plenty of upside despite his length, Rosengarten is excellent value as a plug and play starter at the next level.

Grade: A

Cowboys NFL Draft grade: Marshawn Kneeland, EDGE, Western Michigan 56th overall

Cowboys NFL Draft grade for selecting Marshawn Kneeland in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft

The Dallas Cowboys are about to enter a transition period in the coming years, given their current cap situation. They knew they needed to get younger at multiple positions. By selecting Western Michigan defensive end Marshawn Kneeland, Dallas adds much-needed depth at a position that is set for now.

Kneeland is unlikely to see the starting lineup anytime soon, given the Cowboys boast one of the league’s best duos of edge rushers in Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence, but a fresh pass rusher is always on the docket in a league that prioritizes getting to the quarterback.

A powerful rusher with good length and enough explosion to set the edge and get after the quarterback, Kneeland has time to sit and develop without much expectation in his rookie season. Given that DeMarcus Lawrence is 33 and Micah Parsons is entering a contract year, Kneeland could find himself on the field as a full time starter as soon as next year. This is good value for one of the better edge rushers in the class.

Grade: B+

Jaguars receive confusing draft grade from The 33rd Team

Jaguars receive confusing draft grade from The 33rd Team

Jacksonville took the No. 23-rated prospect on The 33rd Team’s NFL draft big board with pick No. 23, netting three additional selections in the process via trade-down with Minnesota from No. 17 overall last week.

Yet the same outlet gave the Jaguars a “D+” letter grade for their 2024 first-round choice, wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. What gives?

The 33rd Team did not expand on its grades for each of Jacksonville’s picks, and it is unclear who specifically reviewed the Jaguars’ class. The outlet largely consists of former NFL coaches, front-office personnel and football media personalities.

But per its scouting grade and report for Thomas, The 33rd Team believes Thomas will be a “strong starter” in the NFL and that he was the No. 5-rated player at his position in the draft.

Three receivers — Marvin Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers and Rome Odunze — were taken within the top 10 picks. The 33rd Team’s No. 4-rated receiver, Keon Coleman, went to Buffalo at pick No. 33 in the second round.

“Thomas is a height/weight/speed receiver whose ability to take the top off the defense and consistently make clutch receptions make him a strong starting-level receiver as long as he takes to learning an NFL route tree and improves his concentration,” the outlet previously wrote about Thomas.

Jacksonville greatly needed a starting-caliber wide receiver prospect entering the draft, too, considering its leading receiver from last season, Calvin Ridley, signed with AFC South rival Tennessee in March via free agency.

The Jaguars’ best picks in the 2024 draft, per The 33rd Team, were fourth-round selections, offensive tackle Javon Foster and defensive tackle Jordan Jefferson. Both earned “B” grades. Jacksonville’s third-round choice, cornerback Jarrian Jones, received a “B-.”

The rest of their picks earned a “C+” or worse:

  • Maason Smith, defensive tackle, second-round: “D”
  • Deantre Prince, cornerback, fifth-round: “C”
  • Keilan Robinson, running back/return specialist, fifth-round: “F”
  • Cam Little, kicker, sixth-round: “C-“
  • Myles Cole, EDGE, seventh-round: “C+”

Do you think the Jaguars received fair draft grades from The 33rd Team? How about from the NFL Wire staff? Let us know via social media at JaguarsWire on Facebook and @TheJaguarsWire on X (formerly known as Twitter).

Bears earned top mark, Jaguars worst in SIS draft grading

Bears earned top mark, Jaguars worst in 2024 NFL draft grades from Sports Info Solutions

The Chicago Bears were poised to be one of the biggest winners in the 2024 NFL draft. Chicago had two of the first nine selections, after all.

Drafting QB Caleb Williams with the No. 1 pick and WR Rome Odunze at No. 9 delivered upon the pre-draft value promise. Sports Info Solutions, or SIS, graded out the Bears as having the top draft value haul of any of the 32 teams.

The SIS grading methodology, in a nutshell,

These rankings do not account for positional value, the value of where players were drafted, or trades teams made; it is literally based on the grades we gave the players who were drafted and how much talent we feel teams got from their selections compared to the number of picks they made.

Chicago hit big with Williams, Odunze, third-round OT Kiran Amegadjie and fifth-round EDGE Austin Booker. They took a hit with fourth-round punter Tory Taylor, though SIS acknowledged that they do not rank punters or international players, of which Taylor is both. Their grade was a 6.46.

At the other end of the grading spectrum sits the Jacksonville Jaguars. Jacksonville’s nine picks earned just 5.93 in SIS’s metrics. Some of that was a function of having so many picks; SIS notes that it’s harder for teams with lots of picks, especially late-round picks, to score well, but they were not impressed,

This year’s worst class goes to the Jaguars. This comes a year after they ranked No. 31. They traded back and selected Brian Thomas Jr. (SIS No. 5 WR, No. 23 Overall), who should become a strong target and deep threat for Trevor Lawrence, but aside from him, only Javon Foster (SIS No. 15 OT) graded out as better than a top backup. While Maason Smith (SIS No. 13 DT) has the measurables and a high ceiling, we thought a mid-2nd Round pick was a bit of a reach.

It’s an interesting look at the draft class through some different eyes and perspectives.

OL Isaiah Adams was 1st questionable draft pick for Cardinals

There were higher ranked guards on the board in Round 3 when the Cardinals selected him.

The Arizona Cardinals have, by and large, been given high grades for their 2024 draft class. They had the largest class with 12 picks and seven of them came in the first 90 picks.

Their first four picks were all great.

Their fifth pick and second of four in the third round, the 71st pick in the draft, was their first questionable one. They selected offensive lineman Isaiah Adams out of Illinois.

Adams is 6-foot-4 and 315 pounds with adequate athleticism. He played two years for Illinois, one year at guard and last year mostly at right tackle. He was not great at right tackle. So teams have to look at his 2022 tape at guard.

He was in the Senior Bowl where Arizona’s assistant O-line coach Chris Cook worked directly with him.

Getting a guard in Round 3 was fine. The reviews are mixed on Adams. He was not even in Daniel Jeremiah’s top 150 prospected. But he was given a third-round grade by Dane Brugler.

Two other guards, UConn’s Christian Haynes and Kansas’s Dominick Puni, were ranked more highly than Adams and were still on the board.

Additionally, he will already be 24 when training camp starts.

Most would likely say Haynes would have been a better selection.

However, others see a potential starter in Adams at a position — left guard — that is wide open for the Cardinals.

That said, given there were perceived better guards on the board than him, this is the first pick where you don’t feel as great about.

My initial grade was a C but I could be talked up to a B-minus.

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