2012 NFL Draft Grades: Ranking the Riskiest Picks in the Second Round

The first round of the 2012 NFL draft was one of the craziest and most action-packed first rounds any of us have ever seen.

The craziness didn't dial down all that much in the second round. We saw a few more trades, and we saw a few guys who could have gone in Round 1 get drafted.

We also had a couple more picks come completely out of left field. Some look like slam dunks. Others looked awfully risky at the time, and they look even riskier in retrospect.

To give you a few examples, here's a look at five of the riskiest picks made in the second round.

5. St. Louis Rams draft CB Janoris Jenkins at No. 39

Janoris Jenkins is probably the single most polarizing prospect in the 2012 draft class (it's either him or Vontaze Burfict). Everyone knows he's talented. Unfortunately, everyone also knows that Jenkins had plenty of trouble off the field during his college career.

It was just a matter of time before somebody took a chance on Jenkins, and the Rams ended up pulling the trigger on him with the No. 39 pick.

I can see why the Rams went for Jenkins. They signed Cortland Finnegan this offseason, but they needed to find at least one more body for their secondary in the draft. They went for a guy who some think is just as talented as Morris Claiborne.

But now that Jenkins has been drafted, the question is how long he'll be able to keep his nose clean. That's anybody's guess.

I won't say the Rams made a "bad" pick, but they're definitely rolling the dice with this pick. Jenkins would be a gamble even if a team made him Mr. Irrelevant, so the stakes are even higher with a selection this high.

Grade: B-

4. Seattle Seahawks draft ILB Bobby Wagner at No. 47

Okay, does anybody outside of Seattle have any idea what the heck the Seahawks are doing in this draft?

I don't have a problem with Bobby Wagner as a player. He had a productive college career at Utah State, and he's got above-average athleticism.

However, I can't help but wonder if maybe Wagner was Plan B for Seattle. The Seahawks traded back a few spots, and just before they were about to pick, Cal's Mychal Kendricks came off the board. He would have been perfect for the Seahawks.

They needed to draft a linebacker either way, but the Seahawks ended up walking away with a player they probably could have gotten much, much later in the draft. Either they misjudged the situation when they traded down, or they just flat-out made a dumb pick.

Grade: C

3. St. Louis Rams draft WR Brian Quick at No. 33

I don't mean to pick on the Rams here, but this pick is even riskier than the Jenkins pick.

It's no secret that the Rams needed to find a wide receiver in the draft. They could have gotten one in the first round. Instead, they didn't address their WR problem until No. 33, and they took Brian Quick.

Huh?

Listen, Quick is a promising prospect. He's big and he's fast, and his basketball background equipped him with a unique set of skills. But as a football player, he's pretty raw. He needs a lot of work before he can become a star.

And that's a problem for the Rams. They didn't need to draft a project. They needed to draft a receiver who could contribute right away.

Yet they drafted Quick over guys like Alshon Jeffery, Stephen Hill and Rueben Randle. I don't get it.

Grade: C-

2. Detroit Lions draft WR Ryan Broyles at No. 54

The Lions have the most dominant wide receiver in the NFL in Calvin Johnson, but his supporting cast isn't as strong as it could be. It was therefore a possibility heading into the draft that the Lions would take a wide receiver.

I just didn't anticipate them taking Ryan Broyles. Not this early, anyway.

Broyles had an outstanding career at Oklahoma, catching an FBS record 349 passes for 4,586 yards and 45 touchdowns in four seasons. I don't want to take anything away from what he did as a member of the Sooners.

But Broyles is a questionable NFL talent. He's not big, and he's not even fast or elusive for a guy his size. The best thing he has going for him are his instincts and his hands, both of which are very impressive.

The biggest concern with Broyles is his health. He tore his ACL at the end of the 2011 season, meaning he's going to be out of action for a while. There's no telling when he'll be able to return to the field.

The Lions could have waited to make this pick. They reached a bit too much.

Grade: D+

1. New England Patriots draft S Tavon Wilson at No. 48

Every year, there's at least one pick that makes you go, "Who?"

That's the kind of pick the Patriots made when they drafted Tavon Wilson at No. 48.

I like to think I'm not an idiot when it comes to the draft. I know my prospects. But when Wilson's name was announced, I had no idea who he was.

Wilson is ESPN's No. 24 safety, and the No. 212 prospect overall according to CBSSports.com. He was supposed to get drafted in the sixth or seventh round, which is typically when you need to start reaching for scouting reports. It wouldn't have been a shock if he had gone undrafted altogether.

Exactly why the Patriots felt they needed to use a second-round pick on him is beyond me. Bill Belichick and the Patriots front office know what they're doing, but I can't imagine there was much competition for Wilson's services.

Grade: F