2012 NFL Draft Grades: Biggest Losers Through Round 3

Describing an NFL team that has drafted a player as a loser can make one look silly in a few years. We all want instant results so bad that we forget it takes time for these players to develop, and they will do it on their own schedule, not yours or mine. 

That said, looking at some of the moves teams have made through the first three rounds of the 2012 NFL draft, you can clearly see some missteps. Not to say that the players these teams took are horrible—they aren't—they just weren't good value or don't fill any kind of immediate need. 

Here is a look at the teams whose drafts have been, for lack of a better word, troublesome through three rounds. 

Seattle Seahawks

I really want to believe that Pete Carroll and the front office know what they are doing. Certainly, they have built one of the best young defenses in the NFL after just two years. Things are looking up for the Seahawks. 

That said, they had a chance to hit a home run in this draft early on and they reached for Bruce Irvin. They kept stretching to find a tackling inside linebacker in Bobby Wagner in the second round and then the coup de grace came when they made Russell Wilson's wife the happiest woman in the world by taking him in the third round. 

To recap, they took a questionable pass-rusher who has had off-field problems, an undersized inside linebacker with solid instincts and an undersized practice-team quarterback. 

Hardly the big splash the Seahawks needed to close the gap between themselves and San Francisco in the NFC West. 

Three-Round Grade: D+

Carolina Panthers

The Panthers had everything they needed waiting for them at the No. 9 pick. Their biggest problem last year was up the middle on the defensive line, and they had their choice of Michael Brockers, Dontari Poe and Fletcher Cox. They opted to go with inside linebacker Luke Kuechly.

Kuechly does have a good future ahead of him. He covers as much ground as any linebacker in this draft. 

So that pick would have been fine if the Panthers addressed defensive tackle in the second round, with Jerel Worthy and Kendall Reyes still on the board. 

But the Panthers decided to address the offensive line with Amini Silatolu, who is a good prospect and will upgrade the Panthers' run-blocking. They just had a more pressing need and didn't even try to fill it. 

Three-Round Grade: C-

San Francisco 49ers

If there is a common theme among these losers, it would be that the actual talent of the players they got is not the issue, but rather the lack of addressing needs at any point. 

The 49ers might have seen something that no one else did in A.J. Jenkins to make him a first-round pick, even though they needed a guard and Cordy Glenn and Amini Silatolu were sitting there waiting to be had. 

To make matters worse, the 49ers added yet another running back in LaMichael James at the end of the second round. For those keeping track, they now have Frank Gore, Kendall Hunter and Brandon Jacobs, plus James to put in the backfield. 

Perhaps James serves as the team's kick- and punt-returner, but is that player really worthy of a second-round selection?

Three-Round Grade: C-

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