2012 NFL Draft Grades: First-Round Trades Worthy of High Marks

Since the draft, I'm sure you've seen the following graded: overall draft classes by teams, the best and worst value picks, draft-day outfits, the best sleeper picks, outdated Chris Berman catch phrases, craziest picks and hilarious tweets after the Jacksonville Jaguars drafted a punter in the third round.

But if this draft was defined by anything, at least in the first round, it was the sheer number of trades we saw this year. The deals were coming fast and furious, and by the end of the first round the landscape of the entire draft had changed.

So which teams deserve the highest marks for first-round deals?

St. Louis Rams: A+

The St. Louis Rams started with the second overall pick in the NFL draft. Two trades later (with the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys), they ended up with the 14th overall pick in the first round, two extra second-round picks and the Washington Redskins' first-round picks in 2013 and 2014.

They turned one pick into five first and second-round picks over three drafts. This year, that translated into defensive tackle Michael Brockers, wide receiver Brian Quick, cornerback Janoris Jenkins and running back Isaiah Pead.

In essence, that second-overall pick might very well become the foundation of the Rams' organization in the Jeff Fisher era. Not too shabby.

Minnesota Vikings: A+

The Vikings started by playing mind games with the Cleveland Browns, stealing a fourth, fifth and seventh-round pick from the Browns. And all they had to do was swap picks with Cleveland so that the Browns could draft running back Trent Richardson with the third overall pick.

The Vikings then selected offensive tackle Matt Kalil one pick later.

It was an amazing move by the Vikings, who created a faux market for the No. 3 pick and convinced the Browns that other teams had interest in moving up the board to land Richardson. Gaining three picks to move down one slot is damn good business.

Then, the Vikings traded back into the first round with the Baltimore Ravens to land the second-best safety on the board, selecting Harrison Smith. They gave up their second and a fourth-round pick to do so.

Considering how weak this safety class was, landing Smith to improve a weak secondary was a savvy move. All in all, Minnesota worked the phones like champs.

New England Patriots: A

The Patriots don't get high marks because they stockpiled picks early on. It was quite the opposite—they put all of their eggs in the first-round basket and landed two studs for the defensive side of the ball in outside linebacker-defensive end Chandler Jones and linebacker Dont'a Hightower.

They started by sending the No. 27 pick and a third-rounder to the Cincinnati Bengals for the No. 21 pick, where they selected Jones. Then they sent the No. 31 pick and a fourth-rounder to the Denver Broncos for the No. 25 pick, where they landed Hightower.

For a team that needed to improve the pass rush—and really, the defense in general—landing two playmakers like Jones and Hightower was well worth depleting the team's collection of picks.

Sometimes, you have to be willing to give up a lot to get better. Tom Brady isn't getting any younger, and the Patriots' championship window won't stay open forever.

I give them major props for moving up the board and landing players that should make an instant impact on the defensive side of the ball.

Hit me up on Twitter—my tweets make moves like Bill Belichick.