NFL Draft: 2012 Success on the Field from the 2012 Selections

The first round of the 2013 NFL draft will take place on Thursday night. The event has gotten so big that some people are making a living on everything NFL draft (see Mel Kiper). Whether it's predictions prior to the draft or analysis after the picks have been made, the NFL draft is big business.

Another element of draft analysis is done by people who try to evaluate whether or not a team had a good draft after the season has been played. Well, let me take a shot at that…

How well did NFL team draft choices do in 2012? Here’s my formula: Let’s look at a few stats from the offensive and defensive side.

First, how many of the 2012 draft choices scored touchdowns last season? Here’s a look at how many TDs were scored by passing, rushing and receiving from players drafted by each team in 2012.

TDs by drafted players, team(s)

44: Indianapolis, Washington
30: Seattle
28: Cleveland
15: Miami
12: Tampa Bay
11: Philadelphia
8: New York Giants
6: Cincinnati
5: Jacksonville, St. Louis
4: Tennessee
3: Chicago, New York Jets
2: Arizona, Detroit, Minnesota, Pittsburgh
1: Baltimore, Buffalo, Denver, Houston, Oakland
0: Atlanta, Carolina, Dallas, Green Bay, Kansas City, New England, New Orleans, San Diego, San Francisco

Note: The Colts were led by No. 1 draft choice Andrew Luck, who passed for 23 TDs and ran for five more. Five other 2012 draft choices accounted for the other 16 Indianapolis scores. The Redskins were led by No. 2 pick Robert Griffin III, who passed for 20 TDs and ran for seven. Fellow rookie QB Kirk Cousins tossed four TD passes, and rookie running Alfred Morris had 13 rushing TDs, giving Washington 44 TDs.

Next, let’s look at the other side of the ball. How many of the 2012 draft choices either had interceptions or sacks last season? Here’s a look at how many interceptions and sacks were recorded by each team’s draft choices from 2012.

Interceptions and sacks by drafted players, team(s)

15: Seattle
13.5: Green Bay
11.5: Tennessee
10: New England, St. Louis
7.5: Philadelphia
7: Denver, San Diego
6.5 Carolina, New York Jets
6: Houston, Minnesota
5: Cleveland
4: Tampa Bay
3.5: Miami
3: Jacksonville
2.5: Chicago, Oakland
2: Detroit
1.5: Baltimore
1: Buffalo, Dallas, New Orleans, New York Giants, Washington
0.5: Cincinnati
0: Arizona, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, San Francisco

Note: The Seahawks were led by first-round selection Bruce Irvin with eight sacks. The Packers got six interceptions from rookie draft choice Casey Hayward.

So, which of the players taken in the next couple of days will score a touchdown (via pass, run or reception), intercept a pass or get a sack in a game in 2013?

Follow Jerry on Twitter @StatsonTapp