NFL Draft 2013: Grading Teams with Multiple First-Round Selections

First-round picks in the NFL draft are extremely coveted commodities, so teams generally cling to their picks as much as they can. Offseason trades necessitate movement, however, so there were three teams who were lucky enough to enter the 2013 draft with multiple first-round selections.

The St. Louis Rams, New York Jets and Minnesota Vikings all picked at least twice on Thursday night, In fact, the Vikings had three choices as they traded back into the late first round. All three teams had obvious needs that they had to fill and they had the ammunition necessary to make it happen.

Some of their picks were great and others were somewhat perplexing, but here is how the Rams, Jets and Vikings graded out in the first round of this year's draft.

St. Louis Rams

The St. Louis Rams began Thursday's first round with the No. 16 and No. 22 picks, but they ended up at different ends of the round by the time it was all said and done. The Rams used their 16th pick to move up to No. 8 as they swapped spots with the Buffalo Bills and gave up both a second and seventh-round pick in the process, while exchanging third-rounders. The Rams had a definite need and a clear target as they selected West Virginia wide receiver Tavon Austin to replace the pass-catchers they lost in free agency.

Rather than standing pat at No. 22, the Rams traded again as they made way for the Atlanta Falcons and moved down to No. 30. This allowed the Rams to recoup a couple picks, which they lost in the previous trade. Things seemed to play out ideally as the Rams then nabbed Georgia linebacker Alec Ogletree at No. 22. While safety was probably St. Louis' biggest need on defense, they needed an athletic outside linebacker as well, and Ogletree fits the bill.

It's going to take a lot for the Rams to compete with the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks next season, but they went 4-1-1 in the NFC West last year and definitely got better in the first round. They finally have an explosive playmaker on offense in the form of Austin as well as a potential tackling machine in Ogletree. There's a strong possibility that both of them will be starting come Week 1, so the Rams accomplished their mission.

Grade: A-

New York Jets

The New York Jets entered the 2013 NFL draft with a laundry list of needs and luckily they had two first-round picks to help fill them. The Jets already owned the No. 9 selection and they acquired No. 13 when they dealt All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. New York could have gone in a number of different directions as it needed help on both sides of the ball, but it decided to focus on defense in the first round.

Defense has been the Jets' calling card since Rex Ryan took over as head coach, but their defense simply hasn't been as formidable as it once was over the past couple years. New York took steps to change that by first selecting Alabama cornerback Dee Milliner at No. 9. Milliner is considered by most to be the top corner in the draft and the Jets are hopeful that he can eventually replace Revis.

After that, the Jets went with Missouri defensive lineman Sheldon Richardson at No. 13. Richardson is extremely talented, but the Jets are fine along the defensive line and he doesn't seem to fit the 3-4 scheme well.

In terms of stockpiling talent, the Jets did a really nice job in the first round. At the same time, it can be argued that they replaced Revis with an inferior player and selected a position of strength. It seemed like the Jets' lack of aggressiveness hurt them as they could have gotten someone like Austin or LSU rush linebacker Barkevious Mingo had they moved up. The Jets stayed where they were and did a decent job, but their haul could have been far more significant.

Grade: B

Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings were the story of the first round as they filled major defensive needs at No. 23 and No. 25, which they acquired from the Seattle Seahawks in the Percy Harvin trade. The Vikes arguably came up with the steal of the first round at No. 23 as they selected Florida defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd. Not only did the Viking need help on their interior defensive line, but Floyd is a guy who easily could have went as early as No. 3 to the Oakland Raiders.

Minnesota continued its impressive round by nabbing Florida State cornerback Xavier Rhodes two picks later. With Antoine Winfield signing in Seattle, the Vikings needed to upgrade at the corner position. Rhodes is a big, fast corner with the ability to help in run support, which is something that Winfield was spectacular at. With the defense taken care of, the Vikings decided to make one more splash in the first round.

The Vikings sent the New England Patriots a king's ransom to move back into the round at No. 29. There was some thought that the Vikes would make it a defensive trifecta with Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o, but Minnesota opted for offense instead as it landed Tennessee wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson. There is no question that Patterson is a developmental prospect, but he should immediately replace Harvin as a return man and could do some special things with the ball in his hands on offense. Minnesota knew what it needed, and it went out and got it.

Grade: A

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