NFL Draft Grades 2014: List of Results and Letter Scores for Every Franchise
The 2014 NFL draft has been immensely interesting through three rounds, as teams have made a number of picks that range from widely applauded to almost universally panned.
With exactly 100 selections now in the books, its time to start making sense of the madness and giving each franchise a grade for their draft picks over the first three rounds.
Keep reading for a look at the notable draftees thus far along with team-by-team letter grades and a closer look at one of the more head-scratching hauls:
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.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
| Arizona Cardinals | SS Deone Bucannon (27), TE Troy Niklas (52), WR John Brown (91) | C+ |
| Atlanta Falcons | OT Jake Matthews (6), DL Ra'Shede Hageman (37) | A- |
| Baltimore Ravens | ILB C.J. Mosley (17), DT Tim Jernigan (48) | A |
| Buffalo Bills | WR Sammy Watkins (4), OT Cyrus Kouandjio (44) | B+ |
| Carolina Panthers | WR Kelvin Benjamin (28), DL Kony Ealy (60) | B+ |
| Chicago Bears | CB Kyle Fuller (14), DT Ego Ferguson (51), DT Will Sutton | A- |
| Cincinnati Bengals | CB Darqueze Dennard (24), RB Jeremy Hill (55) | B |
| Cleveland Browns | CB Justin Gilbert (8), QB Johnny Manziel (22), OL Joel Bitonio (35) | A+ |
| Dallas Cowboys | OT Zack Martin (16), DE Demarcus Lawrence (34) | C+ |
| Denver Broncos | CB Bradley Roby (31), WR Cody Latimer (56) | B- |
| Detroit Lions | TE Eric Ebron (10), OLB Kyle Van Noy (40) | B |
| Green Bay Packers | FS Ha Ha Clinton-Dix (21), WR Davante Adams (53) | B+ |
| Houston Texans | DE Jadeveon Clowney (1), OG Xavier Su'a-Filo (33), TE C.J. Fiedorowicz (65), DT Louis Nix (83) | A |
| Indianapolis Colts | OL Jack Mewhort (59), WR Donte Moncrief (90) | D+ |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | QB Blake Bortles (3), WR Marqise Lee (39), WR Allen Robinson (61) | A |
| Kansas City Chiefs | DE Dee Ford (23), CB Phillip Gaines (87) | D |
| Miami Dolphins | OT Ja'Wuan James (19), WR Jarvis Landry (63) | D+ |
| Minnesota Vikings | OLB Anthony Barr (9), QB Teddy Bridgewater (32), DE Scott Crichton (72) | B |
| New England Patriots | DT Dominique Easley (29), QB Jimmy Garoppolo (62) | D+ |
| New Orleans Saints | WR Brandin Cooks (20), CB Stanley Jean-Baptiste (58) | B+ |
| New York Giants | WR Odell Beckham (12), C Weston Richburg (43) | B- |
| New York Jets | FS Calvin Pryor (18), TE Jace Amaro (49) | A- |
| Oakland Raiders | OLB Khalil Mack (5), QB Derek Carr (36), OG Gabe Jackson (81) | B+ |
| Philadelphia Eagles | DE Marcus Smith (26), WR Jordan Matthews (42) | D |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | OLB Ryan Shazier (15), DL Stephon Tuitt (46) | A- |
| San Diego Chargers | CB Jason Verrett (25), OLB Jeremy Attaochu (50) | B- |
| San Francisco 49ers | SS Jimmie Ward (30), RB Carlos Hyde (57), OG Marcus Martin (70), ILB Chris Borland (77) | A- |
| Seattle Seahawks | WR Paul Richardson (45), OL Justin Britt (64) | D |
| St. Louis Rams | OT Greg Robinson (2), DT Aaron Donald (13), CB Lamarcus Joyner (41), RB Tre Mason (75) | A |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | WR Mike Evans (7), TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins (38) | B+ |
| Tennessee Titans | OT Taylor Lewan (11), RB Bishop Sankey (54) | B- |
| Washington Redskins | LB Trent Murphy (47), OT Morgan Moses (66) | B- |
Most Confusing Draft: New England Patriots
The New England Patriots had a number of major needs coming into the 2014 NFL draft, and they did attempt to address a few of them during the first two days of the event.
However, the manner in which they went about doing that was a bit puzzling to fans. Head coach Bill Belichick elected to nab defensive lineman Dominique Easley out of Florida with the No. 30 overall selection in the first round, and he then took quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo with the No. 62 overall pick in the second round. The team did not have a choice in the third round after trading it to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Easley fills a hole at a position that will need some serious talent in the near future. Unfortunately, he’s a high-risk prospect who will be plugged into a situation where the team cannot really afford to gamble.
The Gators star is capable of playing all over the defensive line and will likely be counted on to play a heavy amount of snaps on the interior due to the rapidly aging and injury-prone established players at the position.
Unfortunately, Easley is quite susceptible to injury himself and is coming off a torn ACL in 2013. That injury sent the top-10 talent spiraling down toward the bottom of the first round, and some even believe it was a bit of a reach for New England to grab him there considering the damage his knees have undergone.
Furthermore, last spring’s ACL tear wasn’t the first major knee issue for the 22-year-old stud. He tore his other ACL in 2011, but was able to bounce back for an awesome showing in 2012. While that proved Easley’s ability to recover from this type of injury, the fact that he suffered such a serious injury twice while in college cannot be written off as a mere fluke.
Regardless, the Pats are hoping that those knee problems are a thing of the past, and if he can stay on the field, the team may have nabbed one of the best players in this draft at a spot where it is tough to find superstars.
Belichick had high praise for the young man, via Chad Finn of the Boston Globe: "He does a lot of things well. He's a smart guy, he's very instinctive. He's got a great motor, works hard. Football is very important to him. He's an all-in guy. There's not much to not like about him; versatile."
Doug Farrar of Sports Illustrated is also high on Easley but noted that he needs to stay healthy:
New England fans will be hoping that Easley can stay on the field while also wondering if the club’s second-round selection will ever see it.
The Pats caused a bit of a stir when they took Garoppolo in the second round considering the fact that Tom Brady still has a few more years of his Hall of Fame career to play out and backup Ryan Mallett is still on the roster.
There was speculation that the latter would be dealt to the Houston Texans during the draft, but per Anthony Gulizia and Ben Volin of the Boston Globe, nothing materialized on that front through two days of the event.
It appears that Mallett will remain on the roster, going into his fifth professional season holding a clipboard behind Brady on the depth chart.
The former Arkansas star would be the first in line to step up if Brady were to be injured or unavailable, but now he’ll have some competition.
Belichick recently spoke about how many quarterbacks his team would be willing to carry, telling Mike Reiss of ESPN Boston:
"We'll do whatever is best for the team. We've had four, we've had three, we've had two. So whatever's best for the team, that's what we'll do. Nothing is set in stone. We've had different numbers of guys at different positions. I don't think there's any concrete formula. We'll do what's best for the team.
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Mallett is highly regarded around the league and could be ready to shine for New England or another franchise. If Garoppolo absolutely shines during training camp conceivably push the career backup for the No. 2 spot on the depth chart, but it is hard to envision a scenario in which he will be able to make a significant on-field impact or actually ascend the depth chart for this organization anytime soon.
Unless the Pats have a blockbuster deal in their back pocket, this selection makes their draft one of the most confusing in the league.
The team has a number of picks to make during the last four rounds on Day 3, so hopefully they can start adding some significant contributors to a squad that will have Super Bowl hopes in 2014.
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.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
