NFL Draft 2017: Final Analysis of Overall Team-by-Team Grades

Like mock drafts, instant-reaction grades to NFL draft classes have become more important in recent years. 

If mocks give an overarching look at the prospect stock market and team needs, grades provide a look at perceived value of draft hauls and outline not only all 250-plus picks but identify which needs remain unfulfilled and how teams might operate from there on out.

Without instant reaction, it's hard to learn and look back in three or four years to see improvement, both for onlookers and teams.

Instant grades are a gut reaction to needs filled by teams and the value in doing so compared to predraft rankings and players still on the board. Here's a look at the full draft results and grades.

2017 NFL Draft Results and Grades

Team	Grade	Analysis
Arizona Cardinals	A+	A freak athlete like Haason Reddick in the hands of Bruce Arians is a problem for the NFC, especially on the same unit as Chandler Jones and Tyrann Mathieu. Adding Budda Baker is borderline unfair.
Atlanta Falcons	B	Trading up for Takkarist McKinley seems risky given his slight injury history, but pairing him with Vic Beasley is a good way to prevent a Super Bowl hangover.
Baltimore Ravens	B	Conventional wisdom said the Ravens wanted a boundary wideout. With the main targets there gone, the front office attacked another premier position with boundary corner Marlon Humphrey, who could be the best corner from the class. A defensive-minded class reloads the once-proud unit.
Buffalo Bills	B	The effort to compensate for the loss of Stephon Gilmore begins with Tre'Davious White, a high-upside, mirror-man cover corner who can run with the best. Overall a strong class.
Carolina Panthers	A	It doesn't get much better than this—Christian McCaffrey is a modern NFL back who will feast in the same backfield as Cam Newton and Jonathan Stewart. Curtis Samuel's value was questionable, but Newton finally has help.
Chicago Bears	B	Chicago gave up entirely too much to move one spot. But the Bears wanted a franchise quarterback and weren't going to settle for anyone else. Small-school prospects seem risky, but this isn't a team trying to win now.
Cincinnati Bengals	B	On paper, John Ross is the perfect fit in Cincinnati because the offense hasn't had his sort of speed in the Andy Dalton era. The team just has to hope his medical issues don't pop up again. Joe Mixon and beyond were a major mix of risk and reward.
Cleveland Browns	A+	Can a team get an A+ for a no-brainer? The Browns do here with the top slot. No. 25 is a different story, as Jabrill Peppers is a project player still learning his position who didn't force any notable turnovers during his time with Michigan. He's got potential, but he probably would've been on the board in the second round. Trading back up for David Njoku smooths things over, as he's a monster yards-after-catch tight end ready to go right away. Getting DeShone Kizer outside of the top 50 iced the class.
Dallas Cowboys	A	Dallas needs help on the edge of the defense, which it has lacked since the Greg Hardy days. Taco Charlton can help right away thanks to quality speed and power. Chidobe Awuzie and Jourdan Lewis were amazing values.
Denver Broncos	B	This was the easiest pick to project in the draft after the first. Garett Bolles is a monster who fits the zone scheme in Denver perfectly. The rest of the class was a mix of value and wait-and-see targets.
Detroit Lions	C	Detroit needed to address losses like Stephen Tulloch and DeAndre Levy over the past few years. Jarrad Davis isn't a bad player by any means, but character concerns or not, Reuben Foster was still on the board.
Green Bay Packers	A	Green Bay hits a huge need with Kevin King at great value. Call it a theme at most slots, from Vince Biegel to others.
Houston Texans	B	Bill O'Brien and Houston weren't going anywhere with Tom Savage. Now the offense has a pro-ready player to pair with DeAndre Hopkins and others.
Indianapolis Colts	A	The Colts wait around and get one of the draft's best players and a guy often compared to a collegiate Ed Reed. Not bad, provided he stays healthy. Other defenders selected finally signal the front office will tackle needs well.
Jacksonville Jaguars	B	Jacksonville's defense is underrated, and if the front office didn't like this quarterback class, getting a mauler like Leonard Fournette is a win.
Kansas City Chiefs	B+	The Chiefs targeted who they wanted and got him. Patrick Mahomes' mechanical issues didn't hurt his play, and Andy Reid is the perfect coach to mold him into a franchise player.
Miami Dolphins	A	Miami sprinted to the podium (almost literally, the NFL Network broadcast was caught off guard) for Charles Harris. For good reason, as he's a quick-twitch rusher who opens things up for Ndamukong Suh. The rest of the defensive picks reshape the unit.
Minnesota Vikings	B	The Vikings look a bit flustered so far, getting a running back with a checkered past and otherwise not doing much with the picks available over the first two days. Bucky Hodges and Elijah Lee were major steals.
New England Patriots	A+	Who needs first-round picks? New England crushed both picks on Day 2, grabbing high-upside players sure to blossom in their system.
New Orleans Saints	B+	The Saints waited around and landed one of the draft's top corners. Not bad for a team in need of a serous defensive overhaul. Drafting a Wisconsin offensive lineman is always an amazing idea, especially here as a means to help prolong Drew Brees' career.
New York Giants	C	Eli Manning needed another weapon besides Odell Beckham Jr. and Brandon Marshall. Evan Engram is a nice versatile piece, but David Njoku is a better prospect with better big-play ability. Taking Davis Webb was shrug-worthy for a team that should want to win now.
New York Jets	C	The Jets luck into arguably the safest player in the draft thanks to chaos above them in the order. Not bad, though the rest of the class, given the rebuilding needs, was.
Oakland Raiders	B	Gareon Conley is arguably the top corner in the draft, but it's hard to ignore the giant off-field issue surrounding him right now. He's a lockdown player provided he stays on the field.
Philadelphia Eagles	B	Derek Barnett isn't an overly athletic rusher. He'll be a productive pro, but it's hard to see where he fits into the rotation over the first one or two years of his career. The rest of the class was solid.
Pittsburgh Steelers	A	T.J. Watt is much more than a little brother. He's a freak athlete and edge presence who makes the Pittsburgh defense nastier and more effective rushing the passer right away.
San Francisco 49ers	A	Not bad for John Lynch—he picks up several future-leaning picks and one of the surest prospects in the draft at No. 3. He then turns around grabs a top-five player at No. 31. Though marred by character concerns, Reuben Foster teams with Solomon Thomas to give the 49ers defensive franchise cornerstones.
Seattle Seahawks	A	Getting Malik McDowell to help make life easier on the Legion of Boom is where most will focus, but Ethan Pocic might finally be the long-awaited answer to the loss of Max Unger.
Los Angeles Rams	C	The goal here is clearly trying to get better around Jared Goff, but taking a project at tight end and a surefire route runner at wideout only goes so far in the current scheme and on the current depth chart.
Los Angeles Chargers	B	Mike Williams' arrival might mean the end for Keenan Allen. Viewed a different way, he'll be around to help the quarterback after Philip Rivers. Revamping the offensive line was a great idea.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	A+	This is how you make sure a franchise quarterback succeeds. Jameis Winston now has Mike Evans, DeSean Jackson and one of this draft's surest things, O.J. Howard.
Tennessee Titans	B+	There's no such thing as "overdrafting" Corey Davis, the best wideout in the class, who will help Marcus Mariota right away. Adoree' Jackson wasn't the consensus top corner on the board, but the pick makes sense given his explosive versatility.
Washington Redskins	D	The problem with Jonathan Allen is he was in a free fall for a reason. He has a questionable injury outlook due to arthritis in his shoulders and played on a stacked defense, which made his life easier. Ryan Anderson was a rough value, Fabian Moreau is hurt and quarterback went ignored.

Underrated Winner: Arizona Cardinals

It's easy to overlook the Arizona Cardinals when it comes to this draft. 

Head coach Bruce Arians and the front office put on an excellent first two rounds, grabbing Haason Reddick and Budda Baker. The former will cause nightmares for quarterbacks alongside Deone Bucannon—the latter the same next to Tyrann Mathieu and others.

But what gets really lost in talking about Arizona's haul is the players after Reddick and Baker.

Wideout Chad Williams at No. 98 was a major steal. He's a 6'1", 204-pound prospect who only fell so low because he played at Grambling State. Guard Dorian Johnson at No. 115 is a giant (6'5" and 300 pounds) who might be able to start as a rookie.

Then there's running back T.J. Logan at No. 179, who shouldn't have a problem making the roster. FanRag's Jon Ledyard summed up the general reaction to the pick:

Indeed, Logan is a guy with 4.37 40-yard dash speed who can not only return kicks but provide the perfect home run-hitting complement to David Johnson in the backfield, so don't be surprised to see both of them take the field together often next year.

In short, Arizona's entire class reeks of quality with four or more players who can have immediate impacts on the team regardless of draft standing. It's an impressive haul, and provided Arians works his usual magic, one that hindsight should smile upon. 

Questionable Class: Detroit Lions

The Lions seemed a little lost for most of the draft this year.

First-round pick Jarrad Davis should be a quality player for a long time, and the Lions were desperate to finally fill voids left at linebacker by notables such as Stephen Tulloch and DeAndre Levy.

But context is important—drafting a potential inside linebacker in the NFC North for Aaron Rodgers to go after is rough. He's a speedy modern version of an interior player, but doing it in the first round is putting a ton of stress on a rookie's head.

Ditto for second-round pick Teez Tabor. It speaks to the defensive back's overall talent that he came off the board at No. 53 despite running a 4.62 40-yard dash, but it doesn't change the fact he's a defensive back who ran a 4.62 40-yard dash. He's good, but a guy like Rodgers will move his chips around to exploit the weakness.

Elsewhere, the Lions seemed to overdraft wideout Kenny Golladay and spent a pick on quarterback Brad Kaaya, while failing to invest heavily in needs like running back and somebody who can rush the passer on an every-down basis.

Detroit's board either didn't align with these perceived needs well or they view them differently, which is fine. But from an initial outlook, the front office didn't do much after the second round. The first two players drafted will contribute, but how well is a major question mark. 

In an overly positive-looking draft for the league, Detroit sticks out as a bit of a head-scratching class. The players, at least, have all the talent and chances in the world to turn the narrative around in a hurry.

The Big Winner: Cleveland Browns

It doesn't get much better than this. 

The Cleveland Browns took the no-brainer move with the draft's top pick and added Myles Garrett, who fits well in a budding defense featuring interesting names like Emmanuel Ogbah and Jamie Collins.

Cleveland then turned around and grabbed Jabrill Peppers at No. 25, adding him to the mix at safety while probably giving him some work as a returner, if not a few offensive snaps. The front office then outright stole Miami tight end David Njoku at No. 29, a 6'4", 246-pound chess piece who is all of 20 years old and a yards-after-catch monster.

All the Browns were missing was a quarterback, which is what makes getting Notre Dame's DeShone Kizer at No. 52 oh-so-sweet.

Kizer was one of the more maligned prospects in the class overall because some questioned his commitment and ability after being benched last year. But he's a 6'4", 233-pound quarterback who can compete for the starting job right away. He's a bully of a runner when he takes off and has a booming arm, though he struggled with accuracy at times.

But the overarching narrative of this class isn't hard to figure out and was well explained by Land of 10's Ben Axelrod:

And the above doesn't even touch on the rest of the class. Defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi has the quickness to steal snaps right away. Corner Howard Wilson has good size at 6'1" and reinforces a miserable position. Roderick Johnson will learn well behind Joe Thomas. Caleb Brantley was a first-round talent for many before a serious off-field issue popped up. Zane Gonzalez is the new franchise kicker and was arguably the best in class.

It's almost staggering to think about what the Browns might've accomplished in this class. The defense has two or three new faces who could start for a long time, the offense has a high-quality new weapon and perhaps head coach Hue Jackson even has his franchise quarterback.

This is a major step in the right direction for the Browns. And even if some of the names here bust, the organization has so many draft assets over the next two years all of these chances were easily worth taking. If this works, the Browns will start doing more winning on the field as opposed to in the grades department.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.