AFC East
New England Patriots: B +
Best Pick: Georgia Tech OLB Keion White (46)
With a bounty of picks, New England pulled off a successful draft that pleased the fans. By trading pack to 17 with Pittsburgh, they screwed over the Jets and got a player who should have gone earlier in Oregon cornerback Christian Gonzalez. In round two, they added a good rotational pass rusher to work with Matt Judon and Josh Uche in Keion White. I love that pick. In later rounds, they landed a new special teams duo of punter Bryce Baringer and kicker Chad Ryland. One of the more underrated picks in the draft was them taking LSU wideout Kayshon Boutte who has loads of potential. This was a Belichick masterclass.
Buffalo Bills: B-
Best Pick: Florida OG O’Cyrus Torrence (59)
What hurt Buffalo’s draft was taking Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid. While a good player, he’s not on the same level as Michael Mayer. I found this to be a reach. Another flaw was not drafting a running back to round out their running back room. Aside from that, they made two great picks for their offensive line taking Florida guard O’Cyrus Torrence in the late second round. I had him valued as a late first round player. They then secured Ole Miss guard Nick Broeker who is an underrated mauler in the trenches.
New York Jets: C-
Best Pick: Wisconsin C Joe Tippmann (43)
For the Will McDonald IV pick alone the Jets should get an F. They did recover by drafting Wisconsin center Joe Tippmann, Pittsburgh offensive tackle Carter Warren, and Old Dominion tight end Zach Kuntz. It felt as if the Jets were dialed in on taking Georgia tackle Broderick Jones and when the Steelers jumped them with the Patriots help, it threw them into a panicked whirlwind. McDonald IV isn’t a bad player, but saw a production drop off in 2022 from the two prior seasons. I had him graded as a second round player.
Miami Dolphins: D-
Best Pick: South Carolina CB Cam Smith (51)
Aside from drafting South Carolina corner Cam Smith, the Dolphins dropped the ball. They reached for running back Devon Achane when Tank Bigsby, Deuce Vaughn, and DeWayne McBride were all still on the board and are much more dynamic players than Achne. Miami held two day three picks and drafted guys who probably won’t make the 53 man roster. I’d be disappointed in this draft if I were a Dolphins fan.
AFC North
Cincinatti Bengals: C+
Best Pick: Alabama S Jordan Battle (95)
When I saw the Bengals go with Myles Murphy in the first round over a player like Felix Anudike-Uzomah or Michael Mayer, I was disappointed. Murphy is one of the most overrated players in the draft as he struggles to bend as a pass rusher and doesn’t show off a lot of versatility as a defensive end. They did, however, recover nicely grabbing Alabama safety Jordan Battle. Battle will get the shot to play immediately following the losses of Von Bell and Jessie Bates III. I also thought the addition of Illinois running back Chase Brown was a good value pick in round five to backup Mixon.
Cleveland Browns: B
Best Pick: Tennessee WR Cedric Tillman (74)
While Miami and Denver didn’t have a first round pick and flopped, Cleveland did the opposite. With their first pick coming in round three, they grabbed a dynamic pass catcher and great route runner in Cedric Tillman and my second highest graded run stuffer in Siaka Ika. As the draft progressed, they took athletic freak offensive tackle Dawand Jones and another Ohio State offensive lineman with center Luke Wypler. Also, don’t overlook the pick of Dorian Thompson-Robinson. He could be used as a gadget player in Cleveland’s offense. They killed this draft for having not a whole lot.
Baltimore Ravens: B
Best Pick: Boston College WR Zay Flowers (23)
After locking Lamar Jackson down for the foreseeable future, Baltimore grabbed another weapon for him to work with. Zay Flowers has elite quickness and runs very crafty routes. He’ll thrive playing opposite of Odell Beckham Jr. and will take heat off Mark Andrews. With their next pick, they took my second highest graded inside linebacker with Trenton Simpson. Simpson is a solid run support player, but shines in coverage. In round seven, they got an absolute steal with USC guard Andrew Vorhees. Vorhees is recovering from a torn ACL, but prior to his injury he was one of the countries best run blockers.
Pittsburgh Steelers: A
Best Pick: Penn State CB Joey Porter Jr. (32)
If you want to talk about a team who killed the draft, it’s the Pittsburgh Steelers. They traded up to get a franchise tackle in round one, but their moves on day two were most impressive. Getting Joey Porter Jr. at 32 was a tremendous value pick to fill a hole on their roster that they needed and then a few picks later they landed athletic defensive tackle Keeanu Benton from Wisconsin. To cap off day two, they took athletic freak Darnell Washington. The tight end duo of him and Freiermuth will put teams in a blender. Just a magnificent job by Mike Tomlin and the whole Steelers staff.
AFC South
Indianapolis Colts: B-
Best Pick: Kansas State CB Julius Brents (44)
I’m not as high as most people are on the Colts draft. While day two and three picks like corner Julius Brents, tackle Blake Freeland, receiver Josh Downs, and corner Darius Rush were great, the Anthony Richardson pick fourth overall still has me scratching my head. I like the approach of having a constant quarterback rather than the revolving door the Colts have had the bast few seasons, but Richardson isn’t consistent. He’s sporadic in the pass game, and while he is a great athlete, he doesn’t have the best decision making as a passer.
Houston Texans: A
Best Pick: Alabama OLB Will Anderson Jr. (3)
From top to bottom, the Texans blew this draft out of the water. They got their franchise quarterback in Stroud and a cornerstone pass rusher a pick later in Will Anderson Jr. They were two of my top three players in the whole draft. What those two can do for the Texans franchise is unimaginable. With later picks they added interior offensive line help with Penn State center Juice Scruggs and Notre Dame center Jarrett Patterson. They also secured Houston pass catcher Tank Dell and Alabama linebacker Henry To’oTo’o. If this draft pans out then Nick Caserio needs the key to the city of Houston.
Jacksonville Jaguars: C-
Best Pick: Auburn RB Tank Bigsby (88)
With 13 picks in the draft, the Jaguars seemed to only get one or two right. I understood their need for an offensive tackle, but they reached on Anton Harrison at pick 27. They could have traded back in the first round and added even more draft collateral. What keeps them at a C- is that I loved the picks of Parker Washington in the sixth round and Tank Bigsby in third round. Those are two guys who will see substantial time in the Jags offense in 2023. Outside of those two picks and drafting Florida edge rusher Ventrell Miller, they didn’t make any remarkable picks.
Tennessee Titans: B+
Best Pick: Kentucky QB Will Levis (33)
The Titans first three picks were absolute home runs. In round one, they landed my number one offensive lineman of the draft with Peter Skoronski. He has the ability to play both guard and tackle which means coach Mike Vrabel can build an offensive line and plug him in wherever. In round two, Will Levis’ tragic slide came to an end when the Titans grabbed the Kentucky gunslinger. This pick was great because they’re now able to sign him for a lot cheaper than they would have gotten him for if they took him in round one. Then, in round three they took versatile Tulane running back Tyjae Spears who rushed for over 1,500 yards last season.
AFC West
Las Vegas Raiders: B-
Best Pick: Notre Dame TE Michael Mayer (35)
I’m a huge fan of what Dave Ziegler and the Raiders did with their first three picks. With their first pick, they took a defensive end with great size and efficiency in Tyree Wilson. Wilson will step in once the 33 year old Chandler Jones calls it quits and play opposite of Maxx Crosby. In the second and third round, they grabbed the best tight end in the draft in Michael Mayer to replace Darren Waller and a solid run stuffer with Alabama’s Byron Young. The Raiders need a lot and they were able to address a lot of their needs here.
Denver Broncos: D-
Best Pick: Arkansas ILB Drew Sanders (67)
I noted the Broncos as one of the teams draft losers and I whole heartedly stand by it. With no first round pick, Denver seemingly panicked by reaching on receiver Marvin Mims in the second round and then not making much of a splash in the third round. Selecting Drew Sanders was their lone bright spot, but they grabbed Iowa corner Riley Moss who was an underwhelming prospect. A disappointing draft for George Paton.
Kansas City Chiefs: C
Best Pick: Kansas State DE Felix Anudike-Uzomah (31)
The Chiefs first round pick of defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah was a good one. His dynamic pass rushing style rounds out their defensive line with Charles Omenihu, Danny Shelton, Chris Jones, and George Karlaftis. Outside of that though, I wasn’t a huge fan of the rest of their picks. Taking SMU wideout Rashee Rice was a bit of a letdown seeing that Cedric Tillman and Parker Washington were still on the board and I think fit the Chiefs system much better.
Los Angeles Chargers: C
Best Pick: TCU WR Quentin Johnston (21)
The Chargers kicked the draft off with an absolute dynamite pick. They took 6’4, 215 pound pass catcher Quentin Johnston to play opposite of Keenan Allen. With that pick, they became one of the best offensive cores in the league. Where the let down comes into play is that they didn’t draft a running back. Austin Ekeler wants out of Los Angeles and I think they should have either worked to trade up for Bijan Robinson or draft a back like Deuce Vaughn or Zach Charbonnet. I wouldn’t call this a bad draft, but I wouldn’t say it was good.