NFC East
Philadelphia Eagles: A+
Best Pick: Georgia DT Jalen Carter (9)
A Howie Roseman masterclass. I read how a lot of GMs are upset with the praise Roseman is getting, but my comment to them is to draft better. Roseman grabbed two top-ten pass rushers in the 2023 draft class with Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith in the first round. He then grabbed Lane Johnson’s potential successor with Tyler Steen and the versatile safety Sydney Brown who picked off 6 passes and broke up 7 in 2022. To round out their class, Philly grabbed another Bulldog with corner Kelee Ringo. While Pittsburgh and Houston had great drafts, the big winner is Philadelphia.
Washington Commanders: D+
Best Pick: Arkansas C Ricky Stromberg (97)
Washington was a team I forgot to acknowledge as a draft loser. Even with a first round pick, they assembled an underwhelming draft class. At pick sixteen they drafted Mississippi State corner Emmanuel Forbes who was efficient in college, but weight 166 pounds. We’ve seen small players thrive in the NFL before, but I think Forbes’ frame will give him problems. Their best pick came in the third round when they selected Arkansas center Ricky Stromberg who will battle with Nick Gates for the starting job. Washington addressed positions of need, but were just underwhelming in the selections they made.
New York Giants: B-
Best Pick: Minnesota C John Michael Schmitz (57)
While the Giants didn’t exactly blow me away with their picks, they prioritized their needs. They didn’t have any stars at the corner position and addressed that by taking Maryland corner Deonte Banks in round one who had 8 pass breakups last season. Then in round two, they grabbed my second highest graded interior offensive lineman with Minnesota center John Michael Schmitz. I actually projected the Giants to take him in the first round. In round three, they grabbed the very talented receiver Jalin Hyatt to be a solid third or fourth option for Daniel Jones.
Dallas Cowboys: C-
Best Pick: Kansas State RB Deuce Vaughn (212)
In more of an under-the-radar fashion, the Cowboys had an astronomical bad moment like the Jets. When Utah tight end came off the board to Buffalo the pick before them, they frantically took Michigan defensive tackle Mazi Smith. Smith is a solid player who is very strong, but Dallas has a guy who plays a lot like him with Neville Gallimore. They do get their tight end in round two with Michigan’s Luke Schoonmaker (also a CT native). Schoonmaker is a good blocker and a sneaky route runner like Dalton Schultz. Dallas made their best pick of the draft in the sixth round when they grabbed the explosive pass catching back Deuce Vaughn, whose father is on the Dallas scouting staff.
NFC North
Minnesota Vikings: B
Best Pick: USC WR Jordan Addison (24)
For a quick moment, it felt like the Vikings would take Will Levis. As much as I like Levis, I’m glad they didn’t. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah paired the leagues best wideout, Justin Jefferson, with a dynamic route runner to take heat off Jefferson with Jordan Addison. I absolutely adore this pick. With only five other picks, they added depth with cornerback Mekhi Blackmon and defensive tackle Jaquelin Roy. Outside of the Addison pick, my favorite pick from the Vikings was taking UAB running back DeWayne McBride in the seventh round. He’ll immediately see carries behind Alexander Mattison.
Detroit Lions: C
Best Pick: Alabama S Brian Branch (45)
How do you have two first round picks and bungle both? Detroit was last against the run in 2022 and didn’t do a whole lot to help themselves. I felt that they reached on running back Jahmyr Gibbs at twelve, as well as linebacker Jack Campbell at eighteen. With players like Calijah Kancey and Mazi Smith available, they should have looked to load up their defensive line. They do, however, recover taking Hendon Hooker who will be the Lions starter in a few years, switchblade safety Brian Branch, and tight end Sam LaPorta to play next to Brock Wright. This draft would be an A+ if they didn’t botch the first round.
Green Bay Packers: B-
Best Pick: Oregon State TE Luke Musgrave (42)
With 13 picks in the 2023 NFL Draft, the Packers didn’t exactly blow me away, but did get weapons for their new starting quarterback, Jordan Love. I didn’t hate the selection of Lukas Van Ness, but it felt like a reach at thirteen. Especially when the Packers took two tight ends on day two. They could have taken tight end Dalton Kincaid or Michael Mayer and grabbed an edge rusher in round two or three. With that being said, I liked their day two picks of wideout Jayden Reed and tight ends Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft. One thing is certain; Jordan Love will not have a shortage of weapons this season.
Chicago Bears: C+
Best Pick: Tennessee OT Darnell Wright (10)
Are Bears fans done giving Ryan Poles a sloppy glaze job? He drafted players and did a solid job. Let’s not treat the guy like Superman mixed with Stephen Hawking in a war room. Taking Darnell Wright was a good pick, but felt a tad high as Peter Skoronski was still on the board. Skoronski offers more versatility, but Wright is more of a true tackle so the pick makes sense. Of the Bears 6 day three picks, the most eye- opening was taking Oregon linebacker Noah Sewell. He has great downhill speed and plays with a lot of physicality.
NFC South
Atlanta Falcons: C+
Best Pick: Texas RB Bijan Robinson (8)
BOOM. The Falcons landed their franchise running back to go with a solid receiving core of Kyle Pitts, Drake London, and Cordarrelle Patterson. Other than that, their draft was a bit of a thumbs down. They took Syracuse guard Matthew Bergeron in round two when they took Jalen Mayfield two years ago and just extended Chris Lindstrom. I specifically don’t like this pick when O’Cyrus Torrence was still on the board. Great pick with Bijan Robinson, but that might not be enough to save their draft class.
New Orleans Saints: B-
Best Pick: Notre Dame DE Isaiah Foskey (40)
I hate to admit it because I loathe the Saints, but they had a solid draft. Taking Bryan Bresee in round one was a flop in my eyes because he’s injury prone and not exactly efficient, but they recovered in a smooth manner. In round two they added Notre Dame edge rusher Isaiah Foskey who has great size and ability and gets the chance to learn under Cam Jordan. With Alvin Kamara’s future being uncertain, the Kendre Miller pick is even better. He’s a quick back with big play ability. In addition, the pick of Jake Haener is one that could pay dividends in a few years when he’s their starter.
Carolina Panthers: B+
Best Pick: Alabama QB Bryce Young (1)
Carolina grabbing their franchise quarterback at number one gets their grade to a B+ and overshadows the more underwhelming picks they made later in the draft. The addition of Ole Miss receiver Jonathan Mingo was great because of his elite route running. He’ll fit in great with Adam Thielen and D.J. Chark. Outside of those two though they didn’t do too much. They held five picks with only two on day three and didn’t bring in a whole lot of depth.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: B
Best Pick: Pittsburgh DT Calijah Kancey (19)
Tampa Bays first three picks were Dyn-O-Mite! Calijah Kancey was one of my favorite players in the whole draft and will fit in nicely next to the run stuffing Vita Vea. Kancey has fantastic hips and moves fluidly utilizing his quick hands. He’s going to be a future All-Pro. In round two, the Buccaneers selected guard Cody Mauch who mauls people in front of him. He doesn’t care who you are; he’ll put you in the dirt. Then in round three, Jason Licht took a YaYa Diaby who can rotate in and give Shaq Barrett a breather.
NFC West
Seattle Seahawks: A-
Best Pick: Ohio State WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba (20)
The rich get richer. Everyone, including myself, counted Seattle out last year and we were proved wrong. Now, with lots of collateral from the Russell Wilson trade, Seattle secured the best corner in the draft and now have the best, young corner tandem with Tariq Woolen and Devon Witherspoon. Fifteen picks later, they got the best receiver in draft with Jaxon Smith-Njigba. In round two, they made a pick I was very fond of by taking UCLA running back Zach Charbonnet. Pete Carrol already said Charbonnet and Kenneth Walker will battle for carries and we could get a two-headed monster in Seattle.
San Francisco 49ers: C-
Best Pick: Penn State S Ji’Ayir Brown (87)
Just like Cleveland, the 49ers did not have a first or second round pick. Their first pick came in the third round and they grabbed Penn State safety Ji’Ayir Brown which was a great value pick as he picked off 4 passes and made 74 tackles and 4.5 sacks in 2022. Then, there was a drop off. They took Michigan kicker Jake Moody in the third round and other players who won’t most likely see time. It did pick up a bit when John Lynch selected TCU linebacker Dee Winters and Michigan wideout Ronnie Bell, who I think could be good players in San Francisco’s system.
Los Angeles Rams: C+
Best Pick: TCU OG Steve Avila (36)
Having no first round selection can be tough, but the Rams did alright. Their best selection was in the second round when they took TCU guard Steve Avila. While I don’t love it because O’Cyrus Torrence was on the board, Avila offers more versatility as he can play center and guard. The selection of Wake Forest defensive tackle Kobie Turner was also a good one as he’ll be more of a run stopper on first and second down. What I hated was the massive reach for Stetson Bennett. He was an average college quarterback with no real future in the NFL.
Arizona Cardinals: C+
Best Pick: Ohio State OT Paris Johnson Jr. (6)
Where Arizona should get a lot of props is turning the third overall pick into a haul of draft collateral, including Houston’s 2024 first round pick. Taking Paris Johnson Jr. was genius because it makes Kyler Murray happy and will also keep him healthy. Johnson Jr. brings great energy to the playing field and just needs to tighten up his technique before becoming an All-Pro player. I’m not huge on Garrett Williams out of Syracuse because of his ACL injury and ball skills, but it makes sense after Arizona lost Byron Murphy. Other than taking Paris Johnson Jr. and BJ Ojulari, the Cardinals just had an alright draft.
