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Goldfish's Way Too Early Draft Rankings 2021 (All up)


goldfishwars

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22. Atlanta Falcons

2021 NFL draft: 10 facts about Falcons No. 4 overall pick Kyle Pitts

This Class In One Sentence:
A great start to the draft, which meandered from there on

Pre-Draft Needs 
S, Edge, RB, CB

Selections
1. 4. Kyle Pitts - Florida | TE |
2. 40. Richie Grant - UCF | S |
3. 68. Jalen Mayfield - Michigan | OT |
4. 108. Darren Hall - San Diego State | CB |
4. 114. Drew Dalman - Stanford | C |
5. 148. Ta'Quon Graham - Texas | DE |
5. 182. Adetokunbo Ogundeji - Notre Dame | DE |
5. 183. Avery Williams - Boise State | CB |
6. 187. Frank Darby - Arizona State | WR |

Picks Heading In
4. 
35.
68. 
108. 
148.
182. 
183. 
187. 
219. 

What I Liked
I love Pitts at four assuming they just couldn’t get a trade back (which was the best option), he was clearly the best non QB in the class. There just aren’t many draft classes that have one-offs like Pitts. We are almost at the point where the expectation is that he could dominate from day one. I really liked the Grant pick in the 2nd round. He’s a high IQ starting safety, snuffs out danger with explosive closing speed. He’s also got some range when deployed deep. 

I like the Drew Dalman selection in the 4th round, plays with rapid burst and quickness and should be a nice scheme fit for what they're installing down there. Although I’m not sure what it means for Matt Hennessy as they’re quite similar and both feel center only. Avery Williams has the quality special teams tag going on and that’s probably useful. Frank Darby was also a solid bet on a late round receiver. 

What I Didn’t Like
The class lost of a bit of steam coming out of those first two selections which were home runs. I suppose I was expecting at least one shot on a running back for a team which has endured the worst situation in the league for way too long. All of a sudden, undrafted Javian Hawkins could get some serious PT there. They did address edge, but only sort of with a five tech in Graham and a sluggish power end in Adetokunbo Ogundeji. There are more bodies than talent there at that position right now. 
I’m sort of on the fence with the Jalen Mayfield pick, he’s young and has some talent – but that testing was rough enough for me to be out on him at 68. That athleticism was supposed to be his upside. As for Darren Hall, I really just don’t know who he is. I feel like I should do as he was a 4th round pick. There were a few surprise dbs taken in the middle rounds and he was one of them. 
 

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spot on for the falcons, great first two picks then just meh. but hose mid to late rounds is when you get a lot of weird picks. The talent is grouped much closer together the further you go along in the draft and often times its one of those "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" things. But 22 seems right, great job as always.

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7 hours ago, JAF-N72EX said:

This is very true. One thing we need to keep in mind regarding draft reviews is that it's just an opinion.  Nothing more, nothing less.  Regardless of whether it's from a player, coach, media, or some dumb ignorant nobody fan named JAF-N72EX.  It's an opinion and it's okay for someone to have a different one than your own. Just because the majority of pundits and fans feel a certain way about one teams draft from another doesn't necessarily mean it will turn out that way in the end either.  Hindsight is 20/20 and all of us have been wrong many times and will no doubt be wrong again about some of these players this year.

We all have a certain selective group of College players that we think will transition well in the NFL and other we don't.  It's that simple. But again, that's just an opinion.  Some may even like a player pre-draft but may have doubts based on the team that drafted him, and that's okay too, within reason ofcourse.

For example, I really like the Bears' draft and getting Fields (since I thought there were only 2 QBs who were sure hits--Law/Fields) and pundits by large seem to agree with this.  But there are some who liked Fields pre-draft but question him now only because he was drafted by a franchise who have spent the last 60 years getting the QB position wrong and I can't/won't disagree with this logic.  I respectfully disagree with the opinion in this instance, but I understand the skepticism.

TLDR; The point is, at the end of the day it's just an opinion and nothing worth getting bent out of shape about.  Respect the amount of work and time that goes into it and move on.

 

After the draft the only grading I'd do is how did they address their perceived needs. And in this the Rams did badly IMO. You can grade the players after three years. 

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21. Jacksonville Jaguars

Jaguars 2021 NFL Draft | Jacksonville Jaguars - jaguars.com

This Class In One Sentence:
Trevor Lawrence and a bumpy bunch of fellas on Urban’s old recruiting notes 

Pre-Draft Needs 
QB, OT, WR, S, IDL, TE, CB

Selections
1. 1. Trevor Lawrence - Clemson | QB |
1. 25. Travis Etienne - Clemson | RB |
2. 33. Tyson Campbell - Georgia | CB |
2. 45. Walker Little - Stanford | OT |
3. 65. Andre Cisco - Syracuse | S |
4. 106. Jay Tufele - USC | DT |
4. 121. Jordan Smith - UAB | OLB |
5. 145. Luke Farrell - Ohio State | TE |
6. 209. Jalen Camp - Georgia Tech | WR |

Picks Heading In
1.
25. 
33. 
45. 
65. 
106. 
130. 
145. 
170. 
249. 

What I Liked
I mean, they drafted Trevor Lawrence which is cool and if he continues on his trajectory, he’ll do so much to cover up some of the deficiencies on this team moving forward. He’s just got an effortlessness about how he plays the game, the kind of space and time only afford to those operating on an almost sublime level. I like the Tyson Campbell (a Florida native) pick at 33. He might not generate a ton of turnovers, but he’s a highly athletic corner with loose-hips and can click and close windows rapidly.  He's also a former five star recruit, with extremely desirable length and speed profile.

Parking his injury for a moment (6 months into ACL rehab), Andre Cisco (a Florida native) has a lot to like as a split safety with high end ball skills. Jay Tufele (recruited heavily by Ohio State before he chose USC) too, feels like a really solid high-energy rotational DL to add in the middle rounds. Urban loves his speedy offensive players and Jalen Camp fits that mold as a fairly enigmatic dart throw late on.  

What I Didn’t Like
I like Travis Etienne, but even aside from the RB’s in the first-round discussion – his game isn’t quite well-rounded enough to justify taking him there. He is an electric playmaker and gets to join his QB from school which is always cool to see. But he’s got plenty to work on in his pass-protection if they see him as some kind of third-down guy, which was a weird post-draft comment. Walker Little (former five star recruit) just hasn’t played much to like him at 45 over the likes of Dillon Radunz and Samuel Cosmi. He does have some desirable traits, however, and lands in a good spot where he shouldn’t have to play immediately. 

Jordan Smith seemed kind of undraftable after a poor Senior Bowl week and some genuinely awful athletic testing. He’s a former Florida dude, hence probably why he has the connection with Urban – but yeah, I didn’t understand that pick. As a primary blocking tight end, Luke Farrell isn’t the long-term solution to a troublesome spot for Jax. There was some hope from fans that they would land one of the bigger names at that position.
 

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17 minutes ago, ttitansfan4life said:

Highest ranked AFC South draft? 👀

Kind of shocked to be honest. Thought most hated the Titans draft.

I feel it’s more hated by Titans fans than it is by most draft guys. I expect the Titans to come up shortly though. Somewhere between 16-19 is my guess.

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2 hours ago, goldfishwars said:

21. Jacksonville Jaguars

Jaguars 2021 NFL Draft | Jacksonville Jaguars - jaguars.com

This Class In One Sentence:
Trevor Lawrence and a bumpy bunch of fellas on Urban’s old recruiting notes 

Pre-Draft Needs 
QB, OT, WR, S, IDL, TE, CB

Selections
1. 1. Trevor Lawrence - Clemson | QB |
1. 25. Travis Etienne - Clemson | RB |
2. 33. Tyson Campbell - Georgia | CB |
2. 45. Walker Little - Stanford | OT |
3. 65. Andre Cisco - Syracuse | S |
4. 106. Jay Tufele - USC | DT |
4. 121. Jordan Smith - UAB | OLB |
5. 145. Luke Farrell - Ohio State | TE |
6. 209. Jalen Camp - Georgia Tech | WR |

Picks Heading In
1.
25. 
33. 
45. 
65. 
106. 
130. 
145. 
170. 
249. 

What I Liked
I mean, they drafted Trevor Lawrence which is cool and if he continues on his trajectory, he’ll do so much to cover up some of the deficiencies on this team moving forward. He’s just got an effortlessness about how he plays the game, the kind of space and time only afford to those operating on an almost sublime level. I like the Tyson Campbell (a Florida native) pick at 33. He might not generate a ton of turnovers, but he’s a highly athletic corner with loose-hips and can click and close windows rapidly.  He's also a former five star recruit, with extremely desirable length and speed profile.

Parking his injury for a moment (6 months into ACL rehab), Andre Cisco (a Florida native) has a lot to like as a split safety with high end ball skills. Jay Tufele (recruited heavily by Ohio State before he chose USC) too, feels like a really solid high-energy rotational DL to add in the middle rounds. Urban loves his speedy offensive players and Jalen Camp fits that mold as a fairly enigmatic dart throw late on.  

What I Didn’t Like
I like Travis Etienne, but even aside from the RB’s in the first-round discussion – his game isn’t quite well-rounded enough to justify taking him there. He is an electric playmaker and gets to join his QB from school which is always cool to see. But he’s got plenty to work on in his pass-protection if they see him as some kind of third-down guy, which was a weird post-draft comment. Walker Little (former five star recruit) just hasn’t played much to like him at 45 over the likes of Dillon Radunz and Samuel Cosmi. He does have some desirable traits, however, and lands in a good spot where he shouldn’t have to play immediately. 

Jordan Smith seemed kind of undraftable after a poor Senior Bowl week and some genuinely awful athletic testing. He’s a former Florida dude, hence probably why he has the connection with Urban – but yeah, I didn’t understand that pick. As a primary blocking tight end, Luke Farrell isn’t the long-term solution to a troublesome spot for Jax. There was some hope from fans that they would land one of the bigger names at that position.
 

This is probably a pretty fair assessment.  I see this as kind of a high-risk/high reward draft.  If they are right on these picks, they could be big winners.  There are also reasons why you could see them fizzling out.

I do like the Walker Little pick.  While he did have the injury, the Covid year gave him additional time to heal up, and at this point, he just needs to be in football shape and shake off the rust.  I think he could be a very good LT for us.

I also liked the Jay Tufele pick.  He was kind of a draft crush of mine throughout the process.  He should be a good one.

As far as Etienne is concerned, I was ok with the pick, but I would have done it differently.  I think Urban is hoping he can mold him into his NFL version of a Percy Harvin type of weapon who can make plays from anywhere on the field.  It was humorous to hear the phone call when he was drafted.  Urban said "you've got to be in the weight room tonight.  By the way, welcome to Jacksonville.  Congratulations on being a Jaguar!"  :D

Ultimately, what do I know?  I'm just an armchair GM/Coach/QB, etc.  At this point, I'm just going to trust Urban and let him get the guys he wants to implement his system.  It will be interesting to see how we do.

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Fair assessment on the Falcons, I might have us ranked even lower tbh. Having the fourth pick with the 49'ers trading up and Rodgers suddenly maybe becoming available seemed to have screwed us in that regard. I'm still surprised Fields lasted as long as he did, I guess most teams had a pretty good read on what the other teams were doing.

I'm not that concerned about RB. I think Mike Davis could really make some noise this year in this scheme. So I'm fine with passing on that position.

The late round guys I'm not that familiar with apart from Darby already grating me in the one video I've seen of that dude. Seems like a waste of a 6th round pick.

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20. Tennessee Titans

2021 NFL draft grades: How experts view Titans' pick of Caleb Farley

This Class In One Sentence:
A draft class with possibly the widest set of opinions on it 

Pre-Draft Needs 
WR, OT, CB, TE

Selections
1. 22. Caleb Farley - Virginia Tech | CB |
2. 53. Dillon Radunz - North Dakota State | OT |
3. 92. Monty Rice - Georgia | LB |
3. 100. Elijah Molden - Washington | CB |
4. 109. Dez Fitzpatrick - Louisville | WR |
4. 135. Rashad Weaver - Pittsburgh | DE |
6. 205. Racey McMath - LSU | WR |
6. 215. Brady Breeze - Oregon | S |

Picks Heading In
22.
53. 
85. 
100. 
126. 
166. 
205. 
215. 
232. 

What I Liked
If you park the Farley injury for a moment, then he’s the most physically gifted corner in the class. He really is a built-in-a-lab corner with outstanding length, raw speed and footwork. He's not played the position for very long, but looks a natural there. He genuinely has the talent to become one of the league's best cornerbacks. Dillon Radunz had some 1st round attention heading into the draft after an impressive Senior Bowl and workout. He's a decent scheme fit and better value at 57 than some of the other offensive linemen chosen ahead of him.

I also like Elijah Molden at 100, he's a versatile db who can play over the slot. He punches way above his weight and can contribute on special teams. Removing the off-field stuff, Rashad Weaver is someone I like as a high floor prospect, who can be a very solid rotational player at the next level. I presume the Titans see him as a five-tech in their scheme as he’s not an obvious fit as an upright pass-rusher. Monty Rice is kind of solid, good in the short areas - not particularly great in coverage. 

What I Didn’t Like
Not parking Farley’s injury for a moment, it's actually wild the front office are spending a first round pick on a corner coming off major back surgery one year after last year's first-round pick busted out in record time. Unfortunately, back injuries like Farley's have a very high chance to recur according to most accounts. It's just a tough sport to play with that issue lingering. I’d be surprised if he didn’t need another surgery down the road. 

Coming into the draft, Tennessee’s starting receivers were AJ Brown, Josh Reynolds and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine according to Ourlads. Leaving the draft, it’s difficult to say they improved much there by adding Dez Fitzpatrick and Racey McMath (all-time name) - the latter being more of a special teams ace. I kinda liked Dez Fitzpatrick earlier in the process, but the way he got shutout in the Senior Bowl practices was alarming considering how much they are set-up for receivers to win. It's an odd pairing to come away with in a deep receiver class. 
 

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