Looking Back Three Years

[onejayhawk]

During the slow time, we can do some deeper dives. I'll start with mine.

As Chiefs fan I was excited with the haul on draft day 2022. Goldfishwars rated the draft class top 5 and I thought that the draft class would blunt impact of some major FA departures--most notably Tyrann Mathieu. Little did I know.

In any event, the Chiefs have done very well over the last three years. Here are the picks and a few comments.

 2022
1.21    DB     Trent McDuffie     Washington     Played 100% of defensive snaps in the Super Bowl
1.30    DL     George Karlaftis     Purdue      Started from Day #1, came on strong down the stretch
2.22    WR     Skyy Moore     Western Michigan     Decent rookie year, also came on late in the season
2.30    DB     Bryan Cook     Cincinnati      Excellent ST player and gets snaps as a box safety. Leader
3.39    LB     Leo Chenal     Wisconsin     A hitter. When the Chiefs geared up against the Eagle's running game, they called on Chenal
4.30    DB     Joshua Williams     None      With Watson essentially the third starting CB
5.02    OL     Darian Kinnard     Kentucky     Buried on the depth chart. Incomplete
7.22    DB     Jaylen Watson     Washington State   With Williams essentially the third starting CB
7.30    RB     Isiah Pacheco     Rutgers      Anyone who watched the Super Bowl knows his name
7.38    DB     Nazeeh Johnson     Marshall     ST ace in the making

 2021
2.26    LB     Nick Bolton     Missouri     Anyone who watched the Super Bowl knows his name
2.31    OL     Creed Humphrey     Oklahoma      Already the best C in the NFL 
4.39    DL     Joshua Kaindoh     Florida State   Still on PS but this looks like a miss
5.18    TE     Noah Gray     Duke     A nice TE2 but he will never be a Kelce or Gronkowski
5.37    WR     Cornell Powell     Clemson     Still here. Might have some ST impact
6.42    OL     Trey Smith     Tennessee     Stud. He might be the steal of the whole draft. In this group that says a lot
 

 2020
1.32    RB     Clyde Edwards-Helaire     Louisiana State    Disappointing and often injured 
2.31    LB     Willie Gay Jr.     Mississippi State     Looked bad for two years but was fantastic this season. Perfect compliment to Bolton
3.32    OL     Lucas Niang     Texas Christian      Looked good when he played but missed whole years to injuries
4.32    DB     L'Jarius Sneed     Louisiana Tech    This is the best CB in the whole 2020 draft class  
5.32    DL     Michael Danna     Michigan      Solid rotational DE
7.23    DB     Thakarius Keyes     Tulane     Traded and still in the league

Not a single pick is already of football. By itself, that says a lot.

What have your team's results been over a longer haul?

[sryan66611]

1 hour ago, onejayhawk said:

4.32    DB     L'Jarius Sneed     Louisiana Tech    This is the best CB in the whole 2020 draft class  

This is false sir....   I would 100% take Trevon Diggs over him and about 95% sure I'd take AJ Terrell over him.     He is top 5 though which is a great pickup considering he was in the 4th round.   The guys at top were all pretty much busts.

[Dr A W Niloc]

To rate the 2023 Ravens' or Chiefs' drafts as "top 5" is to damn with faint praise.

You have to factor in not having a top 20 draft pick.  All ten K.C. draftees made a squad that was already a Super Bowl contender.  You have three studs already in McDuffie, Karlaftis, and Pacheco.   Moore, Chenal, and Kinnard haven't begun to show their potential.  

In a normal year Detroit and Dallas would be top 2 with their A+ drafts.  Baltimore and Kansas City forced draftniks to add on a special designation, "A!", to describe their generational hauls. 

[sryan66611]

6 minutes ago, Dr A W Niloc said:

To rate the 2023 Ravens' or Chiefs' drafts as "top 5" is to damn with faint praise.

You have to factor in not having a top 20 draft pick.  All ten K.C. draftees made a squad that was already a Super Bowl contender.  You have three studs already in McDuffie, Karlaftis, and Pacheco.   Moore, Chenal, and Kinnard haven't begun to show their potential.  

In a normal year Detroit and Dallas would be top 2 with their A+ drafts.  Baltimore and Kansas City forced draftniks to add on a special designation, "A!", to describe their generational hauls. 

I think Jets seem to be on their way to a generational draft.  Both O and D rookie of the year, and it seems right now three high end starters.  Breece looked really good before he got hurt and was lighting up the league.  Still have J. Johnson and Max Mitchell who were contributors as well.

 

That would be my vote for #1 draft from last year.

[jebrick]

The last 3 drafts of the Kevin Colbert era.  Cobert was generally very good in the 1st 2 days and horrible on day 3.

 

2022

1.20 Kenny Pickett     QB     Pittsburgh Rookie QB who showed improvement after the bye.

 2.52 George Pickens     WR     Georgia - Makes highlight catches.  Needs to work on getting separation.

 3.84 DeMarvin Leal     DT     Texas A&M - Showed very well on pass rushes when he got a chance.

 4.138 Calvin Austin     WR     Memphis - Injured in Training camp.  Fans have high hopes.

 5.208 Connor Heyward     RB     Michigan State - Very good as TE/FB  Great pass catcher. played in all games

 6.225 Mark Robinson     LB     Mississippi - Started one game for the Steelers and made an impact.  Mainly a run stopper.

 7.241 Chris Oladokun     QB     South Dakota State Gets a SB ring with the Chiefs this year.

 

2021

1.24 Najee Harris     RB     Alabama - Starting RB

 2.55 Pat Freiermuth     TE     Penn State - Started every game for the Steelers.

 3.87 Kendrick Green     G     Illinois Could easily be a bust.  Saw 0 snaps this year.

 4.128 Dan Moore     T     Texas A&M Started all 17 games at LT

 5.140 Buddy Johnson     LB     Texas A&M Waived in 2022.  Now on Houston PS

 6.156 Isaiahh Loudermilk     DE     Wisconsin - I hated this pick but he has turned out to be a decent backup that can play in the Steeler 2-gap scheme.

 7.216 Quincy Roche     DE     Miami (FL) Back with the Steelers after a year with the NY Giants

 7.245 Tre Norwood     DB     Oklahoma Has played very well as the 5th DB

 7.254 Pressley Harvin     P     Georgia Tech A decent punter that ( I believe) is limited by the Steeler ST coach.

 

2020

#1 pick went to get Micah Fitzpatrick.

2.49 Chase Claypool     WR      Notre Dame Great athlete that can't get separation.  Best thing is they got 2.32 pick in 2023 for him.

 3.102 Alex Highsmith     DE     Charlotte Began starting year 2.  Had 14.5 sacks this season. 

 3.124 Anthony McFarland      RB      Maryland Still on Roster,  RB#3

 4.135 Kevin Dotson      G      Louisiana-Lafayette - Started all 17 games for the Steelers this year.

 5.198 Antoine Brooks     DB     Maryland Currently playing on the Seattle Dragons XFL after 1 year at Steelers and a SB ring from the Rams

 6.232 Carlos Davis     DT     Nebraska - Practice squad this past year.  I do not see any upside.

[HerbertGOAT]

2022

1.17 Zion Johnson G Boston College: Decent as a rookie, left some to be desired. Hopefully he can develop into our Center of the future like he's been pegged as by some.

3.79 JT Woods, Safety Baylor: Hardly saw the field except in preseason. Track athlete in a football uniform, deathly afraid of contact, and based on his college tape most of his INTs were thrown directly to him. I have less than 0 hope for this guy.

4.123 Isaiah Spiller, RB Texas A&M: Also barely played. Was the youngest player in the draft, so he gets a pass for now. I loved him coming out so I have faith he can make something happen.

5.160 Otito Ogbonnia, IDL UCLA; Solid rotational big boy. Made some good run stuffs, limited as a pass rusher. Could develop into solid starter.

6.195 Jamaree Salyer, G/T Georgia: Arguably the steal of the draft. Played very well at LT for the vast majority of the season. Will kick inside to Guard and possibly become a Pro-Bowler alongside Rashawn Slater and Corey Linsley.

6.214 Ja'Sir Taylor, DB Wake Forest: Impact special teamer with some solid reps on defense. Has shown very good football IQ and athleticism, probably develops into a key role player.

7.236 Deane Leonard, DB Ole Miss: Another impact special teamer. Similar profile to Taylor, with a bit less of a finished product at the moment. Whenever there was a play made on punt coverage, those two guys were ALWAYS there.

7.260 Zander Horvath FB Purdue: The broke man's Mike Alstott. Did fairly well as a special teamer and occasional fullback, scored a few TDs in the first few weeks and we never went to him again. Eh.

2021

1.13 Rashawn Slater T, Northwestern: Lockdown stud for the next decade.

2.47 Asante Samuel Jr. CB FSU: Has shown flashes so far, still working out the kinks. Likely an upper tier CB2 for his career, or a very good slot corner.

3.77 Josh Palmer WR Tennessee: Generic possession receiver. Could be a good WR3 on a team with actual speed and YAC, but his skillset is currently redundant.

3.97 Tre' McKitty TE Georgia: Worst player in the NFL.

4.118 Chris Rumph II EDGE Duke: Least effective player in the NFL.

5.159 Brenden Jaimes G/T Nebraska: Does not exist.

6.185 Nick Niemann LB Iowa: Hyper athlete who just plays special teams and has negligible impact. Fills the roster I guess.

6.198 Larry Rountree III Missouri: Worst RB in the NFL. Quite possibly the slowest non-lineman as well.

7.241 Mark Webb S Georgia: Coaches love him! They love him so much that he never dressed or gets taken off the injury report.

2020

1.6 Justin Herbert QB Oregon: At worst a top 7 QB with an MVP ceiling. Please get this man some team speed and YAC. and an actual defensive guru.

1.23 Kenneth Murray LB Oklahoma: Most undercoached player in the NFL. He still is figuring out what read steps are.

4.112 Josh Kelley RB UCLA: Terrible for his first 2 years, made an insane improvement in year 3. He's now a serviceable RB2.

5.151 Joe Reed WR UVA: Return Specialist. Did nothing of note.

6.186 Alohi Gilman S Notre Dame: SLOWWWWWW. Decent 4th safety, except he's currently a starter. Box safety who we ask to cover the deep third in Cover 3.

7.220 KJ Hill WR Ohio State: Caught a few meaningless passes in garbage time. Out of the league.

[jebrick]

57 minutes ago, HerbertGOAT said:

6.195 Jamaree Salyer, G/T Georgia: Arguably the steal of the draft. Played very well at LT for the vast majority of the season. Will kick inside to Guard and possibly become a Pro-Bowler alongside Rashawn Slater and Corey Linsley.

Glad to see him doing well.  He was one of my favorite players in the draft last year

[onejayhawk]

19 hours ago, sryan66611 said:

This is false sir....   I would 100% take Trevon Diggs over him and about 95% sure I'd take AJ Terrell over him.     He is top 5 though which is a great pickup considering he was in the 4th round.   The guys at top were all pretty much busts.

Diggs's sticky fingers make a good argument. He and Sneed have very different games so comparisons are tricky. Sneed has 8 Ints of his own and throw in 6.5 sacks.

I am not getting your argument about Terrell. Even if you give him an edge in coverage, Sneed is much more physical and better in run support.

Regardless, you hit the point. If Sneed is just one of the top 3-5 CB in the draft, he's still a fantastic pick.

[Louis Friend]

2022- Holmes/Campbell second draft

1.2- Aidan Hutchinson EDGE Michigan- Starter, Pepsi Rookie of the Year, 9.2 sacks 2 FR 3 INTs

1.12- Jameson Williams WR Alabama- Injure reserved most of season.

2.46- Josh Paschal DL Kentucky- Injured to start the season, inconsistent. 

3.97- Kerby Joseph DB Illinois- Starter, Aaron Rodgers stopper, Top vote getter for NFC S in pro bowl fan voting, 82 tackles 4 INTs 2 FF 1 FR

5.177- James Mitchell TE Virginia Tech- Solid backup TE. Caught every target from Goff this season. Zero drops. 

6.188- Malcolm Rodriguez LB Oklahoma St.- Starter, Beast.

6.217- James Houston LB Jackson St.- 8 sacks in 7 games played, Beast. 

7.237- Chase Lucas DB Arizona St.- Injured most of the season.

 

2021- Holmes/Campbell first draft

1.7- Penei Sewell OL Oregon- Two year starter, Pro Bowler

2.41- Levi Onwuzurike DL Washington- Bust. Injured for two years with back injury. Might retire due to injury. 

3.72- Alim McNeill DT North Carolina St.- Two year starter

3.101- Ifeatu Melifonwu DB Syracuse- Was moved out of position and hasn't looked right. Should return to CB.

4.112- Amon-Ra St. Brown WR USC- Two year starter, Pro Bowler

4.113- Derrick Barnes LB Purdue- Inconsistent. Moments of burst, goes missing at times. 

7.257- Jermar Jefferson RB Oregon St.- Hasn't played.

 

2020- Quinn/Patricia final draft

1.3- Jeff Okudah CB Ohio St.- Injured most of his career. Played well for a good chunk of this season, then got a concussion and the flu and finished the season poorly.

2.35- D'Andre Swift RB Georgia- Three year starter (when healthy)

3.67- Julian Okwara LB Notre Dame- Inconsistent, injured. Hasn't shown anything. 

3.75- Jonah Jackson OG Ohio St.- Three year starter, Pro Bowler

4.121- Logan Stenberg OG Kentucky- Backup OL who hasn't secured a spot despite injuries across the line. 

5.166- Quintez Cephus WR Wisconsin- Has been injured. 

5.172- Jason Huntley RB New Mexico St.- Went to Philly, I think, never played for us. 

6.197- John Penisini DT Utah- Retired before this season. Was solid when played. 

7.235- Jashon Cornell DT Ohio St.- ?????????????????

[Scoundrel]

8 hours ago, Louis Friend said:

9.2 sacks

Impressive

[THE DUKE]

Bengals

2022
31. Dax Hill, S - Played mostly out of position at CB this year due to need and had his struggles, but will be moving to FS in 2023 where he was drafted to replace Jessie Bates.  had very limited snaps at S during the season, but was solid there in those reps and looked good in the preseason.  Will pretty much be an incomplete grade until we see what he can do in a full time role.  Coaching staff remains very high on him though.

60. Cam Taylor-Britt, CB - Started slow, but really came on as the year went along and was playing as our top CB by the end of the year showing a lot of promise and more room to grow.  By the playoffs he was matching up against other teams #1s and holding his own.  Home run pick, and will be a starter in 2023 along with Awuzie coming back from injury.

95. Zach Carter, DL - Didn't play much early, but started getting more and more reps as the year went along and was giving the Bengals solid reps at DT in pass rush situations down the stretch.  Likely not a starter in 2023, but I won't be surprised if he ends up with 400-500 snaps.  Good rotation player is what he looks like.

136. Cordell Volson, G - A rookie who gave the Bengals 20 starts of slighly below average to average guard play is a pretty big win for a 4th rd pick.  Had stretches where he played above average and showed he can be a long term average to maybe a little above average guard, which is a major win based on what the Bengals got there in the previous few years.

166. Tycen Anderson, S - Was hurt all of 2022.  Coaching staff was very high on him as a potential special teams ace and possible solid defensive depth before he got hurt.  He has good odds on making the roster in 2023 as long as he is healthy, but still a lot to prove.

252. Jeff Gunter, Edge - Another injury, but as an athletic flier late in the draft showed a couple flashes in the first few days of camp before he got hurt.  Will battle to try to make the roster in 2023, even if healthy, seems a likely practice squad guy.

 

2021
5. Ja'Marr Chase, WR - Home run pick and a top 5 or so WR in the NFL already

46. Jackson Carman - Had a little bit of a rebound in 2022 when pressed into duty at LT, but was still below average at best there.  Has largely been a disappointing pick, and becomes especially so when the majority of Bengals fans on this site were clamoring for Creed Humphrey here.  Failed at guard, but will likely hang on the roster at least another year or two as tackle depth.

69. Joseph Ossai, DL - Unfortunately missed all of 2021 with an injury, but had a good 2022 and was looking better and better as the year progressed.  Despite the penalty everyone remembers, Ossai did show very well in the playoffs putting up pressure rates even with Trey Hendrickson and was the Bengals second best pass rusher down the stretch.  As long as he stays healthy, he'll probably get 500+ reps in 2023.

111. Cam Sample, DE - Has been a good rotation player and solid depth.  Nothing flashy, but he isn't hurting the team when he's out there either.  Playing some inside but is used primarily as a run down DE.  Solid pickup in round four and will definitely be on the roster in 2023.

122. Tyler Shelvin, NT - A non-factor in the NFL, has barely played and looked over matched in the few reps he has managed to get in two years.  I won't be surprised if he's out of the NFL next season.

139. D'Ante Smith, OT - Has been tried all over the offensive line and even given starts at times because of the Bengals OL issues, and has failed pretty spectacularly whenever given a chance.  Outside shot he makes the team in 2023 as OT4, but more likely won't be a Bengals next year if they sign any free agents or draft anyone to play tackle.

149. Evan McPherson, K - Has been a great pickup for the Bengals and given them a legitimate weapon in the kicking game.  Has made a lot of game winning kicks in the playoffs already.  Struggled early in 2022, but then bounced back pretty well.  Does not lack for confidence.

190. Trey Hill, C - Has been on the roster but barely played.  Hasn't impressed much, even in the preseason against backups and guys who don't make rosters.  I won't be shocked if he is given one more year, but won't be shocked if he is replaced in either FA or the draft either.

202. Chris Evans, RB - A very good athlete, but barely sees the field.  The staff doesn't trust him in pass pro, or seemingly trust him to do much of anything as they have tried him at RB, in the slot, in the return game, and he never gets many reps anywhere long.  Wouldn't shock me if the Bengals took 2 RB in the upcoming draft.

235. Wyatt Hubert, Edge - Was hurt last year, and I think has been released.  They like taking fliers on athletic edge guys late, but they don't seem to ever pan out.

 

2020
1. Joe Burrow, QB - Has already established himself as one of the top tier QB's in the NFL.  Won 5 playoff games in the last two years and was a better OG away from potentially winning the Super Bowl in 2021.

33. Tee Higgins, WR - A top 20-25ish WR in the NFL and has been very productive with Burrow.  Great at high pointing the ball, good route runner who can get separation, and an underrated blocker on the edge.

65. Logan Wilson, LB - Another home run pick in this draft, Wilson is the leader of the Bengals defense, a true 3 down LB, and has progressively gotten better and better at both run support and pass defense.  Highly likely he gets a long term deal with the Bengals this offseason.

107. Akeen Davis Gaither - Has been a nickel LB, and a pretty good one.  Had some injuries early, but has played well the last two years and may get a chance to start in 2023.

147. Khalid Kareem, DE - Has been just a guy for the most part.  Got plenty of reps his first two years, but never did much.  Cut in 2022.

180. Hakeem Adeniji, OT - Has been given every opportunity to start all across the line that any player could want, and has failed each time.  Failed rather spectacularly in this past AFC CG.  He'll be battling with D'Ante Smith, Isaiah Prince, and a draft pick to even be OT4 next year.

215. Markus Bailey, LB - Was dealing with a lot of injuries coming out of college that limited him his rookie year, but has quietly been a very good special teamer and LB depth the past two years.  With Germaine Pratt possibly moving on, could compete for a bigger role in 2023.

 

An excellent draft in 2020, and two very up and down drafts the past two years have helped elevate the Bengals into one of the NFL's better teams.  They definitely miss big time on some picks, but the hit rate has been pretty solid the past few years and they have been able to find major contributors outside of the top 50 picks while nailing their picks at the top of the draft.  They will need to continue to do at least this well as some talent starts to price themselves to another team and other players nearing the end of their prime.

[minutemancl]

Dave Gettleman was relatively good at hitting on high draft picks. Beyond that though, his later round picks were pretty garbage and his free agent signings were bad enough to get him forced into retirement.

2021

2nd round pick Azeez Ojulari was a good pick and is a good player, but he's got a concerning injury history. He set the Giants rookie sack record his rookie year, but only had 5.5 sacks last year. The caveat is of course that he only really played in 6 games and he did look really good when he was playing. Otherwise, this draft sucked. Kadarius Toney didn't want to be here and got shipped off for a 3rd and 6th, CB Aaron Robinson is bad and always injured, Elerson Smith is bad and always injured, Gary Brightwell is a slightly above PS level RB, and Rodarius Williams is bad and always injured.

2020

Andrew Thomas is fantastic. Xavier Mckinney is a very good safety. After that, again, this draft sucked. Matt Peart hasn't been able to impress anyone in this rotating cast of Giants coaches over 3 years now. Darnay Holmes actually plays the run well, but is a penalty machine and a pretty constant liability in the slot. Shane Lemieux is constantly hurt. Cam Brown and Carter Coughlin are above average special teamers, but they NEVER play any actual defensive snaps, which goes to show you what the coaches think about them. TJ Brunson hasn't ever done anything, and neither has Chris Williamson, who was out of the NFL after his rookie year offseason. Tae Crowder started out of pure necessity, but he was never a good LB. He's with the Steelers now.

It's too early to tell anything from the 2022 class for any team, but especially the Giants.

Kayvon looks good. Neal looks bad. Daniel Bellinger looks good, and 4th round rookie LB Micah Mcfadden looks ok. Everyone else got injured. Wan'dale Robinson was finally coming along and had a 100 yard game in Detroit before tearing his ACL. Ezeudu had some starting snaps, then got hurt. Cordale Flott was hurt most of the year, but had a few really impressive snaps (one in particular in the Minnesota playoff game on the play before the 4th down stop). Dane Belton kept missing assignments and got benched early in the year. DJ Davidson, Marcus Mckethan, and Darrius Beavers all got hurt very early in the year.

[Louis Friend]

5 hours ago, Scoundrel said:

Impressive

[INbengalfan]

4 hours ago, THE DUKE said:

 

180. Hakeem Adeniji, OT - Has been given every opportunity to start all across the line that any player could want, and has failed each time.  Failed rather spectacularly in this past AFC CG.  He'll be battling with D'Ante Smith, Isaiah Prince, and a draft pick to even be OT4 next year.

Great write up.  FYI-Prince already signed elsewhere on a future's deal.  I wanna say KC, but am not sure.

[BobbyPhil1781]

Raiders:

2022:

Parham looks like he might be a starter
White can kinda play
Munford might've been a nice find w/ more time

2021:

LOL

2020:

Next question please