2011 NFL Draft Grades- AFC Edition

It has been a little bit of time since the NFL Draft occurred and I am just now getting around to putting up my grades for the draft. I like to think it gave everyone time to think about how each team really did rather than just fall back on what the draft "experts" say immediately after the draft. I grade a draft using numbers "0-10" because using "A-F" is so cliche. I evaluate a draft based on how much I like the players a team picked, whether those players make them a better team, and whether that means giving them depth or giving them players who are starters. I like to see team fill needs that make them a better team or takes care of a problem that team had the previous season. I am going to break the NFL Draft into two separate posts and I will do the AFC today.

This is just for fun and for a debate (perhaps) in the comments. I am not pretending to be an expert and trying to make money off an opinion (a la Mel Kiper Jr) that really isn't going to be proven wrong for another couple of years. I make fun of those people. No one really knows if the grades aren't right for about five years, which is why I go back and grade drafts from 2001 by people who claim to know what they are talking about.

I will go in order of division with the AFC first and, of course, explain each grade.

Buffalo Bills

I'm not mad at the Bills for not drafting a quarterback. I'm a firm believer if you have a quarterback in the position who isn't great, but serviceable, there isn't a reason to draft a quarterback early you don't like. Not to mention, the Bills needed a defensive tackle and they got one. So they filled that need. Here's my issue with the Bills draft though. They didn't get a pass-rusher nor did they get an offensive tackle, as well as not get a quarterback. They need impact players and then they go and draft Aaron Williams in the 2nd round. He may be great, but they don't need another safety and even if they did, he won't be able to pressure the other team's quarterback. The Bills need a pass rusher, not more secondary help. For God's sake why even spend a draft pick on a running back? Why?

Grade: 2

Miami Dolphins

I tend not to judge teams harsher because they didn't have as many picks going into the draft. The Dolphins didn't have a lot of picks in the early rounds, but I like how they plugged guys into holes they had on their roster. There's no point in drafting a quarterback you don't like in the first round to say you tried to improve the position, so it was smart to instead draft the best interior lineman in Pouncey. Daniel Thomas has the potential to be a great running back and Edmund Gates will make a good slot receiver...though I thought that was the position Devone Bess was best at. I didn't care for the later half of their draft. Regardless, the Dolphins got better in the draft.

Grade: 6

New England Patriots

I don't completely get this draft, so Patriots fans feel free to tell me what an idiot I am. I like the Nate Solder pick, but where is a defensive lineman at? Isn't that a need for the Patriots? I thought it was. I like Ras-I Dowling and he was drafted about where I think he should have been, but Belichick won a Super Bowl with Troy Brown as the nickel corner, so I feel like they could have addressed that need a little bit later. What makes up for the draft and doesn't make me pan it, is the acquisition of Marcus Cannon in the 5th round. I have a feeling he will miss a season due to his illness and then end up being an absolute steal for the Patriots. I am a fan of Shane Vereen, but I don't get why the Pats took back-to-back running backs and didn't upgrade the defensive line in the 2nd or 3rd round. The Ryan Mallett choice is merely so the Patriots can trade him to Oakland in two years and get draft picks for him. You know Al Davis will want Mallett in a couple of years.

Grade: 4

New York Jets

I thought the Jets needed to get a bit younger on the defensive line and they did a great job of that. I really liked Wilkerson before the draft and think that was a great pick. He can move over in passing situations and rush the passer from the nose tackle position and play end. Kenrick Ellis was a good pick at nose tackle as well and will hopefully help stop the run. The pick I like the most by the Jets is Jeremy Kerley. He'll be a great slot receiver and can return punts. He's small, but it is not like the Jets will ask him to play on the outside for a few years. They have wide receivers, but I feel like they don't have a guy like Kerley. I don't get the Jets drafting a running back. I thought they were set at that position. Still, a draft that met their needs.

Grade: 7

Baltimore Ravens

I knew I should have mocked Jimmy Smith to the Ravens. I got cute and went against conventional thought because I felt like it was too obvious and was a smokescreen. What I like about the Ravens is they took care of the needs they have. They need cornerbacks and they drafted an exceptional one in Smith. They need help at wide receiver and drafted two of them. I like this move because the idea of relying on the veterans last year wasn't as productive as anticipated. I know very little about Jah Reid, but it appears the Ravens reached to get him. Hey, if they like him I guess based on the "Alualu rule" from last year, I will try not to criticize a team for making a slight reach. I'm not sure how Anthony Allen was still available in the 7th round.

Grade: 8

Cincinnati Bengals

I feel like Jon Gruden, but I like this draft as well. AJ Green has all the makings of an impact receiver and the Bengals needed to give Palmer/Dalton more weapons. Obviously, the Bengals were taking a quarterback in the draft and they seem to have done well with Dalton. Much of the grade I am giving the Bengals is based on Dalton performing well. That's usually the case when a team takes a quarterback early in the draft. What makes this draft great in my mind is Boling in the fourth round and Sands in the fifth round. Boling may never be great, but he can play a variety of positions and could start very soon for the Bengals. I wish they had addressed the defensive line a little bit and they didn't. For that, it doesn't deserve a perfect grade, but it deserves very close.

Grade: 9

Cleveland Browns

I'm pretty sure I am the only person who did not like the Browns draft very much...at least I didn't like it much compared to others. Phil Taylor is a 3-4 nose tackle. Sure, he play in a 4-3 defense and will stop the run, but he is better used in another scheme. If the Browns wanted a 4-3 defender, I felt like there were better options available. I watched Pitt play a few times this year and I am not sure how I feel about Jabaal Sheard at the NFL level. He seemed small to me at times. Greg Little does fit a need for them, but I thought the Browns would have been better served to take Julio Jones because I thought they needed an impact wide receiver. I am not sure Little is that guy. So I credit the Browns with trying to fill deficiencies they have, but I am more impressed with some of their later picks. They addressed the defensive line problem they had, but I don't like the players they addressed the position with.

Grade: 3

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers are sort of the opposite of the Browns for me. They filled their needs, but with players I like and think will produce at a high level. Cameron Heyward was a great pick in the first round for them and he'll combine with Ziggy Hood well. I think Heyward will end up being one of the better players in this draft and I like how they drafted an offensive lineman who isn't close to his ceiling in Marcus Gilbert. The Steelers are smart and know they needed to do something about the secondary and they did by taking two cornerbacks. I will admit, I didn't like the pick of Baron Batch in the 7th round, though I guess he will probably make it on the Steelers roster. Still, that is about all I can say negative about the Steelers draft.

Grade: 8

Houston Texans

I hate being positive. For some of these drafts, I have to though. I like this draft and what the Texans tried to do here. They had to improve the defense, or actually Gary Kubiak had to improve the defense or else he would be fired after this season. The Texans went nearly all defense in this draft. I like J.J. Watt and I love Brooks Reed. The Texans need pass rushers and they got at least one with great potential. They also got two cornerbacks with the next two picks and I actually like Rashad Carmichael better than Brandon Harris in the long-term. I'm still not sure either player is the long-term answer as a starter, but at least the Texans addressed the position. The Texans did exactly what they needed to in the draft, which was get 3-4 personnel.

Grade: 7

Indianapolis Colts

The Colts didn't have a lot of picks, so I won't criticize them for that. Are they a better team now than they were at the beginning of the draft? Yes, they are. They did they draft impact players? No, they didn't. I really thought they would take a backup quarterback at some point, but I guess they figured protecting Peyton Manning is the answer to keeping him healthy. They needed to upgrade the offensive line and they have done that and they needed to get a defensive tackle and they did that. They got a backup running back in case Joseph Addai leaves in free agency and a pretty good running back as well in Delone Carter. Solid draft for the Colts, though it wasn't the sexiest.

Grade: 7

Jacksonville Jaguars

Terrible. Horrible. I did not like this draft. I feel like the Jaguars were more concerned with putting fans butts in the seats then fixing their needs. The Jaguars needed (and I think most people can agree with this) help at defensive end and at the safety position. Instead, with their five picks they choose a quarterback and two later round picks that can have only be described positively by a scouting service as "the potential to help out on special teams." In fact, Rod Isaac was described as a player that would make "a good 9th defensive back for an NFL roster." That's really the best player available in the 5th round? Gabbert was a sexy pick and I will look stupid if he is a franchise quarterback, but I will take that chance. It's like the Jaguars said, "Fuck improving the pass rush or the secondary, let's get a quarterback! Maybe we'll sell some merchandise!" There is no way Jack Del Rio, a former defensive coordinator, is happy none of the defensive needs were even close to being addressed.

Grade: 1

Tennessee Titans

Well, the Titans did need a quarterback and they took one in Jake Locker. I'm not completely sure how they plan on protecting him, but it doesn't matter because Locker is gritty and like Brett Favre so he doesn't need any stinkin' protection from an offensive line. While I like the Ayers and Casey picks in the 2nd and 3rd round, neither player is the pass rusher the Titans need. The Titans are a better team on defense, but I think they should have addressed their need at defensive end earlier in the draft. Not to mention, the Titans need to get blocking upfront and I am not sure not drafting a guard or center in a year where there may be no free agency is the key to improving Chris Johnson's YPC average. So in summation, the Titans needed to get a quarterback, improve the pass rush and upgrade the offensive line. They did one of those things.

Grade: 4

Denver Broncos

Ah yes, it is a John Fox draft. He takes an incredibly talented player and then puts him in a role where his full skill set isn't utilitized. A similar situation to Von Miller playing in a 4-3 is Thomas Davis, the talented OLB for the Panthers, when was drafted and put at safety for a season...you know, just because. In a similar vein, the Broncos took a 3-4 linebacker for a 4-3 system. Miller may excel in the 4-3 system, but he could really excel in the 3-4 system. I thought Dareus was the better pick at the #2 spot. I am admittedly biased when discussing Denver's draft because I have years of experience with how John Fox runs a team. I love the picks of Virgil Green and Julian Thomas, but given Fox's offense traditionally using the tight end as a 6th offensive lineman, I am not 100% sure they will be utilized properly given their skill set, but if they are used properly they have great potential. Two picks I really like are Jeremy Beal and Rahim Moore. Those guys are going to be great for Fox's defense. Overall, this is a good draft for the Broncos, but they didn't address the DT position and that was a huge error.

Grade: 5

Kansas City Chiefs

I like how the Chiefs got a quality wide receiver and also got a third round pick out of it as well. Great move. Under the "Alualu rule" I will not criticize the Chiefs for taking Baldwin when they potentially could have gotten him in the second round. There's a chance he could have been gone at that spot. He is talented, troubled, but talented. The three picks I like for the Chiefs draft are Justin Houston (who would have gone higher if he wasn't unfortunate enough to get caught smoking pot...you know, since no other athletes did this in college), Jerrell Powe (an actual nose tackle!) and Ricky Stanzi. Powe is a starter in the NFL, Houston has a ton of talent and should be a starter for the Chiefs as long as he keeps his shit together, and Stanzi is a quarterback who given experience in a system could turn into a starter. I think he is a system quarterback and that's not an insult. Other than that, there are a few misses in this draft. Still, the Chiefs took care of their needs in the draft and got value in the later rounds.

Grade: 8

Oakland Raiders

I liked the Raiders picks last year. I think I gave them a good grade in my head (I don't think I did NFL draft grades last year). I don't like their draft this year. Because the Raiders hate draft picks, they figured they would go ahead and get rid of that stupid 2nd round pick they have next year. Who should they trade the pick to? Oh yeah, New England. It's like a big brother taking advantage of a little brother at this point. It's unfair. Who did the Raiders move up to get in the third round? Joseph Barksdale, who was projected to go in the 3rd or 4th round anyway. So it is not like they moved up to get a guy who had fallen. I know under the "Alualu rule" I created, I can't bash this pick. Screw it, I did anyway. So while the Raiders did meet their needs in the draft, I give them credit for that, but at the end of the draft I feel like they were sorting the offensive players by their 40 yard time and their athletic ability and then drafting the best offensive player who meets that criteria.

I am mocking them and giving them a low grade, but I like how they attempted to address their needs at cornerback. That's a positive. Still...giving away another 2012 pick (along with the 4th round pick they gave up for Campbell last year) is not good and I'm not sure there is a player in this draft that will help them improve much.

Grade: 2

San Diego Chargers

The Chargers needed defensive help and they got it in the form of Corey Liuget, though I think he fits better in the 4-3 system, he can still play end in the 3-4. So that was good, but I don't get the pick of Jonas Mouton. From my research it seems he could have been had four rounds later. That's a huge reach. For a team that needed playmakers on defense and at the linebacker position, they didn't get any in the draft. That's a big miss in my opinion. I do like how they upgraded the secondary, but a front seven that needed some playmakers isn't getting those playmakers...or even quality depth for that matter. Jordan Todman appears to be a good pick in the 6th round and Shareece Wright was also a good value at his position. Still, they need impact players and I don't see enough of them.

Grade: 3

I will be back in a couple days and grade the NFC teams and their draft.