So now that the 2018 NFL draft is over, it's time to see who the biggest winners and losers were. Keep in mind, you can never really know how these players will pan out, so all this is conjecture on my part.
First, the winners:
The Giants. They pick up the best talented player in the draft in the first round; then they pick up the 4th best offensive lineman in the second round; then they use both their third round picks to beef up their defensive front seven. Oh, and by the way, they landed a quality quarterback in the 4th round to possibly take over for Ei in two or three years. Dave Gettleman had himself one helluva good draft.
The Broncos. How's this for a scenario: your kid was hoping for a brand new bike for Christmas, but you couldn't afford to get him one. Then, miraculously, the bike shop owner calls you up and tells you that a customer who put a deposit on one couldn't come up with the balance and if you still want it, the bike is available at a lower price. You say thank you, rush down and swoop it up. That's what the Broncos did when the Browns, for some unknown reason, decided to pass on the best defensive player in the draft, Bradley Chubb. So now the Broncos will have Chubb AND Von Miller on the same defensive line. Just imagine what's going through the mind of every quarterback in the AFC West right now. Yum, yum, eat 'em up!
The Cardinals. Assuming they can squeeze Josh Rosen's ego back into his body, Arizona did pretty well in this draft. That's because in addition to picking Captain America in the 1st round, they got one of the better receivers in the draft in Christian Kirk in the 2nd round along with running back Chase Edmonds in the 4th.
The Patriots. Eschewing the best talent on the board rule, Bill Belichick decided to address needs and address them he did. Two cornerbacks, a running back, a linebacker and a potential replacement for Tom Brady. And all, except for the QB, are expected to battle for starting jobs this season. The rich do indeed get richer.
The Steelers. They snagged what many believe will be Ben Roethlisberger's replacement in Mason Rudolph in the 3rd round, when many thought he was a low 1st rounder; then landed a replacement for Martavis Bryant in James Washington. That's called taking care of business.
The Colts. If the mission was to keep Andrew Luck upright, mission accomplished. They got Quenton Nelson - the best offensive lineman available - in the 1st round; then added guard Braden Smith in the 2nd. They then used the two 2nd round picks they got from the Jets to address defensive needs, drafting a linebacker and a lineman. That's how you work the draft, not by trading up but by trading down. Nice job.
The Packers. They had one of the worst pass defenses in the league last year, so they used their first two picks in the draft to go after cornerbacks. Clearly somebody in the front office figured out that having to win games 38 to 35 was not a good recipe for success.
The Jaguars. They bolstered what was already one of the league's best defenses by adding defensive lineman Taven Bryan and safety Ronnie Harrison. Then they addressed a need by drafting receiver D.J. Clark. Tom Coughlin is turning out to be an even better talent evaluator than he was a head coach.
The Losers:
The Browns. Picture this: you have the two of the first four picks in the first round and not only don't you end up with the best offensive player, you don't even get the best defensive one. Okay, so maybe Baker Mayfield will turn out to be the next Drew Breese; or maybe he ends up being the next Todd Blackledge. Bottom line, if you're going to pass on Barkley for a QB, you should at least wind up with the best one, Sam Darnold. But even if you give John Dorsey the benefit of the doubt with Mayfield - maybe he knows something we don't - there's simply no excuse in the known universe for passing on Chubb. Now you know why Cleveland fans have a persecution complex. Well, at least they partially redeemed themselves by nabbing the second best running back in the draft whose last name, ironically, also happens to be Chubb.
The Jets. Yeah, I know Manish Mehta of the Daily Booze thinks the Giants "blew it" when they passed on Darnold, thus allowing the USC quarterback to fall into the Jets' lap. But here's the thing, Sparky, Gang Green could've had their guy with the 6th pick without having to sacrifice both their 2nd round picks to move up. Here's how. It was obvious the Browns were going to go for a quarterback with the number one pick. And the Giants were dead set on taking Barkley at number two. No way the Colts were going to take a QB at three and the Browns were going defense with the fourth pick. That means the only team that might've gone for a QB would've been the Broncos and we know what they did. So Darnold would've been sitting pretty at number six. And even if the Browns chose Darnold number one, the Jets would've landed Mayfield with the 6th pick. Either way they would've gotten a quality quarterback and still had both their 2nd round picks on the board. Trading up was totally unnecessary and cost the Jets a chance to fill some badly needed holes.
The Seahawks. Yes, it was touching that they drafted the one-handed twin brother of Shaquill Griffin in the 5th round, but most of their other picks had people scratching their heads.
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