NFL 2018 Draft Thread

Jets cut Bryce Petty, Dolphins claim him off waivers.

Hackenberg remains, though I think his fate will be finally sealed with the cutdowns to 53 this year.

Although I am still holding out hope of the Jets letting Bridgewater go and him going to the Jags like should have happened in free agency in the first place, because come on, at least try to improve the QB position. Tanner Lee?!?

*Legion* wrote:
garion333 wrote:
*Legion* wrote:

Regardless of if Garoppolo stays good or not going forward, the 2017 49ers are a case study in how a losing team suddenly wins once quality QB play comes to town.

Small sample size

How about the 2-14 Colts going 11-5 for 3 straight years when Andrew Luck arrived? Is that better?

Not that I disagree with you but that's a bad example. Remember the whole "Suck for Luck" thing? They didn't even have 1/4 of a QB. More like 1/50th.

EvilDead wrote:
*Legion* wrote:
garion333 wrote:
*Legion* wrote:

Regardless of if Garoppolo stays good or not going forward, the 2017 49ers are a case study in how a losing team suddenly wins once quality QB play comes to town.

Small sample size

How about the 2-14 Colts going 11-5 for 3 straight years when Andrew Luck arrived? Is that better?

Not that I disagree with you but that's a bad example. They were tanking for Luck. They didn't even have 1/4 of a QB. More like 1/50th.

Yeah, the whole "Suck for Luck" thing was an example of deliberately tanking for a high draft choice. Surprised it didn't spark a series of investigations.

Paleocon wrote:

Yeah, the whole "Suck for Luck" thing was an example of deliberately tanking for a high draft choice. Surprised it didn't spark a series of investigations.

Dammit, you got in before I edited!

PFT: 49ers release Zane Beadles

In a statement, 49ers General Manager John Lynch said there’s a chance Beadles could return down the road.

KC Star: Chiefs rookie says Kansas City barbecue crushes South Carolina barbecue

That didn't take long.

Chiefs linebacker Dorian O'Daniel told reporters at Saturday's rookie minicamp that he had tried Kansas City barbecue. O'Daniel was asked to compare it to the barbecue he'd had in South Carolina while attending Clemson.

"I will say Kansas City barbecue probably puts it to shame," O'Daniel said. "Don't tweet that out or anything."

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/qifdGgn.png)

WISTV: Former Clemson player betrays South Carolina BBQ, says Kansas City BBQ 'puts it to shame.'

KANSAS CITY, MO (WIS) -
Former Clemson football player Dorian O'Daniel, who was drafted in the third round of the NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs, had some harsh words for the barbecue of the home he left behind.

There's a guy who was a 1000 yard starting RB last year that's a free agent: C.J. Anderson.

Guess which team is signing him?

Spoiler:

If you need a hint, what team really likes acquiring running backs?

*Legion* wrote:

There's a guy who was a 1000 yard starting RB last year that's a free agent: C.J. Anderson.

Guess which team is signing him?

Spoiler:

If you need a hint, what team really likes acquiring running backs?

Hey now. Carolina was down to its last 12 RBs and didn't draft any.

Enix wrote:
*Legion* wrote:

There's a guy who was a 1000 yard starting RB last year that's a free agent: C.J. Anderson.

Guess which team is signing him?

Spoiler:

If you need a hint, what team really likes acquiring running backs?

Hey now. Carolina was down to its last 12 RBs and didn't draft any.

Apparently Jonathan Stewart "played a big role" in C.J. Anderson coming to Carolina.

Even on their way out the door, these Carolina running backs recruit replacements. They're self-replicating.

The Jags declined Dante Fowler's 5th year option.

I'm sure Legion is #keepinghopealive but I expect Fowler to have a similar career trajectory as Robert Ayers, which means maybe he'll show some use sometime down the road.

garion333 wrote:

The Jags declined Dante Fowler's 5th year option.

I'm sure Legion is #keepinghopealive but I expect Fowler to have a similar career trajectory as Robert Ayers, which means maybe he'll show some use sometime down the road.

Matt Waldman has this bit of speculation about the Gruden brothers:

The Gruden brothers run through players quickly. They have “their guys,” but their guys are often veterans.

I sense that these coaches lack patience with any desire to develop players. They have a quick trigger for the bench when it comes to mistakes. There are positives and negatives to this style of leadership, but they tend to grind on players’ nerves and wear them out emotionally.

I definitely have seen shades of this when it comes to Jay Gruden and it's infuriating. If you are in his dog house, you're never getting out, regardless of your talent.

It's a true shame Jay Gruden didn't have Jason Campbell as his QB because they'd make some amazingly bland toast together.

Jay Gruden's mediocrity has taken over the role of Jeff Fischer in the league.

That's the kind of stuff Alex Boone complained about with Jim Harbaugh.

garion333 wrote:

The Jags declined Dante Fowler's 5th year option.

That's Ngakoue's money.

Team might still re-sign Fowler, but not paying him a top-line DE option year salary.

Speaking of Carolina and running backs ... I sh*t you not they signed another.

The Panthers have a soft spot for hometown guys (Hood was a stud at Charlotte Catholic) and UNC players, so it makes sense.

Of course, that brings the number of RBs on the Panthers roster ... *checks notes* ... to 22.

*Legion* wrote:

2014 draft grades.

Looking forward to reading the CLE 2018 draft grades in 2022, which will be the same text as this with Gilbert and Manziel replaced with Ward and Mayfield.

*Legion* wrote:

2014 draft grades.

The Garapolo part confuses me. They count that as a negative because he was traded for a pick. The pick was higher than where he was drafted at. In other words the player was more valuable 4 years later than he was at draft time. That's not the same as a bust....

Always fun to see those draft retrospectives a few years later. Guess the short form of the 2014 Draft is "Aaron Donald and a bunch of WRs".

EvilDead wrote:
*Legion* wrote:

2014 draft grades.

The Garapolo part confuses me. They count that as a negative because he was traded for a pick. The pick was higher than where he was drafted at. In other words the player was more valuable 4 years later than he was at draft time. That's not the same as a bust....

Well, they did say "Anything from A+ to F can be justified."

I think, on the one hand, flipping the pick for a higher 2nd years later is pretty decent.

But on the other hand, the value of a 2nd round pick is supposed to get you a guy that starts. Ultimately, the Patriots did not get a starter, they just got 2 starts, and a do-over 2nd round pick 4 years later.

MilkmanDanimal wrote:

Always fun to see those draft retrospectives a few years later. Guess the short form of the 2014 Draft is "Aaron Donald and a bunch of WRs".

And the two greatest 2nd round QBs.

Therin lies the rub. The quality of the pick is not the only factor? I mean, Garapolo is fine. But maybe he was a poor pick because Brady never declined?

Jayhawker wrote:

Therin lies the rub. The quality forth pick is not the only factor? I mean, Garapolo is fine. But maybe he was a poor pick because Brady never declined?

Yeah, you have to take opportunity cost into account. The Patriots could have gotten a starting offensive lineman with that pick (they needed help at OG, and the very next guard taken was Spencer Long, who just got a decent 4-year deal in free agency).

Or they could have taken Jarvis Landry, who was the very next pick after Garoppolo. Can you imagine Jarvis Landry as Brady's slot receiver? Remember, in 2014 the Patriots WR depth chart was Edelman and Brandon LaFell, with Amendola and Kenbrell Thompkins getting scraps as WRs 3 and 4 (253 total receiving yards between the two of them). Obviously a position group they could easily have justified spending a draft pick on, even after having done so the year before with Aaron Dobson (and even if Gronk was the #1 target... Landry could have very well played a similar role to what Aaron Hernandez did opposite Gronk).

It's hard to criticize given the Patriots won the Super Bowl that year, and again two years later, but it certainly was a missed opportunity to make the offense even more dangerous.

ooo, the 2014 draft, aka the Kelvin Benjamin draft.

* checks the SI grade *

A C?! Jeebus, that's a helluva curve.

The Panthers drafted only six guys, of which the Patriots stole one. Of the other five, one is a starting All-Pro guard for Carolina and the other four are no longer with the Panthers.

More like a D.

Most drafts don't yield an All-Pro, getting one of those is bound to get you to a C no matter what the rest looks like.

Kelvin Benjamin was traded for a couple picks, so that's not a bad get for someone they were gonna let walk after his contract was up. He produced kinda well for two years...

The grades seem a tad sporadic.

Highlights for GB is Clinton-Dix, Davante Adams and Corey Linsley.

Linsley doesn't have a great 'grade' but has started 50 games?

Not a bad draft IMO.

Never has this been more word-for-word accurate.

Lions new head coach Matt Patricia was indicted for sexual assault in 1996 while in college.

The charge was dismissed after the alleged victim refused to participate in a trial.

Patricia held a press conference today, proclaiming his innocence. He wasn't biting as reporters tried to probe for what did happen.