NFL Draft – Day One Winners And Losers

NFL Draft day number one is in the books and it is very easy to say that if you had multiple picks in the first round, you did very well. Cleveland, St. Louis and Minnesota all made trades and maneuvered their way into what can be called successful day one drafts. There were five trades in the first round. Here in Texas, both Houston and Dallas played it safe. The Texans went with my top overall prospect in the draft, selecting defensive end Jadeveon Clowney with the first pick and the Cowboys added some help up front for Tony Romo by adding offensive tackle Zach Martin, rated 12th overall.

There were a few surprises; nine defensive backs went in the first round. In a pass-happy league, the need to be able to defend the back-end of your defense has become crucial. Speaking of passers, the three big-name quarterbacks all were selected in the first round. Blake Bortles heard his name called first when Jacksonville picked him at three. There were five offensive linemen and wide receivers taken but as predicted there were no running backs drafted in the first round.

Here’s a look at who I think did the best and worst on day one of the draft.

Top Day One Selections:

Picks 2 and 13: The Rams nailed their picks, selecting the best offensive lineman in the draft in Greg Robinson and followed it up with the best interior defensive lineman in Arnold Donald.

Pick 5: The question is will the Raiders find a way to screw up who I consider the best defensive player in the draft in linebacker Khalil Mack.

Picks 8 and 22: The Browns were able to trade their way, three times, into acquiring the top defensive back in Justin Gilbert and to move up and grab quarterback Johnny Manziel.

Picks 9 and 32: Vikings general manager Rick Speilman traded back into the first round for the third straight year and was able to land quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. With their first pick they drafted outside linebacker Anthony Barr.

Pick 20: I love what the Saints did adding another explosive weapon to their offense by selecting wide receiver Brandin Cooks.

Pick 23: Is it possible the Chiefs pass-rush can get any better? Yep, defensive end/outside linebacker Dee Ford is ferocious!

Questionable Day One Selections:

Pick 3: I like Blake Bortles but there was not a quarterback on my list that was worth the third overall pick. Sorry, Jaguars.

Pick 4: The Bills were aggressive moving up from nine to four to get the best offensive player in the draft in wide receiver Sammy Watkins but giving up next year's first round pick was too aggressive for me.

Pick 26: I like Marcus Smith but view him as a tweener, outside linebacker/defensive end who is one dimensional. Also felt the Eagles could have traded back to get him.

Pick 30: The Niners went with the small school defensive back Jimmie Ward when it looked like there were better options.