Kyler Murray – Arizona Cardinals – Round 1 Pick 1
The Arizona Cardinals did what I expected and selected Kyler Murray with the first pick. This would come as a surprise to some because they already had Josh Rosen who they picked 10th overall last season. What this means is that the hiring of Kliff Kingsbury was a calculated gamble to not only switch to his Air Raid Offensive scheme, but acquire Kyler Murray to run it as their Quarterback of the future. Kyler Murray is a two sport athlete and had already been selected by the Oakland Athletics in the first Round of the Major League Baseball draft. This adds a considerable amount of risk to selecting him first overall. What if the Arizona Cardinals aren’t a success? What if Kliff Kingsbury’s system doesn’t work in the NFL? Kyler Murray is significantly undersized as NFL quarterbacks go, so there will always be injury concerns. What if Kyler Murray decides that baseball is a better fit? Lastly what if Josh Rosen, now a Miami Dolphin goes on to have a hugely successful career? That’s a lot of what ifs when you are talking about the number 1 pick in the NFL draft.
Clelin Ferrell – Oakland Raiders – Round 1 Pick 4
The Oakland Raiders, and in this case more specifically Mike Mayock selected Clelin Ferrell 4th overall. What makes this a particularly important pick for the Oakland Raiders is that practically every analyst including myself expected them to select somebody else. Somebody better to be honest. Clelin Ferrell wasn’t as highly rated as a number of other players in the draft so his selection came as a surprise to everyone. Josh Allen went after him. Ed Oliver went after him. Devin White went after him. That’s three players that were seen as potential stars on whichever team selected them. Mike Mayock and especially Clelin Ferrell will be judged by how well he performs in comparison to the players selected after him. Mayock has gone on record as saying that Clelin Ferrell has not only the skill but the character to be a leader on the field for the Oakland Raiders. Now that’s either a clever way of saying that he might not be the best player at his position, but he will make up for it with leadership, or that they had concerns about potential character flaws with the other players available. Whatever it may be Clelin Ferrell was a risky pick at 4th overall.
Daniel Jones – New York Giants – Round 1 Pick 6
As surprising as the Raider selection of Ferrell was. The selection of Daniel Jones by the New York Giants two picks later was totally shocking. Aspirin sales probably spiked in New York the next day because fans woke up with a headache. When ranking Quarterbacks before the draft I had Dwayne Haskins first, Kyler Murray second, Drew Lock third, and then who cares. The remaining Quarterbacks I saw as second round or later selections. Most analysts did, although Daniel Jones had become somewhat relevant leading up to the draft. By relevant I mean it was looking like depending on what happened early Daniel Jones could sneak into the first Round. He did more than sneak. He was selected 6th overall! Even Daniel Jones was shocked to be selected so early. He will be compared to every Quarterback selected after him, and it was obvious that he considers at least a few of them to be better Quarterbacks. Talk about a pick that Giants fans deserve to feel worried about.
Montez Sweat – Washington Redskins – Round 1 Pick 26
Was this pick a total steal, or have the Washington Redskins been duped? Montez Sweat has the size and skill to become a dominant pass rusher in the NFL. Before the draft there was conflicting information regarding his health. Specifically a heart condition which could limit his time on the field. Early reports were that teams should be concerned about the situation but news surfaced on the day of the draft that early reports were incorrect or at least overblown. As Montez Sweat continued to fall in the first Round while other pass rushers quickly came off the board. The Washington Redskins decided to trade back into the first Round to grab him at 26th overall. I have a feeling that they got an absolute steal but it remains to be seen.
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