04-28-2022, 08:12 AM
I asked a few teams Wednesday how many first-round grades they have on their draft board. One told me 18, another said 16, and two more told me, without giving a specific number, their number is in that range. Which means, depending on how things fall, and with quarterbacks factored in, these teams probably will be into their second-round grades in the 20s.
Now that doesn’t sound great, but it’s not unusual. And that, I think, is pretty illustrative of this class—lacking in blue-chippers, but catching up with the normal value around the teens, with solid, unspectacular starter-level talent available into the third round.
This is where I tell you, again: This draft reminds me of 2013, from the lack of top-end quarterback talent to the class strengths (offensive line/pass rushers), to the fact there are good prospects well into Friday’s second and third rounds. And that makes it a bit of a scout’s draft, with it being on the personnel departments to dig out a Travis Kelce or Zach Ertz who could develop into something more down the line.
Now that doesn’t sound great, but it’s not unusual. And that, I think, is pretty illustrative of this class—lacking in blue-chippers, but catching up with the normal value around the teens, with solid, unspectacular starter-level talent available into the third round.
This is where I tell you, again: This draft reminds me of 2013, from the lack of top-end quarterback talent to the class strengths (offensive line/pass rushers), to the fact there are good prospects well into Friday’s second and third rounds. And that makes it a bit of a scout’s draft, with it being on the personnel departments to dig out a Travis Kelce or Zach Ertz who could develop into something more down the line.
