1. New York Jets: I loved everything they did. The minute Derek Stingley Jr went to the Houston Texans, I immediately knew they were targeting a corner and who else was there but Sauce Gardner! Let’s be realistic here for a second. The Jets have truly struggled to find a consistent cornerback to replace Darrelle Revis for years. Now, they may have found their guy! Sauce was the best corner in the draft by far. He’s a shutdown specialist with long arms, speed, skill and confidence that didn’t allow a single touchdown while playing at Cincinnati. With the tenth pick in the first round, they drafted Garrett Wilson from Ohio State. I watched a lot of Garrett in his college days. He’s a crafty receiver with great hands and separation speed. They gave Zach Wilson a weapon on the outside. At 26, they drafted Jermaine Johnson II, a defensive end from Florida State. I love his motor and I see Robert Saleh using him to his full advantage. Jermaine is an end with violent hands, a nice first step and plays sideline to sideline. On day two, they drafted Breece Hall, the running back from Iowa State. The Jets had a great draft if you ask me.
2. Baltimore Ravens: They could’ve gone in a plethora of directions at 14. A defensive end, some offensive line help or even wide receiver could’ve fallen into their laps. If you watched any Baltimore Ravens games last season, their major struggle was the secondary. It definitely won’t help your cause when you have key guys hurting and out of the line. With their first pick, they selected Kyle Hamilton, the safety from Notre Dame. I loved his game in college and I see it transitioning to the next level very well. Kyle is a 6’4 safety with the instincts to find himself around the football. He simply has that knack to make the big play in pass coverage or at the line of scrimmage. Some have compared Kyle to Ed Reed. Let’s not go that far yet. Center Tyler Linderbaum fell into their laps at 25. He was the best center in this draft. In the second-round, David Ojabo was selected at 45. If he can live up to all the hype before the injury, he will be a steal. Baltimore was active.
3. Philadelphia Eagles: They’ve done quite a bit in the last year. In the 2021 draft, they were able to strike big with DeVonta Smith. Many projected them to take one of the receivers in this draft class. However, they ended up flipping the 18th pick to the Tennessee Titans for A.J. Brown who will give the Eagles a true number one option. With their draft picks, the Eagles added some key pieces to their defense. Big Jordan Davis from Georgia was their first selection. He’s a menace and at 6’6′ and 340 pounds, no man should be moving as quickly as he does. Jordan’s former teammate in college, Nakobe Dean was there for the Eagles to take with the 83rd pick. He’s a true quarterback of the defense with the innate ability to read opposing offensive schemes. They had draft picks The acquisition of A.J. along with filling key voids who can solidify their future should make them a contender once again the NFC East.
4. Kansas City Chiefs: It’s been quite the off-season for them. They traded away Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins and I don’t think anyone saw that coming. The other day before the draft started, I was asked if I target the best available player or do I go off team needs? I target specific needs and I look at who I have to face twice in my division. The Chiefs did a phenomenal job of meeting needs with value. Two of their biggest gaps as a team were cornerback and edge rusher. Earlier in the off-season, Kansas City lost Charvarius Ward who was their best corner. The team also didn’t resign Melvin Ingram. The Chiefs drafted Trent McDuffie, a corner from Washington and for the defensive line, they added George Karlaftis, an edge rusher from Purdue. On the second day, the Chiefs found their “cheetah replacement” in Skyy Moore, a wide receiver from Western Michigan. They filled three glaring needs.
