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Yahoo Sports draft grades: Carolina atop the NFC South

tiger7_88

By tiger7_88,
in Carolina Panthers

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tiger7_88 Experienced

tiger7_88

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http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/2014-nfl-draft-grades--how-did-your-team-fare-022502802.html

 

The impartial Yahoo sports group, at least, has a higher opinion of the Carolina draft than Carolina fans do.  Of all the teams assigned "A" grades, Carolina is the only one that was picking near the BOTTOM of the draft order.

 

 

San Francisco - A

Cleveland - A

Oakland - A

St. Louis - A

Houston - A

 

Carolina - A-

Best Pick: Florida State WR Kelvin Benjamin - Not shocking, as it was both a need and the team's top pick.  But we love Benjamin and think he can be a king-sized game changer once he learns the nuances of the position.  He'll be pushed well by demanding WR coach Ricky Proehl.

Worst Pick: San Jose State CB Bene Benwikere - Not bad when your fifth rounder is your biggest reach.  That said, there are jobs open in the secondary.

Other notable picks:  Kony Ealy, OG Trai Turner

Analysis: This was a solid haul where GM Dave Gettleman ignored needs (offensive line!) and took some terrific value.  Ealy is not just a luxury; Charles Johnson makes a ton of money and Greg Hardy's contract is an unknown for 2015.

 

Green Bay - A-

Minnesota - A-

Jacksonville - A-

Cincinnati - B+

New York Giants - B

Pittsburgh - B

Baltimore - B

 

Tampa Bay - B

Best Pick: Texas A&M WR Mike Evans - Let's not get clever here.  Evans is a great No. 2 option next to Vincent Jackson and gives Lovie Smith and Josh McCown a very Chicago-like feel to what they had with Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffrey.  This was a great fit.

Worst Pick: Washington TE Austin Sefarian-Jenkins - Look, we like the potential and think if he puts it all together, you could have something really special. But ASJ so far has been something of a tease and might not ever be more than a Brandon Pettigrew-like performer. Which is fine. Not great.

Other notable picks: RB Charles Sims

Analysis: Hats off to new GM Jason Licht and Smith for a nice group of players. We were interested in what they might have done at quarterback, but it appears that they'll stick it out for now with Mike Glennon. The Buccaneers have continued their strong offseason overhaul with a nice group here.

 

Tennessee - B

 

Atlanta - B-

Best Pick: Texas A&M OT Jake Matthews - If there's a pick for safest player in the draft, Matthews might be it. If he's not a 10-year leader on that offensive line, I'd be stunned.  And he can play every position.

Worst Pick: Wisconsin S Dezmen Southward - A banner pro day performance shot him up boards, but he might never be more than a core special teamer or third corner.  Not super value.

Other notable picks: DT Ra'shede Hageman, RB Devonta Freeman

Analysis: Matthews was rock solid, Hageman was a risk, and they kept that ping-pong style throughout the draft. A nice mix of upside and sure things for this savvy front office, which forwent the chance to make a bold trade up.  Where is the tight end?

 

New Orleans - B-

Best Pick: Oregon State WR Brandin Cooks - The Saints traded up for this great "space" player who can hit a home run in almost any at-bat. He's extremely fast and can catch the ball at almost any spot on the field and be an impact weapon in this offense, either in the slot, out wide, or to be used on gadget plays.  Nice pick.

Worst Pick: Nebraska CB Stanley Jean-Baptiste - He's 24, has stiff hips, and is still learning the position after transitioning from offense as a wide receiver. Jean-Baptiste's physical skills are rare, and he got his hands on a lot of passes the past tow seasons, but this is a work in progress.

Other notable picks: LB Khari Fortt, S Vinnie Sunseri

Analysis: Cooks cost them a third-round pick, which hurt the depth of their class, but he could be another special weapon in their offense. We wish they did better with their need at corner, but overall a decent group, especially with special teams value.

 

San Diego - B-

New York Jets - B-

Chicago - C+

New England - C+

Dallas - C+

Denver - C+

Arizona - C

Detroit - C

Seattle - C

Buffalo - C-

Washington - C-

Philadelphia - C-

Kansas City - C-

Miami - C-

Indianapolis - D+

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CRA Grand Master

CRA

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Benjamin, Ealy and Turner basically guaranteed us a decent draft 'grade' to rational football minds.

Depends if you want to look at immediate or long term impact.....

Not sure those guys will have much impact in 2014

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tiger7_88 Experienced

tiger7_88

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Depends if you want to look at immediate or long term impact.....

Not sure those guys will have much impact in 2014

 

 

I don't see how you can't be sure that Benjamin and Turner will make an impact.

 

They'll make a guaranteed impact.

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dugbug Newbie

dugbug

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The best drafts are both value and need: A

The worst drafts are all need:C

We are maybe a B / B+ I'd say.

Great value but only a few areas of need. Chips just fall that way sometimes.

But what value gives you are good players long term.

Sent from my iPhone using CarolinaHuddle mobile app

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CelibatePimp Newbie

CelibatePimp

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Kiper just said on ESPN:

 

Tampa Bay B+

Atlanta B-

New Orleans C+

Carolina C

 

 

 

That said, giving them a "C" for value is kind of hilarious. Let's take into account that Kiper is likely basing this off his Top 100 rankings, because that's how he evaluates "value." Now let's look at two teams who took two players in his rankings.

Carolina Panthers: Kelvin Benjamin, 28th overall (Kiper rated 27th overall), Kony Ealy, 60th overall (Kiper rated 43rd overall). Two round value of +18.

Dallas Cowboys: Zack Martin, 10th overall (Kiper rated 10th overall), Demarcus Lawrence, 34th overall (Kiper rated 49th overall). Two round value of -15.

The Cowboys were given a "B" grade for value.

 from here

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