Fansided

NFL Draft 2015: 8 Knee-Jerk Reactions

By Alexandra Huber

May 8, 2014; New York, NY, USA; A general view of the stage and podium before the start of the 2014 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
May 8, 2014; New York, NY, USA; A general view of the stage and podium before the start of the 2014 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

The first round of the draft just ended – here’s what we already know.

As the 2015 NFL Draft kicked off Thursday in Chicago, the night began in relatively uneventful fashion. The first two picks,  Jameis Winston to the Buccaneers and Marcus Mariota to the Titans, went as expected. In fact, the only real surprise early on was when the Washington Redskins selected Brandon Scherff out of Iowa.

Here are our immediate, knee-jerk reactions to what went down in Chicago on Thursday night:

Jameis Winston will put his checkered past behind him.

The Buccaneers drafting Jameis Winston as the first overall pick came as a surprise to no one. What will surprise people, though, is the impact that Winston will make in his first year down in Tampa Bay. Winston’s off-the-field problems have troubled the NFL, which is trying to clean up its player image, but not enough to override his raw, natural talent and overall winning ways. Despite his issues at Florida State, some of them incredibly serious, the NFL is the big leagues and Winston will shape up. Winston is used to winning, he’s won at every position on every level, and his time in the league will be no different. Expect Winston to lead the Bucs to a winning record this season, bucking the trend of less-than-stellar number one overall quarterback picks.

The Jets got the best player in the draft with the sixth pick

The Jets were able to swoop up Leonard Williams, the best defensive player in the entire draft class. At the six spot, Williams was without question the best player on the board, so it was a no-brainer pick. With the addition of Williams, the Jets will see an immediate improvement on the defensive line. Take that, Rex.

The Raiders pick will pay off

No jokes here. The Raiders actually made an impressive, solid pick at number four spot grabbing Alabama receiver Amari Cooper. Cooper shows serious promise, with Mel Kiper comparing his ceiling to that of Jerry Rice. While we think that is some serious hyperbole out of Mel, there is no doubt that Raiders QB Derek Carr will be pleased with this pick. Carr needs help and Cooper provides it. Maybe they’ll even win, baby!

Rams reached for Todd Gurley – and they’ll pay for it

This pick is so 2010. There is a reason no one drafts running backs in the first round of the draft anymore. It’s because you don’t have to! The Rams grabbed Georgia’s Todd Gurley with the number ten pick. I don’t care if Gurley is the second coming of Jim Brown, that’s too dang high. And, if I were Gurley, I would not be happy being behind that Rams offensive line. Better bulk up in the off season to absorb all those body blows. If you buy what Chris Mortensen is selling, Gurley is the best running back to come into the NFL since Adrian Peterson, and others have compared him to Marshawn Lynch. We aren’t buying the hype.

The Chargers blew it

Similar to the Rams, the Chargers reached on a running back. For shame. The Chargers moved up two spots, to number 15, to select Melvin Gordon, the running back out of Wisconsin. To complete the deal, the Chargers flipped fourth round picks this year and gave up a third round next year. Granted, San Diego needs help in the backfield, but another first round running back? C’mon man.

Roger Goodell needs to pull it together

Commissioner Goodell totally butchered Marcus Mariota’s name. Come on, Rog, are you that unprepared? How is that even possible? If you get paid $44 million in one year, then you have zero room for error. You would assume that the cards with the draft pick’s name on it also has pronunciations, like a college graduation ceremony. There is no way Goodell messed this up on purpose, right? Did he make a dare with a friend or something? Get it together.

Giants being Giants

The New York Giants did what the New York Giants do: take a stable, sensible, understated pick in the first round. That is their formula (which worked for awhile, winning Super Bowls in 2007 and 2012) and on Thursday night they stuck to it, selecting Ereck Flowers with the ninth-overall pick. It will pay off. The offensive line was huge need for the Giants and, after Washington took Brandon Scherff at number five overall, Flowers was the perfect choice for the G-Men. While the team could have gone in a number of different directions that high in the draft, Flowers is a solid, Giants-y pick.

This draft was boring

Unlike its pizza or its hot dogs, Chicago’s draft was b-o-r-i-n-g. Don’t get me wrong, it was all the pomp and circumstance you’d expect with a beautiful, Lake Michigan backdrop, but it was pretty chalk. There were no trades until the 14th pick, there was no Johnny Manziel-esque drama. It was like the Final Four being all one seeds. It’s still great, it’s just a little less wild in the process. Boring or not, it’s the NFL, and we still love it.

And this was only day one! We still have two more days of draft coverage to go. Have any more knee-jerk reactions for us? Drop them in the comment section.

More from NFL

Home/NFL