NFL Draft 2016: Final Analysis of Overall Team-by-Team Grades

The NFL’s three-day draft extravaganza is finally over, with all 32 teams feeling the hope and optimism that comes with bringing in new and exciting talent. 

While teams are basking in the glow of their newest additions, it’s time to start figuring out which clubs nailed it, which ones missed the mark and everyone else in between. 

Grading a draft is a reflection on value more than anything else. Everyone has their own biases when it comes to evaluating talent, leading to differences of opinion in the grading. No one has any idea what these players will turn into, so negative grades aren’t an indictment of talent. 

With that caveat out of the way, here’s a look at how the draft played out, followed by grades for all 32 teams. 

 

Best Class: Jacksonville Jaguars

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If the Jacksonville Jaguars had only come out of the first two days with Jalen Ramsey (No. 5 overall), they would have felt good about how things played out. 

Instead, though, the Jaguars waited patiently and grabbed Myles Jack (No. 36) in the second round. I understand the questions about his surgically-repaired knee, but teams were treating a torn meniscus as if it were the worst thing that could ever happen to a player. 

ESPN’s Adam Schefter noted the Jaguars were debating between Ramsey and Jack with the fifth pick, so to have both standout defensive players fall into their lap is a huge win for a team that finished 29th in pass defense last season. 

USA Today’s Lindsay Jones pointed out some of the other pieces Jacksonville will have on the defense that weren’t present when 2015 ended:

Jags defense has added Malik Jackson, Jalen Ramsey and Myles Jack — and the Jags get Dante Folwer back. That’s a hell of an offseason.

— Lindsay Jones (@bylindsayhjones) April 29, 2016

It may be that Ramsey ends up having to play safety instead of cornerback, or Jack one day needs microfracture surgery on his knee, causing this class to look like a mistake in the future.

The Jaguars also got defensive end Yannick Ngakoue out of Maryland in the third round and massive defensive tackle Sheldon Day out of Notre Dame in the fourth round. Both players are pass-rush specialists who provide quality depth in the trenches. 

Right now, though, Ramsey and Jack bring intensity and toughness to a Jaguars team that has been steadily getting better under head coach Gus Bradley. He spent four years as a defensive coordinator with the Seattle Seahawks, overseeing the rise of that group, and is building a special group in Jacksonville.

 

Worst Class: Los Angeles Rams

The Rams put virtually all of their eggs in the Jared Goff basket. Long after they made him the No. 1 overall pick, the front office was still tailoring its draft around the new quarterback. 

Tight end Tyler Higbee fills Los Angeles’ need for a pass-catching tight end after Jared Cook was released, though he does come with baggage.

The Western Kentucky alum was arrested and charged with second-degree assault, alcohol intoxication in a public place and second-degree fleeing or evading police less than three weeks before the draft, per Zach Greenwell of the Bowling Green Daily News. 

The Rams followed up their …

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