Draft grades are in

[BarleyNY]

Chart shows a compilation of draft grades.  We all know that there’s limited value in immediate draft grades, but they’re something to discuss now that we are entering the post draft NFL void.  Flame away 

[dorquemada]

It's a thing I guess?  It really was the most boring draft I can remember, and i've been watching them a very long time.  The Bills picks weren't glamorous, but this is really the first time in a long time that they could really go BPA.  It reminds me a little of 1991 when the Bills took Henry Jones & Phil Hansen, and a bunch of JAGs.  They had a great roster already, and I remember thinking, what are either of these guys going to do?

[billsfan1959]

Who is Thor Nystrom and why is he so angry?

[BillsShredder83]

15 minutes ago, BarleyNY said:

Chart shows a compilation of draft grades.  We all know that there’s limited value in immediate draft grades, but they’re something to discuss now that we are entering the post draft NFL void.  Flame away 

I definitely don't think there's a ton of value in these like most others, but it's interesting. Anyone know if they factor in draft position?  Moving 30th to 18th ranking would be pretty good if that's how it works.

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

Just now, BillsShredder83 said:

I definitely don't think there's a ton of value in these like most others, but it's interesting. Anyone know if they factor in draft position?  Moving 30th to 18th ranking would be pretty good if that's how it works.

 

They don't.  Teams with fewer picks were dinged with the bottom 3 being the rams, seattle, and houston.

 

Also ignored is the fact that chicago lost a 1st round pick to acquire the player that is giving them such a high mark.  So...

Edited May 3, 2021 by dneveu

[Billy Claude]

Not surprised that the guy from NFL.com is the easiest grader.

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

There's nothing more inane than instant draft grades. Talk to me in three years.

 

[Brennan Huff]

Yahoo gave us a B

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/sports.yahoo.com/amphtml/final-2021-nfl-draft-grades-002740584.html

[Thurman#1]

They're in.

 

Very silly this early, but in. 

 

About three years from now we'll know how good the draft actually was.

 

Fun to talk about now, though. That's fair enough, but it doesn't mean anything.

 

And by the way, ever notice how the teams with two 1sts are always near the top for being smart? And the teams with few early picks ... nobody thinks they picked well. And the teams with higher picks tend towards the top of the rankings as they generally have splashier picks?

 

All part of the fun, but it's all silly.

 

 

 

 

Edited May 3, 2021 by Thurman#1

[Process]

Carolina killed it, they are too low on that list. 

[Malazan]

12 minutes ago, billsfan1959 said:

Who is Thor Nystrom and why is he so angry?

 

Seems to be one of those guys who's realized if you say everything is **** then you'll generate a lot of attention

[DJB]

Dang. We suck again. 

 

Edited May 3, 2021 by DJB

[BillsShredder83]

Was "boring" for alot of folks but man 2 pass rushers right up front excited me like no other. Teams that bought toys without the fundamentals in place had "fun" drafts, but now the funs over for them. Like Cinci passing on Sewell, exciting? Proli, but that going to haunt them for a while. Have they already forgot what they did to Carson Palmer? Did they miss what happened to Luck, or Darnold to a lesser extent? Glad my FO gets it. I'll have my fun in season, over the first 2 days of the draft pleaseeeee

[Desert Bills Fan]

Interesting that these scores also matched up with what most of us were feeling: the AFC East teams helped themselves greatly in this draft, along with Cleveland having a good draft.

As McDermott has stated: every year we start again - working our way to the Super Bowl - Go Bills!

[SF Bills Fan]

I think the more interesting exercise is to now grade the draft from 3 years ago. Josh Allen, Edmunds. A+ draft. 

[H2o]

Draft grades are in?

[stinky finger]

26 minutes ago, dorquemada said:

It's a thing I guess?  It really was the most boring draft I can remember, and i've been watching them a very long time.  The Bills picks weren't glamorous, but this is really the first time in a long time that they could really go BPA.  It reminds me a little of 1991 when the Bills took Henry Jones & Phil Hansen, and a bunch of JAGs.  They had a great roster already, and I remember thinking, what are either of these guys going to do?

 

What’s not glamorous about a 6’7” DE? 

 

Or an active, versatile DE? 

 

Some if our other picks are certainly interesting prospects. 

 

What makes for a glamorous pick anyway?

21 minutes ago, Joe in Winslow said:

There's nothing more inane than instant draft grades. Talk to me in three years.

 

 

I will. 

 

PM me with the best number to reach you at. 

[All_Pro_Bills]

For the most part all these draft evaluators are information accumulators rather than talent evaluators.  They determine the scores of each team based on their predetermined value of the players metrics and stats and the closer a team's draft is to their personal evaluation the higher the score. 

If they are so good at the draft its a wonder teams aren't rushing to hire them for their open GM slots.  Maybe except for Mike Mayock who hasn't exactly set the world on fire with his picks with the Raiders.  So I don't listen too much to these "experts".   My view of GM's is past performance IS a predictor of future performance.    

[dorquemada]

6 minutes ago, inaugural balls said:

 

What’s not glamorous about a 6’7” DE? 

 

Or an active, versatile DE? 

 

Some if our other picks are certainly interesting prospects. 

 

What makes for a glamorous pick anyway?

 

I expect you know what I mean

 

Glamorous would be a star RB or WR or even TE, maybe a stud 1 Tech, or anyone who would be day 1 starters.

 

[Hapless Bills Fan]

I’m not a fan of just after the fact draft grades.  They really IMO reinforce the grader’s opinion of the players drafted and their perception of how the draft matches the team’s needs (which may not pair up with the team’s perceived needs)

 

 But I’m 😂 at the guys giving out “F”s

1 minute ago, dorquemada said:

 

I expect you know what I mean

 

Glamorous would be a star RB or WR or even TE, maybe a stud 1 Tech, or anyone who would be day 1 starters.

 

 

There are many words to describe 1TDT.

Glamorous isn’t usually one of them.

11 minutes ago, SF Bills Fan said:

I think the more interesting exercise is to now grade the draft from 3 years ago. Josh Allen, Edmunds. A+ draft. 

 

Actually the most interesting would be to compare our current evaluation of that draft, with the day-after draft grades.

[MJS]

I read Kiper's analysis. He basically graded the Bills lower because he wanted them to draft a running back. Seemed petty.

[BigAl2526]

With a low position in the draft and few skill position needs, a boring draft with middle of the pack ratings is hardly a surprise.  We can argue about running back, but the premier guys were gone.  I don't know that Gainwell offered Buffalo a lot more than Matt Breida.  Buffalo could have gone with a CB in round 1, but the top tier gues were all gone, and even some of the second tier guys.  Rousseau was clearly the better value.  I take Beane's word that the the picks they made followed the values they had  assigned to prospects.

[teef]

some of our hardest grades were from cleveland and ny.  oh my!

[Fan in Chicago]

23 minutes ago, Desert Bills Fan said:

Interesting that these scores also matched up with what most of us were feeling: the AFC East teams helped themselves greatly in this draft, along with Cleveland having a good draft.

 

I am sure that every team feels they "helped" themselves and made their team better . 

Also, each team's goals are different. Jags would be keen on climbing from the worst team to, say, the top of the bottom quartile. For the Bills, it is all about how can we go from third best to Superbowl winner. 

[stinky finger]

15 minutes ago, dorquemada said:

 

I expect you know what I mean

 

Glamorous would be a star RB or WR or even TE, maybe a stud 1 Tech, or anyone who would be day 1 starters.

 

 

I guess our use of the word “glamorous” differs as it relates to NFL draft picks. 

[Freddie's Dead]

Two things stand out to me.  The most popular grade for the Bills was a B, with a range from A- to C+.  The Packers grades ranged from A to F, which is ridiculous.  I'm thinking that the two F grades they got were from A-Rodg's drinking buddies....

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

43 minutes ago, Thurman#1 said:

They're in.

 

Very silly this early, but in. 

 

About three years from now we'll know how good the draft actually was.

 

Fun to talk about now, though. That's fair enough, but it doesn't mean anything.

 

And by the way, ever notice how the teams with two 1sts are always near the top for being smart? And the teams with few early picks ... nobody thinks they picked well. And the teams with higher picks tend towards the top of the rankings as they generally have splashier picks?

 

All part of the fun, but it's all silly.

 

 

 

 

 

All you can grade now is based off of big boards.  If you felt like you got players off the board who help immediately, or were largely valued more than where you picked - i guess you consider that a win.  

[machine gun kelly]

30 minutes ago, H2o said:

Draft grades are in?

Ok this is almost as bad as the Peter Pan video we keep seeing over the years.

 

no flaming op.  I just don’t care.  3 and 4 years ago, ok. This one doesn’t matter.  We won’t even know on defense until Addison and Hughes retire.  We won’t know on offense until what we decide in three years on our tackles.  This draft really is an unknown.

[DCOrange]

53 minutes ago, billsfan1959 said:

Who is Thor Nystrom and why is he so angry?

He's Rotoworld's (Now NBC Sports Edge) lead college football/draft guy.

 

I'd say he's pretty much the only person that does grades the right way. His average grade is a C rather than guys like NFL.com dude giving almost every team a B or A.

57 minutes ago, dneveu said:

 

They don't.  Teams with fewer picks were dinged with the bottom 3 being the rams, seattle, and houston.

 

Also ignored is the fact that chicago lost a 1st round pick to acquire the player that is giving them such a high mark.  So...

I think the Rams, Seahawks, and Houston were dinged a lot for the players they actually took as well though. Obviously having fewer picks makes it harder to have a "good" draft, but those teams all took players that analysts didn't really like.

[skibum]

I think it's a fair grade overall. I would say the Bills got an 'A' for value, maybe a C+ for addressing needs. After round 2, it looks like they basically went BPA 100%, with no regard for positional needs. 

 

You could argue this is better than a B, if you believe that BPA is the best way to go. As we have seen, having an overabundance of talent at a position can allow a team to address needs via trade early in the season. For example, Beane has a stable full of solid O-line vets and prospects that will certaily yield assets later on. Talent is always at a premium, even where you don't need it!

Edited May 3, 2021 by skibum

[Blokestradamus]

All of the teams should grade each other's drafts like they do in Eurovision. Instead of nul points for Russia because they annexed Crimea, we could have teams giving nul points to teams in their own division.

 

Like with Eurovision, the overall winner hosts the draft next year.

Edited May 3, 2021 by Blokestradamus

[BarleyNY]

46 minutes ago, MJS said:

I read Kiper's analysis. He basically graded the Bills lower because he wanted them to draft a running back. Seemed petty.

Kuiper graded the draft like an lazy college English prof.  3 As, 3 Cs and everyone else gets a B.  Hilarious he’s still stealing money from ESPN.  He used to be the only guy dialed in to front offices and did a great job of monetizing that info.  But now he’s just living off of that very old legacy.  He brings nothing to the table anymore. 

[jkeerie]

Most of these guys lowered the Bills grade because we didn't draft a running back.  In fact, if you didn't go in the direction they would have gone for your team, your draft grade was lowered.  I think you could turn around and grade the egos of the respective draft graders via this chart.

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

1 hour ago, BarleyNY said:

Kuiper graded the draft like an lazy college English prof.  3 As, 3 Cs and everyone else gets a B.  Hilarious he’s still stealing money from ESPN.  He used to be the only guy dialed in to front offices and did a great job of monetizing that info.  But now he’s just living off of that very old legacy.  He brings nothing to the table anymore. 

 

While I'll agree his content isn't as quality, i do think the guy watches a ton of film on players, and isn't afraid to be wrong.  Someone praised him about the picks in 2018, but he was quick to remind them of his Jimmy Clausen pick.  I respect it 

Edited May 3, 2021 by dneveu

[BarleyNY]

1 minute ago, dneveu said:

 

While I'll agree his content isn't as quality, i do think the guy watches a ton of film on players, and isn't afraid to be wrong.

Kuiper was never a film guy.  It was all connections and getting info from team.  Now maybe that’s changed.  Or you’re thinking of Mike Mayock who always did his own study.  Not that Mayock looks good doing an actual GM job.  Yeesh 

[PromoTheRobot]

Aren't draft grades usually based on how near or far from the grader's mock draft a team was?

[TheFunPolice]

A guy on WGR quit his job because of the Josh Allen pick. 

 

Can't remember his name but I've heard of Josh Allen lately!

 

Instant reactions can be fun but don't mean much. On the plus side for the kid who quit WGR, almost any job you could imagine pays more than working behind the scenes in radio. 

[YattaOkasan]

2 hours ago, dorquemada said:

 

I expect you know what I mean

 

Glamorous would be a star RB or WR or even TE, maybe a stud 1 Tech, or anyone who would be day 1 starters.

 

I think Groot might be a day 1 starter.  Let Hughes and Addison come in on high leverage passing downs.

[Success]

Pundits gush about the Patriots every single year, and they have been middle or bottom-tier once results have come in consistently over the past 5 years.

 

[Boxcar]

5 hours ago, BarleyNY said:

Chart shows a compilation of draft grades.  We all know that there’s limited value in immediate draft grades, but they’re something to discuss now that we are entering the post draft NFL void.  Flame away 

Basically, if you ignore your own scouts and pick according to the consensus lists, you had a great draft.

 

That's what these always are. Realistically, no one really knows how this will turn out. It was inevitable the Bills would end up in a spot like this because all they took were basically unknowns with known quantities still on the board. This FO has given me no reason to doubt them, and if Mel Kiper and the PFF guys were better than team scouting departments, they'd be working in them.

 

Sidenote, but I am very weary of Justin Fields after finding out he's going vegan. People might laugh that off, but think about the best athlete you know of who is vegan. The Blue Jays got Josh Donaldson prior to 2015, and that year he won MVP. Over the course of his time here, he started dating a militant vegan. All of a sudden, he was constantly injured, despite it not really being an issue in the past. His play sharply declined. I do not think Fields will be a success story, especially in a more physical sport.

Edited May 3, 2021 by Boxcar