Ranking from 1-32 the NFL’s best teams at drafting

Ranking from 1-32 the NFL’s best teams at drafting

Brian Costello

http://nypost.com/2016/04/24/ranking-from-1-32-the-nfls-best-teams-at-drafting/

There may not be a more inexact science in sports than the NFL draft. Teams spend plenty of time and money on the draft, but they still miss more than they hit on picks.

For the second straight year, we are taking a look at how all 32 teams in the NFL have done in the past five drafts to see which teams are acing the draft and which teams are falling on their face.

The rankings were based on: how many games the player actually played, Pro Bowl appearances, first team All-Pro selections, and awards like MVP and Rookie of the Year. We also factored in how much the team has won during the five years, since players tend to play quicker for losing teams.

Here are the rankings from best to worst with last year’s ranking in parentheses:

1. Panthers (17)

Pro Bowlers: 5
Best Pick: Cam Newton — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: Amini Silatolu — 2012, second round

Newton is the only MVP drafted in the past five years. The Panthers also have taken a Defensive Player of the Year (Luke Kuechly) and All-Pro cornerback Josh Norman. The core of the team that went to the Super Bowl last year was found in the draft.

2. Seahawks (1)

Pro Bowlers: 4
Best Pick: Richard Sherman — 2011, fifth round
Worst Pick: Christine Michael — 2013, second round

Seattle made some tremendous picks in 2011 and 2012, but has slipped a bit since. Taking Sherman in the fifth round and Russell Wilson in the third round still gets you lots of points, though. Seattle has not had a first-round pick since 2012, trading away picks for Percy Harvin, Jimmy Graham and lower picks.

3. Vikings (10)

Pro Bowlers: 7
Best Pick: Teddy Bridgewater — 2014, first round
Worst Pick: Christian Ponder — 2011, first round

Minnesota quietly has done a nice job of building their roster through the draft, taking an NFL-high seven Pro Bowlers in the past five years. Bridgewater looks like a keeper at quarterback. Fifth-round pick Stefon Diggs turned some heads as a rookie last year, too.

4. Texans (3)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: J.J. Watt — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: Jadeveon Clowney — 2014, first round

Houston has not loaded up on great players, but when you draft the best player in the last five years, you get a good ranking. Watt is a once-in-a-generation talent who they landed with the 11th pick in 2011. The jury still is out on Clowney, but you expect the No. 1-overall pick to have an immediate impact.

5. Cardinals (11)

Pro Bowlers: 3
Best Pick: Patrick Peterson — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: Jonathan Cooper — 201, first round

Arizona has had its most success in the secondary, where it has drafted Peterson, Justin Bethel and Tyrann Mathieu, all quality players. Wide receiver John Brown was an outstanding third-round pick in 2014, and running back David Johnson, another third-rounder, scored four touchdowns as a rookie last year.

6. Rams (5)

The fans in Los Angeles may be watching a good team soon if the Rams ace the No. 1 pick this year, because they have stocked up on some talent in recent years. They used a bevy of picks from the Robert Griffin III trade to build a nice roster. Their 2014 draft was the best in the league.

7. Raiders (31)

Pro Bowlers: 4
Best Pick: Khalil Mack — 2014, first round
Worst Pick: D.J. Hayden – 2013, first round

After years of struggling in the draft, the Raiders have started to get it right. Landing Mack, Derek Carr and Amari Cooper in the past two years has the arrow pointing up in Oakland. They jumped in our rankings this year with the emergence of those young players.

8. Dolphins (16)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: Mike Pouncey — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: Dion Jordan — 2013, first round

This ranking admittedly may be a little too high, but if you look closely, the Dolphins’ draft picks have played a lot of games. Jordan was a disaster, but Ryan Tannehill has been a solid starter for them, Jarvis Landry looks like a star and Olivier Vernon was good enough to get a monster contract from the Giants.

9. Bills (9)

Pro Bowlers: 1
Best Pick: Marcell Dareus — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: EJ Manuel — 2013, first round

Similar to the Dolphins, the Bills have not drafted a ton of superstars, but they have stocked their roster with a number of quality players. The problem for them has been a big miss at quarterback with Manuel in 2013. Sammy Watkins is on his way to becoming a star, and Ronald Darby and Karlos Williams were solid picks last year.

10. Bengals (15)

Pro Bowlers: 3
Best Pick: A.J. Green — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: Dontay Moch — 2011, third round

Cincinnati laid the foundation of its recent success with the first two picks of 2011 — wideout Green and quarterback Andy Dalton. They have plugged in some decent pieces around them in the next few drafts, but have not duplicated the success of that draft.

11. 49ers (2)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: Aldon Smith — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: A.J. Jenkins — 2012, second round

San Francisco’s drafts have really dropped off after a strong run in 2010-11. The Jenkins pick in 2012 was awful. He played just 28 games and is out of the league. The 49ers have taken more picks than any other team in the league, which boosts their ranking a bit because of the numbers of picks playing a lot of games.

12. Ravens (25)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: C.J. Mosley — 2014, first round
Worst Pick: Matt Elam — 2013, first round

Ozzie Newsome is known as one of the best drafters in the NFL, but he has had some misses in recent drafts. Elam, who missed last season due to injury after struggling in his first two years, is the biggest. Baltimore consistently has drafted late, which also has hurt them.

13. Packers (14)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: Randall Cobb — 2011, second round
Worst Pick: Derek Sherrod – 2011, first round

No team is committed to building through the draft more than the Packers, but they have failed to land a lot of impact players in the past five years. The 2013 class could be a special one, especially if running back Eddie Lacy bounces back after a down year in 2015.

14. Cowboys (18)

Pro Bowlers: 4
Best Pick: DeMarco Murray — 2011, third round
Worst Pick: Morris Claiborne — 2012, first round

The Cowboys’ best work has come along the offensive line, where they drafted center Travis Frederick in 2013 and guard Zack Martin in 2014, both look like longtime starters. Claiborne and LB Bruce Carter were huge misses for Dallas.

15. Broncos (6)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: Von Miller — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: Montee Ball — 2013, second round

Elway’s first two drafts were remarkable. In 2011, he drafted Miller, Orlando Franklin and Julius Thomas. He added Derek Wolfe, Malik Jackson and Danny Trevathan in 2012. Many of those players formed the core of the Super Bowl winners last year, but his past three drafts have not been as productive.

16. Redskins (22)

Pro Bowlers: 3
Best Pick: Alfred Morris — 2012, sixth round
Worst Pick: Robert Griffin III — 2012, first round

It is hard to call someone who won Rookie of the Year the worst pick for a team in the past five years, but Washington gave up so much to get Griffin, and he did not play a snap in 2015. The Redskins have found some good starters early in the draft the last few years and are drafting better than they were.

17. Browns (13)

Pro Bowlers: 1
Best Pick: Jordan Cameron — 2011, fourth round
Worst Pick: Trent Richardson — 2012, first round

They have been a disaster in the first round with Richardson, Brandon Weeden and Johnny Manziel, but they also have found some good NFL starters in later rounds. The problem is they usually excel for another team because of how dysfunctional this organization is and the constant instability at the top.

18. Chiefs (12)

Pro Bowlers: 4
Best Pick: Justin Houston — 2011, third round
Worst Pick: Jonathan Baldwin – 2011, first round

The Chiefs are top-heavy. They hit on some big picks like Houston, Dontari Poe and Travis Kelce, but have not drafted a high volume of good starters. They had the No. 1-overall pick in 2013 and selected tackle Eric Fisher, who has been a disappointment.

19. Falcons (21)

Pro Bowlers: 3
Best Pick: Julio Jones — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: Peter Konz – 2012, second round

Atlanta gave up five picks to snag Jones, and he has been the centerpiece of their offense. The Falcons have struggled to land any other impact players, though. Dimitroff has to be feeling the heat to ace this draft.

20. Eagles (8)

Pro Bowlers: 3
Best Pick: Jason Kelce — 2011, sixth round
Worst Pick: Danny Watkins — 2011, first round

The front office drama between Roseman and Kelly has influenced the past few drafts for the Eagles. There were stories of Kelly not listening to scouts. Fletcher Cox looks like a stud. Marcus Smith looks like a terrible pick.

21. Buccaneers (19)

Pro Bowlers: 3
Best Pick: Lavonte David — 2012, second round
Worst Pick: Mark Barron — 2012, first round

Tampa Bay’s immediate future is all about how last year’s No. 1-overall pick Jameis Winston develops. He could cover up any draft mistakes the team has made. The Bucs landed some nice pieces in 2012 with David and Doug Martin.

22. Colts (27)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: T.Y. Hilton — 2012, third round
Worst Pick: Bjoern Werner — 2013, first round

The failure to build around Andrew Luck in the draft has prevented the Colts from becoming a true Super Bowl contender. They landed some nice pieces last year in starting defensive linemen Henry Anderson and David Parry in the middle rounds. I give Hilton the nod over Luck as their best pick since they found him in the third round and Luck was a consensus top pick.

23. Steelers (7)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: Le’Veon Bell — 2013, second round
Worst Pick: Mike Adams — 2012, second round

The Steelers have landed some good offensive talent like Bell and lineman David DeCastro, but have whiffed on a number of defensive players. They have taken defensive players in four of the last five drafts and none of those players have made a Pro Bowl.

24. Patriots (4)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: Jamie Collins — 2013, second round
Worst Pick: Ras-I Dowling — 2011, second round

The Patriots take the biggest fall in our rankings, largely because their outstanding 2010 class no longer counts in our rankings. Belichick found a gem in Collins, but had a bad miss in 2014 first-round pick Dominique Easley, who the team cut this month.

25. Bears (30)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: Kyle Long — 2013, first round
Worst Pick: Gabe Carimi – 2011, first round

Chicago is tied for the fewest number of draft picks over the past five years. Long and Alshon Jeffery have been outstanding pros. Last year’s top pick Kevin White missed his entire rookie season with an injury, so it is impossible to know what the Bears have in him.

26. Jets (28)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: Muhammad Wilkerson — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: Stephen Hill — 2012, second round

The Jets are on their third general manager during this time period for a reason. Outside of defensive linemen Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson, they have not hit on impact players. Leonard Williams and Calvin Pryor have the potential to be, but it is too early to tell. The Jets have had way too many misses, though.

27. Titans (20)

Pro Bowlers: 1
Best Pick: Jurrell Casey — 2011, third round
Worst Pick: Jake Locker — 2011, first round

This is another team whose drafts will be judged on how well Marcus Mariota, last year’s No. 2-overall pick, develops. They have not found much talent in recent drafts despite drafting in the top 15 in four of the past five years.

28. Chargers (24)

Pro Bowlers: 1
Best Pick: Jason Verrett — 2014, first round
Worst Pick: Brandon Taylor — 2012, third round

This franchise has fallen apart and wasted the prime years of Philip Rivers. They have taken some decent starting players but landed no players who you would classify as a star. Verrett is the only player who has made a Pro Bowl.

29. Jaguars (32)

Pro Bowlers: 1
Best Pick: Allen Robinson — 2014, second round
Worst Pick: Justin Blackmon — 2012, first round

The Jaguars have drafted in the top 10 in all five years, and in the top five in the past four. Yet, they have not been able to build a winner. The picks of Blackmon and Blaine Gabbert in the first round were disasters. It has gotten better, though. Robinson and Blake Bortles look like longtime starters.

30. Saints (29)

Pro Bowlers: 2
Best Pick: Cameron Jordan — 2011, first round
Worst Pick: Stanley Jean-Baptiste — 2014, second round

The Saints are tied for the fewest picks over the past five years, and they have not made much of the ones they did have. They have failed to find many players that look like long-time starters and have not drafted a Pro Bowler since 2011.

31. Giants (23)

Pro Bowlers: 1
Best Pick: Odell Beckham Jr. — 2014, first round
Worst Pick: Marvin Austin — 2011, second round

Reese’s failings were well detailed last season when the Giants fell apart. Beckham looks set to have an amazing career, but other than him they have failed to find any impact players. Justin Pugh and Weston Richburg are solid pieces, but they got next to nothing out of the 2011 and ’12 drafts.

32. Lions (26)

Pro Bowlers: 1
Best Pick: Ezekiel Ansah — 2013, first round
Worst Pick: Titus Young – 2011, second round

Detroit has done a terrible job in the draft, and the organization made major changes in the front office during this offseason to address that. Ansah looks like a keeper, but it is hard to find many more. Poor Matthew Stafford.