NFL Draft Grades - AFC

2011 Draft Class

27. Jimmy Smith, CB, Colorado
58. Torrey Smith, WR, Maryland
85. Jah Reid, OT, Central Florida
123. Tandon Doss, WR, Indiana
164. Chykie Brown, CB, Texas
165. Pernell McPhee, DL, Miss. State
180. Tyrod Taylor, QB, Virginia Tech
225. Anthony Allen, RB, Georgia Tech

Grade: B +

The Ravens draft — and the lovely Lindsay — is impressive from top to bottom. Ozzie Newsome's crew addressed areas of need early on with talented problem child corner Jimmy Smith and speedy local wideout Torrey Smith, then closed out strong with project passer Tyrod Taylor (a poverty-stricken man's Mike Vick) and power back Anthony Allen (the likely replacement for L-Train McClain and/or "What You Talkin Bout Willis?").

2011 Draft Class

3. Marcell Dareus, DT, Alabama
34. Aaron Williams, CB, Texas
68. Kelvin Sheppard, LB, LSU
100. Da'Norris Searcy, DB, UNC
122. Chris Hairston, OL, Clemson
133. Johnny White, RB, UNC
169. Chris White, LB, Miss. State
206. Justin Rogers, DB, Richmond
245. Michael Jasper, DT, Bethel

Grade: A

Sorry Buffalo fans, this girl is almost certainly from Toronto. Still, I heart Bills draft — mainly because they landed arguably the best prospect in the class with the No. 3 overall pick. Marcell Dareus is the perfect fit for Chan Gailey's "hybrid" a.k.a. "lack of scheme" defense, with the ability to play anywhere along a Nick Saban-style 3-4 look or slide over to the 3-technique as a mauling tackle in a 4-3.
 

2011 Draft Class

4. A.J. Green, WR, Georgia
35. Andy Dalton, QB, TCU
66. Dontay Moch, DL, Nevada
101. Clint Boling, OL, Georgia
134. Robert Sands, S, West Virginia
167. Ryan Whalen, WR, Stanford
207. Korey Lindsey, CB, So. Illinois
246. Jay Finley, RB, Baylor

Grade: C

Dynamic one-two punch; and I'm talking Kathryn and Maria of the Ben-Gals. I'm not nearly as excited about the pass-catch duo of Andy Dalton and A.J. Green. On the bright side, Dalton's hair is the same color as Cincy's helmets — he could go Dennis Rodman with some wicked tiger stripes. This draft guarantees the Bungles are back, baby.

2011 Draft Class

21. Phil Taylor, DT, Baylor
37. Jabaal Sheard, DE, Pittsburgh
59. Greg Little, WR, North Carolina
102. Jordan Cameron, TE, USC
124. Owen Marecic, RB, Stanford
137. Buster Skrine, DB, UT-Chattanooga
150. Jason Pinkston, OL, Pittsburgh
248. Eric Hagg, DB, Nebraska

Grade: C +

Who knew Tim Tebow's girlfriend was a Browns fan who swam in Lake Erie? Aside from those three factual errors, I see absolutely nothing wrong with that. Cleveland rocks. Not a fan of the overall draft haul, though. But Mike Holmgren did pull off the trade of the night — getting the Falcons' first-, second- and fourth-rounder in 2011 and their first-rounder in 2012 in exchange for the No. 6 overall pick.

2011 Draft Class

2. Von Miller, LB, Texas A&M
45. Rahim Moore, S, UCLA
46. Orlando Franklin, OT, Miami
67. Nate Irving, LB, NC State
108. Quinton Carter, DB, Oklahoma
129. Julius Thomas, TE, Portland State
189. Mike Mohamed, LB, California
204. Virgil Green, TE, Nevada
247. Jeremy Beal, DL, Oklahoma

Grade: C –

I do not salute the selection of Von Miller — a well-spoken, nerdy-looking nice guy — at No. 2 overall. Name the last great linebacker who was a boy scout? Patrick Willis came from dirt and boils with silent rage; Ray Lewis may or may not have killed a guy, plus he dances like a mad man; Dick Butkus played like it's a blood sport; Jack Lambert had the missing front teeth of a sociopath; Lawrence Taylor's insanity needs no explanation. John Elway may have enjoyed predraft dinner with Miller, but he wouldn't have feared him on a football field.

2011 Draft Class

11. J.J. Watt, DE, Wisconsin
42. Brooks Reed, DE, Arizona
60. Brandon Harris, CB, Miami
127. Rashad Carmichael, CB, Va. Tech
144. Shiloh Keo, S, Idaho
152. Taylor Yates, QB, North Carolina
214. Derek Newton, OL, Arkansas State
254. Cheta Ozougwu, DL, Rice

Grade: B +

New D-coordinator Wade Phillips is switching the Texans from a 4-3 to a base 3-4 scheme. As a result, Houston loaded up with big man J.J. Watt down low, quick-twitch Brooks Reed on the edge, undersized speedy corners Brandon Harris and Rashad Carmichael, and big-hitting safety Shiloh Keo. That's a good start.

2011 Draft Class

22. Anthony Castonzo, OT, Boston Coll.
49. Ben Ijalana, OL, Villanova
87. Drake Nevis, DT, LSU
119. Delone Carter, RB, Syracuse
188. Chris Rucker, CB, Mich. State

Grade: C

Desperate for O-line help, Bill Polian snagged Anthony Castonzo in the first, then traded up in the second to take raw tweener Ben Ijalana — reminding many of his second-round reach for raw tweener Tony Ugoh in 2007.
 

2011 Draft Class

10. Blaine Gabbert, QB, Missouri
76. William Rackley, OL, Lehigh
114. Cecil Shorts, WR, Mount Union
121. Chris Prosinski, DB, Wyoming
147. Rod Issac, DB, Middle Tennessee

Grade: D

The Jacksonville cougars are already out to catch a glimpse of pretty boy Blaine Gabbert, who the Jags gave up their first- (No. 16) and second-round (No. 49) picks for. Once thought to be a contender at No. 1 overall, Gabbert was ultimately the third passer picked. I agree with the nine teams (10 counting the Redskins) that passed on the Mizzou product. Sorry, ladies.
 

2011 Draft Class

26. Jonathan Baldwin, WR, Pittsburgh
55. Rodney Hudson, OG, Florida State
70. Justin Houston, LB, Georgia
86. Allen Bailey, DL, Miami
118. Jalil Brown, DB, Colorado
135. Ricky Stanzi, QB, Iowa
140. Gabe Miller, LB, Oregon State
199. Jerrell Powe, DT, Ole Miss
223. Shane Bannon, RB, Yale

Grade: C +

Potential, potential, potential. Rodney Hudson, Justin Houston and Allen Bailey were all thought to be first-round talents at some point during the evaluation process. Jonathan Baldwin wasn't really, but he ended up hearing his name called on opening night. Go figure.

2011 Draft Class

15. Mike Pouncey, OG-C, Florida
62. Daniel Thomas, RB, Kansas State
111. Edmond Gates, WR, Abilene Christ.
174. Charles Clay, TE, Tulsa
231. Frank Kearse, DT, Alabama A&M
235. Jimmy Wilson, DB, Montana

Grade: D

The "other" Pouncey twin stays in Florida and goes higher than his All-Pro brother did one year ago. But that's pretty much where the Phins' draft begins and ends. Like all Dolphins fans, Lilly — who I can only hope has a twin sister on South Beach — is still waiting for Dan Marino's replacement.

2011 Draft Class

17. Nate Solder, OT, Colorado
33. Ras-I Dowling, CB, Virginia
56. Shane Vereen, RB, California
73. Stevan Ridley, RB, LSU
74. Ryan Mallett, QB, Arkansas
138. Marcus Cannon, OL, TCU
159. Lee Smith, TE, Marshall
194. Markell Carter, LB, Central Ark.
219. Malcolm Williams, DB, TCU

Grade: B +

Patriots cheerleader Jessica Wanzie prefers a bikini to a hoody with cutoff sleeves, thank Bill Belichick. But the hooded-one did it again, adding a 2012 first-rounder (from the Saints), a left tackle (Nate Solder), the best arm in the draft (Ryan Mallett), a corner who is first-round caliber when healthy (Ras-I Dowling), a speed back (Shane Vereen) and a power back (Stevan Ridley). The Pats did not, however, add a pass-rusher.

2011 Draft Class

30. Muhammad Wilkerson, DT, Temple
94. Kenrick Ellis, DT, Hampton
126. Bilal Powell, RB, Louisville
153. Jeremy Kerley, WR, TCU
208. Greg McElroy, QB, Alabama
227. Scotty McKnight, WR, Colorado

Grade: B

I'm pretty good at reading lips in still photographs and Fireman Ed looks like he's yelling that something or someone "sucks." Either way, he's probably not going nuts on either of the big 300-plus-pounders that the J-E-T-S (Jets, Jets, Jets) added to the middle of Buddy's son's Rex-ecutioner 3-4 defense. Plus, Jeremy Kerley is a triple-threat gamebreaker, Greg McElroy is a solid clipboard carrier and Scotty McKnight was childhood backyard football buddies with the Sanchize quarterback from SoCal.
 

2011 Draft Class

48. Stefen Wisniewski, OG-C, Penn State
81. Demarcus Van Dyke, CB, Miami
92. Joseph Barksdale, OT, LSU
113. Chimdi Chekwa, CB, Ohio State
125. Taiwan Jones, RB, Eastern Wash.
148. Denarius Moore, WR, Tennessee
181. Richard Gordon, TE, Miami
241. David Ausberry, WR, USC

Grade: C –

It didn't take a gorilla-suit-wearing fan from the Black Hole to figure out that Al Davis was going to take Silver-and-Black eight-time All-Pro lineman Steve Wisniewski's nephew, Stefan, and the fastest man from the NFL Scouting Combine, 4.28-running Demarcus Van Dyke — who doesn't really play football per se, but is very, very fast.

2011 Draft Class

31. Cam Heyward, DT, Ohio State
63. Marcus Gilbert, OT, Florida
95. Curtis Brown, CB, Texas
128. Cortez Allen, CB, Citadel
162. Chris Carter, LB, Fresno State
196. Keith Williams, OL, Nebraska
232. Baron Batch, RB, Texas Tech

Grade: C +

Matching socks are easier to find than twin linemen; the Steelers failed to pair Maurkice with twin bro Mike Pouncey. But Hits-burgh did add Ironhead's son, Cam Heyward, to the mix while beefing up the O-line and adding desperately needed depth in the secondary.
 

2011 Draft Class

18. Corey Liuget, DT, Illinois
50. Marcus Gilchrist, CB, Clemson
61. Jonas Mouton, LB, Michigan
82. Vincent Brown, WR, San Diego St.
89. Shareece Wright, CB, USC
183. Jordan Todman, RB, Connecticut
201. Steve Schilling, OL, Michigan
234. Andrew Gachkar, LB, Missouri

Grade: C –

Too Liuget! Too Liuget to quit! A.J. Smith was once one of the great minds in the game on draft day — and he is undoubtedly still the "Lord of No Rings" — but I think he's lost a step lately. Remember when LaDainian Tomlinson lost a step, A.J.? Luckily, the GM can just blame his coach, Norv Turner, for the Bolts' lack of electricity.

2011 Draft Class

8. Jake Locker, QB, Washington
39. Akeem Ayers, LB, UCLA
77. Jurrell Casey, DT, USC
109. Colin McCarthy, LB, Miami
130. Jamie Harper, RB, Clemson
142. Karl Klug, DT, Iowa
175. Byron Stingily, OT, Louisville
212. Zach Clayton, DT, Auburn
251. Tommie Campbell, DB, California (Pa.)

Grade: B –

Elvis may not have to buy a new jersey, as Jake Locker — who wore No. 10 at UW — could slide right into Vince Young's old jersey and starting quarterback job. What? There's nothing country about scratching the name off the back of your jersey, or duct-taping a new name over the old one, or taking your shirt off and painting on a fresh coat of homemade jersey. Locker was a bold pick; but the Titans may have taken the No. 1 overall pick of 2010 at No. 8 overall in 2011. New coach Mike Munchak hopes so.