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2021 NFL Draft grades for every team: Browns and Bears crush it, Cowboys flop

By Cody Williams

CLEVELAND, OHIO - APRIL 29: Mya Tomoto stands with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after announcing Greg Newsome II as the 26th pick by the Cleveland Browns during round one of the 2021 NFL Draft at the Great Lakes Science Center on April 29, 2021 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OHIO - APRIL 29: Mya Tomoto stands with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after announcing Greg Newsome II as the 26th pick by the Cleveland Browns during round one of the 2021 NFL Draft at the Great Lakes Science Center on April 29, 2021 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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2021 NFL Draft grades
Zach Wilson, New York Jets, 2021 NFL Draft. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

New York Jets 2021 NFL Draft Grade: A-

  • Round 1, Pick 2: Zach Wilson, QB, BYU
  • Round 1, Pick 14: Alijah Vera-Tucker, OL, USC
  • Round 2, Pick 34: Elijah Moore, WR, Ole Miss
  • Round 4, Pick 107: Michael Carter, RB, North Carolina
  • Round 5, Pick 146: Jamien Sherwood, S, Auburn
  • Round 5, Pick 154: Michael Carter II, CB, Duke
  • Round 5, Pick 175: Jason Pinnock, CB, Pittsburgh
  • Round 6, Pick 186: Hamsah Nasirildeen, S, Florida State
  • Round 6, Pick 200: Brandin Echols, CB, Kentucky
  • Round 6, Pick 207: Jonathan Marshall, IDL, Arkansas

You’d be hard-pressed to find a team that pulled off a better first four picks to help their needs than what the New York Jets did. Zach Wilson resets their quarterback room with a ton of potential and they ensure that they can protect him by trading up for Alijah Vera-Tucker. What’s more, Elijah Moore can come in and immediately be the reliable target Wilson needs in the passing offense and Michael Carter can be a viable RB1.

The late-round picks for the Jets weren’t much to write home about, outside of Hamsah Nasirildeen, a prospect who is one of my draft crushes and I believe is a steal in the sixth round. However, the strength at the top in relation to their needs should, overall, help Gang Green keep building.

Philadelphia Eagles 2021 NFL Draft Grade: B-

  • Round 1, Pick 10: DeVonta Smith, WR, Alabama
  • Round 2, Pick 37: Landon Dickerson, IOL, Alabama
  • Round 3, Pick 73: Milton Williams, IDL, Louisiana Tech
  • Round 4, Pick 123: Zech McPhearson, CB, Texas Tech
  • Round 5, Pick 150: Kenneth Gainwell, RB, Memphis
  • Round 6, Pick 189: Marlon Tuipulotu, IDL, USC
  • Round 6, Pick 191: Tarron Jackson, DL, Coastal Carolina
  • Round 6, Pick 224: JaCoby Stevens, S, LSU
  • Round 7, Pick 234: Patrick Johnson, EDGE, Tulane

DeVonta Smith has the opportunity to be a real game-changer for the Eagles offense moving forward. His ability to get open at all levels of the field is hugely important to the development of Jalen Hurts. Moreover, I like the favorable projections for guys like Landon Dickerson, Milton Williams, Kenneth Gainwell and more.

At the end of the day, though, taking a player like Dickerson early in the second round when his injury history is so rocky is tough to swallow, especially when it’s not an immediate position of need. Moreover, there were other needs — the secondary, mostly — that Philadelphia ignored to take Dickerson and Williams. This is another instance of the prospects being fine but the process being a bit flawed.

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