1. Seattle Seahawks (12) – Traded back to grab a top five defensive end in Lawrence Jackson.  Traded up in the second round to land John Carlson.  Excellent first day, but not a whole lot of prospects from the second day.  Justin Forsett could be a steal at Running Back.  Grade: B+
2. Kansas City Chiefs (12) — The only blemish on the day for Kansas City was being forced to trade up two picks to land Branden Albert, but those picks really didn’t hurt them.  Dorsey is a stud, but the quality of this draft will be defined by the careers of Albert, and corner Brandon Flowers.  Grand Valley State’s Brandon Carr could be a steal in the fifth round, he has tremendous ball skills.  Jamaal Charles might be good enough to succeed the rapidly aging Larry Johnson.  Grade: A
3. Atlanta Falcons (12) — Obviously, it’s Matt Ryan’s career that will determine the quality of this draft.  He’s really not a franchise Quarterback, and though we gave Atlanta the process points for nabbing him, it’s not earning them a top grade.  Sam Baker was a necessary pick, but it was a trade made out of desperation.  He should be a good one though.  Curtis Lofton was a solid pick, but the rest of the draft lacks serious prospects.  Grade:  C+
4. Miami Dolphins (11) — It’s not a common occurance that the team with the top pick has the best draft, simply because it’s hard to get good value on any of their picks.  Jake Long was exactly what they needed at the top, but the Phillip Merling pick made their draft.  He will be the key cog in their 3-4.  This draft would not have been an A unless they landed a franchise Quarterback, and Chad Henne is the franchise Quarterback of the Dolphins, though John Beck will get the first shot.  Lex Hilliard was a runner who was a great value in the 6th round.  Grade: A
5. New Orleans Saints (10) — The best value trade of the day, or at the very least the second best, had the Saints trading up to number 7 overall at a very reasonable price to nab a top five player in Sedrick Ellis.  They added Tracy Porter in the second, a good player at a need position, and then didn’t pick again until the 5th, when they stole DeMario Pressley and Carl Nicks.  Only 5 picks, but great value on all of them.  Grade: A-
6. New York Jets (10) — It was a bit of a surprise that they went up to get Dustin Keller, but Vernon Gholston and Keller give them a great first round haul.  Erik Ainge could compete for the QB position, if he can stay healthy.  Grade: B+
7. Jacksonville Jaguars (10) — When in doubt, add pass rushers.  It was probably not a good idea to trade up for Derrick Harvey at No. 8, but once they had the pick, Harvey was as good a selection as any.  Jacksonville then intelligently traded back up into the second round for Quentin Groves, a great value pick.  That was pretty much it for them on the day, but they addressed their most critical need twice over with pass rushers from the SEC.  Grade: B-
8. Green Bay Packers (8) — Last year, describing the draft of the Cleveland Browns, I mentioned that dynasties are born out of stupidity of the opponent.  Cleveland nabbed the most polished, and arguably best QB in the draft in Brady Quinn with the 22nd pick that year.  I guess it’s fitting then that the Packers acquired the most polished and arguably best Quarterback in this draft, Brian Brohm, with a pick they got from the Browns.  Brohm is the new franchise quarterback of the Packers, but Jordy Nelson and Patrick Lee make this a heck of a second round for the Pack.  After the second, there wasn’t a whole lot there in their draft, but the franchise QB and possible number one receiver earn the Packers a top grade.  Grade: A-
9. Buffalo Bills (8) — Landed help on the outsides with Leodis McKelvin and James Hardy with two solid day one selections, and then really made some reaches on the second day.  RB Xavier Omon could turn out to be a great change of pace runner for Marshawn Lynch.  Grade:  B-
10. Philadelphia Eagles (8) — Andy Reid and Co. have got this day one drafting thing down to a science.  Trade down, trade down again, and pile up draft picks, then land a first round quality defensive lineman in Trevor Laws, a pure steal, and a good value receiver in Cal’s DeSean Jackson.  Their second day work though has never been particularly special, and the selection of Jack Ikegwuonu is a bit perplexing, and reeks of desperation.  Nice selections on the line with Guards Mike Gibson and Mike McGlynn though.  Grade: B+
11. Pittsburgh Steelers (8) — Nothing fancy from the Steelers here, who sat tight, and filled some minor offensive needs with a pair of day one steals in Rashard Mendenhall and Limas Sweed.  Ben Roethlisberger may be the happiest guy in the world, but the Steelers’ weakness is still the offensive line, and the only lineman added was Tony Hills from Texas in the 4th.  Bruce Davis is a very underrated defensive player, and Dick Lebeau will find somewhere to play him.  Grade: B+
12. St. Louis Rams  (8) –  They landed MVN’s top player at No. 2 overall, Chris Long.  Donnie Avery is a great pick.  Even if he doesn’t end up justifying being the first WR taken, he is still very, very good.  Another great pick in John Greco in the third round.  Stole Justin King and Roy Scheuning on day two.  Grade: A-
13. New York Giants (8) — Kenny Phillips is a great replacement for the departed Gibril Wilson.  If Terrell Thomas was a reach at all, then Mario Manningham was a terrific steal.  Andre Woodson could be a franchise Quarterback for some team.  Maybe the other New York team.  Grade:  B-
14. San Francisco 49ers (8) — Whenever the 49ers don’t have a top ten pick, they do great!  Chilo Rachal and Kentwan Balmer were great value picks, and will be keys for the 49ers lines for a long time.  Cody Wallace was a steal in the fourth round.  Reggie Smith will be the key to this draft, if he can fine a niche on that defense, this will be a great class.  Grade: B
15. Dallas Cowboys (8) — The Cowboys nearly mucked up the first round, but saved themselves by landing Mike Jenkins.  Martellius Bennett is a nice choice as a 2nd TE, and helps the offense more than a 4th receiver would.  Felix Jones was a poor pick with Mendenhall still around, and they cost themselves a lot of late round picks for the trade to take Jenkins, and the 2nd day was lackluster.  Grade: C
16. Arizona Cardinals (8) — Dominique Rogers Cromartie was a fantastic blend of value and need at the No. 16 spot.  Calais Campbell was a risk in the second round, but its a risk a team like the Cardinals, who are strong on the D-Line, can afford.  Early Doucet provides excellent value as a third receiver to this team.  Grade: B+
17. Houston Texans (7) – Smart trade down set this draft off on a good foot.  Duane Brown may have been a reach, but he’s a guy I really like, and he can be the franchise LT for the Texans.  Antuwan Molden fills a critical need at corner.  Steve Slaton is a wonderful value running back in the third round.  A few intriguing late rounders in Xavier Adabi, and Frank Okam.  Grade: B
18. Detroit Lions (7) — I like the Gosder Cherilus selection for the Lions, it’s a far cry from the Matt Millen who would have taken Jeff Otah strictly on reputation.  Jordon Dizon was a reach, as well as was Kevin Smith.  Andre Fluellen and Cliff Avril are pieces the Lions can use on the defensive line, but neither has a great projection.  Nothing much after that.  Grade: C-
19. Baltimore Ravens (7) — Traded down intelligently, then up foolishly for Joe Flacco, who isn’t really a franchise QB.  Traded down again in the second round, landing much needed RB help in Ray Rice.  Tom Zbikowski and Oniel Cousins are both major steals in round three.  Justin Harper from Virginia Tech has steal potential.  Grade: B-
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7) — Grabbed Aqib Talib in the first round, who seems like a fit for the cover-two system.  Traded down in the second round, but then reached on App. St. WR Dexter Jackson.  The Bucs had a great second day, landing Jeremy Zuttah, Dre Moore, Geno Hayes, and a nice QB prospect in Josh Johnson.  Grade: B
21. San Diego Chargers (5) — Antoine Cason was a great pick, a huge steal, but he’s also really the only prospect the Chargers came out with.  A lot of that has to do with the Chris Chambers trade though.  Grade:  C+
22. Chicago Bears (5) — The Bears filled a huge hole with Chris Williams in the first round, and it may have been the best value pick after Glenn Dorsey in the first round.  However, Matt Forte was a poor pick considering how deep the RB class was, and the fact that Chicago passed on not one, but two franchise Quarterbacks.  Now, they will get to face Brian Brohm for the next ten years.  Marcus Harrison was a steal though.  Grade: C+
23. New England Patriots (5) — This wasn’t a very Patriot-like draft at all.  They filled their critical needs, not by quality, but by picking at the positions (CB and LB) many times over until they ran out of picks.  Jerod Mayo was a reach.  Terrence Wheatley could end up being a reach.  Perhaps the only good value of the draft was Shawn Crable in the third round.  Grade: C-
24. Carolina Panthers (5) — Carolina was a mess.  Jonathon Stewart was a huge reach at a position of lesser need.  The Panthers got all of their 5 process points on the Jeff Otah selection, but that would cost them next year’s 1st rounder, and they were done for the day.  Dan Connor and Charles Godfrey look to be good values, but don’t make up for the mess of a weekend Carolina put together.  Grade: D+
25. Denver Broncos (5) — Ryan Clady should give the Broncos at least an option among the offensive line, but Clady may not be good enough for left tackle.  Eddy Royal is a punt returner/slot receiver type, not a dynamic player or a good second round value.  Spencer Larson, Peyton Hillis, and Josh Barrett are all names that could make for day two steals.  Grade: C
26. Indianapolis Colts (3) — The Colts didn’t have a lot of work to do this weekend, but clearly made interior offensive line their focus.  They landed good values in Centers Mike Pollak and Steve Justice.  Phillip Wheeler might start for them at linebacker some day.  Grade:  C
27. Minnesota Vikings (3) — Tyrell Johnson was a great value, but he doesn’t really fill a need for the Vikings.  They didn’t pick again until round five, when they added USC QB John David Booty.  Unimpressive haul, but that’s to be expected when you deal your entire draft for Jared Allen.  Grade: D
28. Cincinnati Bengals (3) — Keith Rivers will help, but the Bengals should have been working harder to trade down than they appeared to be.  Pat Sims and Anthony Collins were both nice picks, but Jerome Simpson may not turn out to be the WR they need to replace the departed Chris Henry.  Grade: D+
29. Tennessee Titans (3) –  I do really like Craig Stevens at TE, but TE was not a need position for the Titans at all, and Jason Jones in the second round might help…but no one is really sure about him.  Chris Johnson may have a long career, but I don’t think he will ever justify being the 24th pick.  Not much help here.  Grade: F
30. Washington Redskins (2) — This isn’t a bad draft for Washington, but their methodology was a bit hazy the whole way through.  Had they snagged Trevor Laws instead of Devin Thomas, this could have been a great draft.  The Redskins get a lower grade for not properly addressing their defense when the value was proper.  They certainly filled their WR and TE needs for the future though with Malcolm Kelly and Fred Davis.  Chad Rhinehart and Justin Tryon fill critical needs on day two.  Grade:  C-
31. Oakland Raiders (0) — This wasn’t a bad draft for Al Davis, but it should have been better.  In my opinion, Glenn Dorsey would have been the correct pick at number four, and now, the Kansas City Chiefs have an “A” draft grade.  Darren McFadden fits with the Raiders’ strategy of drafting for the right now, and Tyvon Branch was a total steal in the 4th round.  That was it for the Raiders on the day though, and the small haul gets a small grade.  Grade: D+
32. Cleveland Browns (0) –The Browns didn’t do anything until round four, when they traded up for Beau Bell.  Martin Rucker makes little sense for a team already with Kellen Winslow, and Bell’s the only guy who is a lock to make the roster.  Grade: F

Steelers: 8 points

Tennessee Titans-Jason Jones

Titans: 3 points

Baltimore Ravens-Ray Rice

Ravens: 7 points

Green Bay Packers-Brian Brohm

Packers: 8 points

Miami Dolphins-Chad Henne

Dolphins: 11 points

Tampa Bay Buccaneers-Dexter Jackson

Buccaneers: 7 points

Indianapolis Colts-Mike Pollak

Colts: 3 points

Green Bay Packers-Patrick Lee

Packers: 11 points

Dallas Cowboys-Martellus Bennett

Cowboys: 8 points

New England Patriots-Terrence Wheatley

Patriots: 5 points

New York Giants-Terrell Thomas, CB, USC

Giants: 8 points

All the last picks got full process points except the Buccaneers’ selection of Dexter Jackson–they may be looking at him as a receiver, but that’s just too high for him as a kick returner.  A bunch of good picks were made in this range, but the real story is the Packers and Dolphins.

The Packers and Dolphins made the steals of the draft consecutively when they landed the top two rated MVN Quarterbacks with the 56th and 57th picks respectively.   Brohm and Henne are undoubtably franchise Quarterback propspects.  Those teams didn’t have pressing needs at quarterback, but they made the obvious pick when it came to them and for their efforts, they will find themselves on top of the league before too long.

Here are the top remaining players heading into day two:

Trippiedi’s Best Available

Tom Zbikowski, S, Notre Dame
Dan Connor, LB, Penn State
Mario Manningham, WR, Michigan
Roy Scheuning, G, Oregon State
Marcus Harrison, DT, Arkansas
DaJuan Morgan, S, North Carolina State
Reggie Smith, S, Oklahoma
Eric Young, G, Tennessee
Anthony Collins, T, Kansas
DeMario Pressley, DT, North Carolina State

49ers: 8 points

New Orleans Saints-Tracy Porter

Saints: 10 points

Buffalo Bills-James Hardy

Bills: 8 points

Denver Broncos-Eddie Royal

Broncos: 5 points

Minnesota Vikings-Tyrell Johnson

Vikings:  3 points

Chicago Bears-Matt Forte

Bears: 5 points

Detroit Lions-Jordan Dizon

Lions: 7 points

Cincinnati Bengals-Jerome Simpson

Bengals: 3 points

Philadelphia Eagles-Trevor Laws

Eagles: 5 points

Washington Redskins-Fred Davis

Redskins: 2 points

Philadelphia Eagles-DeSean Jackson

Eagles: 8 points

Arizona Cardinals-Calais Campbell

Cardinals: 5 points

Washington Redskins-Malcolm Kelly

Redskins: 2 points

Jacksonville Jaguars-Quentin Groves

Jaguars: 10 points

The Redskins, after making a great draft day trade, seem determined beyond belief to not produce any help for their defense from this draft, and are well on their way, adding three passing game targets in the second round when they needed maybe one.  The Eagles have done a great job as usual, trading down and still landing Trevor Laws and DeSean Jackson.

The Jaguars made a great trade up for Quentin Groves, they’ve now added a pair of pass rushers, and that’s more or less it for their draft day haul.  The Cardinals made a great value pick with Calais Campbell at No. 50.   The Bills, Saints, and 49ers all got full points for their picks.

Trippiedi’s Best Available

Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
Chad Henne, QB, Michigan
Tom Zbikowski, S, Notre Dame
Dan Connor, LB, Penn State
Limas Sweed, WR, Texas

Rams-Donnie Avery

Redskins-Devin Thomas

Chiefs-Brandon Flowers

Packers-Jordy Nelson

Falcons-Curtis Lofton

Seahawks-John Carlson

There it is, the first seven picks of the sixth round. We graded the process in the first round, and we still are here, but we also have to consider how good the players will be at this point in the draft. Each smart pick is worth 3 points.

Merling to the Dolphins is a great pick as he will fit perfectly in their defense.

Dolphins: 8 points

Donnie Avery probably wasn’t the best receiver in the draft, but he’s a good value here.

Rams: 8 points

The Redskins really, really reached for Devin Thomas with much better receivers available

Redskins: 2 points

Brandon Flowers was the best remaining corner, and will be a great value for the Chiefs.

Chiefs: 12 points

Jordy Nelson is a great value at least with the way receivers are coming off the board.

Packers: 5 points

The Atlanta Falcons got fair value on Curtis Lofton at linebacker. Maybe some flashier players were available, but I like this pick.

Falcons: 12 points

The Seahawks made a very smart trade with the Ravens for this pick to make John Carlson, who MVN had as the top TE in the draft, their starting TE.

Seahawks: 12 points

Trippiedi’s Best Available 

Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
Chad Henne, QB, Michigan
Trevor Laws, DT, Notre Dame
Chilo Rachal, G, USC
Tom Zbikowski, S, Notre Dame

Phillips isn’t going to be the next great safety from the U, but he is a very good pick from a school with a history of producing them.

Giants: 5 points

Trippiedi’s Best Available

Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson
Chad Henne, QB, Michigan
John Carlson, TE, Notre Dame
Trevor Laws, DT, Notre Dame

With the second round, I’ll be updating once every ten picks.  Enjoy it, and I’ll post a bunch of updates at a time.

The Jets probably traded up with a quarterback in mind, but at the eleventh hour, decided to use the pick on Keller.  It’s possible that they were trying to get ahead of the Dolphins, but that’s not conclusive enough to get them the trade points.

Jets:  10 points

Trippiedi’s Top Available 

Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson
Chad Henne, QB, Michigan
John Carlson, TE, Notre Dame
Kenny Phillips, S, Miami (Fl)

The 49ers, as Rich Eisen mentioned, continue to build through the Senior Bowl class, and that is a very, very sound draft strategy worthy of five process points.

49ers:  5 points

Trippiedi’s Best Available 

Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson
Chad Henne, QB, Michigan
John Carlson, TE, Notre Dame
Kenny Phillips, S, Miami (Fl)

Jackson can start in front of Darryl Tapp or he can sub for Patrick Kerney and help the Seahawks right away.

Seahawks: 7 points

Trippiedi’s Best Available 

Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson
Chad Henne, QB, Michigan
John Carlson, TE, Notre Dame
Kenny Phillips, S, Miami (Fl)

We aren’t grading the player, but consider that Mike Jenkins was selected by Dallas, who traded up ahead of San Diego and Houston to get him, the Chargers sat tight, cool and calm, and landed a clear first round talent.

Chargers:  5 points

Trippiedi’s Best Available 

Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson
Chad Henne, QB, Michigan
John Carlson, TE, Notre Dame
Kenny Phillips, S, Miami (Fl)

It was a reach. He’s not really a first round talent. But with the money left tackles get in today’s day and age, the Texans probably made the right move here–if you’ve got a guy who you think can play Left Tackle staring you in the face, you’ve got to pull the trigger.

Texans: 7 points

Trippiedi’s Best Available

Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson
Chad Henne, QB, Michigan
Antoine Cason, CB, Arizona
John Carlson, TE, Notre Dame