2023 NFL DRAFT GRADES: NFC EAST

BY ADAM GREENE

That’s right. There’s still draft grades to give out and the professor has not turned in his final class reports just yet.

We focus now on the NFC East, a division that sent three teams to the playoffs a year ago and one to the Super Bowl.

The Draft Grade Rules remain the same. To get an “A” grade of any type, a team must have (and use) a first round pick. The goal with picks in Rounds 1-3 is to take players that can start in the NFL from Day One, whether you need them to or not. The only exception there is quarterbacks, but that won’t come into play here at all.

Outside of those three rounds, the boosts come from what (at least) appear to be later round steals, especially if I, in my infinite wisdom, had a guy projected to go in Rounds 1-3 and he drops lower. I mean, they are my grades, after all.

DALLAS COWBOYS

Odds to win the Super Bowl: +1400

The Haul: Round 1: Mazi Smith, DT, Michigan, Round 2: Luke Schoonmaker, TE, Michigan, Round 3: DeMarvion Overshown, LB, Texas, Round 4: Villiam Fehoko, Jr., DE, San Jose State, Round 5: Asim Richards, OT, North Carolina, Round 6: Eric Scott, Jr., CB, Southern Mississippi, Round 6: Deuce Vaughn, RB, Kansas Stat, Round 7: Jalen Brooks, WR, South Carolina

For a team with its full allotment of picks, even one picking late in the draft thanks to a playoff appearance, the Dallas Cowboys did nothing particularly exciting. I had Mazi Smith ranked as my No. 6 overall defensive lineman, but I also had him projected as a second or even third round selection. I have no issue taking a tight end in the second round, but Luke Schoonmaker? With Darnell Washington out of Georgia still on the board? Yikes. In the third, DeMarvion Oveshown, outside of being a nightmare for every Cowboys’ beat writer’s spell check does look like a starter taken in the third. He’s a little light at 6-4 and 214 pounds and might be more of a safety, but he produced good numbers for Texas over his three seasons as a starter. Last year he had 96 tackles, 10 for a loss, four sacks and five passes defended.  Did Dallas meet the starter requirements of its selections in the first three rounds? Yes. Did they maximize the value of those selections with the players available on the board, it doesn’t look like it to me.

Villiam Feheko could either be a steal in the fourth or a guy whose stats were inflated by playing in the Mountain West. He had 69 tackles, 19 for a loss and nine sacks for San Jose State last season and put up similar numbers in the two previous years. That looks like a solid mid round selection to me (and maybe the best Dallas’ scouting room delivered on Draft Weekend). Asim Richards out of North Carolina is a serious project. He posted just a 64.4 Pro Football Focus grade last season and gave up three sacks and 15 QB hurries with the Tarheels. At 6-4 and 315, he doesn’t look much like a tackle, and is probably going to play inside at guard if he sees the field at all. Deuce Vaughn, who rushed for nearly 3,000 yards and scored 34 touchdowns over his last two years at Kansas State, could be a value pick in the sixth. Obviously at 5-6 and 172 pounds, he’s going to need to hit the buffet table and weight room to see any action outside of special teams. Eric Scott and Jalen Brooks both look like wasted picks to me. Not that they couldn’t be NFL players, but they both seem like guys that could have been nabbed as undrafted free agents late Saturday night.

Grade: C+

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES

Odds to win the Super Bowl: +800

The Haul: Round 1: Jalen Carter, DT, Georgia, Round 1: Nolan Smith, Edge, Georgia, Round 3: Tyler Steen, OT, Alabama, Round 3: Sydney Brown, DB, Illinois, Round 4: Kelee Ringo, CB, Georgia, Round 6: Tanner McKee, QB, Stanford, Round 7: Moro Ojomo, DT, Texas

Well, if anyone thought the Eagles would be a tougher out than they were in 2022, I’m sorry to report that they pretty much ran this draft all the way through. If our goal is to find starters, if not stars, in the first three rounds, Philadelphia decided to go ahead and shoot for those celestial bodies anyway, nabbing the best interior defensive lineman, Jalen Carter out of Georgia, with their opening first round selection, then getting his teammate, Nolan Smith, with their other first rounder. Smith was my fifth ranked edge rusher, so if you stopped right there, the Iggles were looking at a solid grade. But they weren’t done. While Philadelphia didn’t pick in the second round, they had a solid third. Tyler Steen didn’t have the best season at Alabama in 2022, but has plenty of raw ability. I don’t think he can start this season, but the Eagles, with their current offensive line, don’t need him to (barring a catastrophe). They can take a flyer on a  6-6, 321 pound project that started for one of the best teams in college football. Sydney Brown was my No. 7 ranked safety and is already penciled in as a starter on ESPN’s depth chart.

The fourth is where the magic happened and Philly officially became the Pennsylvania campus of the Georgia Bulldogs. I saw a lot of first round grades on Kelee Ringo and I had him ranked as my eighth best corner coming into the draft. To add him to this roster at that point, is larcenous. Tanner McKee was my No. 8 QB, which just means he’s probably a lifelong back up, but he’s not a pick that makes a ton of sense for the Eagles. His style fits nothing they do with Jalen Hurts. I’m a big believer in picking guys, especially if they’re going to be backups (for sure) that fit your system. McKee is a very old school pocket passer and probably would have heard his name called in the first round if it was 1994. Moro Ojomo had some decent production, but looks like a UDFA to me. But considering where the Eagles picked him in the seventh (No. 249 overall), that doesn’t make him a bad selection. With just 11 picks left in the draft at that point, you could probably make that argument about any guy taken around there. And, I’m sure I will.

Grade: A

NEW YORK GIANTS

Odds to win the Super Bowl: +5000

The Haul: Round 1: Deonte Banks, CB, Maryland, Round 2: John Michael Schmitz, Center, Minnesota, Round 3: Jalin Hyatt, WR, Tennessee, Round 5: Eric Gray, RB, Oklahoma, Round 6: Tre Hawkins III, CB, Old Dominion, Round 7: Jordon Riley, DT, Oregon, Round 7: Gervarrius Owens, Safety, Houston

After absolutely crushing the draft a season ago, stealing two men, Evan Neal and Kayvon Thibodeaux, who could have easily (and justifiably) gone No. 1 overall in the first round, the Giants got a playoff appearance out of it. That, and thanks to the addition of 2022 NFL Coach of the Year Brian Daboll. Now, New York has to build on that and, I have to say, they still did pretty well picking significantly later than they’re used to. Deonte Banks was my fourth rated corner, so that’s not a shabby selection in the bottom third of the first. While John Michael Schmitz didn’t make my offensive line list (I limited it to just eight OLs to be fair), he had an elite PFF grade in 2022, posting a 92.3 for the Golden Gophers. He allowed two sacks and five hurries in 767 offensive snaps. In the third is where they really put on the bandit mask, trading up with the Los Angeles Rams to add Beletnikoff winner Jaylin Hyatt to their roster out of the University of Tennessee. Hyatt happened to be my No. 3 ranked wideout in this draft class and to select him in the third, even with trading up, seems almost like cheating.

With Saquon Barkley and Matt Breida on the roster, running back wasn’t huge need, but all it takes to change that is an injury. Eric Gray’s on the smallish side, at 5-9 and 206 pounds, but racked up the yards for the Sooners a year ago, averaging 6.4 yards per carry on his way to a 1,366 yard, 11 touchdown season. He can also catch the ball out of the backfield, hauling in 33 receptions for 229 yards in his 2022 campaign. Tre Hawkins, Jordon Riley and Gervarrius Owens all look like projects and, at best, special teamers, but for a team that’s actually paying its quarterback now, that’s how you must fill out your roster.

Grade: A-

WASHINGTON COMMANDERS

Odds to win the Super Bowl: +8000

The Haul: Round 1: Emmanuel Forbes, CB Mississippi State, Round 2: Jartavius Martin, Safety, Illinois, Round 3: Ricky Stromberg, Center, Arkansas, Round 4: Braeden Daniels, OG, Utah, Round 5: KJ Henry, Edge, Clemson, Round 6: Chris Rodriguez, Jr., RB, Kentucky Round 7: Andre Jones, Edge, Louisiana

My theory on the “Commanders” this season, if they can even keep that name, is that they are tanking without openly trying to tank. Like, they’ll try to win and Ron Rivera will certainly coach to win, but if they lose, say, 14-15 games and end up with the No. 1 overall pick in 2024’s NFL Draft (and pick USC quarterback Caleb Williams), nobody will be crying any tears. Regardless of what nickname they eventually have to select for their team. So how do you “discreetly tank” while still putting together a solid draft? By not taking a quarterback at all in seven rounds in spite of boasting the weakest and worst QB room outside of the USFL. And, yes, I didn’t say XFL. AJ McCarron or Ben DiNucci look way better than Sam Howell to me.

Yes, the quest for Caleb is certainly on in Washington and its fanbase, new ownership and Ron Rivera (who doesn’t seem to be in any real danger of losing his job — and he shouldn’t), is doing everything they can to make it happen. This is a team that wants to max out at 2-3 wins in 2023.

But, hey, we still have this draft and Washington did its job. They picked starters in the first three rounds without selecting anyone that will screw up their chance at the No. 1 overall selection in 2024. Emmanuel Forbes was my No. 5 ranked corner and, especially after a run on that position, I have no issue with where he was taken. Jartavius Martin was my fifth ranked safety, so, again, that’s a solid second round pick. Ricky Stromberg, in the third, looks like a guy who can start immediately at center or guard. He posted an 82.4 PFF grade and gave up zero sacks and zero QB hits last season with the Razorbacks.

In the fourth, Braeden Daniels comes with plenty of upside as well. He also did not surrender a sack in 2022 and just gave up one QB hit while posting a 72.5 PFF rating. When you’re going to draft a quarterback first overall the following year, it’s probably smart to build up an offensive line beforehand. KJ Henry and Andre Jones look like low risk dice rolls to find edge rushers to make up for the injury issues that kept Chase Young from superstardom. Chris Rodriguez was a solid and productive back for Kentucky against SEC opponents, averaging 5.2 yards per carry last year to go with 904 yards and six touchdowns in just eight games. In a full season in 2021, he rushed for 1.378 yards and 10 touchdowns, averaging 6.1 yards per carry. There aren’t going to be a lot of carries in the Commanders’ backfield with Brian Robinson, Jr. and Antonio Gibson both back, but there’s a good chance one of those guys (probably Gibson) gets traded before Week 1 (barring a preseason injury). Washington will want a lot of draft capital for next season. Just in case they accidentally win four games and have to work a trade up for the top pick.

Grade: C+

Follow Adam Greene on Twitter @TheFirstMan.

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