The 2016 NFL Draft kicked off in a huge way last night with a lot of first round drama. The night looked like something out of the movie Draft Day, with the Cleveland Browns continuing to make trades among many others. It’s as if Sonny Weaver, Jr. himself really is running things now in Cleveland and nobody told us. Then there’s the video of Laremy Tunsil living the high life that was leaked just minutes before the draft started that lead to his draft slide. The mystery continues as to who leaked the video with signs pointing to his stepfather as the primary suspect despite his statement that he was not involved. Whoever it was had it out for Tunsil and really did him dirty.
The draft started as expected with Jared Goff and Carson Wentz going 1 and 2 to the Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles, respectively. However, just about every single mock draft was thrown out the window when the San Diego Chargers selected Joey Bosa at pick 3, over guys like Jalen Ramsey and DeForest Buckner. By the time Baltimore passed on Tunsil at 6 in favor of Ronnie Stanley, every mock draft could be properly buried. It only got crazier from there. We were sure that the Titans would take him after their trade with Cleveland to move into the 8 spot but they took another offensive tackle in Jack Conklin instead. Evidently, neither the Ravens nor the Titans are 420 friendly. Bummer.
The rest of the draft was in turmoil as teams continued trading and, surprisingly, reaching on a lot of the younger prospects. Many of those reaches resulted in a lot of the top names dropping, including Tunsil who finally wound up with the Dolphins at 13, and Myles Jack who is still currently on the board for tonight’s Day 2. Many of the names that came off the board last night were not projected until later on. With so many teams reaching on prospects, the odds of some players coming out as busts from this draft are higher than normal. No one is ever a guarantee but here are five players that heard their names called last night that could become big name busts of the draft.
5. Joshua Garnett, G, San Francisco 49ers (28th overall)
I’m not sure if Garnett will really be a bust or if I’m putting him here because the 49ers seemed to have totally whiffed on this pick. Either way, Garnett will really need to prove himself now that he is a first round pick. The 49ers started the draft with a load of picks so it was no surprise to see them move back into the first round but their selection of Garnett was quite puzzling. It’s no secret the Niners wanted a quarterback but after Denver moved up to select Paxton Lynch, it seemed as though they were possibly moving up to select Connor Cook or Christian Hackenberg.
So when Garnett’s name was called it was a question as to why San Francisco even moved up at all. Other guards like Cody Whitehair and Germain Ifedi were still on the board and rated much higher than Garnett. San Francisco gave Kansas City their 2nd, 4th, and 6th round picks in the trade. It’s very likely Garnett would’ve been there in the 2nd if the Niners really liked him that much. Garnett will have an opportunity to start in San Fran but he is still a project and even his Stanford coach admitted he needs some work, primarily with pass blocking. For a team that still doesn’t have a quarterback that’s not a good sign.
4. Shaq Lawson, DE, Buffalo Bills (19th overall)
On the surface, Shaq Lawson looks like an excellent choice for Rex Ryan and the Buffalo Bills. Buffalo lost defensive end Mario Williams in free agency to Miami and they were looking to go younger at the position. Throw in the fact that Ryan’s son attends Clemson and it seems like the perfect fit. It may very well be, but reports have surfaced with concerns of Lawson’s shoulder. The reports claim that Lawson will require surgery after next season that would leave him out of action for 4-6 months (Sports Illustrated).
Lawson, however, is denying those reports despite as many as six teams declaring otherwise. Regardless, there are obviously some flags about his shoulder and he could add further damage as the season goes on. Lawson was an absolute beast at Clemson in 2014 but he had a slightly disappointing season in 2015, with teammate Kevin Dodd often outshining his teammate. With Dodd still available and deemed healthy, maybe Buffalo should’ve waited to get their future defensive end.
3. Eli Apple, CB, New York Giants (10th overall)
You simply can’t trust a player whose last name is a fruit. Take it from a guy who has a condiment in his. All jokes aside, I’m not a fan of Apple’s, certainly not as a top 10 pick, and not because he apparently can’t cook. He has good size at 6-1 and 200 lbs. but has some red flags in my opinion, primarily with grabbing receivers. Even watching his highlight reel last night when the Giants selected him, I couldn’t help but to notice his tendency to grab players way downfield and this is supposed to be some of his better plays.
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Granted, he is one of the five Buckeyes selected in the first round, but I believe that opposing quarterbacks will target him a lot in hopes to bait him into committing interference penalties. Also, I think Vernon Hargreaves III was a better option here since he was rated higher but Giants GM Jerry Reese said that they liked Apple better. The Giants really wanted OLB Leonard Floyd but the Bears moved up in front of them to take him. Since they really liked Apple, the Giants should’ve tried harder to trade down to collect extra picks. Based on last night’s results there were clearly takers.
2. Laremy Tunsil, OT, Miami Dolphins (13th overall)
Let me be clear in saying that if this were an article listing the top steals of the draft, Laremy Tunsil would have been at the top of that list as well. This pick is solely based on the nightmare that Tunsil experienced last night. The Dolphins got a great value with selecting Tunsil at 13 and deservedly get an A grade for the selection. The risk is definitely worth the reward and the Dolphins finally get the help on the offensive line that they so desperately need.
However, what happened to Tunsil last night has never been seen before. Projected as the number one overall pick for many months, Tunsil was not expected to fall past the Baltimore Ravens at 6. Less than 15 minutes before the draft, however, Tunsil’s Twitter account (and later his Instagram account) was hacked and a picture of Tunsil in a gas mask smoking marijuana was posted. Teams got nervous and decided to pass on Tunsil until Miami took him. It wasn’t over there, as Tunsil’s press conference looked more like an interrogation. He was very honest (maybe too honest) and owned up to his mistakes.
Tunsil is still believed by many to be the best athlete in this draft but what happened last night will follow him forever. The jokes will be there and you can be assured that fans with gas masks in other cities will be there to mock the rookie lineman for years to come. From an emotion standpoint, it may be too much for Tunsil to handle and it could affect his play. Miami may be getting great value but they too have a history with their offensive linemen, particularly the bullying scandal involving former players Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin. Not to mention they drafted another player with character issues in the first round when they selected Dion Jordan in 2013. Jordan has been a complete bust, failing multiple drug tests and is still currently suspended by the league. The Dolphins cannot afford a similar scenario.
1. Jared Goff, QB, Los Angeles Rams (1st overall)
It’s still so weird calling them the Los Angeles Rams. Statistics show us that when the top 2 picks are quarterbacks that one of them turns out to be a
bust. Most people might think that may be Carson Wentz since he comes from a small school in North Dakota State. However, I have a feeling that player will be Jared Goff. Wentz is the more accurate QB and pro-ready. Goff comes from a spread offense and history tells us that most college quarterbacks coming from spread offenses don’t pan out well. Goff also has small hands that I feel were not brought up enough prior to his selection. It may not come to be a huge deal but Goff apparently had trouble throwing a wet ball. He’ll benefit in sunny L.A. but he could have some trouble traveling to other cities like Seattle every year where it rains nine months out the year.
Personally, I’m not a fan of any of the quarterbacks in this draft class and I question as to why the Rams and Eagles gave up so much to grab the number 1 and 2 spots to get Goff and Wentz, respectively. Wentz should benefit in Philadelphia with the veteran leadership of Sam Bradford (for now) and Chase Daniel, the other quarterbacks on the roster and is not expected to start in week 1. Case Keenum or Nick Foles could be the starter for the Rams in week 1 but I believe that the Rams will want Goff under center as soon as possible. The pressure will surely be on the number one overall pick. Will he be a great success like Peyton Manning or a complete bust like JaMarcus Russell?
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