In many ways, the 2014 NFL Draft played out as expected.
Jadeveon Clowney, the draft's best player, went first overall to the Houston Texans. Johnny Manziel was the story of Day 1 of the draft with the Cleveland Browns trading up to get him at No. 22. The expected fall of Teddy Bridgewater happened with him slipping to No. 32 and the Minnesota Vikings.
Then the draft was punctuated on Day 3 with the selection of Michael Sam by the St. Louis Rams. The peek into Sam's life – the overwhelming emotion and sincerity of it – truly illustrated what it's like for a college player to realize a goal. Even if you forget the newsworthiness of Sam being the first openly gay athlete drafted in a major U.S. sport, the moment is one of the reasons why we love the draft.
NFL Draft grades
After those four main storylines, it's the other 252 picks who will truly define this year's draft.
Perhaps no team made a bigger splash during the draft than the Jacksonville Jaguars. Leading up to last Thursday, the speculation about Jacksonville and the No. 3 pick centered on wide receiver Sammy Watkins or outside linebacker Khalil Mack. Jacksonville offered the first stunner by selecting quarterback Blake Bortles. As the draft approached, fewer and fewer people expected Bortles to go that high. Many thought he would be the choice for the Tennessee Titans at No. 11 or the Arizona Cardinals at No. 20.
General manager Dave Caldwell played it right, though. If there is a quarterback you love, you have to get him. Instead of risking moving down to accumulate an extra pick, Caldwell targeted his franchise quarterback and began reshaping his offense. Caldwell followed up the Bortles pick by giving him weapons in wide receivers Marqise Lee and Allen Robinson. Rounding out his class with players like linebacker Telvin Smith and running back Storm Johnson, it's easy to see why there should be hope in Jacksonville.
As they often do, the San Francisco 49ers cleaned up on draft weekend. The 49ers entered the draft with 11 picks, and virtually no one expected them to draft 11 players. Those people were right. After trades, the 49ers drafted 12. Scoring San Francisco's draft, the team got who many consider to be the best coverage safety (Jimmie Ward), the best running back (Carlos Hyde) and the best center (Marcus Martin). Then the 49ers took fliers on injured players like guard Brandon Thomas and fullback Trey Millard. As the team pushes for the Super Bowl, San Francisco added talent and depth.
The same can be said for the Green Bay Packers, who finally addressed the safety position with Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix in the first round. They also provided Aaron Rodgers with some new receivers in Jared Abbrederis, Davante Adams and Jeff Janis. If even one of those receivers becomes a top wideout, it will go a long way in keeping Green Bay among the best teams in the NFC.
Not just because they picked Clowney, the Texans did well during the draft. Houston stole Xavier Su’a-Filo, the draft’s best guard, in the second round. The team got another steal with the best nose tackle, Louis Nix, in the third. If quarterback Tom Savage can turn into anything remotely good, this should go down as Houston’s best draft class ever.
With Houston and Jacksonville both doing well, the AFC South may slowly begin to creep out of its spot as the worst division in the league. Look out, Andrew Luck.
There was also plenty of strange in this year's draft. Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones actually made a normal choice in the first round. When Manziel was on the board at No. 16, most thought the eccentric owner would pounce on a player who could fill his oversized and overblown dome. Instead, Jones did just the opposite by picking Notre Dame offensive lineman Zack Martin, leading many to check and see if the apocalypse was upon us.
Tampa Bay ignored defense altogether, drafting six offensive players. And how about this? The Khalil Mack pick by the Oakland Raiders at No. 5 gives the Mid-American Conference as many top-10 picks since 2008 as the Big Ten with two.
NFL Draft grades
How about Bills general manager Doug Whaley? In his first draft as Buffalo's GM, Whaley shipped off picks in next year's draft to get wide receiver Sammy Watkins. Whaley's maneuvering leaves Buffalo with a league-low five draft picks next year.
Conversely, the Browns already have a league-high 10 picks next year. Going into the draft, the Browns needed to pick a wide receiver. Then following the news about Josh Gordon's potential suspension, the need became even greater. The Browns punted on the position, however, fashioning what appears to be a run-heavy offense.
Cleveland wasn't the only team to leave needs open. Pittsburgh once again ignored defensive backs early. New Orleans didn't address the interior of its offensive line. Carolina didn't draft an offensive tackle. Denver didn't take a running back. Kansas City ignored wide receiver, unless you consider De'Anthony Thomas one (and you shouldn't).
Most alarmingly about this year's draft, 36 of the record 98 underclassmen who entered were not selected. Some of them, like offensive tackle Antonio Richardson, weren’t drafted because of injury concerns. Others, like tight end Colt Lyerla and cornerback Loucheiz Purifoy, didn’t get picked because of character issues. Those two haven’t even been signed as undrafted free agents. Maybe next year the underclassmen record will remain safe, though that’s unlikely.