Draft Grades - NFC West: 49ers get what they want, Seahawks mystify
With the 2015 NFL Draft officially complete, theScore's NFL editors handout their initial grades for how teams fared during all seven rounds.
NFC
EAST | NORTH | SOUTH | WEST
AFC
EAST | NORTH | SOUTH | WEST
Arizona Cardinals
| Rd | Player |
|---|---|
| 1 | OT D.J. Humphries |
| 2 | DE Markus Golden |
| 3 | RB David Johnson |
| 4 | DT Rodney Gunter |
| 5 | DE Shaq Riddick |
| 5 | WR J.J. Nelson |
| 7 | TE Gerald Christian |
The Cardinals selected Humphries with their first selection, and there are some questions as to the fit. He lacks the strength to be a difference-maker as a run-blocker, and an offensive tackle that's better in pass protection than he is as a run blocker is a curious choice for a team that allowed only 28 sacks last year. Second-round selection Golden comes in without a true position, and Johnson doesn't break as many tackles as one would expect from a guy his size, making him an odd complement to Andre Ellington. No other pick is ready to contribute to a team that's put together back-to-back seasons with 10 or more wins.
Grade: C-
San Francisco 49ers
| Rd | Player |
|---|---|
| 1 | DE Arik Armstead |
| 2 | S Jaquiski Tartt |
| 3 | LB Eli Harold |
| 4 | TE Blake Bell |
| 4 | RB Mike Davis |
| 4 | WR DeAndre Smelter |
| 5 | P Bradley Pinion |
| 6 | G Ian Silberman |
| 7 | G Trent Brown |
| 7 | TE Rory Anderson |
The 49ers traded down on multiple occasions, stockpiling picks in the first draft under new head coach Jim Tomsula. Not surprisingly, the team's first three picks were on the defensive side. The most obvious fit of any team-player combo was Armstead staying on the West Coast. The club also added fourth-round and fifth-round picks in 2016 to trade down two spots and get the player they wanted all along. Tartt may have been a bit of a reach, but he has a lot of upside and will be able to spend a year or two learning the defense behind Antoine Bethea. Davis is one of the most underrated running backs in the draft, and Smelter has the upside to be special in a few years.
Grade: B
Seattle Seahawks
| Rd | Player |
|---|---|
| 2 | DE Frank Clark |
| 3 | WR Tyler Lockett |
| 4 | OT Terry Poole |
| 4 | G Mark Glowinski |
| 5 | CB Tye Smith |
| 6 | DE Obum Gwacham |
| 6 | DE Kristjan Sokoli |
| 7 | S Ryan Smith-Murphy |
It's tough to question the Seahawks given the recent success they've enjoyed, but there are a lot of head-scratchers here. Clark was expected to tumble further down the draft board given his off-field issues, and trading up for Lockett - another undersized receiver - seemed unnecessary. No one looking up and down the team's roster would see a need for situational pass-rushers.
Grade: C-
St. Louis Rams
| Rd | Player |
|---|---|
| 1 | RB Todd Gurley |
| 2 | OT Robert Havenstein |
| 3 | OT Jamon Brown |
| 3 | QB Sean Mannion |
| 4 | OT Andrew Donnal |
| 6 | WR Bud Sasser |
| 6 | G Cody Wichmann |
| 7 | LB Bryce Hager |
| 7 | DE Martin Ifedi |
Zac Stacy can say what he wants, but the Rams ranked in the bottom half of the league in yards per carry each of the past two seasons. Gurley will fix that, and has the kind of explosiveness the offense needs. Improving the run game was an obvious point of emphasis with four offensive linemen picked in the next six selections. Mannion feels an awful lot like a career backup, and they have enough of those.
Grade: C+