The 2017 NFL Draft is one of the deepest defensive drafts in recent history. Players like Alabama’s Jonathan Allen, Ohio State’s Marshon Lattimore, and Temple’s Haason Reddick were expected to make defense-needy teams happy at the top of the draft.
NFL Draft 2017: Run on offensive players is unexpected boon for defense-needy teams
Standouts like Jonathan Allen and Marshon Lattimore had to wait.
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
And yet, after 10 picks, all three were still available.
A run on offensive players proved the league still values star playmakers over anything else. After Myles Garrett went No. 1 to the Browns, seven of the next nine selections were offensive skill players -- two quarterbacks, two running backs, and three wide receivers.
Here’s how that run looked as the clock wound down on the Saints at the No. 11 pick:
Pick # | NFL team | Player | Pos. | College |
|---|
Stanford defensive end Solomon Thomas and LSU safety Jamal Adams were the only two players to break up a dominant run of offensive players. That’s bad news for teams in need of explosive playmakers in 2017 — but great news for teams like the Saints, Colts, and Ravens, who all need defenders and are now in a position to draft a top 10 player in the teens.
The Saints ended the run by selecting Lattimore, previously expected to go as high as the No. 4 pick, with their No. 11 selection. The Texans flipped the script back to its previous trend by trading up to grab Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson at No. 12.
While the recent run on skill players may force some needy teams to trade up and rush their picks, teams in need of defensive help are in better shape than they ever could have thought through the first third of the 2017 NFL Draft.
See More:
