Bruce Kluckhohn/Associated Press

Re-Drafting the 2015 NFL Draft

Gary Davenport

The 2015 NFL draft was defined at the time by its first two picks. In the lead-up to the event, speculation ran rampant over whether Florida State's Jameis Winston or Oregon's Marcus Mariota was the top prospect.

When the pair went first and second overall to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tennessee Titans, respectively, it was supposed to mark the beginning of a new era for NFL quarterbacks.

Five years later, neither is with their original team—or even starting.

However, just because those two signal-callers didn't pan out doesn't mean the class was a wash. The 2015 draft produced a fistful of talented edge-rushers, some excellent wide receivers, a shutdown corner or three and several good off-ball linebackers.

We've thrown all those players back into the proverbial hopper, hit the reset button on any draft-day trades, added a heaping five-year dose of hindsight and re-drafted 2015's first round.

The Buccaneers are (back) on the clock.

1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Andy Clayton-King/Associated Press

Original Pick: Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State

New Pick: Danielle Hunter, Edge, LSU

On some level, an argument can be made the Tampa Bay Buccaneers should stick to their guns and draft Winston again. But when the Bucs let the QB walk this offseason after five up-and-down campaigns, Tampa sent a clear message that if given the chance, it would do something different with 2015's No. 1 pick.

Edge-rusher Danielle Hunter wasn't regarded as one of the best players in this class—the former LSU standout was drafted 88th by the Minnesota Vikings.

But after five seasons that have included 54.5 sacks (and 29 the past two years) and trips to the Pro Bowl each of the past two years, Hunter has emerged as arguably the best player from this group.

Winston will just have to wait—possibly for quite a while.

2. Tennessee Titans

Steve Luciano/Associated Press

Original Pick: Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon

New Pick: Frank Clark, Edge, Michigan

Just like Winston's tenure in Tampa Bay, Mariota's time with the Tennessee Titans is over—the 2014 Heisman Trophy winner signed with Las Vegas and will back up Derek Carr. Mariota wasn't a total bust with the Titans—he won 29 games in five years and led the team to the playoffs in 2017. He just wasn't the franchise quarterback the team hoped for.

So just like the Bucs, the Titans are pivoting to an edge-rusher.

Over five seasons in the NFL, Frank Clark has gone from a second-round pick of the Seattle Seahawks to a Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champion with the Kansas City Chiefs. Clark has piled up 43 sacks over those five seasons, hitting the 10-sack mark twice. He has also amassed 86 QB hits (topping 20 in a season twice) and forced 11 fumbles.

3. Jacksonville Jaguars

Nick Wass/Associated Press

Original Pick: Dante Fowler Jr., Edge, Florida

New Pick: Marcus Peters, CB, Washington

The Jacksonville Jaguars made a good pick in 2015 when they selected edge-rusher Dante Fowler Jr. third overall—at least based on the 11.5 sacks he racked up last year.

The problem is, Fowler notched that big season with the Rams after the Jaguars traded him to Los Angeles. His time with the Jaguars was much less impressive—14 sacks in two-plus seasons.

Like Fowler, cornerback Marcus Peters spent time in Los Angeles—the Kansas City Chiefs traded Peters to the Rams after three seasons. Since then, Peters has been traded again; six games into the 2019 campaign the Rams shipped him to the Baltimore Ravens.

However, regardless of the helmet he's been wearing, Peters has been one of the best corners in the league over the past five years. He has been named a Pro Bowler three times and tallied 27 interceptions—including a league-leading eight in 2015.

4. Oakland Raiders

Roger Steinman/Associated Press

Original Pick: Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama

New Pick: Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama

Well, we've hit the first pick in this re-draft that isn't a redo.

Amari Cooper is no longer with the Raiders—they dealt him to the Dallas Cowboys partway into the 2018 season. But that trade had as much to do with the compensation the Raiders got in return (a first-round pick) as it did any dissatisfaction with Cooper's performance.

In four of Cooper's five seasons in the NFL, he has topped 1,000 receiving yards. He has made at least 75 receptions three times, averaged almost seven touchdowns per year and made the Pro Bowl every season except 2017.

In his recent wide receiver rankings at CBS Sports, Jared Dubin rated Cooper as the sixth-best player at his position—ahead of the likes of Odell Beckham Jr., Keenan Allen and Mike Evans.

5. Washington

Jeff Haynes/Associated Press

Original Pick: Brandon Scherff, OG, Iowa

New Pick: Brandon Scherff, OG, Iowa

When Washington selected Brandon Scherff fifth overall, it marked the first time since 2004 (Robert Gallery, No. 2) that a player from the University of Iowa was chosen inside the top 10.

Over the past five seasons, Scherff's done nothing to make Washington consider going in a different direction here.

As a rookie, he played 1,065 snaps at right guard, allowing just two sacks, per Pro Football Focus. The following season, he played 1,045 snaps, surrendered just one sack and was selected to his first of three Pro Bowls.

The 28-year-old is one of the league's best guards and is capable of sliding out to tackle when needed. Washington thought enough of Scherff's play these last five years to place the franchise tag on him a few months ago.

And the team isn't about to pass on the 6'5", 315-pounder in this re-draft.

6. New York Jets

Duane Burleson/Associated Press

Original Pick: Leonard Williams, DE, USC

New Pick: Za'Darius Smith, Edge, Kentucky

It looked like the New York Jets got a gift when Leonard Williams fell to the sixth pick, as there were some pundits who thought he was the top overall prospect in the class.

Williams does have a Pro Bowl nod from 2016, but he has tallied just 17.5 sacks in five years and was already traded by the Jets to the Giants.

The Jets have seemingly been trying to add pop to the pass rush for years, so with a chance to pick again here, that's the direction Gang Green is taking.

Za'Darius Smith was a fourth-round selection of the Baltimore Ravens in 2015, but it didn't take long for him to outproduce that draft slot. Smith had 5.5 sacks as a rookie, piled up 8.5 two years ago in Baltimore and erupted for a career-best 13.5 sacks in a Pro Bowl season with the Green Bay Packers in 2019.

7. Chicago Bears

Butch Dill/Associated Press

Original Pick: Kevin White, WR, West Virginia

New Pick: Stefon Diggs, WR, Maryland

Among the first 10 picks in the 2015 NFL draft, there wasn't a bigger miss than the Chicago Bears' selection of West Virginia wideout Kevin White at No. 7. White missed all of his rookie season with a shin injury and was done in the NFL after the 2018 campaign. His career stat line was 25 catches for 285 yards.

Cooper might be the gold standard at wide receiver in the class of 2015. But the silver medalist at the position is no slouch.

Stefon Diggs wasn't selected until the fifth round in 2015. But in the years since, the 6'0", 191-pounder has established himself as one of that draft's biggest steals. Diggs topped 1,000 yards in each of the last two years in Minnesota. He averaged almost 18 yards per reception in 2019, and the year before he caught 102 passes.

8. Atlanta Falcons

John Bazemore/Associated Press

Original Pick: Vic Beasley Jr., Edge, Clemson

New Pick: Grady Jarrett, DT, Clemson

For a time, it looked like the Atlanta Falcons hit the jackpot with Vic Beasley Jr. The Clemson edge-rusher paced the NFL with 15.5 sacks in his second season. But in Beasley's other four seasons combined, he got to the quarterback just 22 times, and when the 2020 season opens, Beasley will be rushing the passer for the Tennessee Titans.

However, later in that same draft, the Falcons landed a player who remains in Atlanta—with the highest cap hit of any defender on the team.

Since being drafted in the fifth round in 2015, Jarrett has become one of the better defensive tackles in the game. He has steadily improved with each season—last year he piled up 69 total tackles and made his first Pro Bowl after he earned an extension that averages $17 million per season.

9. New York Giants

Peter Joneleit/Associated Press

Original Pick: Ereck Flowers, OT, Miami (Fla.)

New Pick: Trent Brown, OT, Florida

In fairness to Ereck Flowers, the ninth pick in this draft played well enough last year in Washington to earn a three-year, $30 million contract from the Miami Dolphins.

But that career resurgence came after a move to guard. Over three-plus seasons as a tackle in New York, Flowers was a turnstile.

That he didn't work out doesn't change the fact that these Giants badly needed to upgrade the protection in front of Eli Manning. In a class that wasn't exactly stacked on the offensive line, that isn't especially easy, but there is at least one tackle available who has fared well.

Trent Brown wasn't drafted until the final round by the San Francisco 49ers. But since then, the massive 6'8", 380-pounder has become one of the best right tackles in the league. In 2018, Brown won a Super Bowl with the New England Patriots, and he made the Pro Bowl after his first season with the Raiders in 2019.

10. St. Louis Rams

Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press

Original Pick: Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia

New Pick: Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia

This is a tricky call. Todd Gurley's tenure with the Los Angeles Rams didn't end well. After injuries sapped his effectiveness in 2019, he was cut loose by the Rams, eventually signing a one-year deal with the Atlanta Falcons.

But the Rams wouldn't have had the success they did in 2017 and 2018 (or played in Super Bowl LIII) had he not been on the team.

Simply put, when Gurley was good, he was really good.

As a rookie, the Georgia product topped 1,100 yards on the ground and won Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. Two seasons later, he topped 2,000 total yards and was named Offensive Player of the Year. He piled up over 1,800 total yards the following year during L.A.'s Super Bowl run.

It didn't end like either side hoped, but while he was with the Rams, Gurley was (mostly) as good a running back as you'll find.

11. Minnesota Vikings

Paul Sancya/Associated Press

Original Pick: Trae Waynes, CB, Michigan State

New Pick: Byron Jones, CB, Connecticut

The Minnesota Vikings did OK with their selection of Michigan State cornerback Trae Waynes at No. 11. He hasn't made a Pro Bowl, but he has 53 career starts, and the Cincinnati Bengals thought enough of him to give him a three-year, $42 million contract in March.

But there's another cornerback on the board who also just switched teams and would have been a better choice.

Byron Jones hasn't done a lot in the big-play column over five seasons with the Dallas Cowboys—he has just two career interceptions. But there's a reason the Miami Dolphins just handed him a five-year contract worth $16.5 million per season.

In each of the last two seasons, Jones has allowed less than 55 percent of the passes thrown in his direction to be completed. He's given up just five touchdown passes over that span and was a Pro Bowler after the 2018 season.

12. Cleveland Browns

Jason Behnken/Associated Press

Original Pick: Danny Shelton, DT, Washington

New Pick: Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State

In 2015, the Browns were a bad team that was about to get much, much worse. They would go from 3-13 in 2015 to 1-15 in 2016 to a winless season in 2017. It was a team with problems galore on both sides of the ball—quarterback among them.

Josh McCown, Austin Davis, Pat Devlin and Johnny Manziel is one ugly depth chart under center.

Jameis Winston has his problems. Chief among them are turnovers—Winston has thrown 88 interceptions and racked up 50 career fumbles. Last year he became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw 30 touchdowns and 30 interceptions in the same season.

But he also led the NFL with 5,109 passing yards last year and has thrown 121 career touchdown passes.

Winston's not a great NFL starter, but he's light-years better than anything the Browns had at the time. And with him on the roster, punting on Carson Wentz and Deshaun Watson in the next two drafts would look a little less jaw-droppingly incompetent.

13. New Orleans Saints

Ron Schwane/Associated Press

Original Pick: Andrus Peat, OT, Stanford

New Pick: Andrus Peat, OT, Stanford

A wise man once said, "Do not fix that which is not broken." Or something to that effect.

We're taking that advice to heart with this pick for the New Orleans Saints. General manager Mickey Loomis has had more than a little success making picks in the first round of the NFL draft. The 2015 iteration of the event was no exception.

Andrus Peat was a standout offensive tackle at Stanford, but the majority of the 60 starts he's made over his professional career have been spent at guard. As a rookie, Peat was a part-time starter. By his second season, he was starting full time and made a couple of starts at left tackle because of a knee injury to Terron Armstead. By 2018, Peat was elected to the first of two straight Pro Bowls.

Injuries have cost him time in each of the past three seasons, but when on the field, he's been one of the best interior linemen in the game.

14. Miami Dolphins

Chris Szagola/Associated Press

Original Pick: DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville

New Pick: Tyler Lockett, WR, Kansas State

After four mostly disappointing seasons, DeVante Parker broke out in a big way in 2019—72 receptions for 1,202 yards and nine touchdowns. Those numbers got Parker a four-year, $40 million extension from the Dolphins, but they aren't enough to keep him in South Florida in this re-draft.

Not with a wideout available who has been more consistent.

Like Parker, Tyler Lockett just peeled off his first 1,000-yard season—82 catches for 1,057 yards and eight scores. But it wasn't an outlier after years of disappointment—the season before, Lockett caught 57 passes (on just 70 targets) for almost 1,000 yards and 10 scores. He also earned Pro Bowl and first-team All-Pro honors in 2015 as a kick returner.

15. San Francisco 49ers

John Hefti/Associated Press

Original Pick: Melvin Gordon III, RB, Wisconsin (by San Diego Chargers)

New Pick: Arik Armstead, Edge, Oregon

This pick was originally traded to the San Diego Chargers, who used it to select running back Melvin Gordon III. However, draft-day trades are a no-go in this do-over, so the Niners are back on the clock.

The 49ers recently offered about 85 million reasons they'd still end up with the same player they did in 2015's first round.

That's the size of the extension the team just gave defensive end Arik Armstead after his breakout 2019 season. After amassing just nine sacks over the first four seasons of his professional career, he erupted for 10 during San Fran's run to the Super Bowl last year, adding 54 total tackles and a pair of forced fumbles.

The No. 17 pick in 2015 was whisper-quiet before 2019, but the $40 million he got in guarantees indicates the 49ers are confident last year wasn't an aberration.

16. Houston Texans

Scott Taetsch/Getty Images

Original Pick: Kevin Johnson, CB, Wake Forest

New Pick: Landon Collins, S, Alabama

Cornerback Kevin Johnson, the original No. 16 pick in 2015, was OK over four years in Houston, but the Texans let him go in 2019.

In this re-draft, they are sticking with the secondary—but adding a player who has made a significantly bigger impact.

It didn't take Landon Collins long to make a dent—he amassed 112 total tackles as a rookie. The following year, he went that one better—100 solo tackles, four sacks, five interceptions, the first of three trips to the Pro Bowl and recognition as a first-team All-Pro.

In five seasons with the New York Giants and Washington, Collins has grown into possibly the NFL's best box safety, topping 100 stops four times and averaging over 110 tackles per season.

17. San Diego Chargers

Andy Clayton-King/Associated Press

Original Pick: Arik Armstead, DE, Oregon (by San Francisco 49ers)

New Pick: Eric Kendricks, LB, UCLA

This pick was the tail end of the draft-day deal that landed Armstead in the Bay Area and Gordon in San Diego. The running back had a solid five-year tenure with the Chargers that included two trips to the Pro Bowl. But the Bolts bid adieu to Gordon in 2020, and this do-over allows the franchise an attempt a different course.

Like, say, addressing an off-ball linebacker position that has been a thorn in the team's side for years.

Over five seasons in the Twin Cities, Eric Kendricks has grown into one of the NFL's most consistently reliable and productive inside linebackers. After a 92-tackle, four-sack season as a rookie, Kendricks peeled off four straight campaigns with over 100 tackles—chipping in nine sacks, four interceptions and four forced fumbles in his career. His 110 total stops and 12 passes defensed in 2019 were enough to get the 28-year-old invited to his first Pro Bowl.

18. Kansas City Chiefs

Keith Srakocic/Associated Press

Original Pick: Marcus Peters, CB, Washington

New Pick: Bud Dupree, Edge, Kentucky

There are defensive positions every team is trying to improve each year—and cornerback and edge-rusher rank among them.

If the Kansas City Chiefs can't add to one with Peters, their original pick here, off the board, they might as well get better at getting after the quarterback.

Alvin "Bud" Dupree didn't exactly set the NFL on fire over his first four years, averaging just five sacks per season. But in 2019 with the Pittsburgh Steelers, it all came together for the former Kentucky standout—68 total tackles, 11.5 sacks and four forced fumbles.

19. Cleveland Browns (from Buffalo Bills)

Paul Sancya/Associated Press

Original Pick: Cameron Erving, C, Florida State

New Pick: Trey Flowers, Edge, Arkansas

The Buffalo Bills sent this pick to Cleveland in the 2014 trade that landed wideout Sammy Watkins in upstate New York. 2015 was also one of a number of years in which the Browns had two first-rounders—and whiffed on both.

They used their first selection in this re-draft on a quarterback in Winston. Now it's time for some defense—and a consistent two-way producer off the edge.

Trey Flowers was originally picked just outside the top 100 by the New England Patriots. And he was a steal in that spot—while Flowers has never had even eight sacks in a season, he has amassed at least 45 total tackles and 6.5 sacks in each of the last four campaigns—the last three of which earned him $18 million per season from the Detroit Lions.

While Myles Garrett wouldn't arrive for a couple of years, Flowers would have been a fantastic complement to 2017's No. 1 overall pick on Cleveland's defensive line.

20. Miami Dolphins

Charles Krupa/Associated Press

Original Pick: Nelson Agholor, WR, USC

New Pick: DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville

That the Eagles drafted Nelson Agholor is a sore subject in the City of Brotherly Love—for some fans more than others.

The funny thing is, until 2019, that's exactly how most Dolphins fans felt about DeVante Parker. During his first four years with the 'Fins, Parker had never had 60 catches or 750 receiving yards in a season. He had more missed games (11) than touchdown receptions (nine).

It was a much different story in year five though. Parker exploded in 2019, setting career highs in receptions (72) and yards (1,202) while hauling in as many touchdowns that year as his other four seasons put together. He also averaged a robust 16.7 yards per reception and piled up 263 yards after the catch.

Last year at least, Parker looked like the No. 1 receiver the Dolphins hoped to get when they drafted him 14th overall.

21. Cincinnati Bengals

Eric Christian Smith/Associated Press

Original Pick: Cedric Ogbuehi, OT, Texas A&M

New Pick: Mitch Morse, C, Missouri

The Cincinnati Bengals used their first two picks in 2015 on offensive tackles. That first-rounder Cedric Ogbuehi is no longer in Cincinnati and second-rounder Jake Fisher is no longer in the NFL explains how well that worked out.

There's not much left in this class at tackle. But there's still some meat on the bone in the offensive interior, and the Bengals could use additional beef there too.

Mitch Morse has yet to receive much in the way of individual accolades since being drafted in the second round by the Kansas City Chiefs. But the 6'6", 305-pounder got something better—a four-year, $44.5 million contract from the Buffalo Bills in March 2019 that made him the highest-paid center in the NFL at the time.

Last year in Buffalo, Morse allowed just a single sack in over 900 snaps, per Pro Football Focus.

22. Pittsburgh Steelers

Matt Ludtke/Associated Press

Original Pick: Bud Dupree, Edge, Kentucky

New Pick: Preston Smith, Edge, Mississippi State

We have the makings of an edge-rusher run. It's not that surprising now, but a year ago at this time, it would have sent some eyebrows skyward. Several edge defenders from this class didn't come into their own until 2019.

Preston Smith hadn't been invisible over his first four years in Washington—the 6'5" 265-pounder tallied eight sacks as a rookie and did so again two years later. That was enough for the Green Bay Packers to make a $52 million investment over four years in him.

But it was with the Packers in 2019 that Smith blossomed—he notched five stops and 1.5 sacks in his Green Bay debut on the way to career highs in tackles (56) and sacks (12).

The Steelers drafted one of those late bloomers on the edge in 2015 when they took Kentucky's Bud Dupree in this spot. In the re-draft, Dupree is headed to Kansas City a few picks before this one.

But as consolation prizes go, Smith isn't a bad one.

23. Detroit Lions

Charlie Riedel/Associated Press

Original Pick: Shane Ray, Edge, Missouri (by Denver Broncos)

New Pick: Melvin Gordon III, RB, Wisconsin

This selection was part of a trade between the Detroit Lions and Denver Broncos in 2015. The Broncos wound up with edge-rusher Shane Ray. The Lions wound up with guard Laken Tomlinson at No. 28 (who lasted only two years with the team).

Oops and double-oops.

In 2014, the Detroit Lions were 28th in the NFL in rushing. In 2015, things got worse—no team averaged fewer rushing yards per game than the measly 83.4 the Lions produced.

Given that, taking a two-time Pro Bowl running back might not be such a bad idea.

Over five years with the Chargers, Melvin Gordon III didn't post jaw-dropping numbers—he topped 1,000 rushing yards just one time and averaged 4.0 yards per carry. But he topped 1,300 total yards three times and averaged over 40 catches per year.

Whether it's running between the tackles, catching the ball out of the backfield or picking up the blitz, there's not much that Gordon doesn't do well.

24. Arizona Cardinals

Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press

Original Pick: D.J. Humphries, OT, Florida

New Pick: D.J. Humphries, OT, Florida

The Arizona Cardinals apparently believe the selection of D.J. Humphries was a good one—the team extended his contract (at almost $15 million per season) last February.

It didn't look like that would be the case at first. To say Humphries struggled early is an understatement—as a rookie, he sat out the entire season as a healthy scratch. In 2016, he was horrible, surrendering nine sacks over 13 games and 922 snaps, per Pro Football Focus.

In 2017, Humphries' play improved somewhat, but he made it through only 204 snaps over five games before a knee injury ended his season. Despite all those struggles, the Cardinals picked up Humphries' option for 2019, only to see a knee injury again cut short his 2018 campaign.

Still, Arizona's faith in Humphries was finally rewarded in 2019—he played in all 16 games and was one of the best pass-protecting tackles in the league, surrendering just two sacks in 1,046 snaps.

That career year and the value of the position Humphries plays keeps him in Round 1 here. 

25. Carolina Panthers

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Original Pick: Shaq Thompson, LB, Washington

New Pick: Jordan Hicks, LB, Texas

The Carolina Panthers didn't do too badly at No. 25—it took Shaq Thompson a while to get rolling, but he is now an every-down player who posted his first 100-tackle season with the Panthers a year ago.

A couple of other Pro Bowl off-ball linebackers are still on the board here. But in this redo, the Panthers are going with a player who hasn't earned a Pro Bowl nod yet but who had easily his best season in 2019.

Jordan Hicks joined the Arizona Cardinals last year in free agency and proceeded to not only lead the team in tackles but also post more total stops (150) than all but two players in the NFL. Hicks also had three interceptions, 1.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and tallied almost as many tackles for loss (11) as he did in his first four seasons combined (12).

26. Baltimore Ravens

Wesley Hitt/Getty Images

Original Pick: Breshad Perriman, WR, UCF

New Pick: Benardrick McKinney, LB, Mississippi State

Down the stretch last year, Breshad Perriman finally showed signs of life—he posted three straight 100-yard outings and scored four touchdowns to end the season.

But that explosion came with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers—the third team of his career. So it's back to the old drawing board in Baltimore.

By 2015, the Ravens had a Pro Bowl inside linebacker in C.J. Mosley. But the Ravens tried (and failed) more than once to find him a capable running mate.

During his five seasons in Houston, Benardrick McKinney has averaged 98.6 total tackles per season. He has topped 100 stops three times, shown some proficiency as a pass-rusher (11.5 sacks, including five in 2016) and earned a Pro Bowl invite in 2018.

McKinney and Mosley would make for quite the duo in the middle of the Baltimore defense.

27. Dallas Cowboys

Jason Miller/Getty Images

Original Pick: Byron Jones, CB, Connecticut

New Pick: Steven Nelson, CB, Oregon State

The Cowboys hit big in 2015 with Jones at No. 27. But in this re-draft, he's long gone. However, there's a cornerback available who has quietly been one of the most underrated players in the league at his position over the past five years.

Steven Nelson has spent most of his NFL tenure in the shadow of a big name. At the beginning of his career, it was Marcus Peters in Kansas City. Last year in Pittsburgh, it was Joe Haden.

But Nelson is more than capable of holding his own in coverage. Last year with the Steelers, he allowed just half the passes thrown in his direction to be completed and had a passer rating against of 65.8. The year before in Kansas City, it was 51.3 percent of the passes and a passer rating against of 72.6.

In 2019, Nelson gave up a grand total of zero touchdowns. He has earned his way into the first round of this re-draft.

28. Denver Broncos

Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press

Original Pick: Laken Tomlinson, OG, Duke (by Detroit Lions)

New Pick: Leonard Williams, DE, USC

This pick was part of a trade between the Denver Broncos and Lions that both teams would likely just as soon forget.

That isn't the only thing erased by this draft-day redo. So is most of the hype surrounding Leonard Williams.

In fairness to Williams, he hasn't been a bust. Over five seasons in New York, he has been an excellent edge-setter and run defender. After piling up seven sacks in his second season with the Jets, Williams made the Pro Bowl.

But Williams just hasn't been the difference-maker defensively that so many expected him to be in the pros. There have been two seasons with five or more sacks and double-digit tackles for loss—and three disappearing acts. Halfway through the 2019 season, the Jets cut bait and dealt Williams to the New York Giants.

Williams is a complement—not a cornerstone. And he'd fit in a lot better with a Broncos defense loaded with talent than he did in the Big Apple.

29. Indianapolis Colts

John Bazemore/Associated Press

Original Pick: Phillip Dorsett, WR, Miami (Fla.)

New Pick: Vic Beasley Jr., Edge, Clemson

In 2015, the Indianapolis Colts were coming off an 11-5 season that saw the team reach the AFC Championship Game before getting blown out by the New England Patriots. The Colts fell to 8-8 and missed the postseason the following year—in part because of a mediocre pass rush that ranked 22nd in sacks in 2015.

After a quiet rookie year that saw him tally just four sacks, Vic Beasley Jr. exploded in 2016, pacing the league with 15.5 sacks and earning both a trip to the Pro Bowl and first-team All-Pro honors.

The three years since have been much quieter for the 6'3", 246-pounder—just 18 sacks over that stretch. But eight of those sacks (and a career-high 42 tackles) came in 2019—numbers that earned Beasley a one-year, $9.5 million deal with the Tennessee Titans.

30. Green Bay Packers

Duane Burleson/Associated Press

Original Pick: Damarious Randall, S, Arizona State

New Pick: Ali Marpet, OG, Hobart

Defensive back Damarious Randall wasn't a bad pick by the Green Bay Packers. He wasn't a good one either—Randall struggled at corner in Titletown and clashed with coaches before coming into his own as a deep safety in Cleveland.

Green Bay also had an excellent offensive line in 2015—especially on the interior. But things wouldn't stay that way. T.J. Lang left for Detroit in 2017. Center J.C. Tretter landed in Cleveland that same year.

Having an insurance policy on the offensive line is never a bad thing—and Ali Marpet would be one heck of an insurance policy. Over five seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Marpet has played both guard spots and center. He's started 72 of 80 possible games and earned a five-year extension worth just under $55 million in 2018.

31. Seattle Seahawks

David Zalubowski/Associated Press

Original Pick: Stephone Anthony, LB, Clemson (by New Orleans Saints)

New Pick: Darren Waller, TE, Georgia Tech

The Seattle Seahawks flipped the 31st pick as part of a deal that brought Jimmy Graham to the Emerald City. The 'Hawks thought they were getting one of the most dangerous tight ends in the game. Instead, they got a veteran on the downslope of his career.

With that trade put on ice in this re-draft, the Seahawks are going a different direction at the same position—with a player who was one of 2019's biggest surprises.

Darren Waller's first four NFL seasons didn't go well—he was suspended twice for violating the league's substance abuse policy (including for all of 2017) and had all of 18 catches for 178 yards and two touchdowns.

Then came the 2019 season in Oakland. In Week 1, he had seven catches for 70 yards. Two weeks later, he exploded for 13 grabs for 134 yards against the Minnesota Vikings.

By season's end, Waller had piled up 90 catches for over 1,145 yards and set himself up as a rising star.

32. New England Patriots

Elise Amendola/Associated Press

Original Pick: Malcom Brown, DT, Texas

New Pick: Shaq Mason, OG, Georgia Tech

The final pick of the first round wasn't a terrible one—defensive tackle Malcom Brown won two Super Bowls in four seasons with the Patriots before he signed with the Saints in 2019.

But the Patriots can do better. As a matter of fact, the Patriots did do better—in the fourth round of that same draft.

Shaq Mason didn't take long to get into the lineup—he made 10 starts as a rookie, spread between both guard spots. By his second year, he was a full-time starter. By year three, he was a fixture on New England's offensive line, starting all 16 games. By 2018, Mason inked a five-year, $50 million extension.

Over the last three seasons, Mason has played as well any guard in the league, surrendering just four sacks over that span, per Pro Football Focus. 

   

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