Day 1 Winners and Losers

I'll hand out my draft grades tomorrow when all the dust has settled, but I'd like to take a look at a couple of the standout teams from the first day of the 2009 NFL Draft, as well as a couple of teams who clearly missed the mark.

TOP OF THE CLASS
- New York Jets: The Jets knew exactly what they wanted coming into the draft - a franchise QB - and they did everything they could to grab one. Sitting at No. 17 was not going to do the team any good, so they swapped first rounders with Cleveland and gave up a second rounder, as well as three players who would have likely been riding the pine in New York. The end result: Mark Sanchez, a franchise-quality QB.
- Green Bay Packers: The Pack had two first round picks, moving back into the bottom end of the round, and addressed their defense in a big way. B.J. Raji is a force to be reckoned with in the middle of the defensive line, and Clay Matthews is a standout OLB who works hard and can punish opposing ball carriers.
- Cleveland Browns: Cleveland traded down twice and landed the guy they seemed to be targeting from the beginning, Alex Mack, a standout center at Cal. They made three picks in the second round, adding two good receivers and a defensive end with a lot of potential. I thought the pick of Brian Robiskie was a bit of a reach, but he's certainly a hometown favorite with his Ohio State connections.
- New England Patriots: The Pats did a phenomenal job of maneuvering out of the first round, when they clearly didn't want to take anyone at their draft position. They used their four second rounders to pick some good talents (I think Patrick Chung and Darius Butler translate very well to the next level), but their trade work was phenomenal.
- Buffalo Bills: The Bills made four very solid picks. Aaron Maybin excels at getting to the quarterback, and Jairus Byrd is a ballhawking corner who led the Pac-10 in interceptions each of the last two years. Eric Wood is a standout at center, and Andrew Levitre can provide immediate help at the guard position.

HEAD-SCRATCHERS
- Oakland Raiders: What were they thinking? Darrius Heyward-Bey could prove to be enormously talented at the NFL level, but he would have been available at least seven or eight picks later. An enormous reach at No. 7. And the second round pick is a major head scratcher. Michael Mitchell, the safety from Ohio, was apparently valued by many other teams as no more than a Rookie Free Agent.

NOT GREAT BUT NOT AWFUL
- Kansas City Chiefs: Tyson Jackson could end up being a stud in the NFL, but he's a bit of a reach at No. 3.
- San Diego Chargers: Larry English is also an interesting selection. He, too, could end up being very good, but picking him at No. 16 is somewhat of a surprise. The Chargers may have been able to draft him later in the first round, and could have possibly traded down.