Initial 2015 Draft Grades - NFC West

 24. Florida OT D.J. Humphries
 58. Missouri OLB Markus Golden
 86. Northern Iowa RB David Johnson
 116. Delaware State DE Rodney Gunter
 158. West Virginia DE/OLB Shaq Riddick
 159. UAB KR/WR J.J. Nelson
 256. Louisville TE Gerald Christian

Good Move - David Johnson was a sensible pick for the Cardinals - a big, bruising back to act as an effective foil for Andre Ellington. He can catch too. Scouts question his vision, and his blocking will need to improve too, but should provide a good contrast to what the Cards currently have and boost the run game immediately.
Bargain Pick - Nothing stands out here in the latter rounds - J.J.Nelson was lightning quick in the 40 at the combine but at only 156 lbs is very lightweight. Maybe he will surprise as a KR after posting a 38.7 yd average in his last season in college.
Risk / Reward Gamble - D.J Humphries will probably start wk1 for Arizona at RT. He relies on superior athleticism and power, the step up in class will negate some of this advantage. The Cards will need to help develop his fundamentals if they are to transition him to LT in a few years.
Tell Me Why Again? - The Cardinals traded 3 picks 123, 198 and 241 to move up only 7 picks, then took small school Rodney Gunter who wasn't expected to be drafted. The final half of the class were all borderline draft prospects / likely free agents. This is either fantastic scouting by Arizona or long-shot reaches.

 17. Oregon DE Arik Armstead
 46. Samford S Jaquiski Tartt
 79. Virginia OLB Eli Harold
 117. Oklahoma TE Blake Bell
 126. South Carolina RB Mike Davis
 132. Georgia Tech WR DeAndre Smelter
 165. Clemson P Bradley Pinion
 190. Boston College OG Ian Silberman
 244. Florida OG Trent Brown
 254. South Carolina TE Rory Anderson

Good Move - Trading down in round 1 and still obtaining the player everyone knew they were interested in. Now whether Armstead will translate his physical gifts into production, time will tell. But you can't argue with the Niners obtaining the man they wanted plus a 4th round pick in this draft and a 5th rounder in 2016.
Bargain Pick - Virginia's Eli Harold was a great pick at #79 for someone with a borderline 1st round grade. He'll be a good fit for the 49ers 3-4 system too. He's a deep depth chart at OLB to contend with in SF but should see time as an edge rusher in spells and will need to earn playing time. I loved Busta Anderson in the 7th, he's got the athleticism to stretch defenses and should stick around.
Risk / Reward Gamble - Tartt wasn't projected so high but with Randall and Collins off the board maybe the Niners saw the Safety class depleting quickly. He's a thumper of a Safety but playing at Samford he's going to be a work in progress in coverage. Development pick in the 2nd round.
Tell Me Why Again? - With Patrick Willis and Chris Borland retiring ILB appeared the 49ers most pressing need but the position wasn't even addressed in the latter rounds. CB also appeared a need which was ignored. The Tartt pick seemed a little high but I'll give the benefit to GM Trent Baalke with this one who might be looking Yr 2 and beyond. Indeed, the overall draft class felt a little like the start of a 3-yr plan - was it too developmental? I can't ignore the fact that a Punter with a 42yd average was selected in the middle of this class either.

 63. Michigan DE Frank Clark
 69. Kansas State WR/KR Tyler Lockett
 130. San Diego State T/G Terry Poole
 134. West Virginia G/C Mark Glowinski
 170. Towson CB Tye Smith
 209. Oregon State DE Obum Gwacham
 214. Buffalo OG Kristjan Sokoli
 248. Oregon State DB Ryan Murphy

Good Move - The pre-draft trade of their 1st round pick and C Max Unger for TE Jimmy Graham will steal the headlines. However, the Seahawks were enamoured with Tyler Lockett and whilst they sacrificed a number of picks to obtain him at #69, he will offer them a similar outlet to Percy Harvin previously. Lockett is most likely a slot receiver in the pro's, but played outside in college too. He will be heavily involved in returning kicks also. Can he bulk-up without losing speed?
Bargain Pick - Mark Glowinski was largely unheralded but is a hard-working and powerful Guard who retains good footwork from previously playing the Tackle position. Has a good chance to contribute on the Seahawk O-line due to his versatility.
Risk / Reward Gamble - The selection of Frank Clark divided opinion. He has a large amount of talent but it comes with an awful lot of off-the-field baggage including a second degree felony charge in 2012 for home invasion and theft and a recent plea bargain which avoided first degree charges for domestic violence and assault. On-the-field, Clark can be a powerful edge rusher. When you've been to the Superbowl twice in two years, I guess you can afford to take this Boom or Bust risk.
Tell Me Why Again? - We shouldn't doubt the Seahawks Front Office - so just Tell Me Why they can pick stand-out athletes with relatively average college productivity in the back-end of the draft and turn them into starters? Gwacham, Sokoli and Murphy all hit that same mould of athletic stand-outs who will need development by their position coaches.

 10. Georgia RB Todd Gurley
 57. Wisconsin OT Rob Havenstein
 72. Louisville OG Jamon Brown
 89. Oregon State QB Sean Mannion
 119. Iowa OT Andrew Donnal
 201. Missouri WR Bud Sasser
 215. Fresno State OG Cody Wichmann
 224. Baylor LB Bryce Hager
 227. Memphis DL Martin Ifedi

Good Move - The Rams realise one of their weaknesses has been on the O-line and they have at least attempted to address this with 4 O-linemen selected in their draft class of 9. They'll need at least a 50% success rate from these 4 draftees.
Bargain Pick - Cody Wichmann could surprise - he's a decent size guard and despite playing in the Mountain West, performed admirably when faced with top talent such as Leonard Williams and Randy Gregory in 2014. There's opportunity in St Louis for Wichmann to make his mark.
Risk / Reward Gamble - Todd Gurley is a top 5 talent and arguably the best running back out of college since Adrian Peterson. However, coming off an ACL injury it's a calculated risk for St Louis that Gurley will return back to the same player he was post-injury at Georgia. This was a brave pick and the success of the draft class could be on the back of how Gurley recovers from injury.
Tell Me Why Again? - Sean Mannion in the 3rd round feels like a real overstretch. He was very inconsistent in 2014 and is at best a game manager at QB who will have to rely on a strong supporting cast to be successful. When the Rams have holes to fill, a 3rd round pick on someone I'd class as a career back-up feels like a wasted pick.