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If you missed Sigmund Bloom, Matt Waldman and I -- along with tremendous guest appearances by Ryan Riddle and Cian Fahey -- break down the draft live last night on Google Hangouts, we'll be back again tonight starting at 6:30 ET to cover the second and third rounds.
As is often the case, the first round saw more defensive players come off the board than offensive players. The usual heavy numbers of pass rushers and cornerbacks were drafted, but the recent trend of prioritizing strong safety play continued. Four safeties were taken in the first round, each of them versatile in their own way.
But the most intriguing result of tonight's draft picks were the potentially dominant pairings of pass rushing talents that we'll get to see develop in the coming months.
I'll have more extensive analysis, some early positional rookie rankings and the first version of my combined draft board soon after the draft ends. Here's my quick take on each of tonight's defensive selections. You can find links to my pre-draft positional previews at the bottom of this feature.
1.01 OLB jadeveon clowney | houston
Clowney will team with J.J. Watt to form a potentially lethal pass rushing combination. If Clowney develops a mature array of pass rush moves to counter his first step, it'll work to help both players. Whitney Mercilus also stands to benefit. And we may see the Texans revisit moving Brooks Reed inside. IDP owners will no doubt be disappointed with Clowney's likely classification as an OLB.
1.05 OLB Khalil Mack | oakland
Mack will likely be a base defensive strong side linebacker and a nickel pass rusher, similar to how the Broncos have used Von Miller. Mack has the all-around talent to succeed in that role. It's likely that Nick Roach and Kevin Burnett continue at middle and weak side linebacker, respectively, which may push Sio Moore into a super-sub role. It's also possible that we'll see the Raiders transition to more 3-4 base looks in time, especially if Justin Tuck cannot handle a full time base defensive role.
1.08 CB Justin Gilbert | Cleveland
It was a surprise when the Browns moved up one spot to take a cornerback. Gilbert is a big physical player, but doesn't always play to his size. Cleveland will look to break him in opposite Joe Haden and hope that they'll grow into a cornerback tandem that will allow Mike Pettine to use his full playbook of coverage and blitzes.
1.09 OLB Anthony Barr | Minnesota
With Aaron Donald still on the board as a potential Geno Atkins clone, Barr was a surprise. Mike Zimmer told reporters that he loves Barr's versatility and upside as a pass rusher, but acknowledged that he still has a lot to learn. The Vikings aren't moving to a 3-4, so we'll likely see Zimmer try to use Barr as a base strong side linebacker. There's a chance that Barr will only see situational duty as a rookie, however, as Dion Jordan did in Miami last year.
1.13 DT Aaron Donald | St. Louis
There were lots of strong potential landing spots for Donald -- Chicago, Dallas, Tampa Bay, Minnesota -- but St. Louis trumps them all. Donald doesn't need to play 800 snaps for the Rams with Michael Brockers and Kendall Langford established on the depth chart. He'll primarily be used as a three-technique next to Robert Quinn. It'll be nearly impossible to double team both players.
1.14 CB Kyle Fuller | Chicago
The Bears have Charles Tillman (who has refused to move to safety) and Tim Jennings at corner but Fuller is arguably the best Cover-2 corner of the consensus top five cornerback prospects. He'll see a nickel role -- at minimum -- early this season and will be the long term replacement plan for Tillman.
1.15 ILB Ryan Shazier | Pittsburgh
At first glance, the fit here is suspect. Shazier is a flow-and-chase linebacker who looked like he would most thrive as a 4-3 weak side linebacker. Lawrence Timmons currently plays the position most similar to that in Pittsburgh's scheme. Timmons will now move to strong inside linebacker, with Shazier getting every opportunity to earn the every-down weak inside linebacker job. Shazier's best case comp may be Daryl Washington. I don't see him blossoming into another NaVorro Bowman.
1.17 ILB C.J. Mosley | Baltimore
With Daryl Smith signed to an extension and last year's first round pick Arthur Brown healthy, Ozzie Newsome clearly felt Mosley was the best player available. Brown's development was stunted by injury last year, but looked to be poised to take a larger role this year. Smith is entrenched as the every-down strong inside linebacker and Mosley may be good enough in coverage to keep Brown from having a platoon role. I'm interested to see what the Ravens say they're planning with Brown in the short and long term.
1.18 S Calvin Pryor | NY Jets
Pryor is a good fit for Rex Ryan. He's aggressive, physical and can hold his own in coverage. The Jets are one of the few teams that value an in the box strong safety. Pryor's pass rush ability was also a likely draw for Ryan.
1.21 S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix | Green Bay
Clinton-Dix slid further than expected, but Green Bay is a nice fit for him. He'll be an interchangeable safety alongside Morgan Burnett. He projects well against the run for a cover safety. If he makes more plays on the ball, his stat lines could be very strong.
1.23 OLB Dee Ford | Kansas City
Ford won't have more than a situational role with the Chiefs for now, with Tamba Hali and Justin Houston key parts of the Kansas City base defense. Look for him to be a nickel edge rusher as the Chiefs work to develop him into a full time player.
1.24 CB Darqueze Dennard | Cincinnati
The Bengals get a corner many had rated as the top overall coverage prospect. With Leon Hall recovering from a second Achilles tear, Dre Kirkpatrick yet to live up to his draft status and Pacman Jones and Terrence Newman aging, Dennard will get a chance to contribute immediately.
1.25 CB Jason Verrett | San Diego
The Chargers were in need of corner help and, if not for a labral injury that may keep Verrett from getting enough offseason reps to challenge for a starting job this year, arguably got the best corner in the draft. In a draft full of corner prospects with size, Verrett is a dynamo that reminds me of Antoine Winfield.
1.26 OLB Marcus Smith | Philadelphia
Ryan Riddle verbally smacked some sense into me during tonight's hangout, respectfully suggesting that I was reading too much into Smith's less than impressive Senior Bowl reps and not enough into the strong reps I watched on tape. There's a need for a strong edge rusher in Philadelphia and Smith fits the bill. It may also -- finally -- lead to the Eagles freeing Brandon Graham.
1.27 S Deone Bucannon | Arizona
Bucannon caught my eye at the Senior Bowl. He has the body of a strong safety and the cover skills of a free safety. I didn't expect him to come off the board until the second or third round, but his selection at the end of the first shows how strongly the league values all-around safety play right now. Bucannon has stiff competition for tackles from Tyrann Mathieu (when healthy) and Daryl Washington, but should become a strong part of Arizona's back seven.
1.29 DT Domininque Easley | New England
Clowney / Watt, Donald / Quinn and Ford / Houston are potentially elite pass rushing combinations. If Easley's ridiculous quickness off the ball survives his second ACL injury -- and his Pro Day performance suggested it will -- the Easley / Chandler Jones pairing will rival the others. Easley won't be asked to take 700 snaps this year, but he'll get an opportunity to become a dominant subpackage player.
1.30 S Jimmie Ward | San Francisco
Ward was arguably the best cover safety in the draft. With Antoine Bethea and Eric Reid the current starters at safety, I expect we'll see Ward as a slot corner / deep safety hybrid, with either Bethea or Reid helping in a Big Nickel role. That's a great role for Ward, who will eventually become an every-down player, and a smart way for the Niners to counteract the loss of NaVorro Bowman.
1.31 CB Bradley Roby | Denver
Roby may have the best physical tools of the five corners drafted in tonight's first round, but he's easily the most inconsistent talent and there are significant off-field concerns. He doesn't have to be the man in Denver, however. Aqib Talib, T.J. Ward and a healthy Chris Harris will allow the Broncos to ease Roby in slowly and groom him for the long term.
second day potentials
The second and third round will see a number of strong defensive names drafted. We should see our first 4-3 defensive ends drafted, among many others. Look out for...
DL: Kony Ealy, Ra'Shede Hageman, Louis Nix, Timmy Jernigan, Scott Crichton, Kareem Martin and Stephon Tuitt
EDGE: Demarcus Lawrence, Kyle Van Noy, Jerry Attaochu and Carl Bradford
LB: Chris Borland, Shayne Skov, Telvin Smith
SECONDARY: Stanley Jean-Baptiste, Terrence Brooks, Lamarcus Joyner
...among many other intriguing names.
Follow and ask questions on Twitter @JeneBramel. Reading the Defense will be a regular feature this offseason with free agent commentary, draft prospect previews, tier discussion, links to our offseason IDP roundtable podcasts and much more. Subscribe to The Audible on iTunes or download our IDP podcast here.