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It’s true that surroundings have a huge impact on whether a draft pick succeeds.
You can have all the talent in the world, but playing in place with a logjam at the position or being thrust into the wrong scheme can certainly contribute to a draft pick’s bust potential.
As I watched the NFL draft over the weekend — all but the last half hour or so — I had certain reactions to hearing B1G names come off the board. Sometimes it was, “woah, not sure about that one.” Other times, it was “oh, that’s a perfect fit.”
These are the 7 B1G draft picks who I think have ideal fits with their new NFL teams:
1. Saquon Barkley, Giants
I already went in depth about this the other day, so I’ll try and not to repeat myself too much. But the more I think about Barkley going to the Giants, that Cramer dude from the show “Mad Money” keeps popping into my head.
BUY, BUY, BUY.
After seeing him land in New York (well, New Jersey), I’m even more on board the Barkley hype train. I don’t think I’m alone in that. Odell Beckham Jr. is already on board with Barkley taking over the Big Apple (well, New Jersey). Barkley was built to shine in a big market, and as we know, he can do some serious damage when the offense has weapons to stretch the field vertically. New York has both of those things.
He’ll stay near the area that he grew up and become an immediate star as a rookie. No diggity, no doubt.
2. D.J. Moore, Panthers
Cam Newton has a lot of things. He has an eclectic collection of hats. He has a Heisman Trophy. He has a national title. He has an NFC title. He has a black Ferrari F12 (well, he did before that accident). You know what Newton didn’t have? A guy who could line up anywhere on the field and make plays. Now he does thanks to Moore.
As much as I like former Ohio State star Curtis Samuel and Christian McCaffrey, they aren’t guys who can play on the outside, nor are they guys who can truly burn someone on a deep ball with their route running (Yes, Cam. We’re talking “routes.”) And I like Michigan great Devin Funchess a lot, but he’s still not a proven move-the-chains receiver. Moore can be that versatile glue guy that Newton desperately needs.
And oh, what about Newton’s accuracy or lack thereof? All Moore ever did was play with inaccurate quarterbacks at Maryland and he was still the 2017 B1G Receiver of the Year. That was without any weapons around him. Moore will be surrounded with more weapons than he could’ve ever asked for.
Maybe with Moore, Newton can get that one thing that he doesn’t have (a Super Bowl ring).
3. Tyquan Lewis, Colts
Rarely do we see a position group as talented as Ohio State was on the defensive line. While the Buckeyes might’ve used the Rushmen Package to try and maximize that talent, I like the idea of Lewis going to a place where there’s an immediate need without a crowded position group.
I like that the Colts took Lewis, who was one of the most polished pass-rushers in the draft, as well as someone extremely gifted but raw like former Rutgers EDGE rusher Kemoko Turay. Both of those former B1G edge rushers came off the board in the second round, which tells you how serious the Colts are about improving on their league-worst pass rush. Lewis will help with that immediately.
It probably won’t take long before he’s hurrying throws that get picked off by fellow Buckeye Malik Hooker.
4. Josey Jewell, Broncos
Jewell might not have been a super highly-regarded prospect because he doesn’t pressure the quarterback. You know what the former Iowa star isn’t going to have to worry about doing very much in Denver? Pressuring the quarterback. Why? Well, I’m pretty sure Von Miller and No. 5 overall pick Bradley Chubb have that covered.
That means Jewell will have the freedom to do what he does best. He can get sideline to sideline and blow up plays in space. He can also cover tight ends and play well in pass coverage, too (people forget that Jewell had six interceptions at Iowa). The dude who made 437 tackles (!) in college is going to make hundreds and hundreds more for the Broncos. Not bad for a fourth-rounder.
You better believe John Elway was “thrilled to get him at pick 106.”
Josey Jewell was an extremely productive player at LB for Iowa. He has a lot of great qualities as a person – a team captain for many years at Iowa and we're thrilled to get him at pick 106. pic.twitter.com/wsHtdVdUp3
— John Elway (@johnelway) April 28, 2018
5. Marcus Allen, Steelers
After inexplicably falling to the fifth round, the former Penn State safety got the ultimate reward when he was told that he’ll get to stay in Pennsylvania and play for his hometown Steelers. In addition to that, Allen will play for a coach in Mike Tomlin who specializes in defensive backs. Speaking of that, I wonder if any hard-hitting safeties have ever thrived playing for Tomlin. Oh, that’s right. Future Hall of Famer Troy Polamalu did alright for himself playing for Tomlin.
I’m not saying that Allen is going to be Polamalu, but there are certainly some similarities. Both thrive on making the big hit, whether that’s on a bubble screen or a post. Tomlin is going to put Allen in position to do that, just like Brent Pry did at Penn State.
Pittsburgh is already home for Allen. Something tells me he’ll make himself home in that defensive backfield in no time.
6. Natrell Jamerson, Saints
Speaking of hard-hitting safeties, Jamerson was quite the steal in the back end of the fifth round. Durability issues dropped the former Wisconsin safety that far (2017 was basically his first full season). But not only can he lay the wood, Jamerson can also play all over the place on special teams, which I would expect him to do immediately.
Jamerson is a freak athletically — he benches 400 pounds and has a 35.5-inch vertical — and he already had some top-notch coaching from Jim Leonhard. That’s why Todd McShay called Jamerson one of the steals of the draft. He’ll provide instant value for a secondary that was significantly improved in 2017 thanks to former Ohio State star Marshon Lattimore.
And with all due respect to Saints safety Marcus Williams, let’s just say I wouldn’t bank on Jamerson missing a tackle with the season on the line.
Just sayin’.
7. Leon Jacobs, Jaguars
Let’s finish this thing off with one more former Badger defender. Jacobs is off to Sacksonville, where he’ll enter a locker room full of grown men on defense.
Um, I think Jacobs will fit in just fine.
Jaguars just took @BadgerFootball LB Leon Jacobs in Round 7 of #NFLDraft. In case you've never seen him … pic.twitter.com/GKxap76K2o
— NFL Draft (@NFLDraft) April 28, 2018
Obviously that alone won’t result in Jacobs cracking the rotation. His versatility as both an inside and outside linebacker could be what helps him get reps. Also, I’ve said this before about Jacobs. I’m interested to see what he can do now that he can focus in on playing linebacker every day.
Even though Jacksonville has some extremely talented defensive players, they don’t have the strong-side linebacker position solidified. As of now, the only thing separating Jacobs from a starting job is second-year man Blair Brown, who had 15 tackles as a rookie after he was drafted in the fifth round last year.
Jacobs, who played in more FBS games than anyone ever, will still need to develop at the position (he definitely doesn’t need to develop physically). That’s why he went in the seventh round and not the third. But if he can do that, he’ll have a chance to play on a front seven with Pro Bowl-ers Telvin Smith, Yannick Ngakoue and Malik Jackson.
Sacksonville was the ideal landing spot for Jacobs.
Connor O'Gara is the senior national columnist for Saturday Tradition. He's a member of the Football Writers Association of America. After spending his entire life living in B1G country, he moved to the South in 2015.