TMG DraftZone 2013 NFL Draft Grades: AFC North

The Baltimore Ravens captured their second consecutive AFC North title in 2012, then got hot when it was needed. The dispatched the Colts at home, then went on the road to knock off Peyton Manning in Denver and Tom Brady in New England. The Ray Lewis Retirement Ride ended with a Super Bowl title in New Orleans against the San Francisco 49ers. Joe Flacco was named Super Bowl MVP, then signed a huge contract befitting his status as one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. But the Ravens took personnel hits all winter. Lewis retired, Ed Reed signed with Houston and Paul Kruger moved to Cleveland. They were just the beginning, but the Ravens have the best GM in the business with Ozzie Newsome, and he proved that yet again in the 2013 Draft. There were holes to fill, and Ozzie hit the mark all three days. Matt Elam was selected in Round 1 to replace either Reed or Bernard Pollard at safety, and Arthur Brown was a steal late in Round 2 to fill the Hall of Fame shoes of Ray Lewis. But Baltimore was not the only AFC North team to hit the mark on draft weekend. Cincinnati continued their draft hot streak with Tyler Eifert and Giovani Bernard to add firepower to the offense, and Margus Hunt gives the defensive front the look of The Great Wall Of Cincinnati. At 6'8, Hunt teams with 6'7 Michael Johnson and 6'6 Carlos Dunlap to give the Bengals an imposing look. Pittsburgh lost James Harrison to the Bengals, but found his replacement with one of the biggest draft steals by selecting Jarvis Jones at #17 overall. Cleveland added to their pass rush with Barkevious Mingo at #6 overall, and he can team with Kruger to make the Browns new 3-4 defense very formidable. So here are the draft grades for the AFC North for 2013, with key selections and sleeper picks: Baltimore: A- Arthur Brown (LB) Kyle Juszczyk (FB) Matt Elam will always be seen as the replacement to Ed Reed, but the ball hawking skills of the future Hall of Famer is not the game that Elam plays. He will slip into the physical role of strong safety, but he has the talent to star in the NFL. But Brown has a load to carry at linebacker. Lewis on the field is tough to replace, but his leadership cannot. But if Brown can play his game and not try to be the next Ray Lewis he will be a second round steal. John Simon will also be a contributor at the linebacker position. Juszczyk looks to eventually take over the fullback role, and be the road grater for Ray Rice and provide protection for Flacco. Cincinnati: A Giovani Bernard (RB) Shawn Williams (S) Andy Dalton can now look out over a lineup of A.J. Green on one side, Mohammed Sanu on the other, and a two tight end set of Jermaine Gresham and Tyler Eifert. And what this lineup can do is create holes by spreading out the defense so that Bernard can run to daylight. Bernard also gives Dalton another target in the passing game. Williams will be able to compete for the starting strogn safety spot, and how he handles pass coverage will determine if he can bet out Taylor Mays. Cleveland: C+ Barkevious Mingo (DE) Leon McFadden (CB) Mingo will need to add some strength to work against NFL tackles, but he has to speed to get to the backfield. Many thought that the Browns would go after Dee Milliner to pair with Joe Haden to form a bookend corner set, but now McFadden has a chance to fill that role. Cleveland forfeit its second round pick to that Josh Gordon in the Supplemental Draft, and traded picks to load up on future picks. It's a Win Now If We Can But We're Going To Be Great Later philosophy, but I will give the Browns credit for not drafting a quarterback. Give Brandon Weeden a chance without looking over his shoulder and he can develop into a good quarterback, especially with Trent Richardson to keep defenses honest in the running game. Pittsburgh: B+ Shamarko Thomas (S) Landry Jones (QB) Jones was a steal at #17. But it shows that the Steelers know what they are doing by not looking at the measureables from the Combine and Pro Days and by looking at the player on the field. There was a concern about Jones' spinal stenosis condition, but two seasons at Georgia and medical clearance should have put just about all those fears to rest. Replacements for Rashard Mendanhall at running back and Mike Wallace at wide receiver were picked next by selecting Le'Veon Bell and Markus Wheaton. The eventual replacement to Troy Polamalu may have been found in Sharmako Thomas. But one position you might not think is a need is backup quarterback, with Ben Roethlisberger calling the plays. But as tough as Big Ben is, he has been getting banged up. Landry Jones is in a good position to fill that backup role and keep the Steelers on track is need be.