Jared Goff or Carson Wentz? That was the big question after both the Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles mortgaged the house to trade up into the top two. Anyone else hoping for a starting quarterback was fresh out of luck. The word coming through was that the Rams were eying up Goff and that was the way it proven to be, but you know once upon a time the experts were tossing up Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III, Marcus Mariota or Jameis Winston (the second one is at least a real debate). Or, daresay, Ryan Leaf vs Peyton Manning.

Goff is a Ram, Wentz wentz to the Eagles. It was as we thought it’d be but that doesn’t mean that history will necessarily look back on it as the correct call. First of all, Goff played college ball in California so the transition there shouldn’t be too hard – in fact it’ll be easier for him than the rest of his teammates shipping up from St Louis. Not only that but Goff played at a higher level, with Wentz playing out of the Missouri Valley Conference and after all that they gave up to get him, the slightly riskier option is not the best one. Fair enough. Goff’s record as a starter was 14-23 which is apparently the worst for a #1 pick since the NFL era began so that’s a worry, as is his ability to adapt to a traditional NFL offensive formation. Look, neither was a slam dunk, that all comes with the territory and the Rams needed a quarterback. So did the Eagles, and Wentz was clearly above all others at this stage of their careers. Funny that what those two teams have in common is Sam Bradford, the forgotten man. Actually, more ignored than forgotten. He wants to be traded and it remains to be seen who wants him – Sammy might need to accept playing as a backup.

Joey Bosa to the Chargers. Cannot argue there, though it did mean overlooking Ezekiel Elliott. In many ways the draft started at three after the two obvious QBs, this was a case of need > want and when your team is as soft as the Chargers have been… hey they need players all over the park (except QB) but Bosa will be a valuable addition. Position players are always at a premium, however there’s a real argument that Bosa is as good as any other man in this class.

The best thing about Joey Bosa: there’s a rumour that his great-grandfather was a bodyguard for Al Capone. His father and uncle were also first round NFL picks but neither of those legacies is quite as incredible as the man Capone once dubbed Joey Batters. Honestly, read every word of this article and all the links. It’s crazy.

The Dallas Cowboys had arguably the toughest and the most enviable decision of all to make. The best player or the best fit? Really, there wasn’t a wrong decision but as much as I wanted to see them take Jalen Ramsey to fill out that awful secondary, Ezekiel Elliott is a player you cannot ignore. The far and away best RB this class, that position is always risky but Elliott doesn’t have any health worries and the upside is so damn high. Not quite a Todd Gurley level prospect but as good as any other running back of the last few years. Even if the Cowboys already have a bevy of RBs, this seems like the smart call. With that O-Line, this was the best case scenario for Elliott too, who looked stoked with how things worked out.

He looked a little of something else on the red carpet though.

There's a story behind the crop top, look it up.

Roger Goodell will never not get booed. At least he seems to embrace it these days.

Let’s talk Laremy Tunsil. Apparently projected at one time as a number one overall pick – that’s an outrageous claim given that there were two quarterbacks good enough for teams to trade up for them and also Ezekiel Elliott in this pool. But still, a high quality talent and one who slipped way down below where he maybe deserved. There were issues of injury and character to blame, no doubt, beginning last season with a suspension, although what really seems to have scared teams off was a video posted to his twitter about 10-15 minutes before the draft began. Since deleted, but damage done.

The sight of him sitting teary-eyed waiting on a selection, the preachy interview with his old coach, the Gruden lectures on social media… it was all pretty silly. One thing his old coach said got me thinking though. “Sometimes the things we see as negatives are actually blessings” or something along those lines. What if… what if his team released this on purpose?

Well, the alternative is that someone sabotaged him which is awful. But there is this odd incentivising thing with the draft, you know. The worst teams get the best new players. Jared Goff is gonna have to play in front of that LA Rams (still weird) offensive line. These top college prospects are guys used to winning, what if they don’t want to play for the worst teams? What if he’d rather go to the Seahawks or Patriots, say? Now maybe the Patriots see that this guy has stirred some issues and they think, look, we can get this guy late in the first round if we can scare others off. Not suggesting by any means that the New England Patriots would be willing to bend the rules to their advantage, just saying. Conspiracy corner and all. (Obviously this is just a hypothetical example, since the Patriots don't actually have a first round pick in 2016 - now why was that again...?)

Based on the Instagram pics that leaked a few minutes after he was drafted (screenshots of text convos of him asking a coach for rent money), it seems that some bugger is trying to stitch him up. Hopefully he isn’t punished too strongly by the notoriously inconsistent NFL given that this now looks more like a deliberate sabotage.

Anyway, Tunsil ended up going at 13 to the Miami Dolphins, a team who needed O-Line help like a drowning man could use a floatie. Great pick and here’s hoping Tunsel has a massive career in the NFL.

Top 12 Selections, 2016 NFL Draft:

1. Jared Goff, QB, California -> LA Rams
2. Carson Wentz, QB, N. Dakota State -> Philly Eagles
3. Joey Bosa, DE, Ohio State -> San Diego Chargers
4. Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Ohio State -> Dallas Cowboys
5. Jalen Ramsey, DB, Florida State -> Jax Jaguars
6. Ronnie Stanley, OT, Notre Dame -> Baltimore Ravens
7. DeForest Buckner, DE, Oregon -> SF 49ers
8. Jack Conklin, OT, Michigan State -> Tenny Titans
9. Leonard Floyd, OLB, Georgia -> Chicago Bears
10. Eli Apple, CB, Ohio State -> NY Giants
11. Vernon Hargreaves III, CB, Florida -> TB Buccs
12. Sheldon Rankins, DE, Louisville -> NO Saints

There’s no reason to apply much logic to anything the Cleveland Browns do but it seems clever for them to trade down and add extra mid-level talent. Oh, and Corey Coleman. There’s only so much they can do with Robert Griffin III at QB but Griff does enjoy space and Coleman is a rapid paced downfield option – looks a little like DeSean Jackson in some ways, which should clear out some room. The Browns aren’t going to get good all at once and after punting for Johnny Manziel last time, the safest thing is not to trust their own boom or bust tendencies. Seven picks in the top 100, they’ll get a strong young core out of this draft. Better than picking another top quarterback only for them to fail blindly in a system that isn’t there to sustain them. Build the structure, then add the flourishes.

About the dumbest thing about draft press is the need to grade selections. Like, you can look at teams that ignored needs and stuff but how can you judge a player that you’ve never seen play professionally? Madness.

Having said that, the R*dskins would be an example of a team ignoring a need. Defensive help? Nah, let’s get another wide receiver. All the WRs came out in the middle-first, there were three in a row at one stage. Every team needs at least three decent WRs, though they’re also not too hard to find in the mid rounds. Hard to get too excited until they’re taking one-handed diving catches in the end zone. Wait and see.

Undercover brilliant pick: the Colts getting Ryan Kelly to play centre. A dude who can go straight in and start and he could be a crucial player for this team. Their line has been a mess, the sooner they can get somebody in to get that combination with Andrew Luck the better and that’s exactly what they did.

The Bills keep picking Clemson players and Rex Ryan’s son plays there. Any advantage you can get, right?

But what about other QBs? The top end picks that go straight into starter’s roles are hit and miss, we all know this, but teams are also wary of drafting a reserve, even at the most important position. Hence why teams like the Cowboys and Browns were allegedly looking to move back up late into the first round for a second shot at a top-31 player. Paxton Lynch and Connor Cook were the next two dudes available on most lists, true to form the Denver Broncos decided they could only wait so long and flipped a third rounder to move up five spots, swapping picks with the Seattle Seahawks. Out came Mr Lynch in an absolute dream scenario, no wonder he was in tears. He joins the Super Bowl champions, getting the call from John Elway of all people, with the opportunity to replace Peyton Manning on the roster. The expectation is that Mark Sanchez will hold down the starter’s job for a year or so but Lynch is the man moving forward.

By the way, that also means Colin Kaepernick won’t be a Bronco. You don’t trade up for QB when you’ve already traded for one. The silence about that deal suggested it was already off but now we know. So… Kaepernick or Gabbert in San Francisco? Things are sort of messy there still, at least they bagged a defensive end. Always handy to have a new one of those a year after an unprecedented defensive exodus. They also traded back into the first round to get guard Joshua Garnett at 28. You want your QBs to make better decisions? Protect them, give them more time.

Cook, meanwhile, is still there for the likes of Cleveland, Dallas and possibly even Chicago to take a good long look at. He’s supposed to be more NFL ready than Lynch so surely he’ll be gone in the next few selections.

Myles Jack. Lots of talent, lots of injuries. Somebody is going to give him a run and probably sooner rather than later but his case is a great example of how any of these picks can fail thanks to nothing more than bad luck. Injuries are the worst thing is sports, at least the older guys can get paid before they get hurt. Myles Jack is losing money on his ability with every pick that goes by and it’s all just cruel fate and terrible timing. He’s super high risk but his best case scenario is super high reward as well. There will definitely be a team that decides it’s worth the risk – he seems 100% a Jerry Jones special now, although the Cowboys are distracted by other positions for now. Giants? Ravens? Chiefs even?

The final pick of the first round was Germain Ifedi, a tackle, going to Seattle. In trying to swing the balance of their team back towards the offence a little last season (most obviously in trading for Jimmy Graham), they exposed some of the holes they had, specifically out wide and in that line. Those issues have gotten worse in free agency and bringing in a reliable lineman will be key for them. Nice work – although it’s always easier to draft when you know exactly what you need.

Best Players Still Available After R1:

• Myles Jack – OLB (UCLA)
• Connor Cook – QB (Mich St)
• Vonn Bell – S (Ohio St)
• Reggie Ragland – ILB (Alabama)
• Chris Jones – DT (Miss St)
• Tyler Boyd – WR (Pitt)
• Jarran Reed – DT (Alabama)
• Kevin Dodd – DE (Clemson)
• Kamalei Correa – OLB (Boise St)
• Kendall Fuller – CB (Va Tech)
• Michael Thomas – WR (Ohio St)
• Derrick Henry – RB (Alabama)