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Inside:\u00a0Stories behind our favorite picks, plus Dane Brugler\u00a0ranks all 32 classes<\/a>\u00a0(and we look at his top three). Michael Silver also fully explored Maxx Crosby fallout in Baltimore.\u00a0Juicy<\/a>. Let\u2019s go.<\/p>\n This article is from The Athletic\u2019s NFL newsletter. Sign up here<\/a> to receive it directly in your inbox.<\/p>\n Inside the Draft<\/p>\n My three favorite tidbits from our reporters\u2019 story on their favorite picks:<\/p>\n 1. The Lions\u00a0had\u00a0to draft Blake Miller.\u00a0Detroit\u2019s first-round pick and newest offensive tackle was an ideal fit for Dan Campbell\u2019s team, as Colton Pouncy explained:<\/p>\n \ud83d\udcac \u201cMiller delayed surgery the spring of his junior season because he didn\u2019t want to miss practice and be away from his (Clemson) teammates. He ended up missing a single practice, and told reporters, \u2018That kinda sucked.’\u201d<\/p>\n How could it get any more Detroit?\u00a0Full takeaways from Colton here<\/a>.<\/p>\n 2. The Ravens\u2019 owner made a pick.\u00a0Baltimore drafting Miller\u2019s college teammate, WR-turned-RB Adam Randall, was interesting due to\u00a0the player\u2019s backstory<\/a>. It gets better: Jeff Zrebiec explained that it was owner Steve Bisciotti who scouted Randall and chose him, even calling the fifth-rounder personally, all with GM Eric DeCosta\u2019s permission. (More on Baltimore\u2019s class here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n 3.\u00a0Yes, the Commanders drafted \u201cFatman\u201d to play running back.\u00a0(Not my words! That\u2019s from Penn State\u2019s Kaytron Allen himself, who explained to the media, \u201cI was a fat baby, and everybody in the town called me Fatman. Hopefully, I keep it going in Washington and they call me Fatman. And you know, when I score, all you hear is Fatman.\u201d) There\u2019s a first for everything.<\/p>\n 4. The Packers\u00a0traded up to draft a kicker \u2026 named\u00a0Trey Smack<\/a>. That is awesome.<\/p>\n For more where all of that came from,\u00a0check out our beat reporters\u2019\u00a0favorite picks for all 32 teams<\/a>. Now for the three best draft classes \u2026<\/p>\n Browns, Giants and Raiders lead Dane Brugler\u2019s ranks<\/p>\n The Monday after every NFL Draft, Dane Brugler ranks each team\u2019s class from 1 to 32.<\/p>\n The No. 1 and No. 3 teams in his\u00a02025 rankings<\/a> made the Super Bowl. No. 2 was Cleveland, which reset its foundation with a stellar class. The Eagles, No. 4 in 2024<\/a>, would win the Super Bowl later that season.<\/p>\n That means we should pay close attention to the top of Dane\u2019s latest\u00a0team-by-team class rankings<\/a>, published this morning. Two might be in the Super Bowl. The other is in Cleveland. We\u2019ll start there.<\/p>\n 1. Cleveland Browns<\/p>\n After another impressive haul, the Browns might be the most only-a-quarterback-away team in the NFL.<\/p>\n Their elite defense is now buoyed by an\u00a0offense-heavy class<\/a>, which saw Cleveland improve its receiver room and offensive line with seven (!) total additions. Spencer Fano was the draft\u2019s top-rated lineman and has elite tackle potential, while KC Concepcion might be the most dangerous receiver in this class with the ball in his hands.<\/p>\n They also added two of the\u00a0draft\u2019s biggest values<\/a>\u00a0in safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren (consensus ranking No. 22, drafted at 58) and receiver Denzel Boston (consensus No. 20, drafted 39).<\/p>\n Now all the Browns need to do is \u2026 suck in 2026. That way, they can draft an elite 2027 quarterback, who could actually be fortunate to end up in Cleveland. (I can\u2019t believe I\u2019m typing that either. This is the first time since early-2010s Josh Gordon that I\u2019m excited about the Browns.)<\/p>\n 2. New York Giants<\/p>\n Top-10 draft rankings in 2025 and 2024 produced a strong base for the Giants, one that enticed this cycle\u2019s most attractive coaching candidate despite the team\u2019s 22-45-1 record in the prior four seasons.<\/p>\n John Harbaugh happily inherited Jaxson Dart, Malik Nabers and Abdul Carter, each at a premium position, on a rookie contract and under 23 years old. His Giants then spent $173 million in free agency \u2014 eighth-most in the NFL \u2014 to patch the roster elsewhere.<\/p>\n They\u2019ve now added the draft\u2019s best player, linebacker Arvell Reese. The Ohio State product fell to No. 5, significantly further than any of Dane\u2019s other top-ranked players since 2019:<\/p>\n Reese, also the\u00a0best scheme fit in the draft<\/a>, benefits from landing on a team where he can play both inside linebacker and on the edge.<\/p>\n He was expected to land in New York, but with the Jets at No. 2. Giants\u2019 brass was shocked.<\/p>\n \u201cEven general manager Joe Schoen didn\u2019t anticipate the linebacker would be available,\u201d wrote my colleague Charlotte Carroll in her\u00a0post-draft takeaways<\/a>. \u201cHarbaugh said, \u2018I think Joe probably ran about a zillion mocks \u2014 no, maybe that\u2019s a slight exaggeration. \u2026 And this one didn\u2019t come up.’\u201d<\/p>\n Reese leads a group that emphasized size and build. After his first draft in New York, Harbaugh called this 2026 class \u201cA bunch of Giants, figuratively and literally.\u201d (And hey, kudos to Schoen for three\u00a0consecutive top-10 classes.)<\/p>\n 3. Las Vegas Raiders<\/p>\n Nothing matters all that much here unless Fernando Mendoza becomes a franchise quarterback.<\/p>\n That said, our new Raiders beat reporter, Sam Warren, (who\u00a0sports an impressive moustache<\/a>) shared an interesting theme in Las Vegas:<\/p>\n \u201cAlmost all their additions overcame some sort of adversity in their college careers, whether that be underrecruitment, transfer or injury. That\u2019s representative of the character general manager John Spytek wants his team to play with.\u201d<\/p>\n It sounds like Spytek wants players who are as\u00a0motivated toward greatness<\/a>\u00a0as co-owner and former sixth-rounder Tom Brady. A smart approach.<\/p>\n They just still need a receiver, badly. Free agent Jauan Jennings could be a fit here.<\/p>\n Otherwise, no notes.\u00a0The Raiders were\u00a0my\u00a0pick<\/a>\u00a0for the draft\u2019s best class. That\u2019s thanks to Mendoza, the potential value they landed in cornerback Jermod McCoy and other additions who could be major contributors in 2026, including offensive lineman Trey Zuhn III.<\/p>\n \ud83e\udef5 Poll time:\u00a0Who do you think won the 2026 draft?\u00a0Click here to vote<\/a>.<\/p>\n Extra Points<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc40 Ravens explain Crosby saga.\u00a0Michael Silver went inside Baltimore\u2019s facility with exclusive access to DeCosta and other decision-makers.\u00a0He shares it all<\/a>.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udf99\u00a0Mike Tomlin explained\u00a0the\u00a0factors that went into his resignation<\/a>. Insightful look into the mental side of coaching pro football.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udca1\u00a0This draft taught us plenty,\u00a0and Zak Keefer tells us\u00a0every key takeaway here<\/a>.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udcd3 Who were the NFL Draft\u2019s biggest outliers?\u00a0Saad Yousuf shared his\u00a010 favorite value picks<\/a>\u00a0(and the most daring reaches).<\/p>\n \ud83e\udd1d\u00a0The 2027 quarterback class\u00a0is heralded as the next great group of passers, a la 2004 or 2024.\u00a0Here are those prospects<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u25b6\ufe0f\u00a0Sunday\u2019s most-clicked:\u00a0Mike Jones on this draft\u2019s\u00a0winners and losers<\/a>.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udceb Enjoyed this read? Sign up here<\/a> to receive The Athletic\u2019s free NFL newsletter in your inbox.\u00a0<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/d1e5388aed6443d48f20dcb6be396649-browns.jpg\"\/)
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