The NFL draft is typically about who’s next for each team. But while veteran players might receive more competition from the annual influx of rookies, the newbies can actually provide some help and positive clarity for the vets, too.
That’s where we went with this edition of the NFL Power Rankings, as several established NFL players got a boost from their teams’ drafts. Whether it’s quarterbacks getting new playmakers, defenders getting help with their jobs, or indirect votes of confidence, some vets really like the way the draft went down.
How we rank in our Power Rankings: Our power panel – a group of more than 80 writers, editors and TV personalities – evaluated how teams stack up throughout the season.
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1. Kansas City Chiefs
Post-free-agency ranking: 1
Player who benefited: QB Patrick Mahomes. Drafting RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire not only gives the team another threat, but is another sign that the Chiefs are committed to surrounding Mahomes with top offensive skill players. Kansas City won a Super Bowl with Damien Williams as the featured back, and other capable runners are on the roster, but the Chiefs weren’t satisfied. They felt like they had to take it up another notch, and Mahomes is the main beneficiary. – Adam Teicher
2. Baltimore Ravens
Post-free-agency ranking: 2
Player who benefited: OLB Jaylon Ferguson. The third-round pick had a quiet rookie season with 2.5 sacks and nine quarterback hits, but his grip on keeping a starting job strengthened after the Ravens surprisingly didn’t select an edge rusher with any of their 10 draft picks. Baltimore passed on AJ Epenesa and Yetur Gross-Matos in the first round and chose not to take Zack Baun or Josh Uche in the second. The Ravens could sign a veteran pass-rusher before the season, but the draft provided a vote of confidence in Ferguson. – Jamison Hensley
3. San Francisco 49ers
Post-free-agency ranking: 3
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Player who benefited: QB Jimmy Garoppolo. Let’s not overcomplicate this. The 49ers lost an All-Decade left tackle when Joe Staley retired, and they replaced him with seven-time Pro Bowler Trent Williams in a Day 3 trade. Williams should help keep Garoppolo upright and give him more time to throw to receivers like Brandon Aiyuk, the No. 25 overall pick who will be charged with replacing much of Emmanuel Sanders’ production. Staley and Sanders are big losses for the offense and, by extension, Garoppolo. But the Niners did well to add Williams and Aiyuk, both of whom have the ability to make Garoppolo’s life easier. – Nick Wagoner
Player who benefited: RB Alvin Kamara. We already knew how important Kamara is to the Saints as he heads into the final year of his contract. But he is even more vital now as both a runner and receiver after the Saints didn’t address either position in the draft. (ESPN’s Dianna Russini reported that they were considering RB Jonathan Taylor in Round 1, among other possibilities.) As a bonus for Kamara, the Saints used their first-round pick on center Cesar Ruiz, whose highlight package is filled with him blowing up huge running lanes. – Mike Triplett
5. Seattle Seahawks
Post-free-agency ranking: 6
Player who benefited: WR David Moore. And for that matter, Phillip Dorsett. Moore and Dorsett look like the most realistic candidates to be Seattle’s third receiver behind Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf. They might have had competition if the Seahawks had drafted a receiver earlier than the last pick of the sixth round, where they took Florida’s Freddie Swain. Seventh-round pick Stephen Sullivan looks more like a tight end and a development prospect than someone who will have a significant role right away. That’s good news for Moore and Dorsett, who are scheduled to be free agents next offseason. – Brady Henderson
6. Green Bay Packers
Post-free-agency ranking: 5
Player who benefited: WR Allen Lazard. The former undrafted free agent finished last season as WR2 behind Davante Adams, but just about everyone expected the Packers to make significant additions to the position group. Yet all they’ve done so far is sign Devin Funchess, who missed most of last season because of an injury. Lazard might lack speed and burst, but he stands above the rest of the Packers’ wideouts at 6-foot-5. Said coach Matt LaFleur after the Packers did not draft a single receiver: “Allen Lazard, the things he brought to us from a physicality standpoint, he made a bunch of big plays.” – Rob Demovsky
7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Post-free-agency ranking: 10
Player who benefited: QB Tom Brady. The Bucs got the 42-year-old quarterback one of the top tackles in the draft, Tristan Wirfs; he can start at right tackle from Day 1. They also added Ke’Shawn Vaughn, a complete back and strong pass-blocker; dynamic receiver Tyler Johnson, who was a steal in the fifth round; and speedy running back Raymond Calais. And they did all this without neglecting their defense. Plus, they used their fourth-round pick to trade for Rob Gronkowski on the eve of the draft, so that counts, right? – Jenna Laine
Player who benefited: WR Kalif Raymond. The Titans were believed to be interested in adding speed at receiver, specifically a vertical threat on the outside. But they didn’t use any picks to add a wideout, so Raymond stands as their top vertical threat and has a good shot at being the fourth receiver. He showed that he’s a legitimate downfield option last season, when he hauled in two touchdown receptions that were over 40 yards – including one in the playoffs. Raymond was also in the mix for punt return duties last year, and the Titans didn’t draft a player with significant punt return experience. – Turron Davenport
9. Minnesota Vikings
Post-free-agency ranking: 8
Player who benefited: WR Adam Thielen. The Vikings drafted Stefon Diggs’ heir apparent when they took Justin Jefferson No. 22 overall, and the LSU star immediately fills the No. 2 receiver opening. Jefferson had 100 receptions out of the slot last year and is primed to catch a lot of passes from Kirk Cousins in 2020, but it’s the attention he’ll draw from defenses that could help Thielen see less bracket man coverage. The Vikings also added K.J. Osborn and Quartney Davis in the draft. Minnesota might have defined roles for their top four receivers for the first time in years. – Courtney Cronin
10. Dallas Cowboys
Post-free-agency ranking: 11
Player who benefited: QB Dak Prescott. We don’t know when or if Prescott will show up for the virtual offseason program as he awaits a long-term contract, but whenever he is back, how can he not benefit from the addition of CeeDee Lamb in the first round? With Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup and Lamb, the Cowboys might feature the best three-receiver group they have ever had. Add that to Ezekiel Elliott, a good offensive line (even without Travis Frederick) and new coach Mike McCarthy, and the offense should flourish, which means Prescott will flourish. Quarterbacks across the league should envy the position Prescott is in. – Todd Archer
11. Buffalo Bills
Post-free-agency ranking: 9
Player who benefited: QB Josh Allen. Although A.J. Klein is a candidate, given that the Bills did not draft anyone to take snaps away from him at linebacker, GM Brandon Beane got Allen three new playmakers for Buffalo’s quietly ascending offense. Gabriel Davis and Isaiah Hodgins are high-point receivers with wide catch radiuses, and RB Zack Moss should be able to handle short-yardage situations so Allen doesn’t have to. The Bills are committing to Allen as their quarterback and have invested more in their offense this offseason than they have in the past decade. – Marcel Louis-Jacques
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Player who benefited: TE Zach Ertz. The Eagles invested heavily in speed receivers, using draft picks on Jalen Reagor, John Hightower and Quez Watkins and trading for Marquise Goodwin. Add them to DeSean Jackson, and you have a group that will stretch the field and open things up underneath for Dallas Goedert and Ertz, who was double- and triple-teamed last season with few dynamic playmakers around him. The influx of receiver talent will help Carson Wentz too, though the Jalen Hurts selection in Round 2 makes it hard to select Wentz as the player who benefits most from this draft. – Tim McManus
13. Indianapolis Colts
Post-free-agency ranking: 14
Player who benefited: QB Philip Rivers. The Colts added to their skill positions to help Rivers out, using their first two draft picks on receiver Michael Pittman Jr. and running back Jonathan Taylor, whom they traded up to get. They also selected receiver Dezmon Patmon later in the draft. Pittman and Taylor should make an immediate impact. Pittman has the size to go with the speed of T.Y. Hilton and Parris Campbell at receiver. Taylor will share the workload in the backfield with Marlon Mack, who rushed for more than 1,000 yards last season. – Mike Wells
14. Pittsburgh Steelers
Post-free-agency ranking: 15
Players who benefited: QBs Ben Roethlisberger and Mason Rudolph. The quarterbacks came away from the draft with new playmakers and more job security. Roethlisberger got Martavis Bryant 2.0 with WR Chase Claypool, and the team didn’t draft a quarterback, further solidifying Rudolph’s job as the backup and potential heir apparent whenever Roethlisberger retires. Rudolph had a rocky 2019 season, but the team believes in developing him with the help of new QB coach Matt Canada. All of the moves signal that they believe Roethlisberger will be at full strength whenever the season starts, and they want to make his job as easy as possible. – Brooke Pryor