Ranking the 8 Best NFL Draft Classes from the Last 10 Years

A great draft class can reverse the fortunes of a NFL team. It often takes multiple impactful picks to achieve that goal, though.

Some players have lifted their respective teams despite not receiving much support from their draft classmates. Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald are two such examples. Both turned into Hall of Fame talents, but they didn’t have a great overall draft class around them.

The best draft classes from the last 10 years have all featured three or more difference-makers.

NFL teams used to give rookies more time to develop, but patience often runs thin in today’s high-stakes game. So, it should come as no surprise that three of the top eight draft classes from the past 10 years are from the last two drafts, especially when two of those featured both the Offensive and Defensive Rookies of the Year.

Here, we’ve ranked the best draft classes from the past 10 years based on volume and quality of impact players.

This final slot essentially boiled down to a tie between the 2023 Los Angeles Rams and Detroit Lions. Both pieced together exceptional rookie classes, but the Rams won the tiebreaker since they landed multiple potential franchise cornerstones without a first-round pick.

Fifth-round receiver Puka Nacua emerged as the class’ crown jewel. Nacua broke NFL rookie records with 105 receptions and 1,486 receiving yards on his way to a Pro Bowl and second-team All-Pro nod. The wide receiver is a perfect fit in head coach Sean McVay’s system and could put up consistent numbers year after year.

While Nacua is the headliner, defensive tackle Kobie Turner took some pressure off Aaron Donald by creating some of his own. The interior rusher led all rookies with nine sacks. He also generated 50 quarterback pressures, according to Pro Football Focus. Turner’s emergence last season should help soften the blow of Donald’s retirement.

The Rams’ top selection in 2023, Steve Avila, started all 18 games at left guard (including the playoffs). He’s expected to make the full-time transition to center this fall.

Byron Young, whom Los Angeles selected 77th overall, tied with Donald for second on the squad with eight sacks. Seventh-rounder Ethan Evans finished among the top 10 leaguewide last season with an average of 49.2 yards per punt.

Rams general manager Les Snead did a tremendous job of retooling the roster on the fly. He brought the team back to contention while building a foundation for the future.

The San Francisco 49ers got lucky when Brock Purdy, the final pick of the 2022 NFL draft, turned out to be a franchise quarterback. But they competed at a high level prior to that point, and their 2019 class was a significant reason why.

That class was headlined by No. 2 overall pick Nick Bosa, who is now one of the annual favorites to win the NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Bosa won the award two years ago and is already a four-time Pro Bowler. A torn ACL in 2020 likely cost him a fifth nod.

Bosa has tallied 44.5 sacks over the last three seasons alone. He’s particularly dominant with the game on the line. Bosa’s 17.5 sacks and 86 pressures in the fourth quarter and overtime both led the NFL since the start of the 2021 campaign, per Pro Football Focus.

After choosing Bosa in the first round, the Niners grabbed wide receiver Deebo Samuel in the second. He has since emerged as one of the game’s best all-around offensive weapons.

Samuel has amassed 3,751 yards from scrimmage and 31 touchdowns over the past three seasons. He’s a threat lined up wide or out of the backfield, and he’s especially dangerous after the catch or handoff.

The fourth-round selection of punter Mitch Wishnowsky is what it is, but he’s been the team’s punter ever since. But the selection of linebacker Dre Greenlaw in the fifth round provided the 49ers with the NFL’s best pair of off-ball linebackers.

Unfortunately, Greenlaw suffered a season-ending torn Achilles tendon during this year’s Super Bowl. But when healthy, he and Fred Warner form an awesome duo capable of covering sideline-to-sideline with ease.

An organization landing a true franchise quarterback is more than enough to consider his entire draft class a hit. Everything beyond that point is icing on the cake.

Well, the Houston’s inclusion of C.J. Stroud and Will Anderson Jr. in the same class should be considered well-slathered cake with the sweetest icing and the biggest possible cherry on top.

Stroud looked unflappable in his first season. He stood tall in the pocket and delivered. The reigning NFL Offensive Rookie of the year finished eighth in passing yardage (4,108) and third in average yards per attempt (8.2), while finishing with the fewest amount of interceptions (five) among quarterbacks with 400 or more pass attempts. His deep passing grade ranked second overall, per Pro Football Focus.

More importantly, Stroud provided consistency at the game’s most important position, which helped the Texans go from one of the league’s worst teams to a division winner.

Anderson did the same thing but on defense. The reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year finished second on the team with seven sacks but led the squad and all rookies with 59 quarterback pressures, according to Pro Football Focus. He also quickly turned into one of the league’s best run defenders.

Those two alone proved to be awesome. Beyond that point, third-round wide receiver Tank Dell became a favorite target for Stroud. Though Dell did suffer a season-ending broken fibula, his 709 receiving yards still finished sixth among rookie wide receivers.

Fifth-round linebacker Henry To’oTo’o can be throw into the mix as well after he started six games and finished sixth on the team with 61 sacks. He could easily move into a full-time starting role this fall after Blake Cashman and Denzel Perryman left in free agency.

Cornerback Sauce Gardner and wide receiver Garrett Wilson became the third pair of teammates in NFL history to win both the Offensive and Defensive Rookies of the Year in the same season (The feat occurred by the previously named pair from the Houston Texans a year later).

Gardner, whom the Jets selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2022 draft, is already one of the league’s best cover corners. He’s been named first-team All-Pro in each of his initial two campaigns, while also going to a pair of Pro Bowls. He graded as the game’s third-best and No. 1 overall cornerback in his first and second seasons, respectively, per Pro Football Focus.

During that time, Gang Green finished top three in pass defense.

Wilson has yet to be named to a Pro Bowl or All-Pro team, but that’s more of a byproduct of the Jets’ quarterback play than his performance. Despite issues behind center, Wilson still produced 2,145 receiving yards and seven touchdown receptions. He become one of 18 wide receivers with back-to-back 1,000-yard campaigns, and he did so even with Zach Wilson’s struggles.

The Jets had three first-round picks in the ’22 class, with general manager Joe Douglas selecting Jermaine Johnson II at No. 26 overall. Unlike Wilson, Johnson has gone to one Pro Bowl. Johnson garnered the nod after he managed 7.5 sacks in Year 2.

Running back Breece Hall also finished six yards short of the 1,000-yard plateau in his second season. He has flashed lead-back capabilities coupled with big-play ability.

With Aaron Rodgers back from injury this season, each of these young players have an opportunity to be spotlighted to a greater degree after an already impressive start to their careers.

It’s amazing to look back and see that Derrick Henry fell all the way to the 45th overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft. It’s even more mindboggling to find out that the Tennessee Titans actually passed on Henry three times before selecting the 6’3″, 247-pound ball-carrier.

Not all of those selections were bad, though.

The Titans traded up (after trading away the No. 1 overall pick) and invested the eighth overall pick in offensive tackle Jack Conklin. The right tackle became a first-team All-Pro as a rookie and earned the honor again four years later as a member of the Cleveland Browns.

Tennessee chose Austin Johnson in the second round. He’s a lunch-pail type working in the middle of the defensive line, but he’s still in the league as a valuable contributor, particularly on run downs.

Henry turned out to be a superstar, of course. Questions about whether he had the short-area quickness or lateral movement to succeed at the professional level were quickly squashed. He went on to win the NFL Offensive Player of the Year for the ’20 season and captured two rushing titles.

Even at 29, King Henry finished second with 1,167 rushing yards last season despite playing behind the league’s worst offensive line. He’s well on his way to cracking 10,000 rushing yards after signing with the Baltimore Ravens this offseason.

A round later, the Titans chose Kevin Byard, who has been an elite free safety. Like Conklin, Byard earned a pair of first-team All-Pro nods. Tennessee traded Byard to the Philadelphia Eagles before last year’s trade deadline. Before then, he had been one of the game’s most consistent backline performers.

The Titans were built as a hardnosed and fundamentally squad with a winning record between 2018-21. The ’18 class was the biggest reason why.

The core of who the Buffalo Bills began with the 2018 NFL draft class, though the success of the class led multiple picks to go elsewhere.

Josh Allen may have been the third quarterback drafted that year, but he turned into one of the league’s best and counted among the top two or three at the position. Both the Bills organization and Allen himself deserve tremendous credit for the consistency provided and work put into the quarterback’s development. It’s allowed Allen to blossom into something special. The Bills took what was essentially a project, then realized his potential.

Very few are asked to shoulder the burden as much as Allen, and the Bills remains a Super Bowl contender with him behind center.

The Bills also selected linebacker Tremaine Edmunds in the same first round. Edmunds managed a 100 or more tackles in each of his five seasons, while leading the squad during four of those campaigns. He signed a mega-free agent-deal with the Chicago Bears last offseason but previously served as the staple in the middle of Buffalo’s talented defense.

Harrison Phillips, whom the Bills chose in the third round, was a solid contributor-turned-full-time starter for the Minnesota Vikings after signing with them prior to the 2022 campaign.

Taron Johnson joined the squad as a fourth-round pick and remains the Bills’ primary slot defender. Siran Neal contributed to the defense regularly before signing with the Miami Dolphins this offseason. Finally, Wyatt Teller is one of the game’s best guards, though he found success after being traded to the Cleveland Browns.

Allen alone changed everything for the Bills franchise. The amount of talent selected by Buffalo in the same year permeates the entire class.

Ozzie Newsome’s final draft as the Baltimore Ravens general manager stocked the cupboards and set his team up for success for years to come.

While the Ravens’ initial selection during the 2018 draft, tight end Hayden Hurst, didn’t turn out to be all that impressive, the organization’s next three selections are as impressive as it gets.

Baltimore traded back into the first round to select Lamar Jackson with the 32nd overall pick. Jackson turned into a two-time league MVP and the greatest dual-threat quarterback in NFL history.

Jackson provided the Ravens with an identity and helped lead his team to five playoff appearances in his six seasons, with three division titles along the way.

In the third round, the Ravens chose offensive tackle Orlando Brown Jr. and tight end Mark Andrews.

Baltimore eventually traded Brown to the Kansas City Chiefs since he wanted to play on the left side and Ronnie Stanley was still on the roster. In doing so, the Ravens gained an extra first-round pick in the ’22 NFL draft, which was eventually used to select Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum.

Andrews is easily one of the game’s best targets. The tight end has been a favorite of Jackson’s, with three Pro Bowl nods along the way. Andrews has 2,752 yards and 20 touchdown receptions over the last three seasons.

DeShon Elliott became a two-year starter before signing with the Detroit Lions during the 2022 offseason. Bradley Bozeman served as the Ravens’ starting left guard then center before signing a free-agent deal with the Carolina Panthers two years ago. The Ravens didn’t get the most out of Zach Sieler after making him a seventh-round pick, but he developed into a fantastic interior defender, who’s coming off his best season with 10 sacks as a member of the Miami Dolphins.

Everyone understands and expects that a draft class will include prospects who don’t work out at the professional level. No NFL general manager pitches a perfect game. The New Orleans Saints and Mickey Loomis nearly pulled off the impossible during the 2017 draft.

All but one of their seven draft picks went on to become quality starters-to-high-level contributors, even if they’re no longer with the Saints.

New Orleans opened the draft with a pair of first-round picks that turned into cornerback Marshon Lattimore and offensive tackle Ryan Ramczyk.

Lattimore became the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and a four-time Pro Bowl honoree. The fast start slowed over the last two seasons, as the ’17 11th overall pick dealt with injuries. When healthy, Lattimore still presents top coverage skills.

Ramczyk is another dealing with a serious knee injury, which could force him into retirement. When healthy, the 32nd overall selection was an elite right tackle and possibly claimed the title of the game’s best for a short period.

Of those still with the team, running back Alvin Kamara has been a the biggest focal point.

Kamara remains one of the league’s best two-way backs. He’s never once ran for 1,000 yards, yet he’s gone to five different Pro Bowls. Why? Kamara accumulated 10,048 yards from scrimmage and 77 total touchdowns in seven seasons.

“All three had a huge impact in building our success here for an extended period of time,” head coach Dennis Allen told reporters. “That’s what this league is all about. Draft and develop.”

Among those no longer with the team, Marcus Williams is one of the game’s better pure free safeties. Linebacker Alex Anzalone has turned into a three-year starter for the Detroit Lions. Finally, Trey Hendrickson is one of the game’s best pure sack artists, with 53 over the last four seasons.

Only the sixth-round selection of Al-Quadin Muhammad didn’t eventually work anywhere.