1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Jameis Winston,
QB, Florida State
The Bucs will select a quarterback, and while it's not 100 percent
clear which one they're going to take, the odds-on favorite is Winston.
There aren’t any questions about Winston's on-field talent
or football IQ, but teams are a bit worried about his maturity and/or
decision making. He had a strong workout at the combine, but more
importantly, he impressed teams with his interviewing. It has been
said the Bucs feel completely confident with where Winston's maturity
is, and with that being his only red flag, it would be surprising
to see him not taken with the first overall pick.
2. Tennessee Titans: Marcus Mariota,
QB, Oregon
I feel confident about Mariota being the second overall pick, but
I'm not completely certain the Titans will make it. Mariota had
a nice combine workout, as well as interviews in Indy, which is
going to make the value of this pick skyrocket. Someone should be
willing to package too much together for the Titans to refuse, but
even if they don’t, Mariota would make sense here. The Titans
need a franchise quarterback, and Mariota has no off-field issues
for the Titans to worry about and his talent is worthy of this pick.
3. Jacksonville Jaguars: Leonard Williams,
DT/DE, USC
Leonard Williams was seen as the top prospect before the NCAA season
and has only fallen to the third pick because quarterbacks always
rise higher than they should be taken. Williams is the best player
available here, and Gus Bradley loves adding players to his defense.
Kevin White's sub-4.4 40-yd dash at the
Combine has him rising up draft boards ahead of Amari Cooper.
4. Oakland Raiders: Kevin White,
WR, West Virginia
The Raiders have a huge need at WR, and this pick essentially came
down to Kevin White or Amari Cooper. Cooper is an extremely solid
prospect, but White has the higher ceiling of the two. The Raiders
are in a position where they can take the higher risk/reward player,
and while I don't think White is too much of a risk, he has a great
ceiling. He solidified his spot as the top WR when he posted a sub-4.4
40-yard dash at the combine.
5. Washington Redskins: Dante Fowler,
DE/OLB, Florida
The Redskins are expected to let Brian Orakpo walk, and while they
have Trent Murphy to take over his duties, Fowler is the best available
player and fits a slight need. It would allow them to rotate Ryan
Kerrigan, Fowler and Murphy at OLB, which wouldn't be much of a
downgrade as Orakpo has missed 25 games over the last three seasons.
6. New York Jets: Trae Waynes, CB, Michigan
State
Trae Waynes has worked his way into the top 10 of this draft because
he's a physical corner who tested extremely well at the combine.
He showed his strength by recording 19 reps on the bench press,
but then ran a 4.31 40-yard dash for one of the best performances
of anyone at the combine. He's a man-to-man corner who isn't afraid
to press because he's so big. The Jets have a major need at corner
and Waynes can fill that need.
7. Chicago Bears: Vic Beasley, DE/OLB,
Clemson
The Bears need a pass rusher, and luckily, Vic Beasley will fall
right into their lap. This class of edge rushers is strong, and
Beasley was another who had a nice combine performance. There were
questions about his strength, but he silenced everyone by dominating
the bench with 35 reps. He tested well across the board, but doing
well on the bench press is exactly what his stock needed.
8. Atlanta Falcons: Shane Ray, DE/OLB,
Missouri
The Falcons are nearly certain to take an edge rusher and this is
the perfect draft to do so. Personally, I like Randy Gregory here,
but there's word coming out that the Falcons like Shane Ray as much
as anyone in the draft, and I believe them. Ray couldn't perform
at the combine, so he fell behind others like Fowler and Beasley,
but he's still a great prospect, and the Falcons should be happy
to take him with this pick.
9. New York Giants: Randy Gregory, DE/OLB,
Nebraska
The Giants generally take the best available player, which would
be Gregory, but he also fills a big need. Does it surprise anyone
that there is another edge rusher taken in the top 10? Gregory was
one of the best prospects in this draft, until a few questions started
swirling around him. He showed up to the combine underweight, which
is a bit concerning, but he was reportedly sick right before the
event, and I don't think that's enough for the Giants to bump him
down their board.
10. St. Louis Rams: La'el Collins, OT/OG,
LSU
Collins is the perfect pick for the Rams right here. They need help
on their offensive line, but they have the ability to kick Collins
inside to guard, until he gets a bit of NFL experience and learns
the tackle position. He has an extremely high ceiling, but he can
be a starter day one for the Rams and make their line a bit more
solid.
11. Minnesota Vikings: Amari Cooper,
WR, Alabama
Cooper fell to the No. 2 receiver in this draft, but not because
he wasn't impressive. He tested well at the combine, and he's still
a great option at wide receiver. He's the safest receiver in this
draft, and that could be what the Vikings are looking for. Cordarrelle
Patterson was a high risk/reward pick and isn’t progressing
as quickly as the Vikings want. Cooper can step in and make an immediate
impact in Minnesota.
12. Cleveland Browns: Danny Shelton,
NT, Washington
The Browns will look to get help on their defensive line, and Shelton
would be a steal at this pick. He's a high- motor nose tackle who
played extremely well in college. He's going to fill running lanes
and is a solid pass rusher up the middle. He's a high upside guy
who won’t come with much risk, which is exactly what the Browns
need right now.
13. New Orleans Saints: Alvin Dupree,
DE/OLB, Kentucky
This isn't the ideal pick for the Saints, as they could go with
an offensive lineman or maybe even wide receiver, but Dupree fits
a need for the Saints. He's coming out of a slightly smaller school,
but he's been extremely productive and has good measurables. He's
fast, big, strong, athletic and the list goes on. He isn't quite
as refined as some people would like, but the Saints are a better
team that the 13th pick, and they can take a chance on a player
like him.
14. Miami Dolphins: DeVante Parker,
WR, Louisville
Most mock drafts have the Dolphins taking Parker with this pick.
The top two receivers will be off the board, and Parker is the next
best guy. The Dolphins don't seem to like Mike Wallace, and they
just got rid of Brian Hartline. Taking Parker would give them a
young WR corps with upside between Parker and Jarvis Landry. Similarly
to the other WRs, he has a ton of upside in a stacked class.
15. San Francisco 49ers: Brandon Scherff,
OT/OG, Iowa
Scherff has been labeled as a better prospect than other Iowa linemen,
such as Bryan Bulaga and Riley Reiff. The 49ers will need immediate
help at the position, depending on what happens in free agency this
year. Iowa always seems to produce NFL- ready linemen, and Scherff
should be able to step in and start at either tackle or guard on
day one.
16. Houston Texans: Ereck Flowers, OT,
Miami
Flowers could possibly have the most upside of all the linemen in
this year’s draft. He put on a show at the combine, putting
up a ridiculous 37 reps on the bench press. He also was impressive
with his 40-yard dash and on-field drills. He's quickly moving up
the draft boards, and it wouldn't be a shock to see him go this
high at all.
17. San Diego Chargers: Jalen Collins,
CB, LSU
After he had an extremely impressive combine, Collins is quickly
moving up the draft boards. He's a physical corner, similar to Waynes,
who likes press coverage. The Chargers recently drafted Jason Verrett,
but Brandon Flowers will be a free agent next season, and the addition
of Collins would allow the Chargers to let him walk. It wouldn't
be surprising to see Collins continue to rise up the draft boards
as more time passes, working his way into the top 15.
18. Kansas City Chiefs: Andrus Peat,
OT, Stanford
There has been a lot of talk about the Chiefs taking a wide receiver
with this pick, but they haven't been too concerned with taking
wide outs over the last couple drafts and this one is deep enough
that they could grab a receiver in a later round. They have a big
need at offensive line, and Peat could fill that void. He's a good
pass protector with solid run blocking ability, which is a nice
combination for the Chiefs, who were near the bottom in sacks allowed
last season.
19. Cleveland Browns: Jaelen Strong,
WR, Arizona State
Josh Gordon was recently suspended for the season, and it looks
like his days in Cleveland are just about over. And faced with the
likelihood of losing Jordan Cameron to free agency, the Browns will
need to upgrade their receivers if they want to give whichever quarterback
they choose a chance to play at a decent level. Strong is a big,
physical receiver that can take over the No. 1 duties and finally
give the Browns a franchise receiver.
20. Philadelphia Eagles: Byron Jones,
CB, Connecticut
Jones recently broke the world record for the broad jump and added
an extremely good vertical. He didn't run the 40-yard dash because
of an injury, but there's talks about him entering the first round
and the Eagles would be his best bet. Chip Kelly likes taking players
who are extremely athletic, which is exactly what Jones is. The
Eagles need a lot of help in their secondary, and Jones is a smart
player who could come in and potentially start from day one.
21. Cincinnati Bengals: Marcus Peters,
CB, Washington
Peters is a corner who has the talent to go much higher, but he
was kicked off Washington's team for allegedly getting in a physical
fight with one of his coaches. Everyone, including the coach, is
denying the reports, but they're still worth noting. His stock is
slowly creeping back up, and the Bengals could use help in their
secondary.
22. Pittsburgh Steelers: Landon Collins,
S, Alabama
Collins seems to be a much better prospect than the 22nd pick, but
this is where he fell in this mock. He's been compared to his former
teammate Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, who had a successful rookie season in
Green Bay. The Steelers have a hole at safety, and if Collins falls
to them, they shouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger.
23. Detroit Lions: Malcolm Brown, DT,
Texas
The Lions went from a great defensive line to needing some serious
help, as their defensive tackles haven't been re-signed and will
hit free agency. They still may resign either Nick Fairley or Ndamukong
Suh, but the other one, along with C.J. Mosley, will likely walk.
Malcolm Brown has been all over the place on draft boards, but he's
a good player who can fill a void for this Detroit defense. It will
be tough for the Lions to find anyone who can come in and make as
immediate of an impact as Brown.
24. Arizona Cardinals: Shaq Thompson,
OLB, Washington
The Cardinals have had some troubles with linebackers and covering
tight ends over the last couple of seasons. Thompson could help
fill that role, as he's an extremely athletic linebacker who played
well for Washington last season. He showed off his athleticism by
covering tight ends and even wide receivers last season, as well
as averaging over seven yards per carry at running back. He would
be an immediate upgrade in the passing game for this Arizona defense.
25. Carolina Panthers: Arik Armstead,
DE/DT, Oregon
The Panthers have a couple of holes, but they need pass rushing
help. Armstead is the player in this situation who can provide that.
They could go with offensive line help here or another wide receiver,
but Armstead is extremely athletic and is a high upside player.
26. Baltimore Ravens: Breshad Perriman,
WR, Central Florida
The Ravens need help at wide receiver, and Dorial Green-Beckham
would be the top option, but Baltimore recently said it doesn’t
want to pick anyone who has prior domestic abuse issues. That leaves
the door open for Perriman, who has been climbing up the draft boards,
to be selected here. Torrey Smith will be a free agent and Steve
Smith is near the end of his career. Perriman would give the Ravens
a new, big receiver for them to build around.
27. Dallas Cowboys: Melvin Gordon, RB,
Wisconsin
Melvin Gordon is the second- best running back in this class, but
Todd Gurley is coming off of ACL surgery. The Cowboys recently had
to decide whether to let Dez Bryant or DeMarco Murray walk, and
they chose the latter. That means they have a big hole at running
back, and while Joseph Randle could take over, Gordon would be a
much better option. He's been compared to Jamaal Charles, and he's
proven in college that he can handle the bulk of the carries. The
Cowboys might not be able to get anyone as good as Murray, but Gordon
is a great replacement.
28. Denver Broncos: Eli Harold, OLB,
Virginia
The Broncos are switching to a 3-4 with Wade Phillips now as their
defensive coordinator, and they'll need some depth at OLB. DeMarcus
Ware is getting old, and they’ll want someone who can play
a certain number of snaps to allow Ware to get some rest during
the season. Harold is that man. Harold is a pass rushing 3-4 OLB
who had an impressive 2014 season and would fill a need the Broncos
have with the 28th pick.
29. Indianapolis Colts: D.J. Humphries,
OT, Florida
The Colts have a few holes, but they need to do a better job of
keep pressure away from their franchise quarterback, Andrew Luck.
D.J. Humphries is shooting up draft boards after an extremely impressive
combine. He also played well this season, especially in pass protection.
He would be a steal this late in the draft, filling a huge need
for the Colts.
30. Green Bay Packers: Eddie Goldman,
NT, Florida State
Letroy Guion was recently arrested and B.J. Raji will be a free
agent for the Packers. They’ll have a hole at nose tackle,
and Eddie Goldman could be the highest guy on their board at this
point. It's the best player available and a big need for the Packers.
31. Seattle Seahawks: Dorial Green-Beckham,
WR, Oklahoma
The Seahawks are coming off one of the most confusing play calls
in NFL history. It would've been a bit different story if they had
someone like DGB at wide receiver. Green-Beckham was the No. 1 recruit
in the nation going into college, before some off- the- field issues
got him kicked out of Missouri and then NCAA rules kept him from
playing last season. He's still a huge receiver who has ridiculous
upside and would be a steal this late in the draft, as long as he
can stay out of trouble off the field.
32. New England Patriots: Todd Gurley,
RB, Georgia
The Patriots always take the best available player and in this case,
it's Todd Gurley. Gurley is a potential top-10 talent who tore his
ACL, and his stock dropped big time. With Stevan Ridley and Shane
Vereen free agents, the Patriots could use a running back, and they
should have no problem giving Gurley a little extra time, as long
as they get a steal with the last pick in the draft.
