Though the NFL Draft is only a month and a half away, plenty of things can change between now and the Draft. There are still plenty of workouts to be conducted and medicals to be passed. This draft is especially fluid because, while deep, the difference in talent between picks 16 and 32 might not be that great. Still, predictions are predictions.
1. Kansas City Chiefs: Sharrif Floyd, DT, Florida: It’s hard to believe Kansas City would let Eric Winston go if they weren’t intent of taking Joeckel No.1, but they’d have to move Joeckel to right tackle and taking a right tackle first overall wouldn’t make sense. Instead, they go with Floyd here, who has a chance to be a dominant player at defensive end from Day One.
2. Jacksonville Jaguars: Jarvis Jones, DE/LB, Georgia: The Jaguars are hurting for a pass-rusher. While Jones’s spinal issues are still up for debate, it has seemed as though he’s received a lot of good news as of recent. Jones’s best asset is his speed, but he also relies on it too much. He’ll need to develop more of a pass-rushing repetoire at the NFL level, but the former Bulldog should still boost the Jags’ pass-rush from the start.
3. Oakland Raiders: Luke Joeckel, OT, Texas A&M: Oakland is the not-so-proud owner of one of the worst rosters in all of football, so really they just need to take the best player available. That player is Luke Joeckel, who’ll immediately upgrade a team in need of a decent left tackle.
4. Philadelphia Eagles: Dion Jordan, DE/LB, Oregon: Dion Jordan didn’t get many chances to rush the passer in college, but that’s partially because he’s a strong asset in coverage. Jordan is tall at 6’6″ and it doesn’t hurt that his college coach, Chip Kelly, is now the coach of the Eagles.
5. Detroit Lions: Eric Fisher, OT, Central Michigan: The Lions could use a pick here on Dee Milliner, but they also need an offensive tackle and can get more value by taking a tackle here and a cornerback in the second round than vice versa. Fisher is arguably better than Joeckel and is more athletic. With both starting offensive tackles possibly on their way out of Detroit, taking a premium tackle here is a necessity.
6. Cleveland Browns: Dee Milliner, CB, Alabama: The Browns will need front seven pieces for their brand new 3-4 defense, but they have cap space to burn and we’ll get a better look at their plans as soon as free agency starts. Pairing Milliner with the sometimes inconsistent Joe Haden would upgrade the pass defense immediately.
7. Arizona Cardinals: Geno Smith, QB, West Virginia: Geno started the season hot, but tailed off a bit near the end of the year. Still, he’s undoubtedly the best quarterback in the draft, even if he isn’t a Top 15 talent. The Cardinals haven’t had a halfway decent quarterback in a while. They’ll take a good schematic fit here.
8. Buffalo Bills: Chance Warmack, OG, Alabama: The Bills have an obvious need at quarterback, but that should be addressed in the second round. The Bills need to upgrade their offensive line, and with Andy Levitre on the way out, Warmack should be able to do that.
9. New York Jets: Ziggy Ansah, OLB, BYU: Ansah’s story is an amazing one, but that’s not the reason the Jets are taking Ansah here. Ansah is incredibly raw, but he’s incredibly athletic. The former track athlete was moved all around BYU’s defense, possibly stunting his ability to develop at one position. Rex Ryan will love the chance to develop this guy.
10. Tennessee Titans: Jonathan Cooper, OG, North Carolina: Part of Cooper’s charm is that he can play either center or guard. The Titans need help with both. Some question Cooper’s strength and ability move defenders off the line, but part of that problem was that UNC coaches asked him to play at a light weight. His 35 reps on the bench press at the Combine should answer some of those questions. Cooper’s ridiculous foot quickness for a man his size should intrigue many teams–especially zone-blocking ones–and there’s a possibility he’ll go before Warmack.
11. San Diego Chargers: Lane Johnson, OT, Oklahoma: The Chargers’ left tackle problems last season were so bad that even when Philip Rivers wasn’t pressured, he imagined he was. In order to maximize Rivers’ declining talents, the Chargers need to give him some help on the offensive line. For that, they’ll turn to a quarterback-turned-tight end-turned-offensive tackle. Johnson has ridiculous athletic ability, as evidenced by his 4.72 40-yard dash at the Combine.
12. Miami Dolphins: Xavier Rhodes, CB, Florida State: Rhodes is a big corner who came into the Combine with questions about his speed and promptly answered them. The Dolphins don’t seem to want to meet free agent Sean Smith’s contract demands and, after trading Vontae Davis last season as well, that’ll create a large hole at cornerback.
13. Tampa Bay: Star Lotulelei, DT, Utah: The only reason Lotulelei slips all the way to No.13 is because of the heart issues that his Combine medical brought up. If those are cleared, this versatile defensive lineman will shoot back up into the top ten, and maybe even top five. For now, he lands on a team that was strong against the run but needs help pressuring the opposing QB.
14. Carolina Panthers: Sheldon Richardson, DT, Missouri: To be frank, Carolina’s defensive tackles were awful last year. They were downright atrocious. The cure for the Panthers’ woes would seem to be Richardson. Richardson is an athletic defensive tackle with an outstanding motor but comes with a few red flags. With Charles Johnson and Greg Hardy on the ends, Richardson filling one of the spots in the middle and Luke Kuechly there to clean up the rest, Carolina’s defense would seem that much better.
15. New Orleans Saints: Barkevious Mingo, OLB, LSU: Mingo is a supremely talented but maddening player. He has all the ability to dominate games, but simply didn’t make many impact plays last year. Part of it was the way LSU schemed with him, but part of it was his inconsistency. He could go much higher than this, but for now I’m going to put him with the Saints, whose talent on the defensive side of the ball is virtually non-existent.
16. St. Louis Rams: Kenny Vaccaro, S, Texas: The Rams have two first-round picks thanks to the Redskins, so they can fill a couple holes. They’ll probably want to take Kenny Vaccaro, who can play either free or strong safety, with the first one to shore up their secondary.
17. Pittsburgh Steelers: Cordarelle Patterson, WR, Tennessee: Without Mike Wallace to stretch the field, the Steelers are going to have a lot harder of a time moving the ball on offense. That’s especially so with their inconsistent run game. Patterson is a dynamic player with the ball in his hands and is a threat to take it to the house any time he touches the ball. He needs polish, but Patterson’s upside is undeniable.
18. Dallas Cowboys: Menelik Watson, OT, Florida State: Though athletic enough to play left tackle, Tyron Smith performed much better at right tackle. Watson is a bit of a project, but his athleticism is undeniable and in a year he’d give the Cowboys their two bookends of the future. Defensive tackle is also a need here.
19. New York Giants: Alec Ogletree, LB, Georgia: If Ogletree wasn’t flat out stupid, he’d go a lot higher than this. He’s got all the athletic ability in the world, but has more red flags than any player in this mock draft easily. The Giants have long been searching for an upgrade at middle linebacker and select Ogletree here with the hopes that he doesn’t do anything too dumb in the future.
20. Chicago Bears: Tyler Eifert, TE, Notre Dame: The Bears got no production from any pass-catcher not named Brandon Marshall last year. That was especially true at tight end. Eifert is easily the best tight end in the draft and would be a massive upgrade over Kellen Davis. Jay Cutler still has to worry about his offensive line, but at least he has a safety blanket to throw to once it breaks down.
21. Cincinnati Bengals: Keenan Allen, WR, California: Many have raised questions as to whether Allen is athletic enough to be a dominant receiver in the NFL, but it really shouldn’t matter. Allen wins due to his technical style and size for a wide receiver. The Bengals need a receiver to pair with A.J. Green and picking Allen here would give them a dominant young pair.
22. St. Louis Rams: Tavon Austin, WR, West Virginia: With the likely losses of Danny Amendola and Brandon Gibson, there are a couple openings in the Rams’ awful receiving group. Austin is the quickest player in the draft and answered questions about his long speed by blazing a 4.34 40-yard dash at the Combine. He’d fit nicely as a movable chess piece in a Rams offense that needs a spark.
23. Minnesota Vikings: Sylvester Williams, DT, North Carolina: The Williams’ are getting old and so is Jared Allen. They need to reload on the defensive line. Luckily for them, there’s Sylvester Williams. Williams fits best as a 3-tech lineman, where he can go upfield and penetrate.
24. Indianapolis Colts: D.J. Fluker, RT, Alabama: The Colts desperately need to give Andrew Luck some protection and while Fluker isn’t the best pass-protecting tackle, he’d at least give them a sizable upgrade on Winston Justice. Fluker is a massive right tackle who’s best as a mauler in the run game. A debate rages as to whether he’ll have to move to guard.
25. Seattle Seahawks: Bjoern Werner, DE, Florida State: Some rise and some fall. This is a big fall for Werner, who was once a projected top-five pick. After his Combine performance showed a lack of elite athleticism, teams were forced to re-evaluate Werner and his potential. Werner only fits in a 4-3 scheme, and that’s what the Seahawks run. He’ll try to help a defense that’ll be missing Chris Clemons for part of the season.
26. Green Bay Packers: Jamie Collins, Southern Mississippi, OLB: The Packers need to get better up front on defense after watching Colin Kaepernick tear them apart in the playoffs. Jamie Collins is a freak of nature who, if coached properly, will become a very good player. Put emphasis on the coaching part, though, because he needs to improve his technique a lot.
27. Houston Texans: Kevin Minter, LB, LSU: Though they’d like to think it, Brian Cushing cannot do everything on the inside for the Texans, especially when he’s hurt. Minter was a consistent force for the LSU defense and played better than teammate Barkevious Mingo.
28. Denver Broncos: Jonathan Cyprien, S, FIU: A dominant Senior Bowl forced scouts to go back to the tape and look at Cyprien. What they saw was a fearless defender and he soon became one of the biggest risers of the offseason. The Broncos need a big upgrade opposite Rahim Moore.
29. New England Patriots: Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington: Alfonzo Dennard faces up to six years in prison and Aqib Talib might not be back, leaving the Patriots’ already poor secondary in complete disarray. Trufant has NFL bloodlines and boosted his stock at the Senior Bowl.
30. Atlanta Falcons: Eddie Lacy, RB, Alabama: Michael Turner was brutal last year and promptly got released this offseason. That opens up this spot for Lacy, who turned heads with a dominant BCS National Championship Game and a nasty spin move to go with good burst for a big back. He’s the right pick here unless Green Bay takes him at 26 or the Falcons acquire Steven Jackson in free agency.
31. San Francisco 49ers: Johnthan Banks, CB, Mississippi State: The 49ers’ secondary was thought to be a decent group until they got torn apart in the playoffs. With a key member of the group in Dashon Goldson primed to leave, the 49ers need to upgrade their secondary somehow. Banks is a big, long corner with ball skills. However, he is a bit stiff.
32. Baltimore Ravens: Damontre Moore, LB, Texas A&M: I’ve let it be known that I’m not a fan of Manti Te’o–at all. Though he’s popularly mocked here, I’m going with the “best player available” mantra for the Ravens. Moore put together a brutal effort at the Combine, but his tape shows an impressive player comfortable in space. Courtney Upshaw, showed he can be an impact run defender, but generated nothing as a pass-rusher. With Paul Kruger expected to leave, this also fits somewhat of a need.
Editor’s Note: This article was written pre-free agency