The first of hopefully many mock drafts prior to the 2015 NFL Draft starting April 30th. A few notes before reading this:
A. These picks are based on the idea that there will be no more trades prior to or during the draft.
B. These picks are based on the free agent moves and trades as of March 11th.
C. I fully expect this draft order to change prior to or during the draft.
Enjoy!
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| Winston will look to be the first QB taken first overall since Andrew Luck in 2012 by the Colts |
1. Tampa Bay
Buccaneers: Jameis Winston QB Florida
State
The former Heisman winner is the consensus top pick. Off field issues won't sway the quarterback desperate Bucs from taking Winston. He's smart, has a gun for an arm, and is athletic enough to be one of the great young quarterbacks in the league and spark some excitement into the Tampa Bay franchise. Unlike Mariota, Winston is ready to step onto an NFL immediately.
2. Tennessee
Titans: Leonard Williams DT USC
I would put Mariota here, but it appears that the Titans have enough faith in second year quarterback and former LSU standout Zach Mettenberger, so with this pick they will take the best prospect not named Jameis Winston in Leonard Williams. To quick for interior linemen and to strong for tackles, the former USC standout will give the Titans a physical mismatch on the defensive line.
3. Jacksonville
Jaguars: Dante Fowler Jr. OLB Florida
Fast, strong, quick, tenacious and versatile, Fowler is just what the
Jaguars and former Seahawks defensive coordinator Gus Bradley need
to improve their defense. The Gator star can get after the passer from
defensive end or outside linebacker, allowing the defense to use him in a
variety of packages.
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| White was 6th in the NCAA in receiving yards with 1447 in 2014 |
4. Oakland
Raiders: Kevin White WR West
Virginia
This one is a toss up between two very gifted wide outs in White and Amari Cooper. I have both of them going to either the Raiders at four or the Rams at ten. I have White going first because of the Raiders history of picking guys based on combine numbers, where White was the stronger of the two. A team can't go wrong with either in my opinion, so here the Raiders get a great weapon for their young, possible franchise quarterback Derek Carr.
5. Washington
Redskins: Randy Gregory DE Nebraska
Draws comparisons to Aldon Smith, (minus the off the field issues) Gregory has natural pass rushing abilities that the Redskins (and yes I said Redskins) could desperately use, especially since it appears they will be losing Brian Orakpo.
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| Mariota accounted for 58 touchdowns in his Heisman winning 2014 season |
Todd Bowles brings a new regime into New York, and that likely spells the end of Geno Smith. Mariota may need a year to develop, (unless he went to the Eagles) but has the physical attributes to be a very good, mobile quarterback. The media wants him, the fans want him, so the Jets will take the Heisman winning Oregon Duck (If Chip Kelly doesn't get him first).
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| Beasley had 33 sacks during his time at Clemson |
7. Chicago
Bears: Vic Beasley DE/OLB Clemson
After an extremely productive college career, scouts doubted Beasley due to his size. Well he apparently set out to prove them wrong, arriving at the combine at 246 pounds. Then he decided to absolutely crush all the events, running a 4.53 40 yard dash and banging out 35 reps on the bench press. So he's as fast a a wide receiver and as strong as a nose tackle. And oh yeah, he knows how to get after the quarterback. John Fox picks up a defensive play maker with the seventh pick in the draft.
8. Atlanta
Falcons: Shane Ray DE Missouri
The Falcons have the offense to compete in the league, but their defense leaves much to be desired. New head coach and former Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn will look to pick up a pass rusher, and the best available at this point will be Missouri's Shane Ray.
9. New York
Giants: Andrus Peat OT Stanford
The Giants have weapons for Eli Manning to work with, now they need to continue to protect him. Peat is a big tackle with long arms and is quick off the snap, and has the potential to be very good for a long time.
10. St. Louis
Rams Amari Cooper WR Alabama
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| Cooper caught 31 touchdowns in 3 years |
The Rams now have a quarterback they can build around in Nick Foles, so the first thing they need to do is get him a big play wide out. Cooper is a steal at this spot, same with Kevin White if he falls to St. Louis instead. The Biletnikoff Award winner and consensus All American has excellent quickness and acceleration and gives Foles a great weapon moving forward.
11. Minnesota
Vikings: Trae Waynes CB Michigan
State
Vikings pick up a much needed boost for their secondary in Waynes, a fast and lengthy corner who has a lot of experience being out on an island in coverage. Needs to fill out a bit, but that will come with time.
12. Cleveland
Browns: Danny Shelton NT
Washington
Cleveland picks up the top true defensive tackle in the draft in Shelton, who can step in and sure up the middle of their defensive line.
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| Peters had 3 picks in 8 games in 2014 before being dismissed from the Huskies |
13. New
Orleans Saints: Marcus Peters CB
Washington
Peters was dismissed from Washington in the middle of this season, which should give teams concern, but the Saints will look past those issues and take possibly the best defensive back in the draft.
14. Miami
Dolphins: DaVante Parker WR Louisville
The Dolphins are a few weapons away from truly competing for the AFC East, so with this pick they pick up the third best pass catcher available out of Louisville. QB Ryan Tannehill needs a big year, so the Dolphins will help him out by selecting Parker.
15. San
Francisco 49ers: Brandon Scherff OT
Iowa
The organization is in a state of implosion. Patrick Willis is retiring, Jim Harbaugh is gone, Colin Kaepernick trade rumors are out there, Frank Gore is out and Justin Smith is also likely to call it a career. On top of that, pro bowl guard Mike Iupati just signed with division rival Arizona. So to start this rebuild of sorts, the 49ers will take the likely guard prospect out of Iowa. He's big, strong and honestly frightens me, and will help sure up their offensive line.
16. Houston
Texans: Jaelen Strong WR
Arizona State
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| Strong caught 157 balls in 2 seasons at ASU |
With the recent release of Andre Johnson, the Texans should make is a priority to get another big wideout to go with DeAndre Hopkins. Strong may be a reach at 16, but with Brian Hoyer coming in to compete with Ryan Mallet, Bill Obrien should look to give who ever ends up his starter another weapon to work with. We have already seen that they can simply plug JJ Watt in at tight end.
17. San Diego
Chargers: Malcom Brown DT Texas
The Chargers need to strengthen their defensive line, and after losing out on the Ndamukong Suh sweepstakes, they'll look to the jr. defensive tackle out of Texas to fill the hole.
18. Kansas
City Chiefs: La’el Collins OT LSU
With the acquisition of Jeremy Maclin, the Chiefs will look to upgrade their offensive line to protect Alex Smith so he can focus on throwing to his new wide receiver.
19. Cleveland
Browns (from Buffalo): Devin Smith WR Ohio State
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| A big play threat, Smith averaged 28.2 yards per catch in 2014 |
Its to soon to give up on Johnny Football, but whether he or Josh McCown is your game 1 starter, they are going to need weapons. Devin Smith was the best deep ball threat in college football, and helped the Buckeyes win the first College Football Playoff. Explosive speed and the hops to go get balls, he is a reach at this spot, but the Browns will feel more comfortable taking him rather than Dorial Green Beckham, as they attempt to clean up their locker room.
20. Philadelphia
Eagles: Dorial Green Beckham WR
Oklahoma
I don't understand how the Chip Kelly system works, and honestly i don't think anyone other than Chip does. But I know one thing, they are lacking wide receivers after losing Jeremy Maclin to free agency, so I believe they reach on Green Beckham, who has all the talent to be a top receiver, but a mountain of off field issues.
21. Cincinnati
Bengals: Landon Collins SS
Alabama
The top safety in the draft, Collins lead the Alabama defense (even-though his mother would have rather had him go to LSU) to the college football playoff. A great open field tackler who is solid in coverage, and likes to rip at the ball when making tackles, which is very often.
22. Pittsburgh
Steelers: Alvin Dupree DE Kentucky
With James Harrison on his last legs and Jason Worilds retiring, the Steelers look for another young outside linebacker/defensive end like they did last year with Ryan Shazier. Dupree is a freakish athlete who knows how to get to the quarterback, and if he works out with James Harrison, he'll be as strong as he needs to be in no time.
23. Detroit
Lions: Eddie Goldman DT
Florida State
With the loss of Suh and likely Nick Fairley, the Lions will try to form another great tackle combo of Goldman, the former top high school recruit, and Haloti Ngata.
24. Arizona
Cardinals: Arik Armstead DE Oregon
A work in progress at defensive tackle, Armstead possess impressive athleticism for a man who is 6'7 and just shy of 300 pounds. The Cardinals take him to help improve their defense.
25. Carolina
Panthers: T.J. Clemmings OT
Pittsburgh
Protect Cam Newton. Protect Cam Newton. PROTECT CAM NEWTON!!!!!!!! The Panthers take the best available linemen to help PROTECT CAM NEWTON!!!!
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| Gurley averaged an astounding 7.4 yards per carry in 2014 |
26. Baltimore
Ravens:
After trading Haloti Ngata to Detroit to clear cap space, the Ravens pick up his replacement in Davis, the big tackle out of Iowa.
27. Dallas
Cowboys: Todd Gurley RB Georgia
Looks like DeMarco Murray will be signing with the Eagles, so the Cowboys will look for a strong replacement for him in Todd Gurley, who was the best running back in college football until eligibility issues and a torn ACL ended his season.
28. Denver
Broncos: Max Williams TE
Minnesota
Williams has the potential to be a ten year starter in the league, and with the recent loss of Julius Thomas to the Jaguars in free agency, The Broncos pick up a much needed tight end replacement as Peyton Manning attempts one last run at the Superbowl.
29. Indianapolis
Colts: Ereck Flowers OT Miami
The Colts have picked up some new weapons this offseason in Andre Johnson and Frank Gore, so they use this pick to take the Jr out of Miami to help their offensive line protect Andrew Luck.
30. Green Bay Packers: Jordan Phillips DT Oklahoma
Packers fill a need at defensive tackle with the former Oklahoma Sooner Phillips. An explosive player with quick hands, Phillips has a lot of potential if he continues to improve his technique.
31. New
Orleans Saints (from Seattle): Shaq Thompson OLD Washington
Had Max Williams still been available, i would have him at this pick as a replacement for Jimmy Graham. But since the Broncos take him, the Saints will continue to sure up their defense with the pass rusher Thompson out of Washington. Thompson also saw time as a running back in college and could be a valuable playmaker to the Saints.
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| Lead Wake Forest with 6 pass breakups in 2014 |
32. New
England Patriots: Kevin Johnson CB Wake
Forest
Losing Darrelle Revis hurts, and even if Brandon Browner comes back, the Pats secondary could use an upgrade at the cornerback position, and the Wake Forest product Johnson is the best available player at this point for the Patriots.
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