CHICAGO, ILL. – From the Senior Bowl, to the NFL Combine, to college pro days, the excitement and anticipation has built up to this very moment. The 2015 NFL Draft is here!
There are plenty of storylines to keep an eye on this weekend. Will Marcus Mariota go No. 2, and will it be to the Tennessee Titans? How much will Randy Gregory and Shane Ray’s off-field problems cause them to fall? Where will Todd Gurley fall?
Luckily, all of our questions will be answered soon enough.
Here’s my first-round mock draft:
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers — Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State: Winston is considered the consensus No. 1 pick this season, and the Buccaneers are looking for a franchise quarterback. Famous Jameis should be their guy. Winston has good pocket awareness and down field vision, making him an intriguing prospect. If the Florida State prospect can fix his turnover tendencies, he’ll have the opportunity to be a Pro
Bowler in year one.
2. Tennessee Titans — Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon: Marcus Mariota is a player that I’ve had my eye on since his freshman campaign in 2012. Mariota’s unique combination of speed and a good arm doesn’t come into the league all that often and the Titans need to jump at the opportunity, even with Zach Mettenberger already on the roster. Mariota has the potential to be a Pro Bowl quarterback down the line.
3. Jacksonville Jaguars — Leonard Williams, DL, USC: Williams is considered the top talent in this year’s draft class, and the Jaguars are lucky to see him fall to No. 3. The Jags are in need of a playmaker up front, and Williams can fit the bill. Jacksonville should have no problem fitting the USC prospect in its 4-3 base defense.
4. Oakland Raiders — Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama: After finding their franchise quarterback in last year’s draft, the Oakland Raiders are still looking for a No. 1 wide receiver to pair with him. Amari Cooper is their guy, and has the potential to be a Pro Bowl wideout for years to come.
5. Washington Redskins — Dante Fowler Jr., OLB, Florida: Washington is lucky to see Fowler drop this far. As the premier pass rusher in this season’s draft class, the Florida prospect has the ability to flourish in the NFL. After losing outside linebacker Brian Orakpo to free agency in the offseason, Washington would be giddy at the opportunity to draft the All-Southeastern
Conference pass rusher.
6. New York Jets — Vic Beasley, OLB, Clemson: While wide receiver is an option here, the Jets add a pass rusher to an already dangerous front seven. NFL.com compares Beasley to Seattle
Seahawks edge rusher Bruce Irvin. That’s not too bad of a comparison coming out of college.
7. Chicago Bears — Kevin White, WR, West Virginia: After trading Brandon Marshall during the offseason, the Bears are in need of another top-flight receiver to pair with Alshon Jeffery. White has the speed to pull the top off of defenses and would be a nice add for Chicago.
8. Atlanta Falcons — Bud Dupree, OLB, Kentucky: With Vic Beasley off the board, the Falcons have no problem selecting Bud Dupree. Dupree will add the talent on the edge that the Falcons desperately need.
9. New York Giants — Brandon Scherff, OG, Iowa: At this point, the G-Men’s best move might be trading back. But, since there are no trades in a mock draft, Scherff is the smartest pick for the Giants. The former Iowa offensive lineman has the ability to be a day one starter at either guard position.
10. St. Louis Rams — Andrus Peat, OT, Stanford: Ideally, the Rams would like to see Scherff fall one more spot, but if that’s not the case, expect St. Louis to continue to bulk up their offensive line with Peat.
11. Minnesota Vikings — DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville: Parker is last of the elite wide receiver prospects left, and Minnesota should be thrilled with their selection. Parker will add some juice to the Minnesota receiving corps.
12. Cleveland Browns — Danny Shelton, NT, Washington: Danny Shelton can hold down a defensive line, and that’s exactly what the Browns are looking for with the top-3 wide receivers off the board.
13. New Orleans Saints — Malcom Brown, DL, Texas: Brown allows some flexibility for Rob Ryan along the defensive line.
14. Miami Dolphins — Trae Waynes, CB, Michigan State: Miami is in need of secondary help, and Waynes provides the physicality that the Dolphins currently don’t have at corner.
15. San Francisco 49ers — Arik Armstead, DE, Oregon: With some losses to their defense this year, Armstead will be a nice spark to the 49ers’ front seven.
16. Houston Texans — Breshad Perriman, WR, UCF: The Texans need some wide receiver help after losing Andre Johnson in the offseason, which is where Perriman comes in.
17. San Diego Chargers — Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia: If it wasn’t for Gurley’s ACL injury in November, the former Georgia running back would have been a top-5 lock. Heck, I still almost had him go to the Jets. The Chargers are getting a future star in Gurley.
18. Kansas City Chiefs — Kevin Johnson, CB, Wake Forest: The Chiefs are thin at corner and Johnson provides Kansas City with a day one starter.
19. Cleveland (from Buffalo Bills) — Jaelen Strong, WR, ASU: The Browns find their replacement for Josh Gordon.
20. Philadelphia Eagles — Dorial Green-Beckham, WR, Oklahoma: After losing Jeremy Maclin to free agency, the Eagles start looking for their next star wideout.
21. Cincinnati Bengals — Ereck Flowers, OT, Miami: The Bengals use their first round pick to bolster their offensive line.
22. Pittsburgh Steelers — Marcus Peters, CB, Washington: Steelers need secondary help here, making Peters a logical selection at 22.
23. Detroit Lions — Melvin Gordon, RB, Wisconsin: After losing Reggie Bush to free agency, the Lions fill a void in the backfield.
24. Arizona Cardinals — D.J. Humphries, OT, Florida: The Cardinals continue to build up their offensive line by drafting Humphries.
25. Carolina Panthers — La’el Collins, OT, LSU: After watching Cam Newton get knocked around all season, the Panthers add talent to their offensive line.
26. Baltimore Ravens — Byron Jones, CB, UConn: Jones will add some much needed fresh blood to the Baltimore secondary.
27. Dallas Cowboys — Randy Gregory, OLB, Nebraska: Gregory’s marijuana problem cost him to slip this far, but that’s okay with the Cowboys.
28. Denver Broncos — Cameron Erving, C, FSU: The Broncos add a stud center to help man the Denver offensive line.
29. Indianapolis Colts — Landon Collins, S, Alabama: The Colts select the best safety in the draft at pick 29.
30. Green Bay — Eric Kendricks, ILB, UCLA: Kendricks provides Green Bay with the ability to move Clay Matthews outside full-time.
31. New Orleans (from Seattle Seahawks) — Shane Ray, OLB, Missouri: Ray’s foot injury and recent traffic citation involving marijuana causes the Mizzou prospect to fall to the bottom of the first round.
32. New England — Eddie Goldman, DT, FSU: If the Patriots do decide to keep this pick, they’ll have an opportunity to draft Vince Wilfork’s replacement.
MTM Readers, what do you think of our mock draft? What picks do you see happening differently? Do you see any possible trades? Let us know!
