MOCK DRAFT
By Terry Swayne
The NFL Draft is less then two hours away….I am predicting a lot of trades in the first round, but my Mock Draft does not include trades…just the players that I believe will go to the team if/when they were to keep their pick. I can see the Ravens trading up to grab a left tackle (Lane Johnson?) or an inside linebacker (Alec Ogletree?), or I can see them trading back into the second round to grab a few extra picks. It should be an exciting draft as always. Here is my take on how the first round will play out…
1. Kansas City Chiefs – Luke Joeckel, OL (Texas A&M)
2. Jacksonville Jaguars – Eric Fischer, OL (Central Michigan)
3. Oakland Raiders – Ezekiel Ansah, DE (BYU)
4. Philadelphia Eagles – Dion Jordan, DE (Oregon) *I can see the Eagles trading out of this spot as there will be teams interested in OL-Lane Johnson.
5. Detroit Lions – Dee Millner, CB (Alabama)
6. Cleveland Browns – Geno Smith, QB (West Virginia)
7. Arizona Cardinals – Lane Johnson, OL (Oklahoma) *Cardinals may have to trade up to get Lane Johnson at #4
8. Buffalo Bills – Tavon Austin, WR (West Virginia) *Bills need a lot of help, They could also take Geno Smith if he is still on the board.
9. New York Jets – Shariff Floyd, DT (Florida)
10. Tennessee Titans – Chance Warmick, OG (Alabama)
11. San Diego Chargers – Star Lotulelei, DT (Utah)
12. Miami Dolphins – D.J. Fluker, OT (Alabama) *Eifert could be another choice here, but after losing LT-Jake Long…this is the smarter choice.
13. New York Jets – Tyler Eifert, TE (Notre Dame)
14. Carolina Panthers – Sheldon Richardson, DT (Missouri)
15. New Orleans Saints – Barkevious Mingo, LB (LSU) *Saints will pick one of two LSU standouts in Mingo or S-Eric Reid here.
16. St. Louis Rams – Kenny Vaccaro, S (Texas)
17. Pittsburgh Steelers – Jarvis Jones, OLB (Georgia)
18. Dallas Cowboys – Jonathan Cooper, OG (North Carolina)
19. New York Giants – Bjoem Werner, DE (Florida State)
20. Chicago Bears – Manti Te’o, LB (Notre Dame) *Need Te’o or Olgetree to replace Urlacher in the middle of the field.
21. Cincinnati Bengals – Eric Reid, S (LSU)
22. St. Louis Rams – Alec Olgetree, LB (Georgia)
23. Minnesota Vikings – Sylvester Williams, DT (North Carolina)
24. Indianapolis Colts – Xavier Rhodes, CB (Florida State)
25. Minnesota Vikings – Cordarelle Patterson, WR (Tennessee) *Patterson , DeAndre Hopkins, or Keenan Allen are needed to “replace” Percy Harvin.
26. Green Bay Packers – Eddie Lacy, RB (Alabama) *Green Bay has needed a RB for a long time. Lacy is the only RB to go in the first round
27. Houston Texans – DeAndre Hopkins, WR (Clemson)
28. Denver Broncos – Tank Carradine, DE (Florida State)
29. New England Patriots – D.J. Haydan, CB (Houston)
30. Atlanta Falcons – Desmond Trufant, CB (Washington)
31. San Fransisco 49ers – Matt Elam, S (Florida)
32. Baltimore Ravens – Jonathan Cyprien, S (Florida) * Ravens will take the best available player they hope Olgetree slides to them…but Elam or Cyprien is the more likely bet. If the Inside linebackers and Safties are gone…look for them to trade down and grab more picks.