NFL Draft: Mock Draft 2.0
The 2016 National Football League Draft is now less than two weeks away!
With free agency going through the bargains / roster fillers process, teams will now look to the NFL Draft to fill their biggest needs.
The Los Angeles Rams made a huge trade with the Tennessee Titans to move up to the top overall pick in the Draft. Where do they go with the pick? How does the trade affect the rest of the order?
Without further ado, here is the latest mock for the 2016 NFL Draft!
**Keep in mind that the New England Patriots surrendered their first round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft due to the investigation of “Deflategate.”
1.) Los Angeles Rams (acquired via trade with Tennessee Titans)
Selection: Jared Goff – Quarterback – California
Height: 6′ 4″
Weight: 215 pounds
Birthday: 10/14/94
First thing is first: the Rams paid way too much to move up to the first overall pick. Yes, Cleveland likely would have selected Jared Goff with the second pick, but is Goff truly a “cannot miss prospect?” No. He is no Andrew Luck or Cam Newton, for example.
The price to move from the 15 to one was far too much to draft Goff instead of, say, Paxton Lynch and the rest of your draft class.
2.) Cleveland Browns
Selection: Carson Wentz – Quarterback – North Dakota State
Height: 6′ 5″
Weight: 237 pounds
Birthday: 12/30/92
Even though the Cleveland Browns signed Robert Griffin III this offseason, Griffin is believed to be either veteran competition or just the high-profile backup that the Browns can confidently start in case of injury.
Now, with the Rams moving up to get Goff, the Browns settle for Carson Wentz, who might have been the guy Cleveland wanted all along.
3.) San Diego Chargers
Selection: Laremy Tunsil – Offensive Tackle – Mississippi
Height: 6′ 5″
Weight: 310 pounds
Birthday: 8/2/94
Thanks to the Rams-Titans trade, the San Diego Chargers will likely get Laremy Tunsil. Tunsil is a franchise bookend tackle for the long-term, and will help keep quarterback Philip Rivers, as well as his eventual replacement, upright for years to come.
4.) Dallas Cowboys
Selection: Jalen Ramsey – Cornerback/Safety – Florida State
Height: 6′ 1″
Weight: 209 pounds
Birthday: 10/24/94
The trade’s ripple effects help the Dallas Cowboys fix their defense with the player that many teams have as the top player of the draft class in Jalen Ramsey. Ramsey is very good with playing at either corner or a safety, and the Cowboys need help in both spots.
5.) Jacksonville Jaguars
Selection: Myles Jack – Outside Linebacker – UCLA
Height: 6′ 1″
Weight: 245 pounds
Birthday: 9/3/95
Ohio State linebacker Joey Bosa’s fall will continue as the Jacksonville Jaguars will take UCLA linebacker, Myles Jack.
With the addition of defensive end Malik Jackson from the Denver Broncos, the Jaguars will now be able to fill in the rest of the top-seven on defense. Jack is an athletic monster, who should allow the Jaguars’ defense to come alive.
6.) Baltimore Ravens
Selection: Joey Bosa – Defensive End – Ohio State
Height: 6′ 5″
Weight: 269 pounds
Birthday: 7/11/95
The fall ends for Bosa, as the Baltimore Ravens get the best player available to fit into their defense. Bosa could play in a 4-3 defense or a 3-4 defense, and the Ravens could use some youth on that side of the football.
7.) San Francisco 49ers
Selection: DeForest Buckner – Defensive End – Oregon
Height: 6′ 7″
Weight: 291 pounds
Birthday: 1994
With both Goff and Wentz gone, the San Francisco 49ers are out of the first round quarterback race. Paxton Lynch is not worthy of a top-10 pick, so the 49ers will have to look elsewhere.
They will go with DeForest Buckner, the hybrid end to aid San Francisco’s defense.
8.) Philadelphia Eagles (acquired via trade with Miami Dolphins)
Selection: Ezekiel Elliott – Running Back – Ohio State
Height: 6′ 0″
Weight: 225 pounds
Birthday: 7/22/95
Thanks to the top of the draft, Ezekiel Elliott falls to the Philadelphia Eagles instead of to Dallas. This allows the Eagles to get one elite playmaker back into the fold on offense.
9.) Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Selection: Vernon Hargreaves III – Cornerback – Florida
Height: 5′ 10″
Weight: 204 pounds
Birthday: 6/3/95
Vernon Hargreaves III is a fast corner with great closing speed and instincts. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers could use some help despite having Jonathan Banks and Alterraun Verner on the roster. Hargreaves will take the heat off of the secondary.
10.) New York Giants
Selection: Darron Lee – Linebacker – Ohio State
Height: 6′ 1″
Weight: 232 pounds
Birthday: 10/18/94
Make it three Buckeyes in the top-10 of the draft. Darron Lee becomes the surprise addition to the top of the draft thanks to the New York Giants, but he is also rather deserving of the pick. Lee has great sideline-to-sideline speed and athleticism to go into pass coverage.
11.) Chicago BearsSelection: Shaq Lawson – Outside Linebacker – Clemson
Height: 6′ 3″
Weight: 269 pounds
Birthday: 6/17/94
The Chicago Bears have a boat-load of options here, but there is a major need for a 3-4 edge rusher with the transition to the 3-4 system. Bears fans, meet Shaq Lawson, an absolute terror for quarterbacks with his pass rushing abilities.
12.) New Orleans Saints
Selection: Mackensie Alexander – Cornerback – Clemson
Height: 5′ 10″
Weight: 190 pounds
Birthday: 11/12/93
It is too bad Rob Ryan is so bad at coaching that he is not the defensive coordinator there anymore. It would be too fun to watch him sprint up to the podium to get the Saints to draft the underrated cornerback Mackensie Alexander, a complete corner with good ball skills.
13.) Miami Dolphins (acquired via trade with Philadelphia Eagles)
Selection: Ronnie Stanley – Offensive Tackle – Notre Dame
Height: 6′ 6″
Weight: 312 pounds
Birthday: 3/18/94
Based on their recent drafts, the Miami Dolphins will likely reach on someone that they should have waited on. But, the Dolphins will look to aid their offensive line once more in the surprisingly available Ronnie Stanley, and look to move Jawaun James to the inside.
14.) Oakland Raiders
Selection: Leonard Floyd – Outside Linebacker – Georgia
Height: 6′ 6″
Weight: 244 pounds
Birthday: 9/8/92
The Oakland Raiders’ defense gets more powerful with the selection of Leonard Floyd. While safety is a massive need, they cannot select any one of them until later on as none of the safeties left should be going this high. Getting some pass rush help would be nice, as trusting Aldon Smith to stay out of trouble is not logical.
15.) Tennessee Titans (acquired via trade with Los Angeles Rams)
Selection: Taylor Decker – Offensive Tackle – Ohio State
Height: 6′ 7″
Weight: 310 pounds
Birthday: 8/23/94
The trade’s ripple effects will officially continue here, but Tennessee still gets a tackle to pair with Taylor Lewan to protect quarterback, Marcus Mariota. The Titans may not remain in this spot, with plenty of ammunition to move around into the top-10 if they please.
16.) Detroit Lions
Selection: Laquon Treadwell – Wide Receiver – Ole Miss
Height: 6′ 2″
Weight: 221 pounds
Birthday: 6/14/95
The Detroit Lions actually get lucky here as they will have Laquon Treadwell fall to them at 16. This is mostly thanks to the Rams trading up to first overall pick in the draft. Los Angeles was a big contender for Treadwell, but decided on moving up, which allows Detroit to fill the shoes left by Calvin Johnson.
17.) Atlanta Falcons
Selection: Kevin Dodd – Defensive End – Clemson
Height: 6′ 5″
Weight: 277 pounds
Birthday: 7/14/92
The Atlanta Falcons could always use more help with their anemic pass rush. Kevin Dodd got less attention thanks to Shaq Lawson, but Dodd will also get help from fellow Clemson Tiger graduate Vic Beasley in Atlanta. Clemson’s football program sure does know how to pump out pass rushers.
18.) Indianapolis Colts
Selection: A’Shawn Robinson – Defensive Tackle – Alabama
Height: 6′ 4″
Weight: 307 pounds
Birthday: 3/21/95
If this team does not select an offensive or defensive lineman, Indianapolis Colts general manager Ryan Grigson should be fired on the spot. Sadly, the Colts cannot get help justified for the offense without a huge reach, so they “settle” for the space-eating A’Shawn Robinson instead.
19.) Buffalo Bills
Selection: Reggie Ragland – Inside Linebacker – Alabama
Height: 6′ 1″
Weight: 247 pounds
Birthday: 9/24/93
The Buffalo Bills lost starting linebacker Nigel Bradham to Philadelphia, as well as depth linebackers Ty Powell (free agency) and A.J. Tarpley (retirement) this offseason. Linebacker was a need even with those players on the roster.
Enter Reggie Ragland, where Buffalo needs to focus on the inside first, then worry about the weak-side later.
20.) New York Jets
Selection: Paxton Lynch– Quarterback – Memphis
Height: 6′ 7″
Weight: 244 pounds
Birthday: 2/12/94
With Lynch falling to New York, the Jets can finally cast aside the absurd negotiations of QB Ryan Fitzpatrick and start over with a long-term answer at quarterback.
21.) Washington Redskins
Selection: Sheldon Rankins – Defensive Tackle – Louisville
Height: 6′ 1″
Weight: 299 pounds
Birthday: 4/2/94
The Washington Redskins needs to replace Terrance “Pot Roast” Knighton in the middle of the defense. Sheldon Rankins has the ability to play nose tackle, but still make a difference in the pass rush. Rankins finished with five sacks in his final year with the Louisville Cardinals.
22.) Houston Texans
Selection: Corey Coleman – Wide Receiver – Baylor
Height: 5′ 11″
Weight: 194 pounds
Birthday: 7/6/94
The Houston Texans add another weapon for newly acquired quarterback Brock Osweiler in wide receiver, Corey Coleman. Coleman can thrive across from DeAndre Hopkins, as his speed and athleticism will take away double coverage on Hopkins.
23.) Minnesota Vikings
Selection: Will Fuller – Wide Receiver – Notre Dame
Height: 6′ 0″
Weight: 186 pounds
Birthday: 4/16/94
It is time for the Minnesota Vikings to build around quarterback Teddy Bridgewater instead of running back Adrian Peterson. Will Fuller and Stephon Diggs will be a great young tandem for Bridgewater to grow with for many years.
24.) Cincinnati Bengals
Selection: Josh Doctson – Wide Receiver – TCU
Height: 6′ 2″
Weight: 202 pounds
Birthday: 1993
Who do defenses cover in the red zone if A.J. Green, Tyler Eifert, and Josh Doctson are all on the outside? Doctson will just add to a scary group of weapons for Andy Dalton and the Cincinnati Bengals’ offense.
25.) Pittsburgh Steelers
Selection: Vonn Bell – Safety – Ohio State
Height: 5′ 11″
Weight: 199 pounds
Birthday: 12/12/94
The Pittsburgh Steelers need to get younger and more physical in the secondary. Vonn Bell can be the exact piece Pittsburgh needs.
At Ohio State, Bell had nine interceptions, including six in his sophomore season. He is a risk taker, but is also incredibly strong with tackles totaling 115 in his three seasons at Ohio State.
26.) Seattle Seahawks
Selection: Noah Spence – Outside Linebacker – Eastern Kentucky
Height: 6′ 2″
Weight: 251 pounds
Birthday: 3/3/96
The Seattle Seahawks is another team that loves to take chances on players with off-field issues. Noah Spence can be another version of Bruce Irvin, but better as a pass rusher and and a similar caliber linebacker than Irvin was.
27.) Green Bay Packers
Selection: Andrew Billings – Nose Tackle – Baylor
Height: 6′ 1″
Weight: 311 pounds
Birthday: 3/3/96
The Green Bay Packers have to fill the void left when B.J. Raji retired. Green Bay will add another strong defensive lineman in Andrew Billings that can attempt to stop a weapon like Peterson in Minnesota, and the rest of the tough running backs in the NFC.
28.) Kansas City Chiefs
Selection: Tyler Boyd – Wide Receiver – Pittsburgh
Height: 6′ 1″
Weight: 197 pounds
Birthday: 11/15/93
The Kansas City Chiefs could replace Sean Smith with this pick, but adding a versatile receiver like Tyler Boyd would make the Chiefs’ offense dangerous. With weapons like Jeremy Maclin, Travis Kelce, Jamaal Charles, Boyd could make Kansas City a favorite to take the AFC title next season.
29.) Arizona Cardinals
Selection: Eli Apple – Cornerback – Ohio State
Height: 6′ 1″
Weight: 199 pounds
Birthday: 8/9/95
Eli Apple falls to the Arizona Cardinals, who needs a corner to tandem with Patrick Peterson. Apple is a taller cornerback with better ball skills and also is a physical corner who can compete with taller wideouts, while Peterson can deal with the speed merchants.
30.) Carolina Panthers
Selection: Darian Thompson – Safety – Boise State
Height: 6′ 2″
Weight: 208 pounds
Birthday: N / A
The Carolina Panthers have to get younger in the secondary, and Darian Thompson will add some youth. Thompson thrived at Boise State with the Broncos, becoming a turnover machine.
31.) Denver Broncos
Selection: Connor Cook – Quarterback – Michigan State
Height: 6′ 4″
Weight: 217 pounds
Birthday: 1/29/93
It may be a reach to get back to the Super Bowl after Peyton Manning retired and Osweiler went to Houston, but all Denver needs is average play from a quarterback. Mark Sanchez is not be the answer in Denver, but Connor Cook can be a solid game manager that would be an upgrade over the Manning from last season.
