Monday, January 2, 2017

2017 NFL Mock Draft 5.0: Post Regular Season Edition

The regular season has come to a close and with that, the first 20 picks for this year's draft have been set. The Cleveland Browns have "earned" the right to the first overall pick and with it comes mystery and many scenarios. Will they trade the pick again to a quarterback needy team? Will they take a new quarterback for this regime? Will they go best player available and target Myles Garrett or Jonathan Allen? We will have to wait and see. The offseason has started for 20 teams and we will see plenty of coaching and front office changes. Free agency will shake things up and we have major draft events approaching such as the combine and the Senior Bowl.

I've got a treat for all you loyal readers: a THREE ROUND mock draft! Coming off a massive view count for my previous mock draft, I want to take this time to thank you all. Your continued dedication to my work is never taken for granted and it is truly a privilege for me to share my opinions and thoughts about all things football. With that said, let's get this part started!

* indicates a coin flip to decide draft order

ROUND ONE:
1.     Cleveland Browns: Myles Garrett, EDGE, TAMU
2.     San Francisco 49ers: Mitch Trubisky, QB, North Carolina
3.     Chicago Bears: Jonathan Allen, DL, Alabama
4.     Jacksonville Jaguars: Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU
5.     Tennessee Titans (via Los Angeles): Mike Williams, WR, Clemson
6.     New York Jets: Jamal Adams, S, LSU
7.     San Diego Chargers: Ryan Ramczyk, OT, Wisconsin
8.     Carolina Panthers: Derek Barnett, EDGE, Tennessee
9.     Cincinnati Bengals: Reuben Foster, LB, Alabama
10.  Buffalo Bills: DeShone Kizer, QB, Notre Dame
11.  New Orleans Saints: Quincy Wilson, CB, Florida
12.  Cleveland Browns (via Philadelphia): Jabrill Peppers, S, Michigan
13.  Arizona Cardinals: Josh Allen, QB, Wyoming
14.  Indianapolis Colts *: Dalvin Cook, RB, FSU
15.  Philadelphia Eagles (via Minnesota) *: Malik Hooker, S, Ohio State
16.  Baltimore Ravens: Tim Williams, EDGE, Alabama
17.  Washington: Jalen Tabor, CB, Florida
18.  Tennessee Titans: Dan Feeney, OG, Indiana
19.  Tampa Bay Buccaneers: John Ross, WR, Washington
20.  Denver Broncos: O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama
21.  Detroit Lions: Takkarist McKinnley, EDGE, UCLA
22.  Miami Dolphins: Sidney Jones, CB, Washington
23.  New York Giants: Taco Charlton, EDGE, Michigan
24.  Oakland Raiders: D’Onta Foreman, RB, Texas
25.  Houston Texans: Ryan Anderson, EDGE, Alabama
26.  Green Bay Packers: Carl Lawson, EDGE, Auburn
27.  Seattle Seahawks: Cam Robinson, OT, Alabama
28.  Pittsburgh Steelers: Zach Cunningham, LB, Vanderbilt
29.  Atlanta Falcons: Harold Landry, EDGE, Boston College
30.  Kansas City Chiefs: Corey Davis, WR, Western Michigan
31.  Dallas Cowboys: Marlon Humphrey, CB, Alabama
32.  New England Patriots: Christian McCaffrey, RB, Stanford

ROUND TWO:
33.  Cleveland Browns: Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson
34.  San Francisco 49ers: Bucky Hodges, TE, Virginia Tech
35.  Chicago Bears: Brad Kaaya, QB, Miami (Florida)
36.  Jacksonville Jaguars: Jarrad Davis, LB, Florida
37.  Los Angeles Rams: Evan Pocic, C, LSU
38.  New York Jets: Gareon Conley, CB, Ohio State
39.  San Diego Chargers: Marcus Williams, S, Utah
40.  Carolina Panthers: Jourdan Lewis, CB, Michigan
41.  Cincinnati Bengals: Charles Harris, EDGE, Missouri
42.  Buffalo Bills: JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, USC
43.  New Orleans Saints: Malik McDowell, DL, Michigan State
44.  Philadelphia Eagles: Jamaal Williams, RB, BYU
45.  Arizona Cardinals: Isaiah Ford, WR, Virginia Tech
46.  Minnesota Vikings: Montravius Adams, DL, Auburn
47.  Indianapolis Colts: Joe Mathis, EDGE, Washington
48.  Baltimore Ravens: Pat Elflein, C, Ohio State
49.  Washington: Caleb Brantley, DL, Florida
50.  Cleveland Browns (via Tennessee): Marcus Maye, S, Florida
51.  Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Lowell Lotulelei, DL, Utah
52.  Denver Broncos: Roederick Johnson, OT, FSU
53.  Detroit Lions: Justin Evans, S, TAMU
54.  Miami Dolphins: DeMarcus Walker, EDGE, FSU
55.  New York Giants: David Njoku, TE, Miami (Florida)
56.  Oakland Raiders: Carlos Watkins, DL, Clemson
57.  Houston Texans: Marcus Allen, S, Penn State
58.  Green Bay Packers: Forrest Lamp, OG, Western Michigan
59.  Seattle Seahawks: Marshon Lattimore, CB, Ohio State
60.  Pittsburgh Steelers: Desmond King, CB, Iowa
61.  Atlanta Falcons: Adoree’ Jackson, CB, USC
62.  Kansas City Chiefs: Vince Biegel, LB, Wisconsin
63.  Dallas Cowboys: Dawuane Smoot, EDGE, Illinois
64.  New England Patriots: Budda Baker, S, Washington

ROUND THREE
65.  Cleveland Browns: Malachi Dupre, WR, LSU
66.  San Francisco 49ers: Kevin King, CB, Washington
67.  Chicago Bears: Raekwon McMillan, LB, Ohio State
68.  Jacksonville Jaguars: Chris Wormley, DL, Michigan
69.  Tennessee Titans (via Los Angeles): Cordrea Tankersley, CB, Clemson
70.  New York Jets: Wayne Gallman, RB, Clemson
71.  San Diego Chargers: Samaje Perine, RB, Oklahoma
72.  Carolina Panthers: Eddie Vanderdoes, DL, UCLA
73.  Cincinnati Bengals: Zay Jones, WR, East Carolina
74.  Buffalo Bills: Marquez White, CB, FSU
75.  New Orleans Saints: Davis Webb, QB, California
76.  Philadelphia Eagles: Vita Vea, DL, Washington
77.  Arizona Cardinals: Chidobe Awuzi, CB, Colorado
78.  Minnesota Vikings: Tyler Orlovsky, C, West Virginia
79.  Indianapolis Colts: Zach Banner, OG, USC
80.  Baltimore Ravens: Evan Engram, TE, Ole Miss
81.  Washington: Dorian Johnson, OG, Pittsburgh
82.  Tennessee Titans: Tedric Thompson, S, Colorado
83.  Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Brian Hill, RB, Wyoming
84.  Denver Broncos: Artavis Scott, WR, Clemson
85.  Detroit Lions: KD Cannon, WR, Baylor
86.  Minnesota Vikings (via Miami): Julie’n Davenport, OT, Bucknell
87.  New York Giants: Jake Butt, TE, Michigan
88.  Oakland Raiders: Eddie Jackson, S, Alabama
89.  Seattle Seahawks: Ejuan Price, EDGE, Pittsburgh
90.  Houston Texans: Conor McDermott, OT, UCLA
91.  Green Bay Packers: Kareem Hunt, RB, Toledo
92.  Pittsburgh Steelers: Damore’a Stringfellow, WR, Ole Miss
93.  Kansas City Chiefs: Tre’Davious White, CB, LSU
94.  Atlanta Falcons: Jeremy Sprinkle, TE, Arkansas
95.  New England Patriots: Patrick Mahomes, QB, Texas Tech
96.  Dallas Cowboys: DeDe Westbrook, WR, Oklahoma


- Josh Allen is the latest quarterback to generate major hype. He has some crazy protentional, too. The Wyoming quarterback displays great arm talent and has the build (6’5” 222 lb) that NFL teams salivate over. Mocking him to the Cardinals is something that head coach Bruce Arians would love. Molding him behind Carson Palmer for another year is an ideal location for Allen.

- How many quarterbacks are we going to see in the top 50 picks? My bet is one five guys, but sleepers Davis Webb and Patrick Mahomes will generate plenty of buzz as projects for teams with an established starting quarterback.

- Malik Hooker announced today that he will be entering the 2017 NFL draft after telling the media that he intended to return to Ohio State for his senior year. Where does Hooker rank on my board? I currently have him in my top 20 players and am strongly considering making him my number two safety, only behind Jamal Adams.

- Speaking of safeties, what is going on with Jabrill Peppers draft stock? While he remains inside my top 15 players, many are questioning where his position will be in the NFL and whether or not he is he is an actual future star in the NFL or just a great athlete. Peppers is a safe bet for round one should he declare, but teams will be very split on his ranking. He could be a top ten pick or he could be selected in the late twenties. Only time will tell where he will go.

- What team is going to dominate the draft this year? Some of the teams that are constantly having their players mocked include: Alabama, Washington, Clemson, and Ohio State. It should come as a surprise to no one that the four aforementioned teams all made the college football playoffs.

- Who are the top prospects from each of the teams listed above? For me it goes like this: Jonathan Allen of Alabama, Sidney Jones of Washington, Mike Williams of Clemson, and Malik Hooker of Ohio State. All four of these players currently hold a top 20 grade on my big board.

- Where will the draft’s most controversial players wind up? For me, the list includes Louisville’s Devonte Fields, Oklahoma’s DeDe Westbrook and Charles Walker, LSU’s Davon Godchaux, and Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly. All of them contain the talent level of top 64 players, but each player’s off-field issues may drop them down into late day two, early day three selections.


- I find that when making mock drafts, I often blend in what I think will happen as well as what I would do. It creates a nice variety and sometimes allows myself to be more unique in how I do things. Considering the overwhelming popularity of my last mock draft, I will strongly consider doing another “what I would do” versus a  “what I think will happen” mock for round one.