Arif Hasan contributed to this report.
After attending the Senior Bowl and taking note of whose stock rose and whose stock fell, our very own Luke Inman and Arif Hasan formulated a new first-round mock draft.
Picks 1-10 can be found HERE, 11-20 are HERE and 21-32 can be found below.
21) Detroit Lions: Ryan Ramczyk, Offensive Tackle, Wisconsin (Luke)
Early word out of Detroit is the departure of former first-round pick Riley Reiff is imminent, creating another hole on the offensive line once again. Ramczyk’s senior season was one of a top-10 pick, but because he burst onto the scene his senior year, teams are worried he could be a one-year wonder. Teaming him up with Taylor Decker gives the Lions the best bookend tackle combination when considering youth and talent.
22) Miami Dolphins: Taco Charlton, Defensive End, Michigan (Arif)
With rare athleticism and size, Charlton has been a late-bloomer who needs some coaching to reach his full potential. As a long-term replacement for Cameron Wake, he can develop as a rotational rusher as he adds more to his game.
23) New York Giants: David Njoku, Tight End, Miami (Luke)
Watching O.J. Howard dominate the Senior Bowl helped people remember what an impactful tight end can do to an offense. Some have argued Njoku is the best of the class (he’s not) and adding him to the Giants’ already-potent offense is a deadly scenario for opposing defenses. With Odell Beckham, Jr., and Sterling Shepard on the boundaries, Njoku helps fit the last piece of the puzzle for Eli Manning.
24) Oakland Raiders: Budda Baker, Free Safety, Washington (Arif)
The Raiders get to pair hard-hitting Baker with the thudding Karl Joseph and create a truly terrifying secondary. With true coverage skills that allow him to patrol the back end, the Raiders will have a versatile and effective defensive backfield.
25) Houston Texans: Garrett Bolles, Offensive Tackle, Utah (Luke)
Instead of waffling back and forth at quarterback and wasting early picks on the position, the better solution would be to build a dominating offensive line for the Texans offense. Bolles is hands down the most athletic tackle in the class with outstanding feet and movement skills. With the often injured Duane Brown to deal with, Bolles can be plugged in on the right side as he learns the nuances of the game.
26) Seattle Seahawks: Forrest Lamp, Offensive Guard, Western Kentucky (Arif)
This doesn’t quite match their typical strategy on the offensive line, but their typical strategy has produced terrible results. Instead, they have an opportunity to grab a legitimately talented and technique-sound player and plug him in to play right away, at tackle or guard.
27) Kansas City Chiefs: Sidney Jones, Cornerback, Washington (Luke)
Jones is so smooth and natural when in coverage it’s not hard to see him becoming a team’s No. 1 cornerback in the NFL. The Chiefs have tried Day 3 picks on the position but have had little luck. Now, they get to team Pro Bowler Marcus Peters with him, forming the best young tandem on the boundaries with two shutdown-type cornerbacks.
28) Dallas Cowboys: Takkarist McKinley, Edge Rusher, UCLA (Arif)
McKinley has every tool in the book and a lot of detail-oriented play, but some of the most important details haven’t been hammered out in his pass-rush, like hand-usage. The Cowboys could use him as an instant boost in production with room to grow with solid coaching.
29) Green Bay Packers: Christian McCaffrey, Running Back, Stanford (Luke)
Another example of top-tier talent being pushed down because of the excess value at running back in a pass-happy league. Between his playmaking ability and versatility to bring talent to multiple positions like running back, receiver and kick returner, McCaffery is one of the most all-around polished players in the first round that will contribute Day One. The Packers’ offense was desperate for a consistent running game when Eddie Lacy went down. McCaffery not only adds that but is the perfect guy out of the backfield to use with Aaron Rodgers in the passing game.
30) Pittsburgh Steelers: Haason Reddick, Outside Linebacker (Arif)
I was going to note Pittsburgh’s penchant for undersized pass-rushers, but the NFL.com draft profile already compared Reddick to Ryan Shazier. This is more to replace James Harrison than Lawrence Timmons, but Reddick showed phenomenal off-ball ability in Mobile as well as edge-rushing ability. Whichever works for Pittsburgh will work for Reddick.
31) Atlanta Falcons: Jabrill Peppers, Linebacker, Michigan (Luke)
The wild card of the bunch, Peppers has the most contrasted draft grade of the group due to his highlight reel ability for the Wolverines but his lack of one true natural position. If anyone was going to be able to harness a way to extract his football prowess, we know it’s Dan Quinn. Quinn has already proved draft pundits wrong when he was told he overdrafted players like Keanu Neal and Deion Jones. Add Peppers into the mix and Quinn is going to have a lot of fun terrorizing and confusing the hell out of NFL offenses on Sundays.
32) New England Patriots: Marlon Humphrey, Cornerback, Alabama (Arif)
Tre’Davious White is a better corner, but Humphrey comes from the exact same system Belichick uses, and it’s a difficult one to learn. He doesn’t have agility and lacks turnover production, but he has everything else: size, speed, awareness, strength and technique.
The fun’s not done! Here are a few of the guys’ superlatives from their first-round mock.
Best Available (Luke): Desmond King, Safety, Iowa
King gets pushed down because of his lack of size (5’11”) and blazing speed for the position. However, the former Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year plays with NFL instincts and is a natural cover corner. King is working on a transition to safety that better suits his playing style and will become a phenomenal strong safety type that can get his nose dirty in the run game while staying in the hip pocket of running backs, tight ends and even slot receivers.
Best Available (Arif): Tre’Davious White, CB Louisiana State
The rare corner who can cover tight ends, White offers fluidity, size and awareness at the CB position. Before his injury, he was the best corner in Mobile and seemed to answer questions about his speed. Any team picking him up in the second round will get great value for him.
Best Fit (Luke): Jonathan Allen, Defensive Line, Chicago Bears
Finding blue-chip linemen that can disrupt and demand multiple blockers is a key to any 3-4 defense, such as Vince Wilfork with the Patriots and Haloti Ngata for the Ravens. Allen will give the Bears’ front seven something to build around and open up a world of opportunities for their linebackers to roam and make plays. In a game that starts up front, Allen is a guy you want on your side and will be the difference from an average defense to a great one.
Best Fit (Arif): Budda Baker, Safety, Oakland Raiders
What could be a better fit than finding a slightly smaller, slightly better coverage version of Karl Joseph? Having the hardest-hitting safeties in the league that can replicate each other’s role will massively boost the defense and makes the Oakland Raiders a true threat in the AFC West.
Best Value (Luke): Christian McCaffrey, Running Back, Green Bay Packers (29)
McCaffery is a swiss army knife of tools and talent, but because of his lack of one true trait or position, he will get devalued. The NFL’s stupidity is the Packers’ gain as he will give them a home run threat with the ball in his hands as both a running back and pass catcher out of the backfield.
Best Value (Arif): O.J. Howard, Tight End, Baltimore Ravens (16)
I don’t know if there’s anything O.J. Howard can’t do, and the only reason he dropped as far as 16 in my eyes was need at tight end. He’s a top-level player in this class whose talent puts him in the top five, even if his positional value may push him down into the mid-teens. He has size, speed, strength, coordination, technical ability, smarts and virtually everything else you’d use to describe a football player—he could be generational.
