NNF's first Mock Draft, taking on the 2013 NFL draft.
Pick number 1. Kansas City Chiefs
Players considered: Luke Joeckel OT Texas A&M, Geno Smith QB West Virgina.
Player projected: Luke Joeckel OT Texas A&M.
After reports that the Chiefs are the leaders in the Alex Smith sweepstakes along with reports saying Andy Reid was impressed with Joeckel I figure this makes the most sense. The apparent imminent departure of LT Brandon Albert also adds to the likelihood of this pick.
Pick Number 2. Jacksonville Jaguars
Players considered: Ezekiel Ansah DE/OLB BYU, Jarvis Jones OLB/DE Georgia.
Player projected: Jarvis Jones OLB/DE Georgia
This is a perfect fit with Gus Bradley coming in from Seattle, he is going to want a guy who can play the Leo or Elephant position, a stand up hybrid 34 OLB/43 DE. Jarvis Jones is the perfect fit here, although Ziggy would be a great fit as well he is less polished and therefore I think he falls, maybe even to the Seahawks at 25.
Pick Number 3. Oakland Raiders
Players considered: Alec Ogeltree ILB Georgia, Shariff Floyd DT Florida, Star Lotulelei DT Utah.
Player projected: Shariff Floyd DT Florida.
Basically, I see this as Shariff if Star doesn't check out because of his heart condition. If he does check out then Star is the pick. Either one will be a good replacement for Richard Seymour and both fills a need and qualifies at the best available player.
Pick Number 4. Philadelphia Eagles
Players considered: Star Louteleli DT Utah, Sam Montgomery DE/OLB LSU, Ezekiel Ansah DE/OLB BYU, Dion Jordan DE/OLB Oregon, Eric Fisher OT Central Michigan, Jonathan Cooper OG/C North Carolina, Chance Warmack OG Alabama.
Player projected: Star Louteleli DT Utah
There are a lot of directions the Eagles could go here, I personally think they need more help on O-Line than on D-Line however they could get a quality player, such as Oregon OT/OG Kyle Long, in the 2nd or 3rd round. With the release of Cullen Jenkins they need a replacement for him and I think Star fits perfectly. If Star doesn't check out then I expect they'd flip a few coins and take either Ansah, Dion, or Montgomery.
Pick Number 5. Detroit Lions
Players considered: Bjoern Werner DE Florida State, Damontre Moore DE Texas A&M, Barkevious Mingo DE/OLB LSU, Sam Montgomery DE/OLB LSU, Dion Jordan DE/OLB Oregon.
Player projected: Barkevious Mingo DE/OLB LSU
With Vanden Bosch and possibly Cliff Avril leaving the Lions need a pass rusher here and KeKe is the one most suited for the Lions Wide-9 scheme. Dion Jordan makes sense too, but I think he is more of a 34 OLB as he is more polished in coverage and against the run than against the pass. KeKe is a freakish speedy athlete at DE who will be a good fit in Detroit.
Pick Number 6. Cleveland Browns
Players considered: Cordarrele Patterson WR Tennessee, Ryan Swope WR Texas A&M, Geno Smith QB West Virgina, Eric Fisher OT Central Michigan.
Player projected: Geno Smith QB West Virgina.
I'm working off of the assumption that the Chiefs get Alex Smith and Joe Flacco remains a Raven. Under that assumption the Browns get their franchise QB here. If either of those guys come to Cleveland then the pick here should be Swope (who I have rated as the most complete receiver in this class) but will probably be Patterson.
Pick Number 7. Arizona Cardinals
Players considered: Matt Barkley QB USC
Player projected: Matt Barkley QB USC
According to reports the Cardinals want Barkley, I think he falls to them and the Cardinals get the next Mark Sanchez. I'd take JaMarcus Russell over Matt Barkley. I do not think Barkley will be very good, however if anyone can transform this guy into a good QB it would be Arians.
Pick Number 8. Buffalo Bills
Players considered: Damontre Moore DE Texas A&M, Bjoern Werner DE Florida State, Dion Jordan DE/OLB Oregon, Sam Montgomery DE/OLB LSU.
Player projected: Bjoern Werner DE Florida State
More than likely either Ryan Fitzpatrick, Ryan Nassib, or Chase Daniel will be Buffalo's QB next season, for that reason I say they take a DE to pair with Mario Williams. Bjoern Werner is the best available DE here with many analysts having him listed as the no.1 DE on the board.
Pick Number 9. New York Jets
Players considered: Ezekiel Ansah DE/OLB BYU, Sam Montgomery DE/OLB LSU, Jonathan Cooper OG/C North Carolina, Chance Warmack OG Alabama.
Player projected: Chance Warmack OG Alabama
The Jets need O-Line help in particular at guard, Chance Warmack is the best fit because he played in a similar power running scheme in Bama. I personally like Coop from NCU better, but Warmack is a better scheme fit.
Pick Number 10. Tennessee Titans
Players considered: Jonathan Cooper OG/C North Carolina, Eric Fisher Central Michigan.
Player projected: Jonathan Cooper OG/C
The Titans need O-Line help bad if they want to get CJ2K back on track. They have also talked about adding in Zone Read concepts, Zone Blocking fits Coops strengths very well and he will make an excellent addition to the Titans O-Line.
Pick Number 11. San Diego Chargers
Players considered: Eric Fisher OT Central Michigan, Lane Johnson OT Oklahoma.
Player Projected: Eric Fisher OT Central Michigan.
Fish is a steal at 11 as I personally think he is as good as Luke Joeckel. He is the first step in remaking this team into a good team by adding someone who can keep Phillip Rivers upright. I'm not sold on Phillip Rivers as a franchise QB but this kid will certainly help him.
Pick Number 12. Miami Dolphins
Players considered: Tavon Austin WR West Virgina, Ryan Swope WR Texas A&M, Cordarrele Patterson WR Tennessee, Dee Milliner CB Alabama, Xavier Rhodes CB Florida St, Lane Johnson OT Oklahoma.
Player Projected: Dee Milliner CB Alabama.
And the constant bad moves continue, don't get me wrong Dee is a good corner but corner shouldn't be a need for them. If Ireland would let the moths out of his wallet and pay Sean Smith he wouldn't need a new corner, and if he had kept Brandon Marshall last year they might have a shot at the AFC East this year. Or if he'd pay Reggie Bush or Jake Long...or anyone.
Pick Number 13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Players considered: Xavier Rhodes CB Florida St., Sam Montgomery DE/OLB LSU, Damontre Moore DE/OLB Texas A&M.
Player projected: Damontre Moore DE/OLB Texas A&M.
The Buccaneers could go a million different directions here. I like the idea of a Corner here but I think they go after a guy like Sean Smith or Tracy Porter in free agency. This frees them up to draft a pass rusher to help against the passing attacks in the NFC South.
Pick Number 14. Carolina Panthers
Players considered: Ezekiel Ansah DE/OLB BYU, Sam Montgomery DE/OLB LSU, Cordarele Patterson WR Tennesse, Ryan Swope WR Texas A&M, John Jenkins DT/NG Georgia.
Player projected: John Jenkins DT/NG Georgia.
The panthers need a good DT on their defense and despite his immense size I think Jenkins is a 43 DT because of his ability to put pressure on the QB and his ability to shed a double team and stuff the run. The Panthers also need a receiver but I think Ryan Swope, a guy who I feel is the best receiver in this class, will be available in the 2nd or 3rd round.
Pick Number 15. New Orleans Saints
Players considered: Margus Hunt DE SMU, Sam Montgomery DE/OLB LSU, Dion Jordan DE/OLB Oregon, Manti Te'o ILB Notre Dame, Kevin Minter ILB LSU.
Player Projected: Dion Jordan DE/OLB Oregon.
The Saints need help on defense, period. They could take Margus Hunt who I think is the next JJ Watt, or they could take a LB like Manti Te'o who has played in the 34 before. I think all of the Saints fans are going to be screaming for Sam Montgomery just like they did with Glenn Dorsey back when they took Sedrick Ellis. This time they go with Oregon DE/OLB Dion Jordan, who is just a giant physical freak. This gives the Saints the elite pass rushing OLB they need for Rob Ryan's 34 defense.
Part 2 can be found here: http://smithsnnfblog.blogspot.com/2013/02/mock-draft-par-deux-picks-16-32.html
He is a possible number 2 pick because he is a good scheme fit for Jacksonville, however Jarvis Jones is a better overall player. He is not as polished as all of the guys I had go ahead of him however so as it stands right now he falls out of the top 15. He could become a higher pick but right now he isn't top 15.
ReplyDeleteThat's just nonsense. The Cards won't draft a QB they could even get in the second round. They need a OT and they know it...
ReplyDeleteCardinals already said they're taking Barkley at 7 if he's there.
DeleteQuotes from NFL.com:
Delete"While there now is talk that Barkley will not make it past the Cardinals at No. 7 overall, we would take that speculation with a grain of salt. Plugged-in Cardinals beat writers Darren Urban and Kent Somers have both said they would be "very surprised" if the team reached for Barkley in the first round."
"This latest Barkley buzz has the feel of an agent doing his best to pump up his client's value behind the scenes. It doesn't pass the smell test."
There is no official indication that the Cards are specifically interested in Barkley. A quick look on the AZ Cardinals web presence shows more mentioning (by GM Keim for example) of Warmack, Fisher and Joeckel (who most likely won't be there after the first 6 picks).
I could see them taking Fisher, but Warmack doesn't seem like a good fit, I think they'd take Cooper from NCU first if they wanted a Guard. To me the deal with the GM coming out and saying all this seems more like a precautionary attempt to keep teams who want Barkley from trading ahead of them. Reminds me of the Dolphins with Tannehill last year.
DeleteIt works both ways. You're saying that the Cards officially deny interested in Barkley so noone steals him from them, but who says that they were particularly interested in him in the first place?
DeleteIf you want to treat the topic from an objective point of view I believe you have to leave both statements aside and look at the facts (neither of us can know which side is truer than the other).
The facts are as follows: Barkley isn't really what Arians is looking for in a QB and he isn't even healthy yet. Basically they'd get the same they have in Kolb just without experience. I can see that once he gets healthy and shows his ability he could be able to impress enough to get taken in the first round, maybe even by the Cardinals. But I don't really see any team being that sure about a player that isn't healthy at the time and wasn't on top of his game before that. Too many question marks for a pick that high.
It's true that Warmack may not be the best fit, and personally I strongly believe that barring some miraculous developement within the draft class (specifically with Barkley) or major trades they will draft Fisher, I merely took information from their website which included Warmack.
Oh, and sorry for my harsh choice of words in the opening post, it was more a reference to the blog's name than meant as an insult. And I admit that around the time you wrote it I too believed the rumors about Barkley but thinking about it from a rational perspective really fueled my scepticism.
Oh no problem, I got the allusion to the blogs name the first time around, believe me you're one of the kinder detractors I've had. As I said in the Mock Draft I am not very high on Barkley and hope they do not go with him, but I could see the Cardinals taking him at.
DeleteOne of the better mock drafts I have seen
ReplyDeleteThanks UA, I tried to go from the point of view of the teams instead of who I think they should take.
Delete