R5D3 Mock 1.0 – Post Combine

Combine week is over, time to see who’s risen and who’s fallen in the draft. Expect a twist or two to keep you on your toes, here in this year’s first edition of my draft. Here we go …

1. Rams – Ndamukong Suh – DT – Nebraska
St. Louis continues to hint that they prefer McCoy over Suh, and could also go QB with this pick. I’m not buying it until I see it, and Suh joins Chris Long and Adam Carriker (a fellow Cornhusker) as D-linemen drafted by St. Louis in the first round in the last four years.


2. Lions – Gerald McCoy – DT – Oklahoma
After the Rams make their selection, the Lions will be bummed for five minutes, then they’ll be glad that was never a way for Detroit to miss out on both of the top DT’s. Of course, when being interviewed, Schwartz will happily tell us they like McCoy better anyway.

3. Buccaneers – C.J. Cpiller – RB – Clemson
Here is the first twist. Both tackles are gone, and while the Bucs also have pressing needs at Wide Receiver and in the secondary, they decide to go flashy with their selection. After the combine, Spiller has established himself as the best RB available in this draft, and Tampa chooses him earlier than most expected.


4. Redskins – Sam Bradford – QB – Oklahoma
Here is where it gets really interesting. Washington has many choices. If Shanahan wants to go with a new QB, and new coaches often do, both Bradford and Clausen are on the board. If Shanahan has high hopes for Jason Campbell, Russell Okung could be the choice here.


5. Chiefs – Russell Okung – OT – Oklahoma State
While Kansas City would probably much rather draft help at receiver (Bryant) or in the secondary (Berry), they have to protect Cassell and move Brandon Albert over to guard, and thus they take the safest bet, Okung, off the board at #5.


6. Seahawks – Eric Berry – S – Tennessee
Seattle is certainly interested in a QB to eventually unseat Matt Hasselbeck, but they are happy with Seneca Wallace being at least a short term solution, and they would likely draft a QB with a later pick to compete for that future role with Mike Teel. For this pick, the Seahawks improve their defense by selecting the best defensive player in the draft not named Ndamukong.


7. Browns – Joe Haden – CB – Florida
Cleveland is hating Seattle right about now, but stick with the plan to bolster the secondary and draft Haden. Haden had a forgettable 40 at the combine, but should improve on that when the Pro Day comes around, and is likely to re-establish as the top corner in the draft.


8. Raiders – Trent Williams – OT – Oklahoma
Here’s hoping the combine ended the talks of Taylor Mays going to Oakland, although nothing is ever safe to assume when the Raiders are involved. Oakland has talent at the skill positions and on defense, what they need most is offensive line help, and Williams helped himself the most at the combine (It is still Al Davis, after all).

9. Bills – Jimmy Clausen – QB – Notre Dame
The Golden Domer becomes the 2^nd QB drafted in 2010, and thus ends the Trent Edwards era in Buffalo. But until Clausen gets help at receiver and on the offensive line, the results are probably unlikely to change much.


10. Jaguars – Jason Pierre-Paul – DE – South Florida
The Jags love to draft Florida players, so this looks like a match made in heaven. Pierre-Paul backed up the hype he has been receiving lately with a solid combine, but he will need to get stronger. The Jaguars have struggled with their first round selections lately, and this one is certainly another risky one.

11. Broncos – Dan Williams – NT – Tennessee
During Denver’s surprising 6-0 start, and for a while past that, the Bronco defense looked remarkably good compared to the 2008 version. But during the late season slide, the defense, especially against the run, reverted back to old form. Adding the 327 lb. Williams who had 40 bench press reps at the combine should be a great start for the run defense.

12. Dolphins – Rolando McClain – LB – Alabama
With the top receiver still on the board here, the Dolphins have to have at least some interest in drafting Dez Bryant here, but decide, correctly, that there is bigger need on defense. Unfortunately for Miami, Pierre-Paul and Williams both just came off the board, so Miami drafts the best middle defender still there in McClain.

13. 49ers – Brian Bulaga – OT – Iowa
San Francisco picks twice over the next five selections, so they have to figure out who among their favorites would still be available at #17. Knowing the run in recent drafts on offensive tackles, the 49ers decide to go there first, and draft the Iowa standout to play opposite of Joe Staley.


14. Seahawks – Dez Bryant – WR – Oklahoma State
Again, the Seahawks can use replacements for Hasselbeck and Walter Jones, but they have to be expected that this talent is still on the board at #14. Bryant will fit right in alongside Houshmanzadeh for a few seasons, but has the skills to become a top pass-catcher in the league.

15. Giants – Carlos Dunlap – DE – Florida
Here is the next twist. To some, Dunlap has already fallen out of the first round, and why the Giants, who own a great pass-rush? Well, with Osi Umenyiora’s complaints and general unhappiness might be a great way to send him out of town. I do believe a trade involving Osi will happen, and Dunlap probably has the most natural talent of any DE in the draft.

16. Titans – Earl Thomas – CB – Texas
Quick, name a Tennessee CB other than Finnegan! Exactly! The Titans definitely need help in pass defense, which could also include a better pass rush, but for now they concentrate on coverage and select the Longhorn standout, who could also end up at safety.

17. 49ers – Brandon Graham – DE – Michigan
The 49ers gambled and lost, as coveted CB Earl Thomas just came off the board. But San Francisco still improves their pass defense by improving the pass rush, and selecting this DE/OLB from Michigan to terrorize opponents backfields. In three years, San Francisco will be very happy they lost out on Thomas.

18. Steelers – Anthony Davis – OT – Rutgers
Protection for Ben Roethlisberger has to be near the top of the list for Pittsburgh, and they should be happy still finding one of the top four OT’s this late in round one. Davis’ stock was hurt a little bit with a fairly weak combine, the reason for dropping out of a possible top ten spot.

19. Falcons – Derrick Morgan – DE – Georgia Tech
Looked at by some as the most complete DE in this draft class, Morgan becomes the 4^th one off the board and goes to the hometown Falcons. With an offense already quite loaded, the Falcons need improvement on the defensive line and in the secondary, and are glad one of the top rated defensive players is still available here.

20. Texans – Kyle Wilson – CB – Boise State
Cornerback is a need for the Texans, and that is a need that only gets magnified if Dunta Robinson skips town. Wilson is one of several candidates that could come off the board at this stage of the first round, and the Texans hope they chose wisely.

21. Bengals – Taylor Mays – S – Southern Cal
If Mays really ran a 4.24 40 yard dash, then he still has decent first round value. Not the greatest cover guy but certainly the best athlete available this year, Cincinnati is hoping their trend of selecting USC defenders continues to work for them.

22. Patriots - Golden Tate – WR – Notre Dame
Randy Moss is getting older, and apparently is getting more disgruntled in New England. Meanwhile, Wes Welker is injured and could miss as much as the entire next season. Also, I don’t believe Welker would transition well to #1 receiver if and when Moss skips town. Enter Tate. Last time Belichick chose a receiver early was Chad Jackson, so hopefully this time the homework will have been done.

23. Packers – Bruce Campbell – OT – Maryland
The Packers featured the league’s #2 ranked defense last year, and they sport a very imposing offense. The missing link? Pass protection for Aaron Rodgers. It wouldn’t surprise me in the least if Green Bay spends their first two picks on the offensive line, starting with Campbell, who ran a very nice 4.85 at the combine.

24. Eagles – Everson Griffin – DE – Southern California
The Eagles would love to improve on Victor Abiamiri at end opposite of Trent Cole, and Griffin fits the role. He has a tremendous amount of talent, and a 4.66 second 40 yard dash and 32 bench presses certainly helped his cause. Griffin was in a little bit of a slide, but his combine performance should stop that slide here.

25. Ravens – Jermaine Gresham – TE – Oklahoma
Like the Packers and two o-line picks, it wouldn’t surprise me if the Ravens find two receiving weapons for Flacco with their first two picks. Since the WR class looks a little deeper, Baltimore starts at TE, and selects Todd Heap’s heir apparent in Gresham.

26. Cardinals – Jerry Hughes – LB – TCU
Hughes is one of my favorite players in this draft. I think this guy will end up being a stud in the NFL, and the Cardinals may just end up with the steal of the first round.

27. Cowboys – Mike Iupati – OG – Idaho
Leonard Davis, Kyle Kosier and Montrae Holland are all on the wrong side of age 30, and could you think of a better bunch of people for Iupati to learn the trade from? Perhaps Jerry Jones will prefer a sexy wide receiver or defensive pick, but the offensive line needs some bolstering, as well as a youth infusion.

28. Chargers – Ryan Mathews – RB – Fresno State
Tomlinson is gone, and Sproles could be behind him. With or without Sproles, San Diego needs help in the running game. Jonathan Dwyer’s stock dropped with the combine, and Jahvid Best is pretty much another Sproles, with an injury history to boot. San Diego picks up LT’s heir with this one, as Mathews has a field day in this offense.

29. Jets – Sergio Kindle – LB – Texas
New York could certainly pick another weapon for Sanchez here, but instead improve the one aspect of their defense that could be considered a weakness, the pass rush. Perhaps, this pick means the end of the Vernon Gholston era in New York.

30. Vikings - Colt McCoy – QB – Texas
Let’s face a few things here. Brett Favre is coming back for one more year. Tavaris Jackson will not be trusted to lead this offense when Brett is no more. Sage Rosenfels is old. Enter McCoy, who will have the luxury of zero expectations in 2010 has he rides the pine behind Favre. In 2011, he takes over.

31. Colts – Devin McCourty – CB – Rutgers
Indy needs to upgrade the defense some, and they need to upgrade the offensive line. With this pick, they concentrate on the former, and take this rising player out of Rutgers.

32. Saints – Sean Weatherspoon – LB – Missouri
I don’t think there’s solid 1^st round DE talent left for the Saints to grab. I did think about interior line help and picking Maurkice Pouncey, but finally settled on LB, which I feel is still their biggest position of weakness. Weatherspoon could quickly become a rookie of the year contender by piling up tackles.