MOCK NFL DRAFTS
| Pick | Team | Pos | Player | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
#1 |
|
QB |
||
| Bryce Young may be the top quarterback prospect for many teams, but the Panthers aren’t taking any chances on his slender frame. Instead, they will choose to trade up and take CJ Stroud, who seems to be the safer option of the two. Stroud sees the field well and can hit his targets consistently, and Carolina may finally be done in their multi-year search for a franchise QB with this move. | ||||
#2 |
|
QB |
||
| The Texans, despite fumbling away the first-overall pick in a Week 18 win, will get their franchise quarterback at the top of the draft. Young has franchise-altering potential as a prospect, and even though he lacks the height and weight most want in a modern NFL quarterback, he has proven time and again at Alabama that his size isn’t a hindrance on his game. | ||||
#3 |
|
LB |
||
| Arizona’s roster is a mess, and with both of the top quarterback options off the board in this scenario, that makes this pick an awkward one to trade out of for the Cardinals. So, they will instead opt to take arguably the top defensive player in the draft in Will Anderson Jr. out of Alabama. He’s a prospect that’s as close to “can't miss” as they come, and having a premier young edge like him has proven to be immeasurably valuable for a rebuilding team like Arizona. | ||||
#4 |
|
QB |
||
| The Colts may not end up with the top guy on their board, but they aren’t leaving this draft without a quarterback. They will be willing to reach on a rookie to avoid playing the veteran quarterback gamble for the fifth-straight year since Andrew Luck retired, and that will leave them with a raw prospect in Will Levis. He has all the talent needed to succeed at the next level, and a more complete roster like the Colts could help him to develop more effectively in the NFL. | ||||
#5 |
|
DL |
||
| The Russell Wilson trade continues to look better by the day for the Seahawks, and that will be especially true if they can land a player like Jalen Carter with Denver’s pick. He’s a top prospect at a highly-valued position, and adding him to a defense loaded with young talent would likely be enough to make Seattle’s defense dangerous for years to come. | ||||
#6 |
|
CB |
||
| Porter doesn’t have a lot of narratives surrounding him ahead of the draft; most just agree that he’s a safe prospect at his position. He doesn’t have the athletic traits that some other players may bring to the table, but he has sound technique and is a day-one starter. That’s exactly what Detroit needs in their thin secondary, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him go from being a Nittany Lion to a Detroit Lion come April. | ||||
#7 |
|
DE |
||
| Sound the alarms! In this scenario, Aaron Rodgers gets dealt to the Raiders to reunite with Davante Adams in Las Vegas. That will leave the Packers with somewhat of a rebuild, but they will have more than adequate capital to pull it off. They will use one of their two first-round picks on Myles Murphy, an elite athlete who has the capability to be an elite player at the NFL level in due time. | ||||
#8 |
|
LB |
||
| The Falcons need to do a makeover on the entirety of the roster, and starting the rebuild in the trenches is as good as anywhere else. Wilson is as elite of a physical specimen as they come at defensive end. He stands an imposing 6’6/275 lbs, and the power he plays with combined with the reach of his arms gives him every opportunity to develop into a great player at the next level. | ||||
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|
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#9 |
|
OT |
||
| The Bears have one position going for them on their current roster: quarterback. Justin Fields seems to be their guy for the future, so now they need to invest in the offensive line to make sure he stays upright in the pocket. Johnson has all the tools necessary to be an elite left tackle at the next level, and a pairing of him and Tevin Jenkins would give the Bears a great start on building a stout young offensive line. | ||||
#10 |
|
CB |
||
| It feels almost unfair that the Eagles get a top-ten pick despite playing in the Super Bowl, but that’s the reward they get for setting themselves up well last year. They will cash in this pick on Christian Gonzalez, who had a lockdown career as an Oregon Duck. His tape is arguably the best in this class of defensive backs, and he would only be icing on the cake for an already-elite Philadelphia defense. | ||||
#11 |
|
OT |
||
| The argument against this pick would be that the Titans are already a one-dimensional offense and Skoronski wouldn’t help with that problem. I personally disagree with that. He’s great as a pass protector, and he would give whoever is under center for the Titans enough time to get a respectable passing attack rolling. He’s no slouch in the run game either, and his presence overall would be a boost for an underwhelming Titans’ offense. | ||||
#12 |
|
DT |
||
| The Texans went offense early on in the draft, so they will now grab some help on the defensive side of the ball. Bresee has some concerns about his health and play style, but when he’s been on the field, he’s been productive. Houston is in a division that features star running backs like Derrick Henry, Jonathan Taylor, and Travis Etienne, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea to shore up the defensive line to avoid getting run over six times per year. | ||||
#13 |
|
OT |
||
| It’s hard to say what the Jets are going to do at the quarterback position this off-season, and that makes this pick a bit hard to project. It is well known that they need help on the offensive line, however, so this seems like a safer selection for the Jets. Jones has been one of the best lineman in the country at Georgia this season, and although he may need some time to develop, he seems like a good bet to be at least a solid pick in this year’s draft. | ||||
#14 |
|
WR |
||
| It’s surprising enough to see the first receiver go off the board this late, but it’s even more surprising to see that it’s the Patriots taking him. This would be an uncharacteristic move from Bill Belichick, but they seem eager to invest in Mac Jones’ development for next season. A stud young receiver is one the things this offense has been missing, and Smith-Njigba is almost certainly the most pro-ready guy in this class of wideouts. | ||||
#15 |
|
WR |
||
| With this pick, the Packers would have the most physically imposing young receiver duo in the league. Quentin Johnston and Christian Watson both stand at over 6’4 and run sub-4.5 40 times, and it would prove to be a tall task for any defense to cover both of them at the same time. This may seem like a move that Green Bay wouldn’t make, but anything is on the table with Aaron Rodgers out of town in this mock. | ||||
#16 |
|
CB |
||
| Witherspoon may be the biggest riser of any draft candidate over the past month or so. He was viewed as a solid prospect throughout the college football season, but draft analysts and scouts alike have now given him the respect he deserves for his outstanding season at Illinois. He will bring a plethora of skills in coverage and run support to whatever team he lands on, and the Commanders would be well suited fixing up some of the holes they have had in their secondary over the past couple of seasons. | ||||
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|
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#17 |
|
CB |
||
| Most draft analysts seem to like to mock a cornerback to the Steelers at this pick, and I’m no exception. This class of defensive backs is the deepest one we’ve seen in multiple years, and that means a talented player can fall to Pittsburgh at this pick. In this case, it’s Cam Smith from South Carolina. He’s got some work to do with limiting his physicality and improving his tackling, but that’s not a tall task for Mike Tomlin and the Steelers. | ||||
#18 |
|
LB |
||
| Ever since Dan Campbell became the head coach, Detroit seems to have changed in two ways: they’ve gotten faster, and they’ve gotten hungrier. Simpson would be a perfect fit for this team. He’s a hyper-talented athlete that has shown off elite sideline-to-sideline ability, and he plays with the high motor that Detroit likes. He is more than capable as a blitzer and in pass coverage, and this draft would end up giving Detroit arguably two top players at their respective positions. | ||||
#19 |
|
WR |
||
| What do the Chargers need? Speed. Who has speed? Jordan Addison. I’ve mocked this pick a couple of times, and it just seems to make more and more sense every time I do it. There are rumors that the team may end up cutting Keenan Allen in the off-season to save cap space, and they will need to bring in someone young in that case. Mike Williams can be the big-play/jump-ball guy for Justin Herbert, whereas Addison can be the speed receiver who can get open at three levels. The Chargers need to do everything in their power to help Justin Herbert, and this just seems like a layup for the team. | ||||
#20 |
|
OG |
||
| Seattle grabbed two rookie offensive tackles in last year’s draft, and they’ve both panned out really well so far. They addressed the defensive line earlier in this draft, so now they will look to shore up the interior of the offensive line a bit with O’Cyrus Torrence. He’s a technically-sound player with high upside at the NFL level, and Seattle would arguably boast the best young offensive line if they can make this happen on draft night. | ||||
#22 |
|
QB |
||
| Tom Brady has officially hung it up, and that means that the Buccaneers are a mess now. They have some solid talent at most positions, but with no real quarterback at the helm, they will almost certainly have some kind of a rebuild. Richardson is the perfect prospect for that; he has insanely high potential, but he would be better off sitting for a couple of seasons before starting. There’s a chance that the gamble doesn’t pay off for Tampa Bay, but the possible reward outweighs the risks. | ||||
#23 |
|
CB |
||
| Baltimore has a lot of question marks going into the off-season, and what happens with this pick depends a lot on what happens with QB Lamar Jackson. Until those questions have answers, I just have to assume that Baltimore won’t let their former-MVP quarterback just walk away. The Ravens need help in the secondary, and while Ringo is far from a complete prospect, he is one of the most gifted athletes in this class and could become a star player for Baltimore in the future. | ||||
#24 |
|
S |
||
| Minnesota has a lot of work to do on the defensive front, and they already started on trying to fix it by hiring Brian Flores as their defensive coordinator. Now, they need to get him some players to work with, and who better than Brian Branch? He can play as a slot cornerback like he did in college or make the transition to safety, and his youth and talent would work wonders for a Minnesota team that lacks fire and athleticism. | ||||
#25 |
|
LB |
||
| Smith’s stock seems to have been falling recently, but I think there will still be teams that view him as a first-round talent. He’s managing some injuries, but when he’s been on the field, he has proven to be a very productive player off the edge. He has the versatility to play outside backer or rush the edge, and the Jaguars could use somebody like him to bring their defense to the next level in 2023. | ||||
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|
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#26 |
|
WR |
||
| The Giants are without a true top receiving threat on their offense, so they will choose to take Zay Flowers. He may be relegated to the slot at the NFL level because of his height, but that would be more than enough to help out this Giants’ receiving core. HC Brian Daboll has proven that he’s capable of creating a productive offense with limited talent, and a player like Flowers could be just what this team needs to make a deeper playoff push and solidify themselves as real threats in the NFC. | ||||
#27 |
|
WR |
||
| Dallas will match their division rival, taking another smaller receiver just one pick after them. They’ve been lacking some firepower in the passing game since Amari Cooper got traded to the Browns last off-season, but the addition of Downs would immediately add another level to this offense. He has great speed, and his proven track record of production makes him one of the safer wide receiver prospects for this year. | ||||
#28 |
|
RB |
||
| I just can’t get this pairing out of my head. The Bills do have needs at other positions that would be worth filling, but drafting Robinson would make them dangerous enough to be real Super-Bowl contenders in the AFC. He’s the best running back prospect we’ve seen come out of college in multiple years, and he would provide an immediate and substantial boost to this one-dimensional Buffalo offense. | ||||
#29 |
|
TE |
||
| It would be somewhat of a surprise to see Washington be the first tight end to hear his name called on draft night, but it’s far from impossible. The best way to summarize Washington as a prospect is a lineman with tight end athleticism. He’s a physically imposing monster that can move most DE’s in the run game with ease, but he’s also more than capable of running a route and catching the ball. Some NFL team will covet that on draft night, and in this scenario, it’s the Bengals reaching down the board and taking a chance on his anomalous talent. | ||||
#30 |
|
DL |
||
| Kancey is one of the most technically refined players in the class in my opinion, but his lackluster size drops his stock more than it probably should. He just looks very small on the field, but to his credit, it hasn’t stopped him from being a game-wrecker at Pittsburgh. He has shades of Aaron Donald with his play style and size, but the question marks about him make him a boom-or-bust candidate at the NFL level. | ||||
#31 |
|
DE |
||
| The Eagles may be losing a few defensive lineman to free agency or retirement after the season, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea for them to pick up a younger guy to help patch up the holes that will be left in the defensive front. Will McDonald is one of the more athletic lineman in this year’s draft, and his stock seems to be rising higher and higher by the day. | ||||
#32 |
|
TE |
||
| Some Chiefs’ fans won’t like this move since Travis Kelce is still playing football at an elite level, but I think it makes total sense. Andy Reid hasn’t shied away from running two tight-end sets in the past, and Mayer is one of the safest prospects we’ve seen at the position in the last few years. Kansas City would simultaneously be getting the heir to an aging Travis Kelce and a top prospect who can contribute on day one. | ||||