With draft day finally upon us, the first round is starting to take shape
Apr 23, 2020, 6:26 AM
Three weeks ago, with the first wave of free agency essentially wrapped up, it was time to release my first mock draft. Since then, rumors have been flying, but no deals have been made. The draft order remains the same, but where teams are looking may have changed.
Thus, it’s time for the second and final edition of my mock draft. Here’s how round one will shape out tonight:
1. CLE – Joe Burrow – Easy pick here for the Bengals.
2. WAS – Chase Young – No surprise here, but the Redskins take the best defensive player in the draft.
3. DET – Derrick Brown – A wild card pick here, but the Lions haven’t picked a cornerback since 1998. They take arguably my favorite defensive player in the draft.
4. NYG – Tristan Wirfs – New York is trying hard to move this pick, but at the end of the day they need to protect Daniel Jones.
5. MIA – Andrew Thomas – Miami is going to try and get ahead of the Giants, but they’re going to be thrilled to get the best left tackle in the draft. They’ll get their quarterback later.
6. LAC – Tua Tagovailoa – The Chargers could go offensive tackle here, but when Tua is sitting there, Los Angeles can’t pass up on their franchise quarterback here.
7. CAR – Isaiah Simmons – Simmons might be the most-exciting defensive player in the draft and it’s too good for Carolina to pass up.
8. AZ – Jeff Okudah – Patrick Peterson is near the end of his career so why not take the best corner in the draft who is a flat out playmaker.
9. JAX – Justin Herbert – I don’t think that Jacksonville is sold on Gardner Minshew and with Herbert still left on the board, they can’t pass him up.
10. CLE – Mekhi Becton – The Browns will more than likely move out of this pick, but they’ll take an offensive tackle.
11. NYJ – Jerry Jeudy – Three of the top four offensive tackles are off the board, ,so I think Adam Gase goes with the best wide receiver in the draft.
12. LVR – CeeDee Lamb – The Raiders need weapons on offense for Derek Carr, so let’s give them a player who has been compared to DeAndre Hopkins.
13. SF – Henry Ruggs III – Ruggs has been in contact with San Francisco a lot recently and Kyle Shanahan will know exactly how to use the speedy wide receiver.
14. TB – Jedrick Wills – Tampa Bay has to protect Tom Brady plain and simple.
15. DEN – Justin Jefferson – The Broncos will try and move up in the draft, but James Palmer reported that Denver has done a ton of their homework on Jefferson, so this pick makes sense for them. Brandon Stokley will be thrilled with this pick.
16. ATL – C.J. Henderson – The worst kept secret is that the Falcons will move up for a corner. With Okudah off the board, Atlanta will take Henderson somewhere in this draft.
17. DAL – Javon Kinlaw – The Cowboys could look to take a corner here, but with Kinlaw on the board, they can add some depth on that defensive line.
18. MIA – Jordan Love – There have been reports that Miami likes Love and after taking their franchise left tackle with the fifth pick, they get their franchise quarterback here.
19. LVR – A.J. Terrell – The Raiders are going to need to find a way to slow down the offensive weapons within the division so they’ll go corner here.
20. JAX – Denzel Mims – Jacksonville needs to add offensive weapons so they’ll get my second-favorite wide receiver that stands at 6-foot-3, weighs 215 pounds and ran a 4.3 at the combine.
21. PHI – Kenneth Murray – Everyone thinks Philly goes wide receiver here, but with the top four off the board, they’ll be thrilled to grab a linebacker at this spot.
22. MIN – Jaylon Johnson – The Vikings are in need of secondary help.
23. NE – Yetur Gross-Matos – The Patriots might try to trade up for a quarterback, but ultimately I think they stay put and build on their defensive line.
24. NO – Patrick Queen – The Saints don’t have many holes to fill, so they’ll add some depth and keep the linebacker in Louisiana.
25. MIN – Jalen Reagor – Gary Kubiak gets the best gadget player on offense in the entire draft.
26. MIA – D’Andre Swift – The Dolphins already have their QB and LT, so it only makes sense that they get their future running back to improve their offense.
27. SEA – K’Lavon Chaisson – The Seahawks might lose Jadaveon Clowney for good and they’ve struggled to find pass rushing help so here’s there guy for the next five years. Really good chance that Seattle trades out of this pick into the 2nd round.
28. BAL – Brandon Aiyuk – Who said we can’t give Lamar Jackson more weapons on offense? This makes that offense even more explosive.
29. TEN – Isaiah Wilson – The Titans lost Jack Conklin in free agency, so they’ll add their right tackle in round one.
30. GB – Cole Kmet – Aaron Rodgers needs a tight end in the Matt LaFleur offense so they get the best one in the draft.
31. SF – Ross Blacklock – The 49ers might trade out of this pick, but if they stay I think they add to their defensive line to replace DeForest Buckner.
32. KC – Clyde Edwards-Helaire – Andy Reid love his pass catching running backs so they get an explosive weapon for Patrick Mahomes.
