Okay, at this point in the season, I think that another mock draft would not be amiss. Like my other two drafts, I will not include the Josh Gordy pick for the aforementioned reason. However, there's one thing that will be different: I will attempt to do trades. Yes, that's right, you heard me right: trades. As in plural. So let's get started, shall we?
1a (6th overall): TRADED to the Cleveland Browns for their two first round picks (13th and 28th overall picks, hence referred to as 1c. and 1d.) After the Brandon Weeden and RG3 debacles, it's my personal belief that the Browns are going to want to take the best quarterback that's available, not merely the best that falls to them. They've been stockpiling picks, yes, but honestly, that could be because they want to stockpile to trade up. They won't get a chance at any of the top quarterbacks if they stay at 13, even with the needs that other teams ahead of them have.
1c. (13th overall): TRADED to the Dallas Cowboys for their first and second round picks (23rd and 53rd hence referred to as 1e. and 2b. Our first second round pick will now be referred to as 2a.) We've already traded with the Cowboys with the Michael Brockers trade. In this scenario, they jump up to take a sliding Ha'sean Clinton-Dix, while we move down and snag a second round pick in the process. Win-win trade.
1b. (11th overall): Cameron Erving, OT, Florida State.
Quite possibly one of the more underrated tackles in this class. Everyone talks about Jake Matthews, Taylor, Lewan, and Cyrus Kouandijo - and for good reason. However, don't let that fool you; Erving has the potential to be an elite left tackle as well, and his stock has officially shot through the roof after the thrashing of Clemson by Florida State. Erving is a major reason why new freshman sensation Jameis Winston had all day to throw in that game and why the running backs gashed Clemson. He kept Vic Beasley, a likely top twenty-five pick in this year's class who had nine sacks on the season, to a mere two tackles. He has some problems with technique, but all of them are correctable. What's important is that he's aggressive, physical, and athletic.
1e. (23rd overall): Ra'Shede Hageman, DT, Minnesota.
Has one of the highest upsides in this year's class. Langford could very well be cut with his salary (he makes over four million, which is too much for what he does, and it increases from there). Hageman is arguably the most athletic defensive tackle in college, as he is capable of 360 dunks at 6'6", 316 lbs. But I'm not here to talk about that. I'm here because he's been getting his stats while having two offensive linemen guarding him on every snap. Hageman currently has some off-the-field baggage, according to Todd McShay (although I question McShay's credibility on this), and he'll turn 24 in August of next year. But he's surprisingly technically-sound for a guy who was a tight end only two years ago, and he looks very, very similar to J.J. Watt when he came out.
1d. (28th overall): Gabe Jackson, OG, Mississippi State.
I love Dahl's attitude, don't get me wrong. But he's on the wrong side of thirty, his overall skillset isn't what it used to be, and he's simply too expensive for what he provides. But Jackson has a mean streak of his own, and he's arguably the top right guard in this class (Cyril Richardson, to me, doesn't really carry his weight as well as Jackson does). Jackson would provide an immediate upgrade to our offensive line, even with Dahl leaving. He's powerful at the point of attack, doesn't give up any ground in the running game, and is a surprisingly sound pass-blocker.
2a. (41st overall): Loucheiz Purifoy, CB, Florida.
Another Floridian cornerback with swagger? Count me in. Purifoy is even more of an explosive athlete than Jenkins is and has the skillset to be a great cornerback for a long time. A temporary suspension set him back a bit, and he was not very noticeable in the game against Missouri, but all in all, Purifoy could immediately start at cornerback and move Johnson over to free safety, solving two problems with one pick.
2b. (53rd overall): Xavier Su'a-Filo, OG, UCLA.
One of my favorite linemen in this class. Su'a-Filo is a red-shirt junior who could easily be picked this highly based on what he's done at UCLA protecting Brett Hundley. Unlike Jackson, Su'a-Filo excels mostly at pass-blocking where I didn't see a single mistake made by him in that department in the PAC-12 Championship game (impressive, considering he was going up against Stanford's tough front seven). His run-blocking helped Franklin (Green Bay) go for three scores in the game, and Franklin ran directly behind Su'a-Filo on two of those plays. He would be an immediate upgrade over our left guards.
3a. (71st overall): JaWuan James, OT, Tennessee.
Our swing tackle of the future. Once a highly-touted prospect, James fell to the way-side when Dallas Thomas - and eventually Antonio Richardson - came to Tennessee. He played right tackle and immediately became one of the best linemen in the SEC. He can certainly play left tackle in a pinch, but his primary role is right tackle. James has a nasty streak the size of Texas, and is a tremendous run-blocker because of it. He will play up to the competition rather than down; there are times where he's been beat once and immediately kicks his game into another gear. Eventually, when Jake Long is released, injured, or plays out his contract (unlikely), James will be there to step in.
4a. (101st overall): Isaiah Crowell, RB, Alabama State.
A running back with second round potential and a sixth round head. I honestly have no faith left in Isaiah Pead, Daryl Richardson is merely an okay change-of-pace back, and I have serious questions about Cunningham's ability to stay healthy. That's where Crowell comes in. He'll give the Rams a nice one-two punch with Stacy and compliment Stacy's tendency to rack up consistent yards with his ability to take it to the house on any play. Will we eventually need another running back? Sure. Is this a gamble that could go horrifically wrong? Yes. But Crowell is extremely talented and definitely worth the risk in the fourth round.
5a. (131st overall): Bryn Renner, QB, North Carolina.
A competent quarterback who won't lose you games. Renner is a lot more skilled than meets the eye. He has a very accurate arm, is a good leader, and is probably one of the better quarterbacks that UNC has had. Renner is quite similar to Bradford, and could easily fill in if he goes down again.
6a. (161st overall): Bene Benwikere, CB, San Jose State.
Depth at cornerback/safety due to Johnson moving to safety. Benwikere is someone I've mentioned before, but he's slipped a ton. He's still the same physical ballhawk, but he had a major injury against Utah State where he was motionless on the field and had to be carted off. He currently has a concussion, and he wasn't having a very good year this year, so teams will be scared off by that, as well as his athletic shortcomings. I'd pounce in the sixth round, as you're getting a Johnson-like prospect, except more physical.
7a (191st overall): Colt Lyerla, TE, Oregon
A guy who's even more of a gamble than Crowell. I've really soured on Jared Cook Jr. He should have to compete for his job next year after his lackadaisical effort in blocking. Lyerla was busted on cocaine charges recently, but from everything I've heard, he's not a bad guy. He merely grew up in a really troubled situation with a dysfunctional family and really needs direction at this point. He could very well go undrafted at this point, but his statistics are amazing for a guy who was primarily used to block, he's an incredible athlete, and he was projected as a first-round pick by some before his stock was derailed by off-the-field issues. Some team's going to take a chance on him, and I hope it's us because he could be our version of Jimmy Graham, albeit a lesser one.
Final Roster:
QB - Sam Bradford, Bryn Renner.
RB - Zac Stacy, Isaiah Crowell, Daryl Richardson.
WR - Brian Quick, Chris Givens, Tavon Austin, Austin Pettis, Stedman Bailey.
TE - Jared Cook Jr., Lance Kendricks, Cory Harkey, Colt Lyerla.
OL - Jake Long, Tim Barnes, Barrett Jones, Cameron Erving, Gabe Jackson, Xavier Su'a-Filo, JuWuan James, UDFA.
DE - Chris Long, Robert Quinn, William Hayes, Eugene Sims, Gerald Rivers.
DT - Michael Brockers, Ra'Shede Hageman, Jermelle Cudjo, Matt Conrath/UDFA.
LB - James Laurinaitis, Alec Ogletree, Jo-Lonn Dunbar, Ray-Ray Armstrong, Phillip Steward, Daren Bates.
CB - Janoris Jenkins, Loucheiz Purifoy, Brandon McGee, Bene Benwikere.
S - Trumaine Johnson, T.J. McDonald, Rodney McLeod, Matt Daniels, Cody Davis.
ST (Special Teams) - Greg Zuerlein, Johnny Hekker, Jake McQuaide.
Thoughts?
