My first mock draft is predicated on the Bills keeping Tyrod Taylor. I think when push comes to shove the Bills will realize that their isn’t better option in this draft, or free agency to replace Taylor with. This draft class is loaded. There are so many talented players on both sides of the ball and I truly believe that you will be able to find starters into the 4th and even 5th rounds of this draft. The Bills don’t have a 4th round pick this draft and I think it’s important that they try to get that back.
With so many free agents on their roster we’re going to see a ton of turnover from 2016 to 2017. If the Bills can trade back this draft to mid first round and pick up a 2nd either in 2017 or 2018 and get that important 4th round pick back it would be a success.
The Bills need to address three positions this April: Defensive Line, Safety and Wide Receiver. Fortunately for Sean McDermott and Doug Whaley this draft is pretty deep at those three spots. So here we go:
1. Cleveland Browns – Myles Garrett – Edge – Texas A&M – He wowed everyone in Indianapolis,now it’s time to see if it carries over.
2. ** TRADE** Washington Redskins – Jonathan Allen – DL Alabama – Redskins trade Cousins to the 49ers. Allen has some injury issues but he is a dominate of a defensive lineman as they come.
3. Chicago – Marshon Lattimore – CB – Ohio State – Darrelle Revis 2.0?
4. Jacksonville – Solomon Thomas – DE- Stanford– Go watch his tape from the Sun Bowl vs North Carolina. The most dominate player on the field.
5. Tennessee – Jamal Adams – S – LSU – The Titans are hurting for some elite secondary play
6. NY Jets – Leonard Fournette – RB – LSU – If he stays healthy he will be a force.
7. LA Chargers – Malik Hooker – S – Ohio State – Chargers grab a Eric Weddle upgrade that can patrol the back end of their defense.
8. Carolina – Taco Charlton – Edge – Michigan – Best name in the draft, and one of my favorite prospects.
9. Cincinnati – Reuben Foster – LB – Alabama – I don’t think is issue at the combine will hurt him that much. He is still an elite prospect and the Bengals would be be foolish to let him go by.
10. **TRADE** Washington Redskins – Mitchell Trubisky – QB- UNC – Redskins continue to deal. Bills trade down and the Redskins get their QB to develop behind Colt McCoy
11. New Orleans – Derek Barnett – Edge – Tennessee – While the Saints yearly have the ability to score tons of points, the defense also yearly leaves a lot to be desired. Barnett can help change that.
12. **TRADE** New England – OJ Howard – TE- Alabama -The Browns trade this pick to New England for Jimmy G. OJ Howard is an athletic freak at tight end and is everything the Patriots are looking for in a pass catching tight end.
13. Arizona – Corey Davis – WR – Western Michigan – If I didn’t have the Bills trading down, this would’ve been the pick.
14. Indianapolis – Takkarist McKinley – LB/Edge – UCLA – With Ballard in house as the new GM, the Colts find an up-and-comer at pass rusher to help Andrew Luck on the defensive side of the ball.
15. Philadelphia – Mike Williams – WR – Clemson – Carson Wentz needs help and Williams would be a good start.
16. Baltimore – Dalvin Cook – RB – Florida State – With the losses the Ravens are facing in free agency, it’d be easy to assume they’d draft a lineman on either side of the ball here. Adding Cook to the backfield gives Flacco a safety blanket and forces a “choose your poison” situation with defenses – worry about Flacco deep, or give Cook easy lanes to run?
17. Buffalo – Budda Baker – S – Washington – The Bills need picks. They don’t have a 4th round pick in 2017 and in my opinion there is a starter that can be found in 4th and even 5th rounds. The Bills need defensive line depth, wide receiver and secondary. The draft is pretty deep in all 3. With Hooker and Adams gone before 10 the Bills make this trade to fall all the down and pick up Baker who would come in and be a day 1 starter. Ran 4.45 40, he covers a lot of field. He can blitz, he can cover, and is a great tackler. This would be the ideal situation for Buffalo. Trade down, pick up 2 more picks and get one of the best players at the position of need.
18. Tennessee – Quincy Wilson – CB – Florida – Get the best Safety with the 5th pick, and one of the top corners with the second.
19. Tampa Bay – John Ross – WR – Washington – The perfect compliment at WR to Mike Evans.
20. Denver – David Njoku – TE – Miami – Once the Broncos sign Tony Romo they will need to up the skill set. If it wasn’t for OJ Howard, Njoku would be the #1 TE in this draft.
21. Detroit – Derek Barnett – DE – Tennessee – The Lions already have a great rusher in Ansah and now they get him a bookend.
22. Miami – Ryan Ramczyk – OT – Wisconsin – Miami would get a great value pick here.
23. NY Giants – Garrett Bolles – OT – Utah – While Bolles has limited starts, his athleticism will allow him to keep up with the speed rushers of the NFC East, whether he’s at tackle or guard.
24. Oakland – Marlon Humphrey – CB – Alabama – Getting a long, tall corner for Jack Del Rio’s men gives him options in a wild AFC West in terms of defending bigger receivers such as Thomas in Denver.
25. Houston – DeShone Kizer – QB – Notre Dame – Kizer’s fall in my mock is two fold: He was 12-11 in two years as starter and this past season his development regressed. Kizer has a big arm, he is very smart, and is pretty mobile. He could develop into something nice if he sat for a year or two before coming a full time starter. Best case for Houston: Sign Romo, draft Kizer and let it grow.
26. Seattle – Cam Robinson – OT- Alabama – Seattle needs all the offensive line help they can get.
27. Kansas City – Christian McCaffrey- RB – Stanford – With Jamaal Charles no longer in KC, McCaffrey will be able to slide right in. Andy Reid will love the dynamic skill set McCaffrey brings.
28. Dallas Cowboys – Jabrill Peppers – LB/S – Michigan – Linebacker, Safety, Returner, Peppers would bring a bit of everything to Dallas
29. Green Bay – Gareon Conley – CB – Ohio State – Packers get a corner that can run with anyone in the AFC North and also set up a long term tentpole in the secondary.
30. Pittsburgh – Charles Harris – DE – Missouri – Steelers grab a player that can stand up or put his hand in the dirt to replace potential losses in free agency.
31. Atlanta Falcons – Sidney Jones – CB – Washington – After what Brady did to them in the Super Bowl, the Falcons need all the corner help they can get.
32. New England Patriots – Tim Williams – LB – Alabama – He admitted that he had failed multiple drug tests at Alabama, but with a ceiling this high (pun intended), going to team with structure may help him in the long run.
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