THE Mock Draft: Round 3

A Three Round Mock to End All Mocks!

Round 1 (Picks 1 - 16)
Round 1 (Picks 17 - 32)

Round 2

I'm doing my mock well early this year because it's already an exercise in futility and it's not as fun when info gets leaked like two days before the start of the draft and you pretty much know who is drafting who in the top few picks. I did this with no trades, so it will be blown up within the first three selections. It's a futile exercise, but it is a good indication of what teams need and how they may approach the draft, as well as where players are expected to be picked. And it's fun. Enjoy.

65.  Houston Texans

Bishop Sankey – RB, Washington (Big Board #57)

The Texans had to watch Ben Tate go, so they need a serviceable backup for the injury prone Arian Foster. Sankey is the best player available at the position and has the capability to start.

                                           

66. Washington Redskins

Jaylen Watkins – CB, Florida (Big Board #39)

The Redskins entire secondary is questionable. Jaylen Watkins makes perfect sense as a guy that can play pretty much any position on the back end; be it safety, outside corner or nickelback. That versatility will make him especially appealing to a team with so many holes at defensive back.

67. Oakland Raiders

Jimmy Garoppolo – QB, Eastern Illinois (Big Board #49)

Jimmy Garoppolo will be selected (probably long) before No. 67. This is the problem with doing mocks without trades. But whatever. In this scenario he makes perfect sense for the Raiders, who would be ecstatic to nab a guy who can compete to start at QB right away this late in the draft.

68. Atlanta Falcons

Jeremy Hill – RB, LSU (Big Board #88)

Steven Jackson is aging and injury prone. Jeremy Hill offers similar size and running style, and his consistency as a power back will be an appealing complement to Jacquizz Rodgers.

69. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Yawin Smallwood – ILB, Connecticut (Big Board #67)

The Tampa-2 Lovie Smith will run in Tampa (fitting, eh?) requires disciplined play from talented linebackers. Smallwood can man all three of the linebacker positions in the system, giving Lovie competition and options at crucial positions for his scheme.

70. Jacksonville Jaguars

Jeremiah Attaochu – OLB, Georgia Tech (Big Board #79)

Gus Bradley gets a raw athlete with the traits necessary to man the “Leo” position in his defense. Attaochu fits the pass rushing linebacker position perfectly, and Bradley is the ideal mentor to help him make the most of his talents.

71. Cleveland Browns

Phillip Gaines – CB, Rice (Big Board #66)

The Browns could look for a starting caliber corner to start across from the stellar Joe Haden. Gaines needs refinement, but he has an interesting blend of size, speed and fluidity. He could develop into a quality pairing with Haden.

72. Minnesota Vikings

Kyle Van Noy – OLB, BYU (Big Board #83)

Van Noy was once considered a potential first round prospect, but didn’t really cement himself amongst this year’s top prospects. Still, he’d be a great fit as a strongside linebacker in Mike Zimmer’s scheme. He’s got good pass rush ability and is one of the draft’s most instinctual blitzers from the linebacker position, which Zimmer would put to good use.

73. Buffalo Bills

Trent Murphy – OLB/DE, Stanford (Big Board #72)

Murphy would pair well with Kiko Alonso in the Bills hybrid defense. He also has some utility as a pass rusher with his hand in the dirt, so he could offer another rush option along with Mario Williams and Jerry Hughes.

74. New York Giants

Marcus Martin – C/G, USC (Big Board #76)

David Baas has missed a lot of games the last few seasons, and the Giants just need youth and talent all across the offensive line in general. Martin can play any of the interior line positions, making him a good fit for a team that could try out different line combinations to keep the immobile Eli Manning in a clean pocket.

75. St. Louis Rams

Stanley Jean-Baptiste – CB, Nebraska (Big Board #85)

The Rams lost Cortland Finnegan and don’t have a lot of depth or talent at cornerback apart from Janoris Jenkins. Baptiste could intrigue the Rams because he also has the size to play safety, and even though they drafted Clinton-Dix in this scenario, they may look to make changes at both safety positions. Jean-Baptiste also fits the trend of getting bigger on the outside, potentially making him a good pairing across from the smaller Jenkins.

76. Detroit Lions

Travis Swanson – C, Arkansas (Big Board #64)

The Lions resigned Dominic Raiola, but he can’t play forever, so they’ll have to draft his eventual replacement at some point. This is a good value pick at this point in the draft.

77. San Francisco 49ers (via Tennessee)

Bashaud Breeland – CB, Clemson (Big Board #71)

I know Baalke and the 49ers' scouting department have taken a close look at Breeland from multiple reports. He is a long, fluid athlete that projects well to outside cornerback in our scheme.

78. Dallas Cowboys

Christian Jones – ILB, Florida St. (Big Board #75)

The Cowboys need physicality and leadership on the defensive side of the ball. Sean Lee is effectively always injured, so Jones offers depth at middle linebacker, while also offering the versatility to play the weakside as well.

79. Baltimore Ravens

Pierre Desir – CB, Lindenwood (Big Board #47)

Ozzie Newsome scoops up a highly talented outside cornerback for depth and to develop as a future starter. Typical Ozzie.

80. New York Jets

Paul Richardson – WR, Colorado (Big Board #61)

The Jets need to add speed at receiver, and they looked to do so in their pursuit of DeSean Jackson during his brief stint as a free agent. In this draft they passed on Cooks and Beckham to take the higher rated Ebron in the first, but land a pure speed element in Richardson here.

81. Miami Dolphins

Ego Ferguson – DT, LSU (Big Board NR)

The Dolphins lost Paul Soliai in free agency, and Randy Starks is getting up there in age. Ego Ferguson gives them defensive line depth and a big body to develop on the interior.

82. Chicago Bears

Ahmad Dixon – S, Baylor (Big Board #90)

The Bears pretty much need to retool the entire defense at this point, either having a clear lack of talent or aging players at each position. Dixon is an aggressive, athletic safety capable of developing into a quality starter.

83. Cleveland Browns (via Pittsburgh)

Shayne Skov – ILB, Stanford (Big Board #91)

The Browns have Karlos Dansby locked in as one starter at ILB in their 3-4 scheme, but his time as a quality starter is nearing an end. Skov can compete with Craig Robertson to start alongside Dansby, or offer quality depth and the potential to replace Dansby in the future.

84. Arizona Cardinals

Zach Mettenberger – QB, LSU (Big Board NR)

Mettenberger is a good fit for Bruce Arians' offense, and he would be given at least a year to develop and recover from his ACL tear behind Carson Palmer.

85. Green Bay Packers

Carl Bradford – ILB/OLB, Arizona State (Big Board NR)

Bradford is a good athlete and a versatile linebacker that can play either inside or outside in either a 4-3 or a 3-4. That versatility will appeal to the Packers, who have lost outside linebackers Clay Matthews and Nick Perry for some games due to injury the past couple seasons, and who may be looking to replace A.J. Hawk eventually.

86. Philadelphia Eagles

Ed Reynolds – S, Stanford (Big Board #73)

The Eagles don’t have much talent or depth at safety. Nate Allen is serviceable, but the Eagles need to draft another legitimate option to compete for the other safety spot. Reynolds is a disciplined player with the ability to contribute right away. It doesn’t hurt Chip Kelly is familiar with the Stanford product from his Oregon days.

87. Kansas City Chiefs

JuWuan James – OT, Tennesse (Big Board NR)

With Branden Albert gone to the Dolphins, Eric Fisher will be moving over to Alex Smith’s blindside this season. The Chiefs need to get a replacement right tackle, and James is the kind of humongous, athletic tackle Andy Reid values. I knocked him a bit in my evaluations because he projects only to the right side, but for the Chiefs' purposes that doesn’t matter. He could probably start from Day 1.

88. Cincinnati Bengals

Dominique Easley – DT, Florida (Big Board #65)

The Bengals have the type of roster that allows the front office to draft injured “redshirt” players. When healthy, Dominique Easley was a no-brainer first round pick and one of the top defensive linemen in the country. A healthy interior rush made up of Geno Atkins and Dominique Easley is downright scary—so scary that the Bengals can make the gamble on Easley this early on.

89. San Diego Chargers

Jackson Jeffcoat – DE/OLB, Texas (Big Board NR)

Jeffcoat is an undersized defensive end that doesn’t have the necessary strength to anchor against the run in a four man front, or the necessary athleticism to effectively transition to a linebacker in a three man front. He is, however, a lengthy prospect with a lot of speed and natural pass rush ability. He may never make the transition into a full time starter, but he offers a lot of utility as a situational pass rusher. In the late third that’s enough to warrant a selection, especially for a team that lacks a lot of talent at pass rusher and has to play Peyton Manning two or three times a year.

90. Indianapolis Colts

Terrence Brooks – S, Florida St. (Big Board #63)

The Colts lost Antoine Bethea and just don’t really have much of anything at safety right now. Brooks is the top player available at his position at this point, and offers a lot of versatility on the back end. He’d have the opportunity to compete for a starting job right away.

91. New Orleans Saints

Lache Seastrunk – RB, Baylor (Big Board NR)

The Saints traded Darren Sproles and are now severely lacking pure speed and playmaking ability out of the backfield. Seastrunk isn’t a very developed pass catcher yet, but he projects as the draft’s top “scatback” who could replace some of what Darren Sproles brought to the table.

92. Carolina Panthers

Jack Mewhort – OT, Ohio St. (Big Board NR)

Jordan Gross retired and Byron Bell simply isn’t very good at right tackle. The Panthers need an infusion of talent at the position and Mewhort is the highest rated player left at the position outside of James Hurst, who is coming off a broken leg and will likely slide down the board due to the severity of the injury.

93. New England Patriots

Cyril Richardson – OG, Baylor (Big Board #69)

Logan Mankins is entrenched as the left guard for the Patriots, but Richardson could compete with Dan Connoly for the starting RG spot. At worst he’s an athletic prospect to develop and provide depth along the interior of the line. He’s also got the added value of being long enough to play some right tackle.

94. San Francisco 49ers

Craig Loston – S, LSU (Big Board NR)

Eric Reid’s former starting-mate at safety during his college days, Loston would be a solid developmental safety behind Bethea. The familiarity with Reid is a plus that might make Baalke overlook Loston’s short arms (30 ¾ inches). He’s got ideal size for the position and packs a punch as a hitter. Plays well in the box and has some range in coverage. Would pair well (again) with Eric Reid down the road.

95. Denver Broncos

Chris Borland – ILB, Wisconsin (Big Board #87)

Borland is a hard hitting, run stuffing two-down linebacker, which will cause him to be drafted later than some of the other top linebackers. The fact that he probably has to come off the field isn’t really much of a concern to the Broncos, who have a stable of pass rushers waiting to take his place and get after the quarterback on passing downs, and another linebacker in Danny Trevathan who is adept at manning the linebacker position in nickel sets. Borland will be an asset against the run which will help get the ball back in Peyton’s hands quicker.

96. Minnesota Vikings (via Seattle)

Tyler Gaffney – RB, Stanford (Big Board #84)

I’m pretty sure the top backup to Adrian Peterson is Matt Asiata, which—despite his fantasy heroics in one game last year—isn’t the most inspiring or wise thing. The Vikes lost a powerful Stanford back in Toby Gerhart and could replace him with another powerful Stanford back in Gaffney. Gaffney has the added value of being more developed than the average back coming out of college in pass protection, thanks to the pro style system Stanford runs.

97. Pittsburgh Steelers (compensatory)

C.J. Fiedorowicz – TE, Iowa (Big Board #89)

Heath Miller is getting old and Fiedorowicz projects as a perfect replacement for the tough-as-nails Miller, both as a hard-nosed blocker and a reliable, if unathletic, pass catcher.

98. Green Bay Packers (compensatory)

Tre Boston – S, North Carolina (Big Board NR)

Boston is an aggressive safety who plays with some recklessness but who has some natural playmaking ability. He’d give the Packers an attitude on the back end they’ve been lacking since Nick Collins got injured.

99. Baltimore Ravens (compensatory)

Terrence West – RB, Towson (Big Board NR)

Ray Rice might get suspended over the whole abusing his fiancée thing. And either way, both he and Bernard Pierce weren’t very effective running the ball last season. The Ravens could look to add this talented small-school prospect to reignite the running game.

100. San Francisco 49ers (compensatory)

David Fales – QB, San Jose St. (Big Board #50)

A) I liked Fales a lot before Jim Harbaugh called him a “top-5 quarterback in this draft.” B) Jim Harbaugh called him a “top-5 quarterback in this draft.” We could use some talent to develop behind Kaepernick as his long term backup, and in the unlikely event he either raped a girl or isn’t resigned.

Back to Round 2

Back to Round 1, Part 2 (Picks 17 - 32)

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