Chris Kouffman’s Mock Draft (v3.0 – 1 Round)
by Chris Kouffman
This is the final of three mock drafts for me. I try to limit myself to just three of them, so as not to keep updating them over and over again every time I get a new idea in my head. If you do about 15 different mock drafts then eventually you get to claim to have been right about everything that does end up happening. I do three, and I intentionally try and do my first one both before the Combine and before free agency.
The Huddle Report does a mock draft scoring every year in order to keep track of the best mock drafters. All of us here at Universal Draft will be participating in their contest this year. Had I participated a year ago, my final mock here at Universal Draft would have scored 46 points under their scoring method, just below Michael Band of Draft Ace, Michael Abramowitz of The Football Expert, and Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, which would have left me tied in 4th place with Todd McShay.
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1). St. Louis Rams: Sam Bradford – QB – Oklahoma
St. Louis seems squeamish about paying this kind of money so look for them to potentially trade down and let someone like the Browns make the pick here. Either way, Bradford goes #1 overall.
2). Detroit Lions: Ndamukong Suh – DT – Nebraska
I believe the Oakland Raiders could look to trade up to this pick and take Ndamukong Suh. The Lions’ asking price would likely involve Kirk Morrison and Nnamdi Asomugha.
3). Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Gerald McCoy – DT – Oklahoma
The Bucs will also look to trade down but they might not find any takers. McCoy fits their system, but I do waffle between putting Gerald McCoy here and Russell Okung. I’ll go with McCoy.
4). Washington Redskins: Trent Williams – OT – Oklahoma
He is being considered to have a higher ceiling and he’s also the more agile player compared with Okung, more fit for Mike Shanahan’s marriage of the zone-in/zone-out running game with a West Coast passing game.
5). Kansas City Chiefs: Russell Okung - OT – Oklahoma State
Hard for me to believe that Tom Dimitroff really outed Scott Pioli’s intentions when he implied that Pioli told him he’d never take a safety this high, but Okung does fit here.
6). Seattle Seahawks: Eric Berry - FS – Tennessee
Lane Kiffin will give his former boss all of the information he needs to be comfortable selecting the player that many scouting staffs will swear to you is the best player in the draft.
7). Cleveland Browns: Jared Odrick - DT – Penn State
The Browns are a little bit stuck on this one. I believe they like Odrick a lot and would take him, but they’d rather trade up for Sam Bradford, or trade down to pick up some extra picks.
8). Oakland Raiders: Rolando McClain – LB – Alabama
Al Davis is a wildcard. I believe they plan on moving Kirk Morrison regardless of whether they trade up for Suh, and they would welcome McClain in his place.
9). Buffalo Bills: Bryan Bulaga – OT – Iowa
The Bills need a tackle. The lack of talent at that position was the single biggest albatross on the 2009 season.
10). Jacksonville Jaguars: Joe Haden – CB – Florida
They just traded Quentin Groves away, and I’ve heard they covet Brandon Graham, but my gut says they want to trade down and get a corner.
11). Denver Broncos: Dez Bryant – WR – Oklahoma State
The Broncos seem almost sure to trade down. Was Josh McDaniels’ defense of Dez Bryant a smoke screen? Or was it an attempt to butter up the Denver fanbase in case they take him?
12). Miami Dolphins: Jerry Hughes - LB - TCU
Hughes will remind the Miami coaches of Demarcus Ware and Dwight Freeney, and whether they stay put at #12 or trade down (more likely) I believe they will target him.
13). San Francisco 49ers: Devin McCourty - CB - Rutgers
I believe they will settle on McCourty as the best fit for them. His 2.50 at the 20 yard split is the best among the top corners, and that actually means something to their scout staff.
14). Seattle Seahawks: C.J. Spiller - RB – Clemson
Pete Carroll recruited him out of high school and he knows how important it can be to add an electric element to an offense.
15). New York Giants: Jason Pierre-Paul – DE – South Florida
There are rumors that the Giants covet Pierre-Paul. The team has been known to pocket DLs compulsively like a cleptomaniac at a jewelry display.
16). Tennessee Titans: Brandon Graham – DE - Michigan
The team lost Kyle Vanden Bosch and they need to make sure they have people who can rush the passer.
17). San Francisco 49ers: Jimmy Clausen – QB – Notre Dame
Scott McCloughan was an avid supporter of his pick, Alex Smith. They didn’t trust him to make an unbiased choice on which QB in this draft to take, and when.
18). Pittsburgh Steelers: Markice Pouncey - OC – Florida
It is a poorly held secret that the Steelers like Markice Pouncey in the first round, but they may find a way to get ahead of the Broncos who also covet Pouncey.
19). Atlanta Falcons: Derrick Morgan – DE – Georgia Tech
If this pick were up to the fanbase, it would be Brandon Graham all the way, but he might not be available.
20). Houston Texans: Kyle Wilson – CB – Boise State
The Texans will be thrilled when Kyle Wilson falls to them, as I am sure they believe him to be the best corner in the draft.
21). Cincinnati Bengals: Taylor Mays – FS – Southern California
Little bit of a surprise here but the Cincinnati staff are all about taking players that once had extremely high ratings and fell for various reasons.
22). New England Patriots: Sergio Kindle - LB – Texas
The Dolphins and Patriots think a lot alike in their personnel preferences and I don’t find it to be a coincidence that I’ve been told separately that the Dolphins covet Sergio Kindle and Jerry Hughes in this area of the draft, and that the Patriots covet Sergio Kindle and Jerry Hughes in this area of the draft.
23). Green Bay Packers: Rodger Saffold - OT – Indiana
The Packers really need to protect Aaron Rodgers better and I can see the same staff that took Daryn Colledge being the same staff that takes Rodger Saffold. They’re partial to player names that put the ‘d’ in front of the soft ‘g’.
24). Philadelphia Eagles: Earl Thomas - FS - Texas
Philadelphia has been very aggressive this off season and one way or another, they’re going to find a way to get their man in this draft, possibly in a trade up with Miami.
25). Baltimore Ravens: Jermaine Gresham – TE – Oklahoma
Ozzie Newsome is also extremely aggressive when it comes to manipulating the team’s draft position in order to pick up the right player at the right spot. He will find a way to come out with Gresham.
26). Arizona Cardinals: Dan Williams - DT - Tennessee Tech
The Cardinals love underachieving but talented defensive linemen with questionable motivation. Williams will fit right in with Gabe Watson, Calais Campbell and Alan Branch.
27). Dallas Cowboys: Demaryius Thomas – WR – Georgia Tech
The Cowboys really want one of the safety prospects but they won’t get one. I believe they like Demaryius Thomas as much as they do Dez Bryant.
28). San Diego Chargers: Linval Joseph - DT – East Carolina
The Chargers could go for a RB here but they have to replace the departed Jamal Williams, and I believe A.J. Smith has his man.
29). New York Jets: Kareem Jackson – CB – Alabama
I heard long ago that the Jets like Kareem and the more I think about it, the more it makes sense that the team wants a physical player like him that can be put on an island and asked to play man coverage all day.
30). Minnesota Vikings: Colt McCoy - QB – Texas
McCoy has feet that Brad Childress will appreciate, and this decision will remind Rick Spielman of the decision he did NOT get to make 10 years ago when he wanted Drew Brees at the end of the first round and Dave Wannstedt overruled him. Spielman is all about what a guy did on the field and Colt McCoy’s resume is very strong.
31). Indianapolis Colts: Sean Weatherspoon - LB – Missouri
Weatherspoon’s comfort level in space and ability to cover as well as burst to the football fit well within the Indianapolis defense.
32). New Orleans Saints: Ryan Matthews - RB - Fresno State
The Saints have been able to get by on the ground with a good line and getting Reggie Bush into open spaces but grabbing a Ryan Matthews ensures that the ground game is always there for them when they need it.