2013 NFL Mock Draft: Full First Round, Titan Sized Staff Edition
By Josh Gunnels
17. Pittsburgh Steelers
Jarvis Jones, OLB, Georgia – Until medical questions concerning Jones’ neck (spinal stenosis) dropped his draft stock, he was a top 5 consensus pick. Jones is a dynamic pass rushing linebacker who can wreak havoc in the backfield, making him a viable replacement for the 35-year-old James Harrison, who is due $6.6 million in 2013. The Steelers look past the health concerns and nab the most accomplished pass rusher in the entire draft. – David Femming
18. Dallas Cowboys
Barkevious Mingo,DE, LSU – Everyone knows the Cowboys should take OT D.J. Fluker here. Heck, knowing Jerry Jones they may take Cordarrelle Patterson. Up to this point Mingo has been a consensus top 10 talent in almost every mock draft. Every year someone of talent falls for no reason other than teams taking need over talent. Jerry Jones doesn’t let Mingo get past the Cowboys. He may not play a “skill” position, but it’s a lot sexier than offensive line. – Josh Gunnels
19. New York Giants
Menelik Watson, OT, FSU – As always, left tackles have a tendency to rise and rise over time. Menelik Watson is going to be the biggest beneficiary of that this time around; even though Will Beatty resigned, his play last year was definitely less than spectacular, and the Giants should move him into guard when his footwork, footspeed, and strength are far more suited. Sam Montgomery and Alec Ogletree are also strong possibilities. – Myles MacDonald
20. Chicago Bears
Tavon Austin, WR, WVU– Austin blew up the combine after displaying top tier speed and athleticism. The Bears need a speedster to compliment WR Brandon Marshall. Austin would allow the Bears to open up their offense, considering Austin has played multiple wide receiver positions, as well as running back in college. Look for Austin to be used as a Percy Harvin type playmaker at the next level. – Russell Griffin
21. Cincinnati Bengals
Alec Ogletree, OLB, Georgia – The Bengals were pleasantly surprised with what they got from rookie MLB Vontaze Burfict in his rookie year but hope to keep Rey Maualuga there as their starter. That being said, he needs a little help on the outside. Unfortunately for the Bengals, the two best OLBs in the draft were taken just before their pick. Olgetree is their compensatory prize. He’s a great athlete and is still a good pick. He may have hurt his stock slightly by getting a DUI just a week before the combine, but the Bengals seem to be pretty forgiving of transgressions (Pacman Jones, Vontaze Burfict). – Justin Stewart
22. St. Louis Rams (from Washington)
Cordarrelle Patterson, WR, Tennessee – Sam Bradford needs something to work with in order to develop as the Rams would like. His supporting cast was mediocre at best last season, so an upgrade for the offense is needed. After taking one of the best offensive linemen in this draft with the 16th pick, they take a dynamic receiver in Patterson with the 22nd. Patterson is big, quick, strong, and can essentially play anywhere on the field. He sometimes even lined up in the backfield for the Volunteers. This could be a jackpot pick for the Rams. – Matias Wodner
23. Minnesota Vikings
Keenan Allen, WR, California – Minnesota Vikings need to surround Christian Ponder with better weapons. Percy Harvin is a question mark. Randy Moss and Harvin are proof that this organization doesn’t abide to drafting receivers after the first round. With Tavon Austin off the board, Allen could give Minnesota a physical receiver who’s similar to Sidney Rice. – Joshua Huffman
24. Indianapolis Colts
Jamie Collins LB Southern Miss- With the release of Dwight Freeney, the Colts will need someone to come off of the edge and be able to play the pass. Collins is very athletic and knows how to play. – Shawn Eagle
25. Seattle Seahawks
Justin Hunter, WR, Tennessee – The Seahawks gave WR Sidney Rice a $41 million contract to be a prototypical #1 receiver, but he has underwhelmed since arriving in 2011. Seattle now knows it has a franchise quarterback in Russell Wilson, so they draft the big and explosive Justin Hunter as an insurance policy for Rice. – David Flemming
26. Green Bay Packers
Tyler Eifert, TE, Notre Dame – One of the benefits of being a top notch team is that you can use the draft to take the best player available. The Packers have defensive line issues for sure, but that position group has already been ransacked. Time to look at the top of another position group. Had Justin Hunter fallen one more spot, the Packers would have taken him to replace the departure of Greg Jennings. Instead they give Rodgers a new target at the TE position to replace Finley. – Josh Gunnels
27. Houston Texans
Johnathan Hankins, DT, Ohio State– This isn’t what Houston preferred, but with a long run on WRs coming right in front of them, they decide to grab the prototype 3-4 Nose Tackle in Hankins and consider it a good day. With the issues they’re experiencing in the linebacking core, it’s not a bad idea to grab the biggest toughest guy in the draft to plug space. – Myles MacDonald
28. Denver Broncos
Eddie Lacy, RB, Alabama– The Broncos are one of the most complete teams in the NFL. However with an aging and off-injured Willis McGahee, and little depth at the running back position outside of Knowshon Moreno, who literally only played because Coach John Fox was forced to play him because no one else left on the roster to play, the Broncos need a running back. And what do you know the rich get richer and possibly the number one running back and human tank falls right into their lap.
29. New England Patriots
Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington– All the wide receivers the Patriots are interested in are gone by this point and so are the defensive tackles, so the Patriots look down their list of needs and who’s on the board and swipe Trufant, one of the best corners in the draft. Trufant impressed scouts with his speed and coverage during Senior Bowl practices. The Patriots create a strong group of CBs adding Trufant to the mix with McCourty and Dennard. Or they do their usual shiftiness and swap this pick and pick up a couple more. I hate you, Belichick. – Justin Stewart
30. Atlanta Falcons
Cornellious “Tank” Carradine, DE, FSU – With John Abraham released, the Falcons are looking for a pass-rushing defensive end. Carradine tore his ACL near the end of his senior season, but was on a torrid pace before that, collecting 11.0 sacks and 13.0 tackles for loss through 12 games. The ACL might scare some away, but with players coming back better than ever from surgery, it isn’t so much a risk to take a chance on a very good player near the end of the first round. Running back might also be an option here for the Falcons, with Michael Turner released. – Matias Wodner
31. San Francisco 49ers
Jesse Williams, NT, Alabama – Despite their status as NFC Champions, the 49ers have 15 draft picks. They’ll probably package some of those picks in an attempt to trade up for an elite cornerback or defensive lineman, similar to what the Atlanta Falcons did with Julio Jones. Since I can’t do that on this mock draft, the 49ers need defensive depth. Nose tackle, coverage cornerback and safety are top concerns. – Joshua Huffman
32. Baltimore Ravens
Manti Te’o, ILB, Notre Dame – We all know Ravens long term stalwart on the interior of the linebacker corp is retired. Te’o would have been a top 5 prospect before the National Title game. We all know what’s happened since. The Ravens aren’t worried about his combine speed and if there’s a solid enough defense to bring Te’o into the league on, its the Ravens. They’re happy to get a top ten talent with the last pick in the first round. – Josh Gunnels
Surprise Picks:
Jonathan Cooper – At this point Cooper going before Warmack is a bit of a surprise. Not only that, but either of the guards going as high as seventh overall would raise some eyebrows.
Xavier Rhodes – Going 12th overall is more like where most current mock’s have his predecessor Milliner going. Cornerbacks do have a way of climbing up draft boards however.
Fallen Stars:
Chance Warmack – “Falling” to 16th overall is a bit of a shocker only because Cooper went 7th overall. Warmack, at this point, is widely regarded as the best overall talent on the draft period. Even if Cooper does pave the way, Warmack can’t be far behind.
Barkevious Mingo – Mingo looks to be going in the top 10 in almost every mock out there. There’s always someone who falls due to no fault of their own though, and it looks like the Cowboys benefited from this one.
Sharrif Floyd – I’m not sure if getting picked in the 10th slot can be considered falling, but Floyd falling that far the way his stock is currently skyrocketing seems like a bit of a stretch.
Interesting:
- There was finally a run wide receivers starting with the St. Louis Rams at 22. 3 out of the 4 picks ended up being a wide out and another following was the first TE off the board. Without a RB taken yet either, it’s very rare that a draft goes this deep before touching on these skill positions.
- No Matt Barkley? Maybe it fell like this due to the “no trades” policy in the mock. It would be the first time in a long time that only one QB was taken in the first round.