2016 NFL Mock Draft: 1st-Round Predictions for Top Prospects After Week 7

The 2016 NFL draft class is beginning to take shape as college football enters the second half of its season. 

It appears to be a loaded class on defense with a sprinkling of big-name players on the offensive side of the ball. 

The storyline of the draft, as usual, will be the quarterbacks. However, this crop more closely resembles the superstar-less 2014 quarterback class than the top-heavy class featuring Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota a season ago. 

With the draft order changing dramatically from week to week, the order depicted in this mock draft is simply an estimate of where the teams may fall at season's end.

Pick	Team	Player	Position	School
1	Tennessee Titans	Joey Bosa	DL	Ohio State
2	Detroit Lions	Ronnie Stanley	OT	Notre Dame
3	Chicago Bears	Jared Goff	QB	California
4	San Francisco 49ers	Robert Nkemdiche	DL	Ole Miss
5	Houston Texans	Jaylon Smith	LB	Notre Dame
6	Kansas City Chiefs	Laremy Tunsil	OT	Ole Miss
7	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Taylor Decker	OT	Ohio State
8	Cleveland Browns	Jalen Ramsey	CB	Florida State
9	Jacksonville Jaguars	DeForest Buckner	DL	Oregon
10	Baltimore Ravens	Laquon Treadwell	WR	Ole Miss
11	Washington Redskins	Paxton Lynch	QB	Memphis
12	San Diego Chargers	Michael Thomas	WR	Ohio State
13	Buffalo Bills	Jack Conklin	OT	Michigan State
14	New Orleans Saints	Vernon Hargreaves III	CB	Florida
15	Dallas Cowboys	Ezekiel Elliott	RB	Ohio State
16	St. Louis Rams	Corey Coleman	WR	Baylor
17	Oakland Raiders	Myles Jack	LB	UCLA
18	Miami Dolphins	Germain Ifedi	OT	Texas A&M
19	Philadelphia Eagles	Shilique Calhoun	DE	Michigan State
20	Minnesota Vikings	Vadal Alexander	OG	LSU
21	New York Jets	Connor Cook	QB	Michigan State
22	Seattle Seahawks	Adolphus Washington	DT	Ohio State
23	New York Giants	Shaq Lawson	DE	Clemson
24	Pittsburgh Steelers	Tre'Davious White	CB	LSU
25	Indianapolis Colts	Joshua Perry	LB	Ohio State
26	Atlanta Falcons	Kenny Clark	DL	UCLA
27	Arizona Cardinals	Leonard Floyd	LB	Georgia
28	Carolina Panthers	Jeremy Cash	S	Duke
29	Denver Broncos	Andrew Billings	DT	Baylor
30	Cincinnati Bengals	Emmanuel Ogbah	DE	Oklahoma State
31	Green Bay Packers	Jarran Reed	DL	Alabama
32	New England Patriots	no pick

Notable picks

6. Kansas City Chiefs: Laremy Tunsil

Rogelio V. Solis/Associated Press

Just two years after selecting Eric Fisher No. 1 overall, the Chiefs may need to try again in search of their franchise left tackle. 

Fisher has been shifted between left and right tackle during his brief time in Kansas City and has failed to make his mark at either spot.

"

#Chiefs have moved former No. 1 overall pick Eric Fisher back to left tackle as the starter today

— Ed Werder (@Edwerderespn) October 25, 2015"

Tunsil and Ronnie Stanley are the two premier offensive linemen in this draft class. 

We got our first look at Tunsil on Saturday after he returned from his suspension due to receiving illegal benefits. 

Tunsil was thrown right into the fire against Texas A&M's sophomore pass-rusher Myles Garrett, but the Ole Miss left tackle lived up to expectations. 

According to ESPN.coom's Greg Ostendorf, Tunsil "more than held his own against the SEC’s top pass-rusher and was a major reason why the Rebels dominated the Aggies."

11. Washington Redskins: Paxton Lynch

Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

The Paxton Lynch bandwagon is quickly filling up, and he's one of the fastest-rising prospects over the past few weeks. 

Lynch burst onto the national scene during Memphis' upset victory over Ole Miss, and he has now established himself as one of the premier quarterbacks eligible for the 2016 NFL draft. 

"

Paxton Lynch is now in Kiper's top-10 overall for 2016 draft. Kiper is usually really good about being early on guys who go high.

— Ian Kenyon (@IanKenyonNFL) October 22, 2015"

ESPN's Mel Kiper has had Lynch on his big board for a few weeks now and recently bumped him up to No. 10 overall. 

Of Lynch's ability, Kiper said, "Lynch has good size with room to fill out, and not just a strong arm, but the ability to get the ball out quickly."

With other highly touted quarterbacks such as Cardale Jones and Christian Hackenberg falling well short of expectations, Lynch looks like the guy who will benefit from their struggles on draft day. 

23. New York Giants: Shaq Lawson

Tyler Smith/Getty Images

One of the fastest-rising defensive prospects this season has been Clemson defensive end Shaq Lawson. 

Lawson made a lasting impression earlier this season when he battled Notre Dame left tackle Ronnie Stanley, and he's been steadily rising ever since. 

"

Shaq Lawson with the sack vs Miami. Plenty of quickness off the line. @JuMosq compared him to Frank Clark.

— Josh Norris (@JoshNorris) October 24, 2015"

In 2014, Lawson was overshadowed on Clemson's defensive line by Vic Beasley and Grady Jarrett, but now Lawson has emerged as the leader of that unit under the tutelage of defensive coordinator Brent Venables. 

Due to Jason Pierre-Paul's finger injury and the drama that surrounded it, his future in New York is a question mark. The Giants could look to the draft to replace him with a prospect like Lawson.