2016 NFL Mock Draft: Projections Based on Buzz Surrounding 1st-Round Prospects

JaMarcus Russell had a great pro day.

It's a quick but heavy statement of the perils surrounding the NFL during this portion of the calendar. In a way, it fits right in with the so-called madness of March.

As the NFL draft approaches, the top prospects continue to make waves in the stock department via pro days and individual workouts with teams. It's a fun time of year, but a cautionary one, as what could be as much as four years of film take a back seat to more recent events such as favorable workouts.

So keep such lessons from year's past in mind while perusing the NFL draft buzz. Here's a look at the latest and what it truly means.

2016 NFL Mock Draft

Pick	Team	Player	Position	School
1	Tennessee Titans	Laremy Tunsil	OT	Ole Miss
2	Cleveland Browns	Jared Goff	QB	California
3	San Diego Chargers	Jalen Ramsey	CB/S	Florida State
4	Dallas Cowboys	Myles Jack	LB	UCLA
5	Jacksonville Jaguars	Vernon Hargreaves III	CB	Florida
6	Baltimore Ravens	Ronnie Stanley	OT	Notre Dame
7	San Francisco 49ers	Joey Bosa	DL	Ohio State
8	Philadelphia Eagles	Jack Conklin	OT	Michigan State
9	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Darron Lee	LB	Ohio State
10	New York Giants	DeForest Buckner	DE	Oregon
11	Chicago Bears	Reggie Ragland	LB	Alabama
12	New Orleans Saints	Noah Spence	DE/LB	Eastern Kentucky
13	Miami Dolphins	Ezekiel Elliott	RB	Ohio State
14	Oakland Raiders	Mackensie Alexander	CB	Clemson
15	Los Angeles Rams	Carson Wentz	QB	North Dakota State
16	Detroit Lions	Taylor Decker	OT	Ohio State
17	Atlanta Falcons	Shaq Lawson	LB	Clemson
18	Indianapolis Colts	A'Shawn Robinson	DT	Alabama
19	Buffalo Bills	Paxton Lynch	QB	Memphis
20	New York Jets	Jonathan Bullard	DE	Florida
21	Washington	Corey Coleman	WR	Baylor
22	Houston Texans	Robert Nkemdiche	DL	Ole Miss
23	Minnesota Vikings	Josh Doctson	WR	TCU
24	Cincinnati Bengals	Laquon Treadwell	WR	Ole Miss
25	Pittsburgh Steelers	Eli Apple	CB	Ohio State
26	Seattle Seahawks	Leonard Floyd	LB	Georgia
27	Green Bay Packers	Sheldon Rankins	DT	Louisville
28	Kansas City Chiefs	Michael Thomas	WR	Ohio State
29	Arizona Cardinals	Emmanuel Ogbah	DE	Oklahoma St.
30	Carolina Panthers	Kevin Dodd	DE	Clemson
31	Denver Broncos	Jason Spriggs	OT	Indiana

Notable Buzz Around Prospects

5. Jacksonville Jaguars: Vernon Hargreaves III, CB, Florida

Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press

See, there is a big difference between someone such as Russell, who had well-documented motivation issues, and a guy like Florida cornerback Vernon Hargreaves, whose best comparison for years has been Joe Haden.

Hargreaves comes in at 5'10" and 204 pounds with elite athleticism, anticipation and explosiveness to plant himself around the football and make a difference.

The Florida product reinforced any and all comparisons by wowing scouts at the team's pro day, according to CollegeFootball 24/7:

Had Hargreaves tanked, this would seem like a much different story, but he took to positional drills and reflected his film, buoying his already-stellar stock in the process.

Rest assured the Jacksonville Jaguars paid attention to the local kid. If they cannot get their hands on Jalen Ramsey, Hargreaves is the next-best option to slap in a secondary that ranked 29th against the pass last year.

Adding Malik Jackson, Hargreaves and getting Dante Fowler back from injury should go a long way in helping Jacksonville turn things around on the defensive side of the ball.

15. Los Angeles Rams: Carson Wentz, QB, North Dakota State

Carson Wentz is the trickiest of the hype.

Wentz attended North Dakota State and didn't face any meaningful competition, but he's always looked the part at 6'5" and 237 pounds with an ability to hit most throws on film.

Folks began digging into Wentz after the season and liked what they saw, raising his stock. Wentz seemed to help himself at North Dakota State's pro day Thursday, as the NFL captured:

But again, these things have to come with a dash of caution. For example, NBCSN's Ross Tucker hit the nail on the head before the day even began:

Wentz threw the ball well in a workout he's done plenty of times on his home turf surrounded by teammates and supporters. While he looked great, it might be premature to swap him with California's Jared Goff in the draft process. 

Not that the Los Angeles Rams will complain if Wentz remains in the mid-round range. Avoiding another dose of Nick Foles, or at least doing so knowing there is a high-ceiling prospect learning on the bench, would help the franchise.

Such a ceiling might end up trumping everything else, but for now it's hard to shake the feeling that the hype around Wentz booms simply because this is one of the weakest quarterback classes in recent memory. For now, he's sticking around No. 15.

21. Washington: Corey Coleman, WR, Baylor

LM Otero/Associated Press

Baylor's Corey Coleman is another interesting case.

The explosive deep threat didn't do much at the combine, but years and years of productive film trumped the absence. Instead, Coleman chose to take to the Baylor pro day and put on a show. 

Which he did. Coleman put up explosive numbers, albeit on friendly turf. The NFL knows how to look past big numbers at a pro day and get right to the point, which it sounds like it has, as John McClain of the Houston Chronicle detailed:

Already considered a first-round prospect in college, Coleman enters a weak class sure to fulfill the expectations. The pro day, though, didn't make him a can't-miss prospect who will come off the board among the first 10 picks, as it's still muddy as to which wideout will hear his name called first.

Still, Coleman is quite the get for a team like Washington. The team kept Kirk Cousins under center and now needs another talented vertical threat to run with DeSean Jackson and tight end Jordan Reed.

With Pierre Garcon slowing, adding another dependable threat such as Coleman will work wonders for the spacing and timing of the Washington offense.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com and are accurate as of Friday. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.