NFL Mock Draft 2016: 1st-Round Projections and Prospects to Watch

Now the wait drags.

With pro days coming and going and the NFL combine seeming like it took place six months ago, the worst stretch of draft season has arrived, which will make the next few weeks feel like months for fans who just want to know how the future looks for their teams.

Granted, much will still happen during the wait. Interviews, opinions and plenty more will offer slight variations to stock, and any slight ripple—as most familiar with the draft process should know—can force major changes on how the draft unfolds.

With such a ripple-effect theme in mind, let's take a look at an updated mock draft and some of the top names to watch during the wait.

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	Reggie Ragland	LB	Alabama
11	Chicago Bears	DeForest Buckner	DE	Oregon
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	Nile Lawrence-Stample	DT	Florida State
30	Carolina Panthers	Kevin Dodd	DE	Clemson
31	Denver Broncos	Jason Spriggs	OT	Indiana

Prospects to Watch 

4. Dallas Cowboys: Myles Jack, LB, UCLA

Myles Jack gets a nod as a player to watch for a few reasons. 

For one, he's a freak athlete. Folks might get tired of hearing about how eventual first-round picks have elite athleticism, but seriously, Jack is 6'1" and 245 pounds with the speed of some wide receivers.

If he was healthy...

That's the other point with Jack, who won't have a personal pro day and continues to work his way back from a knee injury. His agent, John Thornton, shared a recent workout showcasing how the knee is coming along:

"

Myles Jack is fine. Needs more of these drills to get in football shape. Mirroring WRs/DBs to get finish rehab. pic.twitter.com/CZSvLT6udH

— JohnThornton (@JohnThornton) March 29, 2016"

If doctors give a thumbs-up on Jack, it's not hard to see why the UCLA product is a top-five pick. ESPN.com's Todd McShay ranked him sixth overall with high praise:

"

An explosive athlete who moonlighted as a running back for the Bruins, Jack has an elite combination of athleticism, fluidity and speed in coverage. He reads the QB's eyes well, and has demonstrated the ability to stick with TEs, RBs and slot WRs in man coverage. Jack shows good pop as a tackler and flashes the ability to uncoil and deliver a violent shot when he's able to line up a ball carrier.

"

Jack is just what a team like the Dallas Cowboys needs as long as the medical side checks out.

The Cowboys not only ranked tied for 22nd against the rush last year, but they tallied just 31 sacks and lost guys like Greg Hardy. Again, so long as he's healthy, Jack is an immediate starter for a problem area that has plagued the Cowboys for years.

12. New Orleans Saints: Noah Spence, DE/LB, Eastern Kentucky

One of the biggest red flags in the draft has seen the buzz around his checkered past die down as of late. 

It doesn't mean the NFL has stopped paying attention.

Noah Spence's past might not be a headline topic anymore in the media, but rest assured it is in NFL draft war rooms. Spence is the guy who failed a pair of drug tests at Ohio State, underwent treatment and transferred to Eastern Kentucky instead of simply going pro.

"With anybody with a substance abuse problem that they’ve had, I feel like [teams are] pretty leery about it," Spence said, according to ESPN.com's Jamison Hensley. "But if you can put it behind you, you can convince the team it’s behind you."

There is simply no denying Spence is one of the most talented players in the draft. He uses a large array of moves to get past blockers and a quick-twitch reaction to burst off the snap, twisting and contorting his 6'2", 251-pound frame into a whirlwind of force and speed.

Still, during the rest period, folks will begin to hear about teams that don't have Spence on their boards at all. It's simply how some organizations operate—no matter how good or bad Spence did in interviews.

So long as the New Orleans Saints aren't one of those teams, Spence looks like their guy. The Saints ranked 31st against the rush and pass last year with—surprise—31 sacks to their name.

If the Saints want to exit the land of 31s, it might mean taking a risk on a guy like Spence, whose name continues to demand attention.

13. Miami Dolphins: Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Ohio State

The top running back in a class is always one of the best names to watch during the dreaded wait. 

Just watch: Some reports will say Ezekiel Elliott isn't great enough to warrant a top-10 pick; others will say at least one team in the top 10 won't let him get past it if he falls.

It's a fun time—if not the smokiest of all smoke screens when it comes to the position that has changed the most over the past decade at the pro level.

On paper, Elliott is absolutely an elite prospect. He's a bully of a running back at 6'0" and 225 pounds who ran for 1,821 yards and 23 touchdowns last year while also hitting every checkmark on the NFL list by holding up well in pass protection and as a receiver.

There's a reason nuggets like this, provided by College Football 24/7, continue to float about:

Just understand that no opinion about Elliott's future is wrong because it's impossible to tell. With such an average quarterback class this year, Elliott is the No. 1 smoke screen teams will use to hopefully entice a trade or get their guy to fall, and on and on.

For now, a slot just outside the top 10 makes sense, as the position is simply too easy to address in later rounds to take in the top 10. Landing with the Miami Dolphins seems suitable, as the organization hasn't exactly gone out of its way to upgrade the backfield this offseason after Lamar Miller left.

An every-down workhorse should the Dolphins use him right, the AFC East gets a little more entertaining, and quarterback Ryan Tannehill's stunted development perhaps gets a boost. Understand the reports and comments about Elliott are just getting started.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com and are accurate as of April 6. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.