NFL Draft 2017: Final Mock Draft Predictions Before Wild Card Weekend

Over the past week, fans not lucky enough to have a team in the running for the Lombardi Trophy have come to the realization they might have something even better—a first-class ticket to draft season weeks in advance. 

Some might debate whether this is better than a playoff berth, but only one team wins a title. The rest come up short of expectations and have a lesser draft pick as a result.

Even worse, those teams that hardly qualified for the playoffs in the first place now reside in a bit of a purgatory with a middling pick.

The early arrival of draft season means mock drafts, which means an all-encompassing tool giving fans a look at the order, team needs and prospect value in one convenient chart. Here's a look at the latest before the playoffs kick off.

2017 NFL Mock Draft

Pick	Team	Selection
1	Cleveland Browns	Myles Garrett, DE,Texas A&M
2	San Francisco 49ers	Mitch Trubisky, QB, North Carolina
3	Chicago Bears	Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson
4	Jacksonville Jaguars	Jonathan Allen, DL, Alabama
5	Tennessee Titans (from LA)	Mike Williams, WR, Clemson
6	New York Jets	Jabrill Peppers, LB/S, Michigan
7	San Diego Chargers	Ryan Ramczyk, OT, Wisconsin
8	Carolina Panthers	Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU
9	Cincinnati Bengals	Malik McDowell, DL, Michigan State
10	Buffalo Bills	Tim Williams, LB/DE, Alabama
11	New Orleans Saints	Reuben Foster, LB, Alabama
12	Cleveland Browns (from PHI)	Brad Kaaya, QB, Miami
13	Arizona Cardinals	Teez Tabor, CB, Florida
14	Indianapolis Colts	Dalvin Cook, RB, Florida State
15	Philadelphia Eagles (from MIN)	John Ross, WR, Washington
16	Baltimore Ravens	Corey Davis, WR, Western Michigan
17	Washington Redskins	Jamal Adams, S, LSU
18	Tennessee Titans	Marshon Lattimore, CB, Ohio State
19	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Marlon Humphrey, CB , Alabama
20	Denver Broncos	Malik Hooker, S, Ohio State
21	Detroit Lions	Taco Charlton, DE, Michigan
22	Miami Dolphins	Derek Barnett, DE, Tennessee
23	New York Giants	Solomon Thomas, DL, Stanford
24	Oakland Raiders	Quincy Wilson, CB, Florida
25	Houston Texans	Raekwon McMillan, LB, Ohio State
26	Green Bay Packers	Gareon Conley, CB, Ohio State
27	Seattle Seahawks	Cam Robinson, OT, Alabama
28	Pittsburgh Steelers	O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama
29	Atlanta Falcons	Caleb Brantley, DT, Florida
30	Kansas City Chiefs	Dan Feeney, OG, Indiana
31	Dallas Cowboys	Adoree' Jackson, CB, USC
32	New England Patriots	Christian McCaffrey, RB, Stanford

Philadelphia and Indianapolis will flip a coin for No. 14 and No. 15 at the NFL combine.

The Obvious Pick: Browns Nab Myles Garrett

This is one of the easiest No. 1 picks in modern history. 

Thanks to some savvy, finesse work by the front office, the Cleveland Browns clutch two picks in the top 12 this year. In other words, the team could take a "no, thank you" on one of the quarterbacks in a muddled class and take the best player in the draft.

Granted, such a status remains up for debate. In the coming months, fans should expect the battle to be a two-man show between Alabama's Jonathan Allen and Texas A&M's Myles Garrett.

Cleveland can't really go wrong with either, not after coughing up 28.3 points per game and a ridiculous 142.7 rushing yards on the ground.

As of right now, Garrett looks like the best prospect on the board. It was impossible to miss No. 15 on the field for the Aggies this year, his 6'5", 270-pound frame abusing offensive linemen on the way to disrupting quarterbacks. 

As Bleacher Report's Matt Miller noted, his best comparison might be a rookie who just wreaked havoc on the NFL:

Cleveland's defense gets a huge boost with Garrett's arrival, pairing him with names such as Danny Shelton and letting guys like Jamie Collins go to work.

Even better, Cleveland still has another pick later in the round to address the quarterback position if it so chooses.

Up for Debate: Bears Go QB, Grab Deshaun Watson 

The Chicago Bears at No. 3 might be the most interesting team in the top 10.

Chicago had solid performances from backups Matt Barkley and Brian Hoyer this past season, so the team might find itself in a stopgap solution at the position if it does decide to move on from Jay Cutler.

In theory, this would allow the Bears to address a different position and perhaps wait for prospects from a different class.

Again, in theory. Chicago has a solid roster outside of the quarterback position. Running back Jordan Howard just ran for 1,313 yards as a rookie, Alshon Jeffery might be back, Josh Sitton joined the roster and reinforced the line. The defense has one of the better linebacking cores in the league. 

This makes it hard for the Bears to pass on a high-upside prospect such as Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson. A Heisman Trophy candidate in each of the past two years, Watson has thrown for a minimum of 35 touchdowns over his last two campaigns and totaled 20 rushing scores.

Still, it's not hard to see why this pick would be met with plenty of debate. Quarterback is a mess right now with names such as Mitch Trubisky, DeShone Kizer, Brad Kaaya and even Patrick Mahomes II needing sorting out. Add in the fact the Bears could roll with a veteran for a year, and it's certainly a polarizing selection.

For now, though, it seems Chicago's best course of action is grabbing a prospect to grow alongside the rest of the young core in place. Taking Watson here doesn't necessarily mean they start him as a rookie.

The Rich Get Richer: Patriots Halt Christian McCaffrey's Fall

The value of the running back position in the NFL these days makes it easier for teams to unearth major steals.

It also means a team like the New England Patriots could strike it big while the rest of the league focuses on Dalvin Cook and Leonard Fournette.

The Patriots nab Christian McCaffrey out of Stanford in this scenario, an every-down back ready to contribute at the pro level right out of the gates. Fans know McCaffrey as the guy with silly numbers after he rushed for 2,019 yards in 2015 and another 1,603 this past year.

What really puts McCaffrey over the top isn't necessarily his elite vision or ability to pick up yardage as a runner, but his surefire hands that helped him catch a minimum of 37 passes in each of his last two years.

CBSSports.com's Rob Rang detailed this aspect of the Stanford product's game:

"

As one might expect given his father's vocation, McCaffrey is a terrific receiver out of the backfield, naturally plucking the ball outside of his frame and securing it in one fluid motion. He is an excellent route-runner, incorporating subtle shoulder fakes and altered gaits to leave defenders guessing, creating easy separation.

"

This skill set, of course, would be amplified tenfold in New England with McCaffrey lining up in Tom Brady's backfield.

Such a pairing creates a huge rich-get-richer scenario. New England has had plenty of production from LeGarrette Blount as a bruising runner, but it hasn't seen consistency from players such as Dion Lewis and James White.

McCaffrey changes this in a big way.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus. 

Follow Chris Roling (@Chris_Roling) on Twitter.