NFL Mock Draft 2017: 1st-Round Projections and Top Prospects' Stock Watch

We're just about to enter the most exciting time in the NFL draft season. The NFL Scouting Combine is set to kick off on Tuesday, February 28. After the combine, we'll have roughly two months of private workouts, interviews and pro days.

The stock of even the draft's top prospects will fluctuate greatly over the next two months, as teams get a closer and more personal look at each of them. Of course, it's not like every prospect's stock has been steady over the past couple of months.

We're here to examine some of the top prospects and their stock heading into the scouting combine. We'll be running down the current draft order and making our predictions for each draft slot based on factors like player potential, team fit and team needs. We'll also take a closer look at the changing stock of some of the draft's prospects.

To be clear, we'll be looking specifically at players whose stock has shifted significantly since the end of the collegiate season, so players whose stock has remained consistent—like Texas A&M's Myles Garrett or Alabama's Jonathan Allen—won't be examined.

2017 NFL Mock Draft

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

Stock Watch

UP: Derek Barnett, DE, Tennessee

For months now, the general perception has been that Garrett is the top edge-rusher in this draft and that there is a significant drop-off after him. However, Tennessee pass-rusher Derek Barnett may be creeping up to challenge him.

At least, this is the thinking of NFL Media's Bucky Brooks, who recently wrote the following:

"

When I study the tape, I see a relentless pass rusher with an outstanding combination of skill and technique. Barnett is one of the best hand-to-hand combat fighters that I've watched in years, and his ability to win with a variety of slick maneuvers makes him nearly impossible to slow down off the edge. In addition to his superior hand skills, Barnett has the rare ability to win with finesse or power off the edge.

"

Barnett's production certainly suggests supreme talent. Just last season, he amassed 56 tackles, 19.0 tackles for a loss and 13.0 sacks. He has produced at least 10 sacks in each of the past three seasons.

The belief, though, is that while Barnett has the production, Garrett possesses the physical attributes to fully thrive as a pro. If Barnett fails to wow folks at the scouting combine while Garrett shines, Barnett is likely to stay in that second tier of defensive prospects.

However, at least one NFL executive believes that the combine numbers won't prove anything.

"He's not going to run a fast 40, but if you like tough, violent, high-motor players with production, you'll love him," the unnamed executive told Brooks. "He kind of reminds me of a young Terrell Suggs coming out of Arizona State."

What team wouldn't want to get its hands on a player like Suggs? He has lasted 14 seasons in the NFL and accumulated 114.5 sacks. There's obviously no guarantee that this is the type of player Barnett can be, but it's an eyebrow-raising comparison.

Things could get very interesting at the scouting combine. If Barnett tests better than folks seem to believe he will, there might be a real argument to be made about which pass-rusher is truly the best in this class.

DOWN: Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU

The combine is also going to be very important for former LSU running back Leonard Fournette. While Fournette possesses unquestionable physical talent—along with some impressive college production—there are questions about his health and ability to be a complete back.

NFL Media's Lance Zierlein recently compared Fournette physically to Bo Jackson and Herschel Walker but stopped short of naming him the best back in the draft.

"I think Dalvin Cook's the better runner. If you just want to put on tape, the more complete running back is Cook, the more skilled running back is Cook," Zierlein said, per Chase Goodbread of NFL.com.

So while Fournette's stock is still quite high, it feels like there's a very real chance he won't be the first running back off the board. If medical checks at the combine don't come back satisfactory, his stock might take an even bigger hit.

Fournette was limited in 2016 by an ankle injury, and the injury could be a recurring problem. According to Will Carroll of SECCountry.com, a source has indicated that the ankle injury is actually a chronic issue for Fournette. Carroll also wrote the following:

"

NFL scouts have told me Fournette that his medical check at the Combine in February is going to go a long way in determining his draft position. There’s no question about the talent, but if Fournette is going to have these same issues, he may look to have it fixed earlier rather than later, giving him plenty of time to heal before training camp.

"

If Fournette cannot alleviate injury concerns, there's a chance that he might even fall out of the first round. This seems like a rather unlikely scenario, but if teams hold the view of Pro Football Focus' Mike Renner, then it's still a possibility:

I still have Fournette as a top-10 selection, and I believe this is in the range where he'll ultimately end up. However, I do find it noteworthy that a guy once seen as a can't-miss prospect is being questioned this much heading into the combine. The medical concerns are obviously legitimate, but this could also be a case of overanalyzing—which is certainly nothing new in the draft world. 

UP: Davis Webb, QB, California

Former Cal quarterback Davis Webb isn't considered a top prospect right now, but we're going to include him here because he just might be by the time the draft process has played out. It seems that his stock is rising heading into the combine, and at least one NFL executive believes Webb will end up being the best signal-caller in this class.

"I think he will end up being the best quarterback of this draft class," the executive told NFL Media's Daniel Jeremiah.

Webb's stock has been rising ever since the Senior Bowl, of which the quarterback was named MVP. However, he was generating a bit of a buzz even coming into the college exhibition.

One evaluator compared Webb to fellow Cal product Jared Goff, who was selected No. 1 overall in last year's draft by the Los Angeles Rams.

"He’s put up nearly identical numbers to Goff, playing in the same exact offense," the evaluator told Emily Kaplan of The MMQB. "He’s bigger than Goff, sturdier, and has a much stronger arm. Goff might have been more accurate, but I don’t think [Webb] gets enough credit."

It's easy to look at Goff's lackluster rookie campaign with the Rams and say this comparison is actually a bit of a negative. However, it is interesting that Goff was perceived as the clear-cut top quarterback prospect last year while Webb isn't being mentioned in the same breath as Mitch Trubisky, Deshaun Watson and DeShone Kizer.

Perhaps this will change in the coming weeks. Webb is at least hoping to change the narrative with a strong combine performance.

"I’ve got a couple goals in mind," Webb said, per Dalton Johnson of CSN Bay Area, "but I’m gonna keep those personal because those are my goals. I’m excited to shock some people at the combine because I’m pretty athletic."

For now, it at least appears that Webb is starting to creep into the conversation surrounding potential Round 1 picks.