NFL Draft Projections 2017: Updated Order and 1st-Round Predictions

More than a year of draft preparation has come down to this. We're now mere days away from the 2017 NFL draft, and the growing excitement is palpable.

On Thursday night, the first 32 prospects will come off the board. Who will they be? Where will they go? We don't know for sure, but we can make some educated guesses. This is exactly what we're going to do here.

We're going to run down the current draft order—which is starting to feel like it will be the order heading into the opening round—and make projections based on factors like prospect stock, player potential, team needs and team fits. We'll also dive into some of our latest first-round predictions.

2017 NFL Mock Draft

Pick	NFL Team	Proj. Selection
1	Cleveland Browns	Myles Garrett, DE, Texas A&M
2	San Francisco 49ers	Solomon Thomas, DE, Stanford
3	Chicago Bears	Jamal Adams, S, LSU
4	Jacksonville Jaguars	Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU
5	Tennessee Titans (from LAR)	Mike Williams, WR, Clemson
6	New York Jets	Malik Hooker, S, Ohio State
7	Los Angeles Chargers	Jonathan Allen, DL, Alabama
8	Carolina Panthers	Marshon Lattimore, CB, Ohio State
9	Cincinnati Bengals	Haason Reddick, LB, Temple
10	Buffalo BIlls	Mitchell Trubisky, QB, North Carolina
11	New Orleans Saints	Derek Barnett, DE, Tennessee
12	Cleveland Browns (from PHI)	O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama
13	Arizona Cardinals	Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson
14	Philadelphia Eagles (from MIN)	Gareon Conley, CB, Ohio State
15	Indianapolis Colts	Charles Harris, DE, Missouri
16	Baltimore Ravens	John Ross, WR, Washington
17	Washington Redskins	Chris Wormley, DL, Michigan
18	Tennessee Titans	Tre'Davious White, CB, LSU
19	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Christian McCaffrey, RB, Stanford
20	Denver Broncos	Forrest Lamp, OL, Western Kentucky
21	Detroit Lions	Marlon Humphrey, CB, Alabama
22	Miami Dolphins	Reuben Foster, LB, Alabama
23	New York Giants	David Njoku, TE, Miami
24	Oakland Raiders	Obi Melifonwu, S, Connecticut
25	Houston Texans	Patrick Mahomes, QB, Texas Tech
26	Seattle Seahawks	Garett Bolles, OT, Utah
27	Kansas City Chiefs	Takkarist McKinley, LB, UCLA
28	Dallas Cowboys	Taco Charlton, DE, Michigan
29	Green Bay Packers	Adoree' Jackson, CB, USC
30	Pittsburgh Steelers	Jabrill Peppers, S, Michigan
31	Atlanta Falcons	Dan Feeney, G, Indiana
32	New Orleans Saints (from NE)	Kevin King, CB, Washington

Predictions

Texans Draft a Quarterback

The Houston Texans were a playoff team in 2016, despite fielding an inconsistent Brock Osweiler under center. Osweiler is now gone, the Texans are out a 2018 second-round pick, and the starting quarterback job is up for grabs.

However, the Texans say they aren't going to be pressured into drafting a quarterback this year.

"'I don't feel pressure," Texans general manager Rick Smith said, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle. "At some point, we're going to add a quarterback."

Whether the Texans feel pressured to add a quarterback is irrelevant. I think they draft one, and I think they do so early. I also think they know exactly which quarterback they want to target.

According to Tom Pelissero of USA Today, Houston head coach Bill O'Brien wants Texas Tech product Patrick Mahomes II.

"A lot of BS flies this time of year, but file this away: One NFL coach who's done homework on all the top QBs told me the word is O'Brien absolutely loves the cannon-armed Mahomes," Pelissero wrote. "O'Brien wouldn't be alone—based on conversations I've had, it wouldn't be a surprise if Mahomes is one of the first two quarterbacks taken."

Don't be surprised if the Texans trade up in order to secure Mahomes on Thursday night.

Ravens Draft a Receiver

A couple years ago, the Baltimore Ravens spent a first-round pick on former Central Florida receiver Breshad Perriman. That pick, so far, has turned out to be a dud. Injuries kept Perriman out of his rookie season, and he amassed just 33 receptions in 16 games last season.

The Ravens, meanwhile, are still hurting for pass-catchers. Pro Football Focus rated the team just 27th in receiving for the 2016 season.

This is why I think the Ravens target a receiver in the first round on draft weekend.

The Baltimore Sun's Jeff Zrebiec believes the Ravens will at least take a receiver early:

"

Aside from running back Danny Woodhead, they've yet to get quarterback Joe Flacco any help this offseason.General Manager Ozzie Newsome says the Ravens won't hesitate to draft a first-round receiver even though that hasn't been a good formula for the team. If they don't use the 16th pick on a pass catcher, they almost certainly have to come out of Day Two of the draft with one.

"

I fully believe the Ravens will target a receiver on the draft's opening night, though I'm not sure they do so at 16th overall. I think this is a draft in which the Ravens could move down a few spots, pick up some additional draft capital and still get a quality pass-catcher.

Obviously, this strategy would depend on who is still on the board at No 16. If the Ravens don't like their options at receiver, they could add a dangerous receiving tight end like David Njoku instead.

Foster Falls out of Top 15

Alabama's Reuben Foster has had some trouble keeping his stock high leading up to the draft. He was sent home after an altercation at the scouting combine. He later revealed that he was flagged for a diluted urine sample at the combine as well.

NFL Media's Mike Mayock doesn't think these incidents will affect Foster's stock all that much, though.

"I think he's a top-20 pick all day long in any draft," Mayock said, via NFL.com. "Could he have been a top-10 pick? He still might be a top-10 pick."

From a talent perspective, I believe Foster is worth a top-10 pick. Even before the dilute sample was announced, however, I could have seen him falling into the bottom half of Round 1. This is partially due to off-field concerns with him and the wealth of overall talent at the top of the draft.

According to Robert Klemko of SI.com, at least one team with a top-15 selection had removed Foster from its draft board before the first combine incident.

"He already had immaturity, issues with life skills. This is the same guy," an evaluator for the team said, per Klemko. "We're not in the market."

As Dan Brugler of CBS Sports recently pointed out, one concern is Foster's love of the party scene:

When you combine fears about Foster's off-field habits with a diluted urine sample and some apparent maturity issues, you get a prospect that some teams aren't going to be comfortable drafting high.

The other side of the coin here is that there is enough talent at the top of the draft to justify passing on Foster. While he has the makings of an excellent pro linebacker, pass-rushers and defensive backs are likely to hold more value to several teams. There are plenty of those expected to go early.

Running backs, receivers, tight ends and ultimately even quarterbacks are also likely to end up in the top half of Round 1. Is there room for a non-rush linebacker in the top 15? Perhaps, but if so, Temple's Haason Reddick appears to be a safer choice than Foster.