A Way Too Early 2010 NFL Mock Draft, Version 1

The NFL season is drawing to a close, and 30 out of the 32 NFL general managers have moved on to analyzing draft prospects. After some early research and film watching here is my first, very early mock draft.

 
1. St. Louis Rams—Ndamukong Suh (Defensive tackle, Nebraska)

He's just too good of a player to pass up.  Yes this team has other, more pressing needs, but no other prospect in this year's draft is worth the money that the Rams will have to pay the first pick overall. 

It wouldn't shock me to see a couple of teams really try and move up to grab Suh.  Cleveland offering the seventh pick, Derek Anderson and a third- or fourth-round pick would be tempting to the Rams. 

2. Detroit Lions—Russell Okung (Offensive tackle, Oklahoma State)

The Lions just invested a ton of money in a franchise quarterback. Now they need to pay to protect him. Okung is the consensus No. 1 offensive tackle in the draft and should be able to solidify Stafford's blindside for eight to 10 years. 

The Lions are really high on Jeff Backus, but after he gave up eight sacks last season, I am not sure why. If they don't draft Okung, I could see them looking at Gerald McCoy or Eric Berry, both great players. 

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers—Eric Berry (Safety, Tennessee)

Raheem Morris is their head coach. His former position was secondary coach. He understands better than most how valuable a guy like Berry can be. If he's not the pick here, I would be absolutely shocked. 

Berry spent last season being tutored by former Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin and should come in already knowing the Tampa-2 schemes. 

I've seen that a lot of mock drafts have Gerald McCoy at this spot, but quite frankly, I don't see why. I think a pass rushing defensive end like Derrick Morgan will be the pick here if they don't go with Berry.

4. Washington Redskins—Bryan Bulaga (Offensive tackle, Iowa)

Mike Shanahan understands the importance of a dominant run blocking offensive line, and Bulaga is perfect for his system. He is an extremely physical tackle and dominated Big 10 defensive lines throughout his junior and senior years at Iowa. 

This is awfully high for Bulaga to be going, higher than any other mock draft I have seen, in fact. But I don't think Shanahan will be thrilled with Rutgers' Anthony Davis or Oklahoma's Trent Williams, so Bulaga is the logical choice. 

A quarterback has been rumored to be here, but I think Shanahan will wait until the second round to draft a signal caller. 

5. Kansas City Chiefs—Joe Haden (Cornerback, Florida)

If this is the way the first four picks go, than the Chiefs will be extremely disappointed.  They don't need a quarterback after making a $60 million investment in Matt Cassell.

Gerald McCoy doesn't fit their defense very well, plus they have drafted defensive linemen the past two seasons. If they go offensive tackle, it will be the third off the board. 

This pick will completely depend on how Anthony Davis and Trent Williams grade out, but I don't think that either one of those guys will satisfy the Chiefs.

Look for them to draft the clear-cut No. 1 corner, Joe Haden from Florida. He's a great open-field tackler and has plenty of experience being left alone on islands in the SEC.

6. Seattle Seahawks—Derrick Morgan (Defensive end, Georgia Tech)

The Seahawks need defensive line help pretty bad. They are really old at that position, and could use some fresh blood. 

Morgan is big enough and quick enough to play end in either the 4-3 or 3-4, so he would add some versatility to the team. 

If Bulaga or Okung were available here, I could see them going offensive line, but I am just not that high on Davis or Williams. I think they will go another direction with this pick. It wouldn't surprise me if the Seahawks are involved in a couple of draft day trades to acquire more picks.

7. Cleveland Browns—Gerald McCoy (Defensive tackle, Oklahoma)

There is no way that McCoy will fall farther than here, and I probably have him falling too far. He's not one of my favorite prospects in this year's draft, but he is still a good player. 

He would fill an immediate need and should anchor the defensive line for the next decade.

8. Oakland Raiders—Jason Pierre-Paul (Defensive end, South Florida)

This would be another head scratching pick by Al Davis, but it might actually pan out this time. Pierre-Paul is somewhat unknown as he spent only two seasons playing Division I football. 

He's 6'6", 260 pounds, and runs in the 4.6s. He could spend the next couple of seasons learning some tricks of the trade from Richard Seymour.

9. Buffalo Bills—Jimmy Clausen (Quarterback, Notre Dame)

The Bills would be absolutely thrilled if this board pans out. They would have their choice between Clausen orSam  Bradford. Knowing a little bit about Chan Gailey's history, I think they will go with Clausen. 

Hopefully, Terrell Owens will be around next season to give Clausen a decent target downfield.

10. Denver Broncos—Dez Bryant (Wide Receiver, Oklahoma State)

The Broncos are probably going to cut ties with Brandon Marshall. Their next best receiver is Eddie Royal, who is not anywhere near a No. 1 target. Bryant could step in right away, and there would be very little drop off between him and Marshall. 

Bryant isn't a speed burner, nor is he a 6'5" huge red-zone threat. But he runs solid routes, is fast enough and has great hands. He could easily be an Andre Johnson clone.

11. Jacksonville Jaguars—Dan Williams (Defensive tackle, Tennessee)

The Jaguars have been missing Marcus Stroud for several years now, and John Henderson isn't getting any younger.

Dan Williams gives them a space-eating defensive tackle who should help take some of the pressure off of their past two 1st round picks, both defensive ends.

12. Miami Dolphins—Rolando McClain (Linebacker, Alabama)

The Dolphins are jumping for joy at this point. McClain fits their 3-4 defense perfectly and fixes one of their biggest weaknesses. 

He is an extremely smart player and has the size to immediately vie for a spot in the pro bowl. Surrounded by Joey Porter and Jason Taylor, this linebacker corps all of a sudden looks extremely potent. 

13. San Francisco 49ers—C.J. Spiller (Running back, Clemson)

If McClain were available, he would definitely be the pick. Singletary will make a hard push to make this pick outside linebacker Sergio Kindle or nose tackle Terrance Cody, but I think the playmaking ability of Spiller will be too much to pass up. 

Almost every team in the NFL is using a two-back system now, and Glen Coffee proved last year that he wasn't ready to step up and be that second guy. 

Also, how dangerous would it be to have Frank Gore and C.J. Spiller in the backfield together? Wild Niner anybody?

14. Seattle Seahawks—Anthony Davis (Offensive tackle, Rutgers)

The Seahawks went defense with the sixth pick, so I think they'll go offense with this one. Pete Carroll is going to really push to draft Taylor Mays in this spot if he's available, but I just don't see it happening.

This team has more pressing needs than a hard hitting safety who can't cover anybody.  Davis is the third offensive tackle taken in this draft, but he has the potential to be just as good as Buluga or Okung.

15. New York Giants—Sergio Kindle (OLB/Defensive end, Texas)

The Giants could really go three different directions with this pick. They could go after Carlos Dunlap to help a defensive end group that was hurt by injuries this past year.

They could go after Taylor Mays or Morgan Burnett to address serious issues in the secondary. Or they could draft Kindle and stand him up in their 4-3 alignment, much like the Washington Redskins have done with his college teammate Brian Orakpo.

Kindle could play defensive end in certain passing situations or play outside linebacker on first and second down.

16. Tennessee Titans—Carlos Dunlap (Defensive end, Florida)

Defensive end is probably this team's biggest weakness, and Dunlap could step in right away and start for them. 

He's a 6'6", 290-pound monster on the perimeter that gave even the best collegiate offensive tackles nightmares. As long as he keeps his head on straight, Dunlap is a force on the football field.

17. San Francisco 49ers—Taylor Mays (Safety, USC)

Mike Singletary gets his wish with this pick, going on the defensive side of the ball.  Mays is a freakish athlete that struggled in coverage last season.

Mays has the size to play linebacker. If Singletary can't teach him how to cover, than he'll change his position. 

The additions of home run threat Spiller and hometown boy Mays should make the 49ers faithful extremely happy.

18. Pittsburgh Steelers—Earl Thomas (Safety, Texas)

The Steelers were exposed this year, as Troy Polamalu had to sit out the majority of the season. I don't know if Polamalu is that good, or if his backups were that bad. Whatever the case, something has to change.

Thomas comes from a winning environment in Texas, and his attitude has never really been questioned. He's a hardworking playmaker who could occasionally play beside Polamalu and also be insurance if he gets hurt again.

19. Atlanta Falcons—Trent Williams (Offensive line, Oklahoma)

The Falcons need help in the secondary, on the defensive line and the offensive line more than anything. They would have been estatic if they could have snatched up any of the three guys that went right before them, but since they can't they will settle for Williams. 

Williams will help shore up an offensive line that was decimated with injuries last season. He will have big responsibilities as it will be his job to protect Matt Ryan, as well as pave running lanes for Michael Turner.

20. Houston Texans—Brian Price (Defensive tackle, UCLA)

The Texans defensive line has the potential to be great, but can never really seem to put it all together. Maybe Price will help. 

He will take pressure off of former first-round pick Amobi Okoye, as well as help defensive end Mario Williams put pressure on the quarterback.

21. Cincinnati Bengals—Sam Bradford (Quarterback, Oklahoma)

This pick is going to surprise a lot of people, but Palmer has vastly underachieved the past two seasons. Partly due to injuries, I know, but in the playoffs against the Jets he just looked terrible. 

I think picking up Bradford now and letting him sit behind Palmer for a year or year-and- a-half could have a very pleasant end result for the Bengals.

22. New England Patriots—Jermaine Gresham (Tight end, Oklahoma)

Losing Wes Welker to injury in the last week of the regular season ended any hopes that the Patriots had of making a run in the playoffs. Welker makes up all of the Patriots short passing game, and him being out was extremely detrimental to this team. 

Gresham should help with that. He is in the form of Dallas Clark and should be able to run short, middle and long routes. He has solid hands and should quickly earn Tom Brady's trust.

23. Green Bay Packers—Mike Iupati (Offensive guard, Idaho)

The Packers struggled blocking Minnesota's defensive line in both games this past season. Iupati helps them in both the running and passing game. He is a 6'6", 330 lb beast on the offensive line, who is projected to play guard in the NFL.

His talent level is much higher than the 23rd overall pick, but high picks just aren't used on offensive guards very often. This is an absolute steal for the Packers and should put a smile on Aaron Rodgers face.

24. Philadelphia Eagles—Morgan Burnett (Safety, Georgia Tech)

Burnett is an extremely smart ball hawk who is rarely found out of position. He has the skills to play corner if needed, but is projected to be a safety in the NFL. 

He's a perfect fit for the Eagles because he can come up and play man-to-man in blitzing situations, which would allow for the Eagles to disguise their coverages more.

25. Baltimore Ravens—Demaryius Thomas (Wide receiver, Georgia Tech)

The Ravens will never lose their identity. They are a run-first team.  Thomas is used to that. He is an extremely good blocker, almost in the Hines Ward mode. 

He loved being able to crack back on a linebacker in college and should get plenty of opportunity to do so in this offense. He also is a very big and physical receiver with good hands. His main weakness is his route running abilities.

26. Arizona Cardinals—Ricky Sapp (OLB/Defensive end, Clemson)

Sapp was a defensive end in a 4-3 scheme in college, but he is well suited to be an outside linebacker in a 3-4. He has all of the physical tools needed and should immediately help this defense.

27. Dallas Cowboys—Myron Rolle (Safety, FSU)

The Cowboys desperately need a playmaking safety, and Rolle gives them that. He is an extremely smart guy—being a Rhodes Scholar—and plays smart on the football field. 

He has the size to help out in run support and also be just as effective in coverage. He seems to be a near-perfect fit for "America's Team."

28. San Diego Chargers—Bruce Campbell (Offensive tackle, Maryland)

Many mock drafts have the Chargers drafting a running back, but I just don't seem them tying up that much money in LaDainian Tomlinson, Darren Sproles and another first-round pick. 

I think they will try and correct their running woes by adding an athletic offensive linemen who should be able to add much needed depth to a weak offensive line.

29. New York Jets—Arrelious Benn (Wide receiver, Illinois)

Mark Sanchez has a three-headed monster at running back, a favorite target at tight end, and now, he needs a standout receiver.

Benn is 6'2", and runs a 4.40 40-yard dash. So he will help relieve some of the pressure off of Braylon Edwards as the only deep threat on the team. Adding Benn to this offense should only help Sanchez thrive even more.

30. Minnesota Vikings—Terrance Cody (Defensive tackle, Alabama)

Cody isn't an ideal fit in a 4-3 defense, but with the speed of the Vikings ends, they could make it work.

Cody wouldn't be expected to start. Instead, we would rotate into the game with Kevin and Pat Williams. Cody probably won't end up slipping this far in the draft, but I couldn't find another spot for him any sooner.

31. New Orlean Saints—Sean Witherspoon (Linebacker, Missouri)

Witherspoon is an athletic linebacker who always seems to be around the ball. He can run from sideline to sideline and is equally good in run coverage and pass coverage.

The Saints would be thrilled to get Witherspoon in the end of the first round.

32. Indianapolis Colts—Patrick Robinson (Cornerback, FSU)

Robinson is the best cornerback on the board at this point, and the Saints need help in the secondary. 

The Colts don't need much on offense, so this pick is almost guaranteed to be on the defensive side of the ball. Robinson seems to be the most logical choice.