Not Another Mock Draft: Suh Goes Number One

Hello, my name is Jamal, and I am a Rams fan. I admit it. And after watching several full NFL games in which the Rams played this past season, hoping and even believing at times that a win would come, I was rewarded with said victory one time. One.

As February approached, I rooted for teams that had players I liked a lot, and watched them get picked off (literally) one-by-one by the Saints.

Adrian Peterson and Peyton Manning, I’m looking at you.

But alas, the Super Bowl for the Rams (and something close to that for football fans as a whole) is just three days away. Everyone has their own ideas of which teams will choose which players. The reality is that no one really knows how the draft will play out, but here is one more take on how things may look come Friday morning.

1.      St. Louis Rams: DT Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska. The common belief is that the Rams will select Oklahoma QB Sam Bradford with this pick. It has quite a high likelihood of occurring even if they don’t trade the pick to Cleveland, but the Rams may go after Suh for several reasons. One is money. Quarterbacks seem to always demand a higher salary. The argument is of course that it is the most important position, but with a roster that already has two top-two drafted players in the last two years still on their rookie contracts, it might help to conserve a little on this top pick (relatively speaking). They also have shown interest in Texas star Colt McCoy, who is also a talented quarterback and will probably be around in the second round when the Rams again pick first. There won’t be another Suh waiting at 33. Considering the teams immediately following the Rams have a lot of money tied up in quarterbacks, the real question is: How far does Bradford slide?

2.       Detroit Lions: OT Russell Okung, Oklahoma State. This guy has been at the top of the draft board for tackles for as long as I can remember. Detroit needs a lot of help defensively, especially after having traded away LB Ernie Sims on Monday. But offensively they have a tremendous receiver, who is also a great deep threat in Calvin Johnson. Matthew Stafford cannot get him the ball if he can’t stay on his feet. Detroit goes after a left tackle to protect their franchise quarterback.

3.       Tampa Bay Buccaneers: DT Gerald McCoy, Oklahoma. The first Oklahoma player taken in this draft is not Bradford, but McCoy. He looks to be a great fit for the Bucs, and a no-brainer defensive lineman pick since Suh has been grabbed two spots earlier.

4.       Washington Redskins: OT Bryan Bulaga, Iowa. Bradford becomes an attractive pick here, as the Redskins’ Donovan McNabb is not exactly a sure bet to start sixteen games, and could be a good mentor for a quarterback. But the Redskins don’t trade for a quarterback just to draft one at number four a few weeks later. They go tackle here to replace the retired Chris Samuels.

5.       Kansas City Chiefs: S Eric Berry, Tennessee.  Though tackle is a need and after Okung there is no consensus number two (or three, now that Bulaga is in Washington), the Chiefs can’t pass on Berry. An extremely talented safety, and the highest rated DB in the draft, Berry will help a Chiefs secondary that was absolutely atrocious at several points last year. Visions of Miles Austin going for 250 come to mind.

6.       Seattle Seahawks: OT Anthony Davis, Rutgers. The run on tackles continues here. The Seahawks still believe in Matt Hasselbeck and traded for a second quarterback in Charlie Whitehurst as a possible eventual starter. Again, Bradford looks good for this team but Davis helps them more now than another quarterback.

7.       Cleveland Browns: QB Sam Bradford, Oklahoma. The Browns are rejoicing here as they have an opportunity to select a franchise quarterback after so many have failed at the position. Bradford’s skill-set and media savvy may keep Cleveland sports fans excited even after LeBron goes to New Jersey (what?).

8.       Oakland Raiders: OT Trent Williams, Oklahoma. Back-to-back Sooners and the third in the top eight. Williams has the measurables that Al Davis loves and fits a need for the Raiders. It’s a pretty easy pick.

9.       Buffalo Bills: QB Jimmy Clausen, Notre Dame. After consecutive seasons of trouble at quarterback, the Bills go for Clausen while wishing that the Browns weren’t in the same situation two picks prior.

10.   Jacksonville Jaguars: CB Joe Haden, Florida. The Jags select the hometown college player and best corner in the draft to pair with Rashean Mathis for the next few years.

11.   Denver Broncos: WR Dez Bryant, Oklahoma State. The departure of Brandon Marshall makes the Broncos’ selecting a wide receiver early imperative.

12.   Miami Dolphins: LB Rolando McClain, Alabama. The Dolphins could plug McClain in alongside Channing Crowder, re-welcome Jason Taylor and have a formidable four-man linebacker corps with Karlos Dansby.

13.   San Francisco 49ers: G Mike Iupati, Idaho. This name has been seen at several different spots in drafts, but Iupati seems to be a good fit in San Francisco.

14.   Seattle Seahawks: WR Demaryius Thomas, Georgia Tech. With Nate Burleson gone, the Seahawks really need another receiver to complement TJ Houshmandzadeh. There’s a lot of talk about RB CJ Spiller going here, but Justin Forsett and Julius Jones occupy the running back position and render drafting an RB in the first round unnecessary.

15.   New York Giants: DT Jared Odrick, Penn State. The Super Bowl winning Giants’ signature was not Eli Manning, but a defensive line that included Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck, and Fred Robbins. The latter has departed to St. Louis, and the former has retired. To retool their defensive line, the Giants select the 300-pounder from Penn State.

16.   Tennessee Titans: DE Derrick Morgan, Georgia Tech. The Titans still play a 4-3, and Derrick Morgan is one of the two names at the top of the board at a position that this team needs to add more talent to.

17.   San Francisco 49ers: S Taylor Mays, USC. Niners defensive mastermind and head coach Mike Singletary can begin jumping for joy now. Taylor Mays is an extremely athletic safety who is used to the bright lights from playing at USC, and fits a need for a team that is already quite talented on defense.

18.   Pittsburgh Steelers: LB Sergio Kindle, Texas. The Steelers add to their linebacking corps with this pick. They could use it on the offensive line, but may address that with their second pick here.

19.   Atlanta Falcons: DE Jason Pierre-Paul, South Florida. The Falcons are no stranger to risk, going for Matt Ryan with the third pick of the draft a couple of years ago and starting him on day one. So far, that’s working out fantastically, so they go with the backflipping defensive end out of South Florida.

20.   Houston Texans: RB CJ Spiller, Clemson. The Texans began to develop a lot of questions at running back last season, after Steve Slaton’s stellar rookie year. Spiller answers those questions.

21.   Cincinnati Bengals: WR Golden Tate, Notre Dame. A bit of a surprise here, but the Bengals are in need of a wide receiver, and Golden Tate could add a new wrinkle to the offense for Carson Palmer.

22.   New England Patriots: TE Jermaine Gresham, Oklahoma. After letting Ben Watson go to Cleveland, there is absolutely no way that the Patriots let Gresham pass by them.

23.   Green Bay Packers: S Earl Thomas, Texas. The Packers add another safety to their talented DB corps to win the shootouts that they participate in. Ben Roethlisberger put up video game numbers on them late last year, passing for over 500 yards. In one game.

24.   Philadelphia Eagles: CB Kyle Wilson, Boise State. Because new addition Marlin Jackson is said to be playing free safety, the Eagles need someone to replace Sheldon Brown, now of the Cleveland Browns.

25.   Baltimore Ravens: C Maurkice Pouncey, Florida. The Ravens add a good center here, who doesn’t have to start day one but can wait in the wings behind Matt Birk.

26.   Arizona Cardinals: LB Brandon Spikes, Florida. Back-to-back Gators here. Spikes is a good-sized player who should fit the inside linebacker position well for the Cardinals.

27.   Dallas Cowboys: OT Bruce Campbell, Maryland. The Cowboys address a need here with one of this year’s combine wonders.

28.   San Diego Chargers: NT Terrence Cody, Alabama. The departure of Jamal Williams makes nose tackle (or as I like to call it, space eater) a priority, and they don’t come much bigger than Cody (6’5”, 354 lbs.)

29.   New York Jets: LB Sean Weatherspoon, Missouri. The Jets have been very active since the end of the season, and adding Weatherspoon to their defense would cement their linebacking corps.

30.   Minnesota Vikings:  DT Dan Williams, Tennessee. Williams “triplets,” anyone? Dan Williams adds depth here to one of the best defensive fronts in the game, and could take over for Pat Williams when he should decide to retire.

31.   Indianapolis Colts: CB Devin McCourty, Rutgers. The Colts need to add depth to their defensive backfield with the departure of Marlin Jackson.

32.   New Orleans Saints: LB Brandon Graham, Michigan. With their first pick, the Saints look to replenish their linebacking corps after losing players to free agency.