2012 NFL Mock Draft: Which QB-Starved Teams Will Fill Gaping Hole?

The quarterbacks in this year's draft include two of the more spectacular talents to enter the league. In Andrew Luck, you have the most NFL-ready prospect in a long time. In Robert Griffin III, you have a playmaker that can create opportunities for an offense all by himself. 

So, who will get them? More than two teams can use a quarterback, but only two should look that way in the first round.

Quarterback selections in italics.

1. Indianapolis Colts, Andrew Luck, QB, Stanford

A great question still looms about Peyton Manning and his availability, but the Colts have no choice but to go with Luck. At his best, Manning has roughly three years left, and the Colts need more than that from this position. 

Luck is a franchise player to build on. At Stanford, he showed a complete game that few quarterbacks in the NFL have. Anything other than drafting Luck and playing him immediately would be a mistake.

2. St. Louis Rams, Matt Kalil, OT, USC

The Rams will never emerge as a playoff contender without protecting Sam Bradford better. The best man for that job is Kalil.

3. Minnesota Vikings, Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State

An explosive playmaker to form a lethal duo with Christian Ponder is just what the doctor ordered for the Vikings. He would also take the heat off of Percy Harvin and Adrian Peterson.

4. Cleveland Browns, Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama

Prior to the conference championships, Steve Wyche of NFL.com projected that the Browns will trade up to the No. 2 spot to land Robert Griffin III, so it's worth exploring. The Browns' quarterback situation is bad, but they need weapons.

I don't see it happening. If the Browns really want Griffin, they won't even need to trade up for him. But Colt McCoy has done enough to earn a spot with players around him. 

5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Morris Claiborne, CB LSU

The other option is for the Bucs to call some people who played defensive back in high school. So if you live in the Tampa area, fit that description and still have an NFL dream, just hope this prediction doesn't come true. 

6. Washington Redskins, Robert Griffin III, QB, Baylor

This franchise will never progress in the NFC East without a quarterback. They have been without one for far too long, and Daniel Snyder has seemingly tried to throw money at every other position on the field. It is high time the Redskins attempt to land a franchise quarterback. 

Griffin is the big-name, athletic quarterback that can create plays for the offense. With him, the Redskins aren't far from competing in the division. Without a quarterback, the Redskins will be doomed to mediocrity. This is a no-brainer. 

7. Jacksonville Jaguars, Alfonzo Dennard, CB, Nebraska

There must be a something about Florida that breeds terrible secondaries in 2011. The Jaguars' defensive backfield was a MASH unit in 2011. They will never be a competitive team without a serious improvement. 

8. Carolina Panthers, Devon Still, DT, Penn St.*

With a big defensive tackle and a returning Jon Beason, the Panthers will have a capable run defense. With that offense, this is a sleeper team in 2012. 

9. Miami Dolphins, David DeCastro, OG, Stanford*

Miami will rely a lot on the run again, as their top two backs combined for over 1,600 yards. Give them a nasty guard to run behind, and the Dolphins are a real wild-card threat.

10. Buffalo Bills, Quinton Coples, DE, North Carolina

The Bills were one of the worst teams in the league at sacking the quarterback a season ago. As a result, they were 30th of 32 teams in scoring defense. That trend will continue without adding some help coming off of the edge. 

11. Kansas City Chiefs, Riley Reiff, OT, Iowa*

The Chiefs will need to improve up front if they are going to compete in an improving AFC West. Reiff is the perfect man for that job. 

12. Seattle Seahawks, Courtney Upshaw, OLB, Alabama*

Upshaw is a dangerous speed-rusher coming off of the edge. They will need a better quarterback to step up and become a Super Bowl contender, but that man isn't going to be here and a trade would be foolish. 

13. Arizona Cardinals, Jonathan Martin, OT, Stanford

They gave up an awful lot to get Kevin Kolb; now they need to protect him. The Cardinals have pieces in place with guys like Larry Fitzgerald and Beanie Wells, but won't go anywhere without a good offensive front.

14. Dallas Cowboys, Dre Kirkpatrick, CB, Alabama

The Cowboys need help in the secondary; this is really simple. Kirkpatrick has the size and skill to compete with the NFC East's best receivers. 

15. Philadelphia Eagles, Vontaze Burfuct, LB, Arizona State

The Eagles were just too easy to run on in 2011. They routinely blew late leads in the first half of the season, and could usually point directly to the inability to stop the run. If that doesn't change in 2012, the results won't get any better. 

16. New York Jets, Cordy Glenn, OG, Georgia

New York has to get back to winning ugly. That means ball control and a dominant defense. The ball control will get better with a big lineman like Glenn to help keep the chains moving on 3rd-and-short. 

17. Cincinnati Bengals (via Oakland Raiders), Alshon Jeffery, WR, South Carolina

With Jeffery and A.J. Green, you would have a combo of receivers that makes the best defenses sweat. If you give Jeffery a stable quarterback situation, he will be a stud. 

18. San Diego Chargers, Zebrie Sanders, OT, Florida State

Give Philip Rivers some time to throw and watch the turnovers go down. He struggled in large part due to an incredible wave of injuries and inconsistency on the offensive line. There is no reason for the Chargers to draft anything but a lineman.

19. Chicago Bears, Michael Floyd, WR, Notre Dame

The Bears offense isn't far from being a strong unit, but they still lack the outside presence needed to put up consistent points. With Floyd, they will have a big outside target that had over 1,000 yards receiving despite a less-than-stellar quarterback situation at Notre Dame.

20. Tennessee Titans, Janoris Jenkins, CB, North Alabama

With the likely departure of Cortland Finnegan, the Titans will need to improve in the secondary. Jenkins has a lot of talent, routinely going toe-to-toe with players like A.J. Green and Julio Jones. 

21. Cincinnati Bengals, Lamar Miller, RB, Miami

Mock drafts change a lot over the course of the season, but I have never been able to see the Bengals doing anything but taking Miller here. They relied too much on an old, injury-prone Cedric Benson in 2011, and that cost them at the end of the season, when the Bengals went 3-5 and backed into the playoffs.

22. Cleveland Browns (via Atlanta Falcons), Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor

Wright is a big-time playmaker that will help Colt McCoy. With Richardson and Wright, McCoy would have no excuses in his third year.

23. Detroit Lions, Luke Kuechly, LB, Boston College

Not unlike the Eagles, the Lions just couldn't stop the run when they had to. They will need to change that and have someone behind the star-studded front four.  

24. Pittsburgh Steelers, Dont'a Hightower, LB, Alabama

Pittsburgh's defense needs to get younger. Hightower can be eased into action throughout 2012 and ready to make an impact after that. A healthy Pittsburgh has very few holes.

25. Denver Broncos, Brandon Thompson, DT, Clemson

The 22nd-best run defense in the league will not be good enough for a team with Denver's offense. Thompson is a huge man that will plug the middle of the field, helping to get the defense off the field.

26. Houston Texans, Mohamed Sanu, WR Rutgers

The Texans need a player to line up on the other end of Andre Johnson. Jacoby Jones and Kevin Walter are not good enough in their current roles. Sanu is a big option and a perfect possession receiver to line up opposite Johnson. 

27. New England Patriots (via New Orleans Saints), Stephon Gilmore, CB, South Carolina

There is nowhere to go but up for the Patriots pass defense. They are in the Super Bowl in spite of being the second-worst pass defense in the league. That kind of success will not be sustainable for an entire season again.

28. Green Bay Packers, Melvin Ingram, DE, South Carolina

When the Packers lost Cullen Jenkins, they lost the pass-rusher needed to win in the playoffs. They only sacked Eli Manning once in their playoff loss to the Giants, and need to get instantly better to get back to the Super Bowl next season.

29. Baltimore Ravens, Peter Konz, C, Wisconsin

Konz gives the Ravens the nastiness they need to run on offense. He is going to be instantly ready to succeed in the NFL, which will make the Ravens a Super Bowl contender again.

30. San Francisco 49ers, Mark Barron, S, Alabama

The one positive that will come from the 49ers' loss to the Giants is that they are now picking before New York in the draft. That means that Barron and his overall ability will be there for the 49ers to take. He defends the run and pass, fitting into the defense perfectly.

31. New York Giants, Jayron Hosley, CB, Virginia Tech**

When the Giants couldn't pressure Alex Smith in the NFC Championship Game, they had a hard time defending the pass. There are better passing teams than the 49ers. New York could win the Super Bowl this year, but it will be no thanks to the secondary. 

32. New England Patriots, Zach Brown, OLB North Carolina**

Brown is a good all-around linebacker, capable of defending the run, pass and rushing the quarterback. With even an average defense, the Patriots would be in fantastic shape to at least repeat as AFC champs. 

*Picks No. 8/9 and 11/12 will be decided by coin toss

**Picks No. 31/32 will be decided in the Super Bowl

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