2012 NFL Mock Draft: Who Should the New England Patriots Target in Round 1?

Like just about any other year, the New England Patriots head into the 2012 NFL draft with two first-round picks, the No. 27 and No. 31 overall. 

Despite winning the AFC and making it to Super Bowl XLVI, Bill Belichick and the Patriots have several holes to fill if they want to make yet another Super Bowl run. 

Taking a look at their roster, I have come up with seven positions that they should plan on addressing in this year's draft: cornerback, linebacker, defensive end, safety, wide receiver, center and offensive guard.

With that being said, here are five players that New England should plan on targeting with its two selections in the first round of the 2012 draft. 

Dont'a Hightower, LB, Alabama

Whether the New England Patriots plan on switching back to the 3-4 defense or continue to stay in the 4-3 alignment, Alabama linebacker Dont'a Hightower is a fit either way.

Hightower is versatile enough to play any linebacker position in the 3-4 or the 4-3. 

The 6'4", 255-pounder is quite the athlete for the linebacker position as he's equipped with elite speed and can keep up with any tight end that releases for a pass. Hightower is never afraid to bring the lumber as he's known for being a hard hitter during his time at Alabama.

Playing under Nick Saban, who runs a very complex, NFL-level defense, is also a huge positive for Bill Belichick, who has a solid relationship with Saban.

If the Patriots were to draft Hightower, he'd join Jerod Mayo and Brandon Spikes to create one of the youngest and most promising linebacker corps that the league. 

Nick Perry, DE, USC

Aside from Quinton Coples and Courtney Upshaw, USC's Nick Perry is one of the best pass-rushers that the 2012 draft class has to offer.

Perry is a pure pass-rusher at the defensive end position that should dominate at the NFL level in the 4-3 alignment—If the Patriots were remain in the 4-3, then Perry would be quite the addition. 

Perry will enter the draft standing in at 6'3" weighing 250 lbs—which makes it rather questionable if he can be a stand-up pass-rusher in a 3-4 alignment. 

The only knock that I have on Perry is that he used his speed so much in college to beat offensive tackles that we rarely saw him use his strength. I'm sure that he's strong enough to fight off offensive tackles at the NFL level but that's an area that needs some light shed on it. 

Janoris Jenkins, CB, North Alabama

Janoris Jenkins is a tricky prospect as he's talented enough to go in the top 15; however some character issues could cause him to fall to the low 20s and right into New England's lap.

Jenkins spent last season with North Alabama as he was dismissed from Florida a year ago due to several arrests related to drugs. 

Jenkins is an incredible talent that has elite speed as well as great tackling skills. 

I figure Jenkins to be a first-year impact kind of player as he appears to be able to physically match up against any wide receiver that the NFL has to offer.

Another thing that really stands out to me is that Jenkins is extremely smart in the football sense and has a real natural ability to diagnosing opposing offensive plays. 

If Jenkins is sitting there at 27th overall, Bill Belichick will have to grab him—he's simply too much of a talent to pass on. 

Melvin Ingram, DE/OLB, South Carolina

The thing that will likely attract Bill Belichick the most to South Carolina's Melvin Ingram is his versatility, as he's able to play outside linebacker in the 3-4 as well as defensive end in the 4-3.

Ingram has incredible athletic abilities and can dominate opposing offensive tackles with his elite speed. He uses a great first step to gain position on his blocker and he'll either race around them or use one of his pass-rushing moves that he has in his arsenal. 

The biggest negative in Ingram's game is that he doesn't use any strength to beat opposing blockers as he relies on his speed too much. Ingram is going to have to prove at the NFL scouting combine that he does have enough strength to physical dominate and abuse offensive tackles. 

Mark Barron, S, Alabama

What the New England Patriots really need to do in their secondary is to find some stability—and drafting a guy like Mark Barron could do that.

While playing under Nick Saban at Alabama, Barron flourished at strong safety because he's such a competitor who plays until the whistle and is always in on every play. 

Barron possesses elite size as he stands in at 6'2" and weighs roughly 220 lbs, but will struggle in coverage sometimes as he's a bit stiff and doesn't have the speed to make up for getting beat.

Barron certainly knows how to read a defense, which is a dime a dozen in the NFL nowadays, and should be quite the asset to New England's youthful secondary.