2012 NFL Mock Draft: Mocking the Top Scouting Combine Warriors

It happens every year.

NFL draft prospects from across the country show up at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis to get weighed, measured, poked, prodded, tested and interviewed. Yet among this massive throng of players, a select few will separate themselves from the pack athletically by running faster, jumping higher or lifting more.

They will be our stories. They will be our Combine Warriors. They will don their underwear and glowing accelerometers with multimillion-dollar logos, and we will watch them carefully track and measure their strides with machine-like precision as they run races against a stopwatch.

Who will pick up where the likes of Cam Newton, Julio Jones, Nate Solder, J.J. Watt, Von Miller and Patrick Peterson left off? Better yet, where will they end up?

Pick No. 4: Cleveland Browns Select QB Robert Griffin III, Baylor

Let the controversy begin.

Robert Griffin III's performance at the 2012 NFL scouting combine is certainly not in dispute. Though his height listings have been questioned, I believe he will measure in a full 6020, at the worst. The Olympic-level hurdler will undoubtedly flash an excellent 40 time, though I doubt it will be faster than the 4.4x range.

The weight measurement will be a little more interesting, but there is no problem there that a stomach and bladder full of water couldn't cure. Let's just hope Griffin does not repeat former Hampton defensive end Isaac Hilton's mistake, filling up on so much water to try to beat the scales that he loses control of his bladder while waiting in line.

The controversy has nothing to do with Griffin's combine performance, nor with matching this team with this player. The controversy is with matching this team and this player at pick No. 4 overall rather than pick No. 2 overall.

I confess, I do not see a throng of suitors anxious to give up a king's ransom to the St. Louis Rams at No. 2 overall in order to take Robert Griffin III. If I were truly sold on Griffin and I had a mind to trade up, I would open up negotiations with the Minnesota Vikings for the No. 3 overall pick first.

However, I do not see the Dolphins or Redskins getting involved in the bidding for Griffin. Seattle could attempt the jump from No. 12 overall to No. 2 or No. 3 overall, but I believe the price will be prohibitive, as a jump of that size would take either the Rams or Vikings out of the bidding for the premium players in this draft.

They will want to be handsomely compensated for moving so far, and with the rookie wage scale slammed firmly in place, teams will start to realize that the value differentials between draft picks are a lot steeper now that financial compensation is no longer an issue.

I truly believe the Cleveland Browns desire Robert Griffin III. Head coach Pat Shurmur could not stop himself from gushing about Griffin, even when it was against the rules to do so.

I think Mike Holmgren will see a supercharged version of Seneca Wallace, whom he seems to keep in his back pocket like the worn picture of an ex-girlfriend he just can't get over.

The surprise will come when the Browns stick to their guns and refuse to give up extra picks to move up for Griffin when they could just sit tight and take him at No. 4 overall.

Pick No. 6: Washington Redskins Select QB Ryan Tannehill, Texas A&M

Last year, Cam Newton got much of the press for his performances at the 2011 NFL scouting combine. However, if you really look at it, Jake Locker had a very good performance as well. Quarterbacks that size who run that fast are freakish, no matter how you look at it.

Ryan Tannehill came to Texas A&M as a quarterback out of high school and quickly moved to wide receiver because of the presence of Jerrod Johnson. Tannehill caught for over 1,000 yards during his time as a receiver and was the team's leading receiver as a freshman.

This is a player who can eat up ground quickly when he gets on the hoof, and when you consider the size at which he will likely measure, I believe his combine showing will be unique in its own way.

The Redskins seem to be an absolutely perfect destination for Tannehill. This is not too high for Ryan's combination of size, ability to spin the ball, accuracy, quick release, feet and experience in a pro-style West Coast Offense.

I see the Redskins being drawn to Ryan Tannehill a lot more than the idea of making a big trade for Robert Griffin III. Mike and Kyle Shanahan are notorious for being very strict with their quarterbacks, discouraging a whole lot of improvisation.

One of the problems I have had with Griffin in college is his tendency to give up on perfectly valid reads so that he can go joyriding with the hot wheels attached to his ankles. I believe this would drive Kyle and Mike Shanahan nuts.

Rather than taxing future drafts to pony up for Griffin, I see the Shanahans preferring Tannehill, who checks off all the boxes for attributes they prefer in a quarterback. He is mobile and can therefore be a threat on boots and waggles.

He is confident, yet highly coachable. He has experience in a West Coast system that is similar to the Shanahans' own system. He has the ability to spin the ball that will threaten every inch of the field vertically and horizontally.

His relative inexperience may even end up viewed by the Shanahans as a positive, as they know they can mold him to be exactly the quarterback they want.

Pick No. 7: Jacksonville Jaguars Select DE Quinton Coples, North Carolina

The Jacksonville Jaguars need to surround quarterback Blaine Gabbert with some weapons on offense. However, with Justin Blackmon potentially already off the board, the No. 7 overall pick might not be the right resource for the job.

In all likelihood, by draft day the Jaguars will have already added some talent to their receivers unit via free agency.

The team's need at defensive end is at least as strong as its need at receiver. The team relied upon the likes of Leger Douzable and Jeremy Mincey to pressure the passer in 2011.

Pure production numbers suggest that Mincey provided a fair amount of pressure, but the numbers can be misleading. Mincey is the same player that was drafted late in the 2006 NFL draft and discarded by both the New England Patriots and the San Francisco 49ers.

The difference is he's been given plenty of opportunity and has been allowed to take advantage of some push up the middle, as well as solid coverage from the linebackers and secondary.

Mincey has virtually no quickness off the ball and needs a lengthy track in order to beat offensive linemen with speed.

He does a good job keeping linemen from getting into his body or knocking him off balance, and this is why he has been able to keep working his way to the quarterback with his high motor. 

However, that will not be enough in this league over the longer term. The Jaguars need a true threat at that position, one who can make plays a number of different ways.

Coples has his detractors. Many thought he was better as a defensive tackle in 2010 than as a defensive end in 2011.

I am among a small minority that was uninterested in him when he was playing tackle in 2010 and became extremely interested in him based on how he performed as a defensive end in 2011. Go figure.

I see a player who can beat any offensive tackle in the league, if coached properly. I see a player who can destroy the integrity of the backfield on zone stretch plays.

I see a player that who nearly the package of tools that Jason Pierre-Paul did when he came out, but has already grown into his own physique and technique a lot more than Pierre-Paul had by the time he left South Florida.

Pick No. 9: Carolina Panthers Select DT Dontari Poe, Memphis

The Carolina Panthers need some help on defense. Cam Newton has been every bit the sensational player that I and several others foresaw him to be. However, he still could not win more than six games because the Panthers defense could not stop anyone.

As they say, it all starts up front. The Panthers have two strong defensive ends in Greg Hardy and Charles Johnson. However, their strategy of starting two rookies at defensive tackle in Terrell McClain and Sione Fua was nothing short of a disaster.

Scaling back the playing time of McClain and Fua around Week 12 curiously coincided with a wholesale improvement in the quality of the defense. Shocking, I know (yes, that's sarcasm).

The linebackers unit should receive some help in the form of players returning to health. With Jordan Gross and Jeff Otah on the roster, I see no need for the team to start reaching for tackles.

The team could use some help at receiver and in the secondary, but with Morris Claiborne and Justin Blackmon destined to be off the board by this pick, I see this pick going toward beefing up the defensive front.

No player brings more beef to the table than the 350-pound Dontari Poe, who I expect to show off his size, strength and movement skills at the combine in a way that vaults him up the draft boards.

Pick No. 24: Pittsburgh Steelers Select TE Coby Fleener, Stanford

Coby Fleener is the best tight end in the 2012 NFL Draft, and I am not sure any other prospect comes even close.

I believe that there are some people out there that will be shocked when Fleener runs solidly into the 4.5x range at the 2012 NFL Scouting Combine, with impressive jump and agility measurements accompanying the fast track speed. His height should come out somewhere a little over 6'5" with perhaps 250 to 255 lbs of weight on his frame.

The measurements themselves are not indicative of the second coming of Jimmy Graham or Rob Gronkowski, but in a class of tight ends where he will be compared with the likes of Dwayne Allen and the lilliputian Orson Charles, he should come out head and shoulders (literally) above competition, solidifying himself as the only 1st round tight end in an NFL that is bound to be hungry for tight ends.

The Steelers have a lot of pieces of the puzzle in place in every corner of their roster. However, Heath Miller is less of a pass catching threat and more of a blocker at this stage of his career. Coby Fleener can threaten defensive backs with his size and speed in a way that Heath Miller cannot, and that will do wonders for speedsters like Mike Wallace and Antonio Brown.

It will also take pressure off Ben Roethlisberger, by giving him an easier target to challenge the deep middle. The double tight end personnel groupings and formations will also naturally take the edge off some of the pressure packages that the NFL likes to run, lately.

Pick No. 27: New England Patriots Select LB Melvin Ingram, South Carolina

Seeing Melvin Ingram go all the way at the bottom of the first round would seem a disappointment to some people, but I never believed Ingram had truly raised his draft stock above this area.

Ingram is a terrific football player who can run, rush the passer, cover, play special teams or do whatever you like him to do. The problem is with his pass-rushing.

He was not consistently quick off the ball in South Carolina, and the more you look at him, the more you realize that his short stature and unusually short arms will severely hinder him in that role at the NFL level.

However, the 2012 NFL scouting combine will give him the venue to show off his pure running skills, which I personally believe to be very significant, as well as his agility and explosive metrics.

He has always reminded me of Adalius Thomas, who was a jack-of-all-trades type of linebacker perfectly suited for the New England Patriots defense.

I believe Bill Belichick will also see the comparison with Adalius Thomas. He will see a player that he can use a number of different ways, which will aid the Patriots as they continually evolve and shift their defensive tendencies every game and every season.

Pick No. 28: Green Bay Packers Select DT Fletcher Cox, Mississippi State

When Fletcher Cox came to Mississippi State, he was a 6'4" and 240-pound physical phenom who ran a 4.47 in the 40-yard dash at a recruiting combine.

A number of years later, Fletcher has packed on an additional 50-plus pounds of weight, yet when I watch him play I do not see an inordinate drop-off in the athleticism that took Mississippi State recruiters' eyes off their intended scouting target Desmond Johnson and onto the defensive end who ran track and never came off the field.

The Green Bay Packers defense needs some help. They fell off their 2010 production, and they fell hard. The team never really replaced Cullen Jenkins, who went off to the Philadelphia Eagles. They missed him.

Teams averaged 4.7 yards per carry against the Packers defense in 2011. The defensive line unit accounted for 20.0 sacks in 2010 but only 6.0 sacks in 2011.

The team needs some help both against the run and getting some pressure up the middle. I believe Fletcher Cox could be perfect for what the Packers will ask him to do.