2012 NFL Mock Draft: Guaranteed Selections for Every First Round Team

As the 2012 NFL Draft gets closer and closer, more and more mock drafts are flooding the internet, as everyone from Todd McShay at ESPN to the fine folks at Walter Football and Bleacher Report's own Matt Miller take their best shots at predicting how the draft will shake out.

However, I possess a secret weapon that they do not, as, by using a combination of a sophisticated computer algorithm, a dartboard and a case of Dos Equis, I have created an absolutely foolproof and 100% accurate* method for predicting the first round of this year's draft.

1. Indianapolis Colts: Andrew Luck, QB, Stanford:  Jim Irsay asserted earlier this week that the first overall pick is still "up in the air," but according to longtime Colts beat writer Bob Kravitz, the pick will be Luck—"period."

2. Washington Redskins (from St. Louis Rams): Robert Griffin III, QB, Baylor: Donovan McNabb may not think Griffin is a "good fit" in Washington, but the Redskins didn't mortgage their future for nothing, so whether McChunky likes it or not, the Heisman Trophy winner is headed to D.C..

3. Minnesota Vikings: Matt Kalil, OT, USC: The Vikings allowed the fifth most sacks in the NFL last year, and if Minnesota quarterback Christian Ponder is going to grow in his second season, it would help if he wasn't constantly in fear of getting blasted from his blind side.

4. Cleveland Browns: Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama: Richardson appears to be recovering well from knee surgery given his showing at Alabama's second pro day Thursday, and with the Browns in dire need of offensive firepower, Richardson will be the first running back taken in the top five since Darren McFadden in 2008.

5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Morris Claiborne, CB, LSU: With Ronde Barber looking every bit of 36 and Aqib Talib spending more time in courtrooms than weight rooms, it makes sense for the Bucs to bolster their secondary by selecting the draft's top cornerback.

6. St. Louis Rams (from Washington Redskins): Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State: This scenario would be the equivalent of the Rams having their cake and eating it too, as not only would the team get the player they coveted all along, but the Rams also added two extra first-round picks and a second in the trade with the Redskins.

Oklahoma State wide receiver Justin Blackmon is a two-time winner of the Biletnikoff Award as college football's top receiver after racking up over 3,300 total yards over his past two seasons in Stillwater, and the 6'1", 207-pound wideout can count The Sporting News' Matt Crossman among his many admirers.

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He won the past two Biletnikoff awards as the best receiver in college football. He has made more circus catches than a trapeze net, and his high school football coach calls him “the most fierce competitor I’ve ever seen.” He will be the first receiver taken in this year’s draft and is widely seen as a future star in the NFL.

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7. Jacksonville Jaguars: Melvin Ingram, DE, South Carolina: The Jaguars pass rush was mediocre at best last year, and the All-American Gamecocks standout would be an outstanding complement to Jeremy Mincey at defensive end.

8. Miami Dolphins: Ryan Tannehill, QB, Texas A&M: Tannehill reportedly looked impressive at his pro day on Thursday, and given the Dolphins' extended and ultimately futile offseason search for a franchise quarterback, there's next to no chance he makes it past the eighth overall pick.

9. Carolina Panthers: Fletcher Cox, DT, Mississippi State: The Carolina defense was among the leakiest in the NFL against the run in 2011, so improving the middle of the defensive line is a priority that the Panthers need to address early in the 2012 draft. Cox didn't post the gaudiest workout at his position at February's NFL combine, but he's a better fit for the Panthers' 4-3 than Dontari Poe.

10. Buffalo Bills: Riley Reiff, OT, Iowa: Starter Demetrius Bell is a free agent who looks less and less likely to return given his visits to other teams, so the Bills may find themselves searching for his replacement in the 2012 draft.

11. Kansas City Chiefs: Dontari Poe, DT, Memphis: Starting nose tackle Kelly Gregg is a 35-year-old free agent who is considering retirement, and his departure would leave the Chiefs with a big hole in the middle of the defensive line.

Memphis defensive tackle Dontari Poe is a 346-pound behemoth who appears perfectly suited for the role of 3-4 nose tackle, and Poe's stock has soared since a superhuman performance at the combine, as the Daily Helmsman's David Caffey relayed at the time.

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At 6-foot-4 and 346 pounds, Poe impressed NFL scouts with his size and his combine-leading 44 bench-press reps. His 40-yard dash time of 4.98 also turned heads, coming in faster than 2010’s No. 2 overall pick DT Ndamukong Suh’s combine time of 5.03.

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12. Seattle Seahawks: Luke Kuechly, LB, Boston College: David Hawthorne and Leroy Hill are both free agents that the Seahawks seemingly aren't interested in bringing back, so Seattle may well look to fill the void at middle linebacker by selecting the 2011 Butkus Award winner, who led the nation with a ridiculous 191 tackles in 2011. 

13. Arizona Cardinals: David DeCastro, OG, Stanford: The Cardinals badly need to improve the offensive line, and the Arizona coaching staff reportedly prefers DeCastro to former Stanford teammate Jonathan Martin.

14. Dallas Cowboys: Mark Barron, SS, Alabama: There has been speculation that Dallas head coach Jason Garrett's presence at Alabama's pro day is a harbinger of the Cowboys selecting a Crimson Tide defender, and Dallas' secondary is a mess.

15. Philadelphia Eagles: Jonathan Martin, OT, Stanford: The Eagles' offseason plans were thrown for a loop when star left tackle Jason Peters tore his Achilles last week, but even with Peters healthy, the team needed depth at the position, so this short-term change of plans could end up being a blessing in disguise.

16.  New York Jets: Whitney Mercilus, DE/OLB, Illinois: Of the many problems that plagued the New York Jets last season (many of which they brought on themselves), the lack of a consistent pass rush and the constant blitzes it forced are a major area of concern for Gang Green.

Whitney Mercilus led all FBS players with 16 sacks in 2011, and while there are concerns that he may be a "one year wonder," Mercilus' showings at the combine and the Illinois pro day have gone a long way towards alleviating those doubts according to CBS Sports Rob Rang.

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The athleticism Mercilus demonstrated in workouts argue that he has more upside than I've previously given him credit for. As one of several pass rushers capable of lining up at defensive end in the 4-3 or outside linebacker in the 3-4, I fully expect him to be drafted higher than my ranking [27th] indicates.

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17. Cincinnati Bengals (from Oakland Raiders): Dre Kirkpatrick, CB, Alabama: The Bengals' playoff loss to the Houston Texans demonstrated their hole at cornerback opposite Leon Hall, and the second team All-American would not only fill that need, but also would be a boost in run support.

18. San Diego Chargers: Courtney Upshaw, OLB, Alabama: Upshaw didn't do his draft stock any favors with a lackluster combine and pro day, but football isn't played in shorts, and there's plenty of video that displays his ability to get after opposing signal-callers.

19. Chicago Bears: Michael Floyd, WR, Notre Dame: The addition of wide receiver Brandon Marshall via a trade with the Miami Dolphins helped with the Bears glaring need at wideout, but pairing him with Floyd would suddenly turn Chicago's receiving corps from a joke in 2011 to a real threat in 2012.

20. Tennessee Titans: Peter Konz, C, Wisconsin: Head coach Mike Munchak has stated that the Titans won't draft an interior lineman in the first round, but given the fact that Eugene Amato was the weak link along the Tennessee offensive line in 2011, he may want to rethink that plan.

21. Cincinnati Bengals: Cordy Glenn, OG, Georgia: Fans of the Cincinnati Bengals may have gone into last season believing more disappointment was in store, but they were pleasantly surprised and then some when rookie quarterback Andy Dalton led the Bengals into the postseason.

However, if the Bengals are going to keep that momentum going, then the interior of the offensive line will need a boost, and as David Ching of ESPN recently reported the 345-pound beefeater from Georgia has been opening eyes just as much as he did holes in Athens.

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"He's the fastest riser on the offensive line," former Baltimore Ravens coach Brian Billick said during the NFL Network's live combine coverage. "He had a solid if not spectacular Senior Bowl and has come in here and had an outstanding camp."

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22. Cleveland Browns (from Atlanta Falcons): Stephen Hill, WR, Georgia Tech: The Cleveland Browns desperately need offensive playmakers, and no player has done more to bolster his draft stock over the past couple of months than the 6'4" Hill, who was one of the standouts of the NFL scouting combine.

23. Detroit Lions: Stephon Gilmore, CB, South Carolina: The Lions needed help in the secondary even before Eric Wright departed in free agency, and if Detroit is going to keep up with the Packers in the NFC North, then they badly need to improve at cornerback.

24. Pittsburgh Steelers: Dont'a Hightower, ILB, Alabama: After a decade of manning the middle, the Steelers released veteran linebacker James Farrior earlier this month, and the hard-tackling Hightower would be a solid replacement, especially given his collegiate experience playing in a 3-4 defense.

25. Denver Broncos: Devon Still, DT, Penn State: The Denver run defense was a weak spot last season, and the 2011 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year would provide a significant upgrade in the middle of the Broncos defensive line.

26. Houston Texans: Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor: The Texans could definitely use a wide receiver to complement Andre Johnson, as Kevin Walter isn't getting any younger and Jacoby Jones apparently only catches the ball when he feels like it.

Baylor wide receiver Kendall Wright was a huge contributor to Robert Griffin's Heisman Trophy campaign in 2011, reeling in over 100 passes for a gaudy 1,663 yards, and as Lance Zierlein of the Houston Chronicle recently tweeted, some NFL general managers believe that Wright is the top wide receiver prospect in the 2012 class.

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@caplannfl says that GMs have told him that Kendall Wright has the best tape of any WR in this year's draft.

— Lance Zierlein (@LanceZierlein) March 30, 2012

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27. New England Patriots (from New Orleans Saints): Nick Perry, DE/OLB, USC: With free agency taking a toll on the Patriots pass rush, the team could use a boost in that area, and Perry, who led the Pac-12 in sacks last year, is a versatile player who has demonstrated the ability to both play defensive end in a 4-3 defense and kick outside to linebacker in the 3-4.

28. Green Bay Packers: Andre Branch, DE/OLB, Clemson: The Packers defense ranked dead last in the National Football League a season ago. That was due in large part to Green Bay's inability to consistently pressure the quarterback, and not only does Branch have a history of doing just that, but he would also alleviate some of the double teams that Clay Matthews saw with regularity in 2011.

29. Baltimore Ravens: Amini Silatolu, OT/OG, Midwestern State: Baltimore lost starting left guard Ben Grubbs in free agency, and while the big man from the small school may take a bit of seasoning in the NFL after playing Division II ball, Silatolu has the talent to be an excellent replacement.

30. San Francisco 49ers: Coby Fleener, TE, Stanford: An excellent pro day has moved Fleener to the head of the class among this year's crop of tight ends, and his old college coach could look to pair Fleener and Vernon Davis to create the sorts of matchup fits for opposing defenses that the Patriots do with Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez.

31. New England Patriots: Janoris Jenkins, CB, North Alabama: The Patriots secondary was torn to pieces by opposing quarterbacks with regularity last year, and although Jenkins' troubled past makes him something of a roll of the dice, it's worth it for New England given their need at the cornerback position.

32. New York Giants: Mike Adams, OT, Ohio State: Guard David Diehl and tackle Kareem Mckenzie are both the wrong side of 30, showing their age and performed poorly last season according to Pro Football Focus, so it's vital that the reigning Super Bowl champions address the offensive line early in the 2012 draft.

* Accuracy percentage has a margin of error of plus or minus 87 percent (give or take)

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