2012 NFL Draft Order: Teams Who Must Trade Up to Land a Starter

The first round of the 2012 NFL draft is packed with high-impact players that are well worth giving up picks for, and teams like the New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots have the chips to play with.

Trading up in the NFL draft is risky business, but it's a risk well worth the reward if you can get it right.

Here are a few potential trade scenarios.

New York Jets

The Jets are in a perfect situation to trade up in the 2012 NFL draft. They're sitting pretty at No. 16 overall, and there are plenty of impact players waiting there for their lucky trading partner.

As good as they've been in the past, this is a team with a ton of needs coming into this draft, and they need to make a solid football splash (as opposed to the non-football splash they made with"backup quarterback" Tim Tebow).

Getting a great pass rusher like defensive end Melvin Ingram out of South Carolina or Nick Perry out of USC would be a huge addition to their defense, but I wouldn't even rule out the possibility of making a huge offensive move and going after either wide receiver Justin Blackmon from Oklahoma State or Michael Floyd from Notre Dame.

They have six picks they can trade and 10 picks overall in the draft and according to quotes from general manager Mike Tannenbaum via Manish Mehta of NYDailyNews.com, they are open to movement:

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“I do like the flexibility of having the 10 (picks),” Tannenbaum said. “Of the 10, we can’t trade four, but like I said, we’re open to going up and back. That’s certainly been our track record. That certainly falls back to our preparation. When we see opportunities, we’ll try to take advantage, but again trading back is also something we are open to.”

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With the picks they possess, their great starting position and their open attitude, don't be surprised if the the Jets move up in this draft.

Philadelphia Eagles

There have been reports that the Eagles would want to try to move up into the top 10 and many people have thought they would go after Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tannehill there if they did so.

A report has come out from DraftInsider.net that the Eagles would actually target Mississippi State defensive tackle Fletcher Cox:

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There’s been a buzz building around the Philadelphia Eagles potentially trading up for Ryan Tannehill.  Several sources have told us if the Eagles trade into the top ten it will be for defensive lineman Fletcher Cox, not Tannehill. Cox would be perfect for the Eagles wide nine/nine technique.

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If this is true, it would be an incredible move for the Eagles to make and they need to do everything they can to pursue it.

Like the report states, he fits their system perfectly, they desperately need defensive help and they have the picks to work with. There is a good argument to be made that he's the best defensive tackle in this year's draft.

This would be a very smart move by the Eagles.

New England Patriots

The New England Patriots are always moving up and down in the draft, and that's partially why they have been so good for so long now.

With pick No. 27 and No. 31 in the first round and No. 48 and No. 63 in the second round, they have a ton of picks to offer if they felt like moving up. As good as they have been, they have a plethora of needs they could fill with a legitimate starter.

They have huge needs in the secondary and need to find a few players that can help their defense get pressure on the quarterback.

Expect New England to try to make a push for a defensive star in the middle of the first round.