2013 NFL Draft Order: Projecting Where Top Wide Receivers Land

The 2013 NFL draft features a slew of defensive prospects and not enough offense, but the first round should see its fair share of offensive players selected nonetheless.

There are a handful of NFL teams that should be looking to bolster their receiving corps, and, believe it or not, the 2013 draft class can help them do that.

Two of the three teams we're going to discuss made the playoffs this past season. Perhaps the added depth at wide receiver could have vaulted them further in the postseason?

That's something we'll never know, but what we do know is the order for the upcoming draft.

Let's take a peek.

1. Kansas City Chiefs	9. New York Jets	17. Pittsburgh Steelers	25. Seattle Seahawks
2. Jacksonville Jaguars	10. Tennessee Titans	18. Dallas Cowboys	26. Green Bay Packers
3. Oakland Raiders	11. San Diego Chargers	19. New York Giants	27. Houston Texans
4. Philadelphia Eagles	12. Miami Dolphins	20. Chicago Bears	28. Denver Broncos
5. Detroit Lions	13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers	21. Cincinnati Bengals	29. New England Patriots
6. Cleveland Browns	14. Carolina Panthers	22. St. Louis Rams	30. Atlanta Falcons
7. Arizona Cardinals	15. New Orleans Saints	23. Minnesota Vikings	31. San Francisco 49ers
8. Buffalo Bills	16. St. Louis Rams	24. Indianapolis Colts	32. Baltimore Ravens

Predicting the NFL draft is almost as difficult as projecting which uniform the Oregon Ducks are going to sport on Saturday, but judging by last year's performances and current contract statuses, here are three teams that should be targeting wideouts in the upcoming draft. 

12. Miami Dolphins

In 2012, the Miami Dolphins had Brian Hartline, Brian Hartline and Brian Hartline.

The fourth-year wideout broke the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his career, also catching 74 balls on 128 targets.

Hartline's season was highlighted by a monster game against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 4, when he torched the Cards for 253 yards and a score on 12 receptions.

But after Hartline, the production dropped immensely for Miami.

Davone Bess was the second-leading receiver for the 'Fins, producing 61 receptions, 778 yards and a touchdown.

Miami sported the 26th-ranked passing offense in the NFL last season, scoring just 13 TDs through the air, which ranked 30th in the league.

With a young quarterback under center, the Dolphins need to put as many offensive weapons around him as possible to have a successful offense.

The Pick: Keenan Allen, WR, California

23. Minnesota Vikings

Even before Percy Harvin's contractual issues came about, the Minnesota Vikings needed a wide receiver.

The recent news (via Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com) that Harvin is unhappy with the Vikings' offense and wants to be traded only supports the necessity to draft a wideout in the upcoming draft.

Tight end Kyle Rudolph was the second-leading receiver on the Vikings, hauling in 53 catches for 493 yards and nine touchdowns—the TD number is impressive, but the rest is not.

Minnesota scored just 18 passing touchdowns (No. 25) and ranked 31st in terms of total passing yardage.

There's no doubt that the Vikings are going to keep their offense centered around the beast that is Adrian Peterson, but at the very least, Minnesota should have another playmaker on the field to put some doubt into the opposing defense's mind as to where the ball is going.

The Pick: Cordarrelle Patterson, WR, Tennessee

29. New England Patriots

With the possibility that Wes Welker and Brandon Lloyd won't be back in 2013 (h/t NESN), the New England Patriots need to start thinking wide receiver.

If the Patriots were to lose both receivers, they'd be relinquishing their two top receivers from last season in terms of receptions and receiving yardage.

Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez were the third- and fourth-leading receivers for New England, which only helps to further prove that the Pats need to draft a WR.

Even if Welker, Lloyd or both stay in New England this season, the Patriots should still target a wideout in the 2013 draft to shore up the position.

Gronk and Hernandez are each dynamic threats in the passing game, but New England needs a big-play wide receiver who can make plays over the top and inject some life into the aerial attack.

The Pick: DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Clemson

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