NFL Draft 2015: Mock Draft and Fringe 1st-Round Prospects to Watch

With pro days about complete and the calendar digging into April, NFL draft boards are also rounding into shape and won't change much in the coming weeks.

For prospects, now is the time to impress in individual workouts with teams and not throw up any red flags signifying teams should pump the brakes and perhaps move them down boards.

Of course, on draft day, individual preferences will also come into play. Not every team thinks of a Bruce Irvin as a first-round pick, but it worked out well enough for the Seattle Seahawks.

For now, several prospects are right on the cusp of first-round consideration and may very well break into the fold if the right team holds a pick. Let's take a look.

2015 NFL Mock Draft 

Pick	Team	Selection
1	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State
2	Tennessee Titans	Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon
3	Jacksonville Jaguars	Alvin Dupree, DE/OLB, Kentucky
4	Oakland Raiders	Leonard Williams, DL, USC
5	Washington Redskins	Vic Beasley, OLB, Clemson
6	New York Jets	Kevin White, WR, West Virginia
7	Chicago Bears	Dante Fowler Jr., DE, Florida
8	Atlanta Falcons	Shane Ray, DE/OLB, Missouri
9	New York Giants	La'el Collins, OL, LSU
10	St. Louis Rams	Marcus Peters, CB, Washington
11	Minnesota Vikings	Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama
12	Cleveland Browns	DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville
13	New Orleans Saints	Randy Gregory, DE, Nebraska
14	Miami Dolphins	Danny Shelton, DT, Washington
15	San Francisco 49ers	Trae Waynes, CB, Michigan State
16	Houston Texans	Dorial Green-Beckham, WR, Oklahoma
17	San Diego Chargers	A.J. Cann, OG, South Carolina
18	Kansas City Chiefs	Brandon Scherff, OT, Iowa
19	Cleveland Browns (via Buffalo)	Arik Armstead, DE/OLB, Oregon
20	Philadelphia Eagles	Landon Collins, SS, Alabama
21	Cincinnati Bengals	Malcom Brown, DT, Texas
22	Pittsburgh Steelers	Owamagbe Odighizuwa, OLB, UCLA
23	Detroit Lions	Eddie Goldman, DT, Florida State
24	Arizona Cardinals	Eli Harold, OLB, Virginia
25	Carolina Panthers	Andrus Peat, OT, Stanford
26	Baltimore Ravens	Jaelen Strong, WR, Arizona State
27	Dallas Cowboys	Jalen Collins, CB, LSU
28	Denver Broncos	Maxx Williams, TE, Minnesota
29	Indianapolis Colts	Breshad Perriman, WR, UCF
30	Green Bay Packers	Kevin Johnson, CB, Wake Forest
31	New Orleans Saints (via Seattle)	Mario Edwards Jr., DE, Florida State
32	New England Patriots	Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia

Fringe Prospects to Watch

Melvin Gordon, RB, Wisconsin

Wisconsin running back Melvin Gordon is a good example. 

Running back is a devalued position and one happening to be loaded with talent well into the mid rounds this year. To top it all off, there seems to be a consensus forming around the notion Georgia back Todd Gurley will come off the board before Gordon.

A note by Yahoo Sports' Rand Getlin reinforces the thought:

It sounds strange that a prospect who just rushed for 2,587 yards and 29 scores last season would fall behind anyone, but again, it speaks to the riches of talent this year.

There are plenty of teams with a need, though. The Miami Dolphins might be willing to roll the dice. The Arizona Cardinals seem to have a thirst at the position. Most notable of all is the Dallas Cowboys, the team now without star halfback DeMarco Murray.

Gordon's stock won't change at this point. He's proven on film and put on a show at the NFL Scouting Combine, ranking among the best at his position in four drills.

What makes Gordon interesting is the combination of a polarizing position and how each team will value both the spot and what he brings to it.

Cameron Erving, OL, Florida State

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

Flash back about a year ago and Florida State's Cameron Erving was one of the most talked about offensive linemen prospects due to his immense upside.

A former defensive lineman, Erving struggled in a big way last season to perform well on the edges. In time, the coaching staff bumped him to center—where he put on an absolute show.

Draft Breakdown's Jeff-LJ-Lloyd captures just one facet of the impressive performance:

At the combine, Erving only further built up his stock, weighing in at 6'5" and 313 pounds before ranking among the best at his position in the bench press (30 reps), broad jump (112 inches) and three-cone drill (7.48 seconds).

Erving might be a career center—and there's nothing wrong with such a future at the pro level. He's an absolute mauler in the ground game and his upside hints at no issues whatsoever when it comes to learning the intricacies of the passing game.

It all adds up to one of the draft's most interesting storylines, as teams will need to figure out how to judge his upside, position and value when it comes time to make a pick.

Eric Kendricks, LB, UCLA

Kelvin Kuo/Associated Press

The 2015 draft is one of the most interesting classes for inside linebackers as of late, too. 

Remember before the end of the collegiate season when all the talk centered on Mississippi State's Benardrick McKinney? Or how Paul Dawson out of TCU was a major name to watch?

In hindsight, it seems silly UCLA's Eric Kendricks flew under the radar.

The brother of Mychal, who suits up for the Philadelphia Eagles, the only true knock on Kendricks deep into the process is his size. He only hit the combine at 6'0" and 232 pounds.

It's a fair point, but size at linebacker more than ever is reliant on how a team uses the player. Kendricks can play the run well on the inside if asked, but he fits even better on the outside, perhaps the weak side, because his stellar athleticism helps him excel against the pass.

NFL Media analyst Curtis Conway is one of many stepping out in defense of Kendrick's first-round status, as captured by NFL.com:

"

I think he can go as high as late first-round, maybe to Indy, they need an inside linebacker, or Green Bay. The thing I don't like about those two teams is that they are 3-4 defenses. I like Eric more so in a 4-3 defense. I like him at middle linebacker. He can definitely play all three downs.

"

Again, it's an eye-of-the-beholder sort of thing sure to vary by team.

Which, of course, is what makes the draft so much fun. Kendricks is one of many prospects who make the first round quite unpredictable.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com and accurate as of April 4. All advanced metrics via Pro Football Focus.