Todd McShay NFL Mock Draft 2015: Notable Picks from ESPN Guru's 5th Mock

The 2015 NFL draft is now just eight days away. Although most prospects are starting to settle into a general range for where they will come off the board, the exact order of the opening round remains very much a mystery.  

Perhaps the biggest reason for that is the uncertainty surrounding the Tennessee Titans at No. 2. Most expect the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to take a quarterback first overall. What direction the Titans go, whether it be picking a prospect or trading out of the spot, could then quickly shake things up.

Todd McShay of ESPN noted those question marks with the release of his fifth mock draft Wednesday. He stated, "there seems to be less of a consensus around the league over which prospects will go—and in what order—than in past seasons."

Here's how he currently thinks the first round will fall:

Pick	Team	Selection
1	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State
2	Tennessee Titans	Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon
3	Jacksonville Jaguars	Dante Fowler Jr., DE, Florida
4	Oakland Raiders	Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama
5	Washington Redskins	Shane Ray, OLB, Missouri
6	New York Jets	Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia
7	Chicago Bears	Leonard Williams, DE, USC
8	Atlanta Falcons	Randy Gregory. OLB, Nebraska
9	New York Giants	Brandon Scherff, OT, Iowa
10	St. Louis Rams	Kevin White, WR, West Virginia
11	Minnesota Vikings	Trae Waynes, CB, Michigan State
12	Cleveland Browns	DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville
13	New Orleans Saints	Vic Beasley, OLB, Clemson
14	Miami Dolphins	Breshad Perriman, WR, UCF
15	San Francisco 49ers	Arik Armstead, DE, Oregon
16	Houston Texans	Nelson Agholor, WR, USC
17	San Diego Chargers	Danny Shelton, DT, Washington
18	Kansas City Chiefs	Cameron Erving, C, Florida State
19	Cleveland Browns (from BUF)	Malcom Brown, DT, Texas
20	Philadelphia Eagles	Landon Collins, S, Alabama
21	Cincinnati Bengals	Andrus Peat, OT, Stanford
22	Pittsburgh Steelers	Bud Dupree, OLB, Kentucky
23	Detroit Lions	La'el Collins, OT, LSU
24	Arizona Cardinals	Kevin Johnson, CB, Wake Forest
25	Carolina Panthers	Ereck Flowers, OT, Miami (Fla.)
26	Baltimore Ravens	Melvin Gordon, RB, Wisconsin
27	Dallas Cowboys	Byron Jones, CB, Connecticut
28	Denver Broncos	D.J. Humphries, OT, Florida
29	Indianapolis Colts	Eli Harold, OLB, Virginia
30	Green Bay Packers	Eric Kendricks, ILB, UCLA
31	New Orleans Saints (from SEA)	Phillip Dorsett, WR, Miami (Fla.)
32	New England Patriots	Marcus Peters, CB, Washington

McShay puts Marcus Mariota in the No. 2 slot but isn't convinced it will be the Titans making the pick. He lists the San Diego Chargers, the New York Jets, the Philadelphia Eagles and the St. Louis Rams as four teams that could trade up to grab the Oregon star.

Bryan Fischer of NFL.com passed along comments from Mariota back in February. The quarterback made it clear he's ready to join any team and wasn't letting all of the speculation change his preparations for the next level:

"

It doesn't really affect me at all. All I can really control is how I prepare and get ready for whatever team picks me. Any player will stand in front of you and say they're confident in their abilities and I'm no different. I feel like what I've been able to do at the University of Oregon and been able to learn has prepared me for this level.

"

He was wise to take that approach because the draft has moved closer, but his status is still unclear.

The first major surprise in McShay's latest mock comes at No. 6. He has the Jets taking running back Todd Gurley from Georgia. The draft guru notes it could help the team revitalize its offense despite not getting one of the top quarterback prospects.

It's hard to ignore Gurley's potential top-end talent. Yet, it would still be a risk taking a back this high in the round coming off of a major knee injury.

Interestingly, McShay has USC standout Leonard Williams—possibly the top overall prospect—going seventh overall. He cautions the defensive lineman is still his No. 2 prospect in the class, but he just fell based on how this mock scenario played out.

Wide receiver Breshad Perriman has been one of the fastest-rising prospects throughout the draft process. McShay has him going 14th to the Miami Dolphins, which is impressive for a player who wasn't even listed in a lot of mocks as the college season ended.

Dan Pompei of WSCR points out not all scouts are convinced he's an impact player, though. It could be a situation in which being a "workout warrior" makes him come off the board too soon:

Beyond that, most of the remaining picks are pretty standard. There are not exactly many shocking choices as things begin to steady with the draft right around the corner.

Probably the only thing that could change things drastically over the next week is if it becomes clear whom the Titans are targeting. For example, if they decide to keep the pick and want Williams, that would obviously have a trickle-down effect.

Otherwise, the mock drafts will probably stabilize, and the drama will remain until Tennessee makes its call on draft night.