NFL Mock Draft 2015: Projections for Round 1, Analysis for Underrated Prospects

It's hard to classify players you expect to be drafted in the first round as "underrated." After all, they're being valued highly enough to be considered a top-32 player hitting the NFL. That's nothing to sneeze at.

Still, there are inevitably players in the draft process—even among the most talented 32—who find themselves being devalued.

Maybe the poking and the prodding into their games has left folks focusing far too much on their weaknesses and not focusing on their strengths. Maybe other players are simply getting more hype. Maybe a few extra reps on the bench press or a slightly faster 40-yard dash would have helped.

Whatever the case may be, a few players always seem to get undervalued—even in the first round.

So along with a full mock draft of the first round below, I'll take a closer look at two players in particular who will outplay their draft slot.

Pick	Team	Player
1	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State
2	Tennessee Titans	Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon Ducks
3	Jacksonville Jaguars	Dante Fowler Jr., DE, Florida
4	Oakland Raiders	Leonard Williams, DT, USC
5	Washington	Vic Beasley, DE, Clemson
6	New York Jets	Shane Ray, DE, Missouri
7	Chicago Bears	Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama
8	Atlanta Falcons	Randy Gregory, DE/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	Danny Shelton, DT, Washington
13	New Orleans Saints	Bud Dupree, OLB, Kentucky
14	Miami Dolphins	Shaq Thompson, OLB, Washington
15	San Francisco 49ers	Marcus Peters, CB, Washington
16	Houston Texans	DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville
17	San Diego Chargers	Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia
18	Kansas City Chiefs	Andrus Peat, OT, Stanford
19	Cleveland Browns	Jaelen Strong, WR, Arizona State
20	Philadelphia Eagles	Landon Collins, S, Alabama
21	Cincinnati Bengals	La'el Collins, OT, LSU
22	Pittsburgh Steelers	Malcom Brown, DT, Texas
23	Detroit Lions	Eddie Goldman, DT, Florida State
24	Arizona Cardinals	Jalen Collins, CB, LSU
25	Carolina Panthers	Ereck Flowers, OT, Miami
26	Baltimore Ravens	Breshad Perriman, WR, UCF
27	Dallas Cowboys	Melvin Gordon, RB, Wisconsin
28	Denver Broncos	T.J. Clemmings, OT, Pittsburgh
29	Indianapolis Colts	Cameron Erving, OT, Florida State
30	Green Bay Packers	Kevin Johnson, CB, Wake Forest
31	New Orleans Saints	Maxx Williams, TE, Minnesota
32	New England Patriots	Dorial Green-Beckham, WR, Missouri/Oklahoma

Landon Collins, S, Alabama

The questions about Landon Collins don't have to do with his toughness, physicality, playmaking ability or even his football IQ. The questions about Collins, and the reason he likely won't go higher in this draft, all relate to his coverage abilities or the perception that he lacks them.

The thing is, we don't know if that perception holds any merit because Collins wasn't asked to be a pure coverage safety at Alabama. He was allowed to play in the box quite often and get after people.

He learned to dominate in that role at times, however, and it's hard to argue that he couldn't make himself a very good coverage safety as well.

Another knock has been whether or not his ceiling is low. Bleacher Report's Matt Miller addressed that on Bleacher Report SXM:

Of course, the other perspective is that Collins will hit the NFL ready to make an instant impact. His work ethic won't be questioned, either.

When D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution asked him what areas of his game he needed to work on, he replied frankly, saying, "Every area of my game… you don’t just work on one part because it knocks off the balance. You work on every part to build up."

When asked about the strongest part of his game, he generally agreed with the scouts, saying, "My physical play coming downhill from that safety position or being in the box."

Know thyself. Collins appears to know himself and likely knows improving in coverage will be the difference between being a dominant safety and an average or mediocre one.

Because of the uncertainty in that regard, he's being considered a player likely to go between No. 20 and No. 32 overall. But given the time to develop in the right scheme, he could ultimately be looked back upon as a top-10 player from this draft.

Jaelen Strong, WR, Arizona State

Amari Cooper and Kevin White are the top-10 talents at wide receiver. DeVante Parker is considered the No. 3 guy on the board and a solid alternative for teams picking in the teens.

Dorial Green-Beckham is the compelling talent who has made waves off the field for the wrong reasons. Breshad Perriman has shot up the board with his size (6'2", 212 lbs) and athleticism (40-yard dash times of 4.24 and 4.27 at his pro day). Phillip Dorsett is an exciting big-play threat.

But few folks are talking about Jaelen Strong. That's a mistake.

Strong lives up to his name when the ball is up in the air, skying to reach it and using his powerful hands to pry it away from defenders. It's hard not to see Chicago Bears wide receiver Alshon Jeffery when you watch him play, and in the air, he even has a bit of Arizona Cardinals pass-catcher Larry Fitzgerald in his game.

Strong probably won't be a top-15 pick, but a team in the second half of the first round is going to get a very good player.

Unless otherwise noted, draft projections courtesy of CBSSports.com. Measurements courtesy of NFL.com.