NFL Draft 2015: Latest Predictions, Rumors and Speculation for Top Prospects

The NFL draft kicks off Thursday, and 2015 has come with the usual surfeit of rumors and speculation. Below is a breakdown of the most recent buzz surrounding this year’s top prospects.

Randy Gregory, LB, Nebraska

Randy Gregory, an athletic 6’5” pass-rusher, was projected by many to be a top-10 selection. But after failing a drug test for marijuana at last month’s NFL combine, his stock appears to be slipping. In many drafts, Gregory has fallen to a mid-to-late first-rounder:

And Pete Prisco of CBS Sports tweeted earlier today that Gregory could slide even further:

On the one hand, NFL prospects know they’ll be tested at the combine. The fact that he couldn’t get clean for the predraft screening suggests that Gregory doesn’t care as much about football as he’ll need to, though he did tell NFL.com’s Kimberly Jones in March he hadn't smoked since December.

(Incidentally, former LSU cornerback Jalen Collins—also projected by many to go in the first round—now faces similar image problems after NFL.com’s Albert Breer, h/t Dr. Saturday’s Nick Bromberg, reported that he allegedly failed “multiple” drug tests while in school. Keep an eye on his stock as Thursday nears.)

On the other hand? Gregory and Collins neither are the first nor will be the last NFL players to have failed a test. And teams may be willing to overlook the transgression with someone like Gregory, who is just 22 years old and loaded with star potential.

Ultimately, Gregory likely lands somewhere between picks No. 12 and No. 20. Several teams in that range—including the New Orleans Saints at No. 13—could easily decide that their needs at linebacker outweigh the magnitude of a failed weed test. And teams selecting after No. 20, if Gregory is still on the board, will positively leap at the chance to snag a top-10 talent so late in the game.

Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia

While Gregory has fluctuated from a consensus top-10 selection to a potential late first-rounder, Georgia product Todd Gurley has done seemingly the opposite. At one point, Gurley was universally agreed to be the top running back available; when he tore his ACL in November, most agreed that his draft stock would plummet to at least the second round.

But he appears to be recovering quickly:

And he’s bouncing all over draft boards. Some, like NFL Nation, predict that he’ll go in the mid-to-late first round:

ProFootballTalk tweeted this morning that Miami, with the No. 14 selection, is extremely interested:

Bleacher Report’s Mike Tanier predicts that Minnesota, at No. 11, will choose Gurley, but that hinges upon an Adrian Peterson trade that seems improbable, as detailed by ProFootballTalk’s Josh Alper. And finally, the New York Giants may be debating Gurley and Alabama wideout Amari Cooper. New York has the No. 9 overall pick:

While experts disagree on his specific slot, most seem to concur that Gurley will go in the first round. As with Gregory, there are good arguments on both sides; the negative, obviously, is that Gurley is a running back with a torn ACL. Running backs are notoriously difficult to draft, and this year’s class is deep at other positions. Choosing someone with a torn ACL who plays a difficult-to-predict position is a tenuous strategy at best.

But more and more athletes are recovering from ACL injuries, and a healthy Gurley was probably the best back in college football last year. Any draft pick comes with the risk of bust; few come with the potential to do this:

Peterson likely stays with the Vikings, and Gurley goes to Miami—which retains last year’s leading rusher Lamar Miller—at No. 14.

Wide Receivers

This year’s draft class is (somewhat unexpectedly) deep at wide receiver. Cooper, the former Alabama standout, appears to have separated himself from the pack (despite an impressive combine from West Virginia’s Kevin White). Grantland’s Robert Mays agrees with NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, who tweeted the following:

ESPN.com’s Bill Williamson predicts Cooper to be the first wideout selected (by Oakland at No. 4), a sentiment with which Bleacher Report’s Mike Tanier concurs:

However, ESPN.com’s Todd McShay floated the possibility—which appears to be growing more and more likely—that Cooper is chosen No. 3 overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars:

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Todd McShay's latest mock :Jaguars take WR Amari Cooper - http://t.co/qsS3s7yGzB #Jaguars

— Jacksonville Jaguars (@fans_jaguars) March 31, 2015"

White and Cooper appear to be the two prospects most likely to succeed as NFL wideouts. But in terms of high ceilings and superstar potential, the most intriguing receiver available has to be former Missouri Tigers star Dorial Green-Beckham. At 6’6” and 237 pounds, with a 4.49-second time in the 40-yard dash, Green-Beckham is probably the most athletically gifted player in the draft:

But as Bleacher Report’s Lars Anderson covered in this fantastic feature, Green-Beckham comes with a host of off-field issues. He was suspended twice at Missouri, arrested for more than one marijuana-related incident and eventually kicked off the team, per NFL.com. And he hasn’t played since 2013.

NFL history is littered with players whose off-field issues prevented their development, and teams will take that into account. But as most have noted, Green-Beckham’s combination of size, speed and strength makes him too tantalizing to ignore. In the right situation, with the right guidance (and, perhaps, the right quarterback), Green-Beckham could be a star. I agree with Rapoport’s prediction:

Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon

Lastly, here’s a quick word on Oregon’s Marcus Mariota, who remains the consensus No. 2 quarterback in the draft. Most observers agree that Tampa Bay will select Florida State’s Jameis Winston with the No. 1 selection; there is more debate as to how long Mariota will have to wait.

A couple of things are in play here. First, the New York Jets—in desperate need of a signal-caller—will almost certainly draft Mariota with the No. 6 selection, if he’s available.

Second, many have speculated that Philadelphia—given the history between Mariota and Eagles coach Chip Kelly—would be a good fit for Mariota. In theory, the Eagles could work out some sort of deal with Tennessee (which holds the No. 2 selection); that possibility has appeared in plenty of mock drafts:

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2015 NFL Mock Draft: Eagles trade with Tennessee Titans to draft Marcus Mariota http://t.co/j0MxfCumVx

— Titans Daily (@TitansDaily) April 19, 2015"

Mariota’s comments earlier this month reignited the possibility of an Eagles-Mariota pairing:

But Philadelphia would have to pay a steep, steep price for the 21-year-old, and the franchise may not be willing to take the risk. According to Rapoport, the other teams most likely to deal for Tennessee’s No. 2 pick are Cleveland, St. Louis and San Diego; none of them, however, is a probable destination. The Chargers could entice Tennessee but don’t want to trade Philip Rivers; the Browns and Rams, meanwhile, don’t have enough to offer Tennessee:

Tennessee probably sits tight and does one of two things: it either drafts Mariota, giving the team a viable second option to Zach Mettenberger, or takes USC defensive lineman Leonard Williams, regarded by many as the best overall player in the draft. If it’s the latter, Jets fans will have their quarterback.