Mel Kiper Jr 2015 Mock Draft: Notable Picks from ESPN Guru's Final Predictions

With Thursday's 2015 NFL draft just hours away, ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. has released his final mock draft. There aren't very many surprises near the top of the mock, but there are some interesting slippages and intriguing picks to note.

Here's a look at Kiper's full first-round mock, followed by some of the biggest takeaways.

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

Heisman Winners Open the Draft

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

Ever since the end of the 2015 NFL Scouting Combine, 2013 Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston has been considered the near-consensus choice as the top pick in the draft. 2014 Heisman winner Marcus Mariota has seen his stock fluctuate.

On the cusp of the draft, Kiper is prepared to solidify both Winston's and Mariota's spot as the Nos. 1 and No. 2 picks, respectively. 

If this holds true, it will be the first time former Heisman winners were taken with the first two picks in the same NFL draft. Winston would land in front of a fanbase that is very familiar with his accomplishments while a member of the Florida State Seminoles. Playing for an even-keeled disciplinarian like Tampa Bay Buccaneers' head coach Lovie Smith is the ideal situation for Winston.

Mariota may be pushed into a starting role a little bit before he's ready if he lands with the Tennessee Titans. The incumbent Zach Mettenberger isn't exactly a franchise quarterback. Even if the Titans want to let Mariota sit early, Mettenberger's mediocre play or an injury could make the pressure to play the rookie too much to resist in Music City.

That said, his combination of leadership, athleticism and work ethic makes failing seem almost impossible—barring injury. In 10 years, we'll look back and say: Mariota was the best quarterback from this draft.

Amari Cooper Wins Battle to Be Top Receiver Pick

Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

Throughout most of the college football season, the Alabama Crimson Tide's Amari Cooper was considered the top receiver in this year's draft class. When it appeared as though the Oakland Raiders were destined for the No. 1 pick, I felt that Cooper should be their pick.

If Kiper's mock is accurate, the Raiders will still get their man.

With quarterback Derek Carr in the fold, the Raiders must get him a top-notch receiver to throw to in order to accurately evaluate him. Cooper is that type of player. Over the last few weeks, there were a few mocks that had the West Virginia Mountaineers' Kevin White surpassing Cooper as the top receiver.

That talk seems to have quieted down, as indicated by Kiper's final mock.

Shane Ray and Randy Gregory Drop Out of First Round

Doug McSchooler/Associated Press

At one point, the Nebraska Cornhuskers' Randy Gregory and the Missouri Tigers' Shane Ray were considered top-10 picks. Now, Kiper doesn't have either of them being selected in the first round.

Gregory failed a drug test when he tested positive for marijuana at the combine. He also weighed just 235 pounds, which is fairly slight for the defensive end/outside linebacker position he figures to play in the NFL.

A recent report from Bleacher Report's Dan Pompei says Gregory's weight has dropped since his pro day to under 230 pounds. An undersized pass-rusher with such issues isn't exactly the most attractive NFL prospect.

Ray's case isn't quite as daunting, but it isn't good.

He was cited and ticketed for possession of a "personal amount" of marijuana and speeding on April 27. To add to Ray's red-flag count, a foot injury kept him from participating at the combine. Because of that information, it's easy to see how he could drop out of the first round.

Still, I think Kiper may be wrong on this one. Ray has an excellent motor and great production in college. He's a kid who has overcome a ton of struggles to get to this point. A team will take a chance on him in the first round. 

Hopefully, he and Gregory will learn from these unfortunate events and make better decisions.