NFL Draft 2016: Selection Order and Projections for Hottest Prospects

The Tennessee Titans are officially on the clock with the No. 1 pick in the 2016 NFL draft. With the NFL playoffs already underway, all of the non-playoff teams are already where they will be selecting in April's draft. 

In the draft order listed below, the playoff teams are listed in order of their regular-season record, but they will not know their final spot until after the Super Bowl.

Pick	Team
1	Tennessee Titans
2	Cleveland Browns
3	San Diego Chargers
4	Dallas Cowboys
5	Jacksonville Jaguars
6	Baltimore Ravens
7	San Francisco 49ers
8	Miami Dolphins
9	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
10	New York Giants
11	Chicago Bears
12	New Orleans Saints
13	Philadelphia Eagles
14	Oakland Raiders
15	St. Louis Rams
16	Detroit Lions
17	Atlanta Falcons
18	Indianapolis Colts
19	Buffalo Bills
20	New York Jets
21	Pittsburgh Steelers
22	Seattle Seahawks
23	Green Bay Packers
24	Kansas City Chiefs
25	Washington
26	Houston Texans
27	Minnesota Vikings
28	Cincinnati Bengals
29	Denver Broncos
30	Arizona Cardinals
31	Carolina Panthers

Hottest Prospects

Which QB Will Be Selected First?

The Tennessee Titans don't appear to be a team in need of a quarterback. They took Marcus Mariota with the No. 2 pick in the 2015 draft, and he did nothing as a rookie to make the team think it made a mistake selecting him as its franchise quarterback.

Because of that, the Titans have a ton of options. They could move the pick to any of several QB-thirsty squads that covet the top QB on the board. The question is: Who is the top QB in this year's draft?

The Memphis Tigers' Paxton Lynch would be the guy to pick if NFL teams are most interested in the player with the highest upside. The 6'7", 245-pound standout from Deltona, Florida, threw 28 touchdown passes to just four interceptions in 2015.

He has the size and the athleticism to do things few players in the league can. There's always a concern about how a player who doesn't come from a power conference will perform, but Lynch has the look of a kid who will get the most out of his enormous talent.

Obviously, the Cleveland Browns, St. Louis Rams, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Jets might all be interested in moving up to upgrade their QB situations. Expect to see Lynch wearing one of those jerseys next season.

Is It Bosa Time?

Jay LaPrete/Associated Press

If the Titans keep the No. 1 pick, they could elect to take the best defensive player on the board. Some may consider that to be the Ohio State Buckeyes' Joey Bosa. He was limited to just five sacks this past season after recording 13.5 in 2014, but make no mistake about it—this guy is a terrific pass-rusher.

His huge sophomore season caused teams to key in on him every week in 2015. The attention he garnered helped Tyquan Lewis and Sam Hubbard have solid seasons rushing the passer. 

Bosa would be a better fit for the Dallas Cowboys. Owner Jerry Jones' team has the fourth overall pick and a defense that tied for 25th in the league in sacks. If that doesn't scream take the pass-rusher, nothing does.

Protect the Investment

Rogelio V. Solis/Associated Press

If the Titans keep the top pick, the best selection might be Ole Miss Rebels offensive lineman Laremy Tunsil. By most accounts, he is the top offensive lineman on the board. 

The Titans surrendered a league-high 54 sacks in 2015. Even if the team didn't have a young and promising quarterback, that's still an alarming amount of times to allow your signal-caller to be thrown to the ground.

That doesn't even count the number of hits Mariota and his replacements had to take. That's why no one should have any criticism for the Titans front office if it calls Tunsil's name to begin the draft.

The 21-year-old may not be an exciting pick, but he just might be necessary. If Tennessee doesn't take Tunsil, it's hard to imagine him slipping out of the top five. Four of the five teams with the worst records in the NFL also ranked Nos. 1-4 in most sacks allowed.

That's not a coincidence.