NFL Mock Draft 2016: 1st-Round Projections with Trades for Top Prospects

The 2016 NFL draft is less than three weeks away. And after months of breaking down mock drafts, inevitably all of our projections will be shaken up when the trading frenzy begins on draft day.

Draft-day trades are tough to predict ahead of time because so much depends on how the draft begins to take shape and which players are still on the board when any given team is on the clock. 

We can, however, identify a few teams likely to be interested in moving up in the draft for strategic purposes. So in this latest mock draft, let's take a look at a couple of potential swaps that could shake up the first round.

Pick	Team	Player	Pos	School
1	Tennessee Titans	Laremy Tunsil	OT	Ole Miss
2	Cleveland Browns	Jalen Ramsey	DB	Florida State
3	Philadelphia Eagles*	Carson Wentz	QB	North Dakota State
4	Dallas Cowboys	Joey Bosa	DE	Ohio State
5	Jacksonville Jaguars	Myles Jack	LB	UCLA
6	Baltimore Ravens	Ezekiel Elliott	RB	Ohio State
7	San Francisco 49ers	Jared Goff	QB	California
8	San Diego Chargers*	DeForest Buckner	DE	Oregon
9	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Shaq Lawson	DE	Clemson
10	New York Giants	Ronnie Stanley	OT	Notre Dame
11	Chicago Bears	Leonard Floyd	LB	Georgia
12	New Orleans Saints	Sheldon Rankins	DT	Louisville
13	Miami Dolphins	Darron Lee	LB	Ohio State
14	Oakland Raiders	Vernon Hargreaves	CB	Florida
15	Los Angeles Rams	Paxton Lynch	QB	Memphis
16	Detroit Lions	Taylor Decker	OT	Ohio State
17	Atlanta Falcons	Kevin Dodd	DE	Clemson
18	Denver Broncos*	Connor Cook	QB	Michigan State
19	Buffalo Bills	Noah Spence	LB	Eastern Kentucky
20	New York Jets	Eli Apple	CB	Ohio State
21	Washington Redskins	William Jackson III	CB	Houston
22	Houston Texans	Corey Coleman	WR	Baylor
23	Minnesota Vikings	Josh Doctson	WR	TCU
24	Cincinnati Bengals	Laquon Treadwell	WR	Ole Miss
25	Pittsburgh Steelers	Jack Conklin	OT	Michigan State
26	Seattle Seahawks	Cody Whitehair	OG	Kansas State
27	Green Bay Packers	Reggie Ragland	LB	Alabama
28	Kansas City Chiefs	Mackensie Alexander	CB	Clemson
29	Arizona Cardinals	Ryan Kelly	C	Alabama
30	Carolina Panthers	Jason Spriggs	OT	Indiana
31	Indianapolis Colts*	Derrick Henry	RB	Alabama

Projected Trades

Philadelphia Eagles Acquire No. 3 Pick from San Diego Chargers

David Purdy/Getty Images

The Philadelphia Eagles have already moved up once in this draft, swapping first-round selections with the Miami Dolphins in a deal that sent Kiko Alonso and Byron Maxwell to Miami. But that move may have only been a precursor to what the Eagles have planned for draft day. 

Despite re-signing Sam Bradford, the Eagles are still in the market for a quarterback and appear to be considering one early in the draft.

Philadelphia's front office is visiting with the three most highly touted quarterback prospects this week, according to Howard Eskin of Fox 29 in Philadelphia:

"

3 QB visits to #Eagles next week. Coming in Mon, QB Paxton Lynch, Thur, Carson Wentz, and Jared Goff. Way it stands now. @FOX29philly

— Howard Eskin (@howardeskin) April 8, 2016"

The Eagles don't have a ton of ammunition for a trade, having already parted with their second-round pick as part of last year's Bradford trade. But with a combination of late-round picks this year and early-round picks in the 2017 draft, the Eagles should be able to work out a deal with a team such as the San Diego Chargers.

The primary attraction of moving up to No. 3 would be jumping the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers, both of which could take quarterbacks.

If the Eagles have their sights set on Jared Goff or Carson Wentz, there's no guarantee either will slide to them if they stay put at No. 8.

Denver Broncos Acquire No. 18 Pick from Indianapolis Colts

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

The Denver Broncos have been linked to 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick throughout the offseason, but it appears as though the two sides are still far apart. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport recently shared his doubt over whether the two sides can work out a trade:

"

If the #Broncos & Kaepernick want a trade bad enough, it can happen. But the obstacles are many. The Elway meeting didn't solve them.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 2, 2016"

If Kaepernick isn't with the Broncos by draft day, general manager John Elway could turn his attention toward landing a quarterback in the first round. 

Unfortunately for Denver, landing a solid quarterback at No. 31 might be a long shot. 

Wentz, Goff and Paxton Lynch will likely be long gone by No. 31, and even Michigan State's Connor Cook could be snatched up by a team such as the New York Jets or Arizona Cardinals. 

Assuming Denver wants to trade up—likely with Lynch or Cook as the target—there should be plenty of teams interested in moving down in an effort to accumulate picks. 

Based on Pro Football Talk's trade value chart, the Broncos' No. 31 and No. 63 picks add up to 876 points, just shy of the 900-point value assigned to the Colts' No. 18 selection.