2016 NFL Mock Draft: Order of Selections and Final 1st-Round Team Predictions

Hours separate the football world from the 2016 NFL draft, which will alter the league's landscape more dramatically than, say, Peyton Manning's departure.

With Manning and last year in the rearview, the future will step into focus in emphatic fashion. The top two picks in the order will be the result of trades as teams scramble to pick from the top of a weak quarterback class.

This class belongs to the defenders, and any mock draft will follow that narrative. Below, let's take one final look at mock projections based on team need and prospect value.

2016 NFL Mock Draft

Pick	Team	Player	Position	School
1	Los Angeles Rams	Jared Goff	QB	California
2	Philadelphia Eagles	Carson Wentz	QB	North Dakota State
3	San Diego Chargers	Jalen Ramsey	CB/S	Florida State
4	Dallas Cowboys	Myles Jack	LB	UCLA
5	Jacksonville Jaguars	Vernon Hargreaves	CB	Florida
6	Baltimore Ravens	Laremy Tunsil	OT	Ole Miss
7	San Francisco 49ers	Joey Bosa	DL	Ohio State
8	Cleveland Browns	Ezekiel Elliott	RB	Ohio State
9	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	DeForest Buckner	DE	Oregon
10	New York Giants	Sheldon Rankins	DT	Louisville
11	Chicago Bears	Shaq Lawson	LB	Clemson
12	New Orleans Saints	Noah Spence	DE/LB	Eastern Kentucky
13	Miami Dolphins	Eli Apple	CB	Ohio State
14	Oakland Raiders	William Jackson III	CB	Houston
15	Tennessee Titans	Ronnie Stanley	OT	Notre Dame
16	Detroit Lions	Jack Conklin	OT	Michigan State
17	Atlanta Falcons	Reggie Ragland	LB	Alabama
18	Indianapolis Colts	Darron Lee	LB	Ohio State
19	Buffalo Bills	Paxton Lynch	QB	Memphis
20	New York Jets	Jonathan Bullard	DE	Florida
21	Washington	Corey Coleman	WR	Baylor
22	Houston Texans	Mackensie Alexander	CB	Clemson
23	Minnesota Vikings	Josh Doctson	WR	TCU
24	Cincinnati Bengals	Laquon Treadwell	WR	Ole Miss
25	Pittsburgh Steelers	T.J. Green	S	Clemson
26	Seattle Seahawks	Will Fuller	WR	Notre Dame
27	Green Bay Packers	A'Shawn Robinson	DT	Alabama
28	Kansas City Chiefs	Michael Thomas	WR	Ohio State
29	Arizona Cardinals	Leonard Floyd	LB	Georgia
30	Carolina Panthers	Kendall Fuller	CB	Virginia Tech
31	Denver Broncos	Jason Spriggs	OT	Indiana

1. Los Angeles Rams: Jared Goff, QB, California

The world wants to believe the Los Angeles Rams haven't made up their mind about the draft's top pick just as badly as the NFL wants to sell such a silly idea.

It's silly because a team isn't going to sell the farm to get to No. 1 and not know what to do once it's there. Folks may go on vacations like that and be fine, but competing in a billion-dollar industry is a different animal.

Even the player will find himself gnawing at his nails until the Rams walk to the podium, according to NFL Network's Andrew Siciliano:

No, the Rams know who they're picking, and it's California's Jared Goff.

Goff is the best quarterback in the class. He doesn't have some of the level-of-competition questions facing Carson Wentz and is not anything close to a project, like Paxton Lynch.

There's nothing wrong with either of those factors floating around the other top names, but this is Los Angeles—a team in a new locale that is looking to win over fans in a major market and needs an immediate face of the franchise who isn't Nick Foles.

Goff, like most, will probably struggle as a rookie, especially when Kenny Britt and the disappointing Tavon Austin are his top targets, barring some savvy drafting. But this is a long-term move, and the right one.

Now all the Rams have to do is make it official.

8. Cleveland Browns: Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Ohio State

Most rightfully guessed that the Cleveland Browns wanted to stick around near the top of the draft and let new head coach Hue Jackson get his guy at quarterback. 

The Browns traded down instead, helping the rebuild and perhaps suggesting that Jackson wants to give Robert Griffin III some run at the spot next year—or perhaps take the aforementioned Lynch at No. 8.

Another option, according to a nugget revealed by Alex Marvez of FoxSports.com, is that the Browns have their eyes on another trade down and a surprise quarterback:

Forget it. 

This is prime smokescreen season, and if Jackson didn't want one of the top two names at quarterback, chances are he'll be fine waiting and building the rest of the roster around the position. 

If the Browns cannot swing another trade, look for Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliott to hear his name called. Forget fan service by keeping the monster running back in the state—Elliott is a monster running back.

An every-down back in every sense of the label, Elliott is a guy the Browns can lean on right out of the gates, protecting whoever lines up under center. Even better, provided Cleveland wants to keep him fresh while the team rebuilds, he makes for an interesting committee member with the shifty Duke Johnson.

21. Washington: Corey Coleman, WR, Baylor

It's a top-heavy wideout class in terms of starters. Only the first three or four guys stand out as players who can make an impact right away. 

Though it's outside of the top 20, Baylor's Corey Coleman will be the first domino to fall in this scenario.

A DeSean Jackson lookalike, Coleman comes in at 5'11" and 194 pounds off a season in which he turned 74 catches into 1,363 yards and 20 scores. For those counting, that's an average of more than 18 yards per catch.

NFL Network's Mike Mayock offered another interesting comparison, via the NFL:

Washington has a great thing going with Kirk Cousins under center, but the aforementioned Jackson is on his own at wideout with Pierre Garcon going on 30 years old and fading. And Jackson couldn't stay healthy last year, only appearing in 10 games and having last played a full 16-game season in 2013—one of just two times he's managed the feat since joining the league in 2008.

If Coleman gets on the field with Jackson and elite tight end Jordan Reed, watch out. Even better, though, is the injury insurance Coleman offers while learning from one of the best.

Stats are courtesy of NFL.com and accurate as of April 28. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.