2017 NFL Mock Draft: Predictions for Landing Spots of Nation's Top Prospects

One half of the NFL's Wild Card Round is in the books with two more games left to play on Sunday. With their Saturday losses, the Oakland Raiders and Detroit Lions joined the other 20 teams that are now preparing for a long offseason. 

Next up for them is the NFL draft, which presents an opportunity for teams to immediately acquire a game-changer.

The potential game-changing impact of rookies was most recently put on display by quarterback Dak Prescott and running back Ezekiel Elliott, who throttled the Dallas Cowboys to a 13-3 record, an NFC East title and the No. 1 seed in the conference.

With that, let's take a look at my latest mock draft predicting which elite talents will go in the first round:

Pick	Team	Player	Position	School
1	Cleveland Browns	Myles Garrett	DE	Texas A&M
2	San Francisco 49ers	DeShone Kizer	QB	Notre Dame
3	Chicago Bears	Jamal Adams	S	LSU
4	Jacksonville Jaguars	Jonathan Allen	DT	Alabama
5	Tennessee Titans (via Rams)	Malik Hookier	S	Ohio State
6	New York Jets	Mitch Trubisky	QB	North Carolina
7	San Diego Chargers	Cam Robinson	OT	Alabama
8	Carolina Panthers	Derek Barnett	DE	Tennessee
9	Cincinnati Bengals	Reuben Foster	LB	Alabama
10	Buffalo Bills	Marlon Humphrey	CB	Alabama
11	New Orleans Saints	Quincy Wilson	CB	Florida
12	Cleveland Browns (via Eagles)	Leonard Fournette	RB	LSU
13	Arizona Cardinals	Marshon Lattimore	CB	Ohio State
14	Indianapolis Colts	Dalvin Cook	RB	Florida St.
15	Philadelphia Eagles (via Vikings)	Mike Williams	WR	Clemson
16	Baltimore Ravens	Malik McDowell	DE	Michigan St.
17	Washington Redskins	Jabrill Peppers	LB/S	Michigan
18	Tennessee Titans	John Ross	WR	Washington
19	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Caleb Brantley	DT	Florida
20	Denver Broncos	O.J. Howard	TE	Alabama
21	Detroit Lions	Chris Wormley	DE/DT	Michigan
22	Miami Dolphins	Solomon Thomas	DE	Stanford
23	New York Giants	Zach Cunningham	LB	Vanderbilt
24	Oakland Raiders	Jalen "Teez" Tabor	CB	Florida
25	Houston Texans	Deshaun Watson	QB	Clemson
26	Green Bay Packers	Taco Charlton	DE	Michigan
27	Seattle Seahawks	Martinas Rankin	OT	Mississippi St.
28	Pittsburgh Steelers	Charles Harris	DE/LB	Missouri
29	Atlanta Falcons	Adoree' Jackson	CB	USC
30	Kansas City Chiefs	Sidney Jackson	CB	Washington
31	Dallas Cowboys	Dawuane Smoot	DE	Illinois
32	New England Patriots	T.J. Watt	LB	Wisconsin

Could 3 Quarterbacks Go in Round 1?

This could be the third time since 2014 that three quarterbacks are selected in the first round, given the need for passers around the league.

While the Cleveland Browns could take a quarterback with their No. 1 overall pick, it was revealed back in December that the organization has an "astronomical grade" on Texas A&M defensive end Myles Garrett, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

At No. 2, though, the San Francisco 49ers need to find another option other than Colin Kaepernick or Blaine Gabbert.

In 2016, the 49ers' passing offense under Chip Kelly ranked dead last in the league, which was a big reason why the team was 27th in scoring and Kelly was fired.

They'll have the first crack at either DeShone Kizer of Notre Dame or North Carolina's Mitch Trubisky. Those two are widely considered bona fide early-first-round talents at the quarterback position. 

According to Charlie Campbell of WalterFootball.com, more team sources are leaning toward Kizer because "they prefer his skill set," so Kizer lands at No. 2.

He experienced a difficult 2016 season, but he was still voted the program's most valuable player:

That leaves Trubisky up for grabs, and while the Chicago Bears could take him as a replacement for Jay Cutler, there is the possibility they can draft a defensive back instead in an attempt to fix a unit that intercepted just eight passes and allowed 1,950 rushing yards.

A safety like Jamal Adams out of LSU could be a perfect fit there. 

With the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans set at quarterback, that allows the New York Jets to get their man.

New York hasn't tried to hide the fact that it wants the North Carolina product, as league sources told Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News in December that the Jets "are all over this kid."

Ryan Fitzpatrick's career as a Jet is all but over after the tough season he had, which was played under a one-year deal. 

That leaves the team with Bryce Petty, who suffered a shoulder injury requiring surgery, and Christian Hackenberg. There's little confidence surrounding Hackenberg, though, as a team source told Mehta that "he will never make it."

Nabbing a quarterback with a big arm like Trubisky could be a huge addition to a Jets team that is going to look very different in 2017.

A third quarterback could be taken at the end of the first round, depending on how the Houston Texans view their current situation.

Brock Osweiler has not lived up to his big contract, despite Houston winning the AFC South and advancing to the divisional round.

If the team is desperate enough for an alternative arm, look for either Clemson's Deshaun Watson or Texas Tech's Patrick Mahomes to get the nod.