2017 NFL Mock Draft: Projections Based on Buzz Surrounding 1st-Round Prospects

Now that the NFL combine is over and pro days are taking place, we're beginning to see who the true top talents in this year's draft are. However, we still don't know who will end up where.

A lot is going to hinge on the stock of certain players heading into draft weekend. It will only take one team at the top of Round 1 falling in love with a player no one expected to throw most projections out the window.

Given the amount of smoke floating around NFL teams this time of year, there's no way to be quite sure about how teams view prospects. We do, however, have enough information to make some educated guesses.

This is what we're going to do here, as we apply the latest developments to factors like player potential, team needs and team fits for an updated mock draft. We'll also run down some of the top draft-related stories heading into the third week of free agency.

2017 NFL Mock Draft

Pick	Team	Proj. Selection
1	Cleveland Browns	Myles Garrett, DE, Texas A&M
2	San Francisco 49ers	Jamal Adams, S, LSU
3	Chicago Bears	Solomon Thomas, DE, Stanford
4	Jacksonville Jaguars	Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU
5	Tennessee Titans (from LAR)	Corey Davis, WR, Western Michigan
6	New York Jets	Malik Hooker, S, Ohio State
7	Los Angeles Chargers	Jonathan Allen, DL, Alabama
8	Carolina Panthers	Marshon Lattimore, CB, Ohio State
9	Cincinnati Bengals	Haason Reddick, LB, Temple
10	Buffalo Bills	Mike Williams, WR, Clemson
11	New Orleans Saints	Derek Barnett, DE, Tennessee
12	Cleveland Browns (from PHI)	Mitchell Trubisky, QB, North Carolina
13	Arizona Cardinals	Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson
14	Philadelphia Eagles (from MIN)	Dalvin Cook, RB, Florida State
15	Indianapolis Colts	Reuben Foster, LB, Alabama
16	Baltimore Ravens	O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama
17	Washington Redskins	Chris Wormley, DL, Michigan
18	Tennessee Titans	Takkarist McKinley, LB, UCLA
19	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Jabrill Peppers, LB, Michigan
20	Denver Broncos	Christian McCaffrey, RB, Stanford
21	Detroit Lions	Gareon Conley, CB, Ohio State
22	Miami Dolphins	Teez Tabor, CB, Florida
23	New York Giants	David Njoku, TE, Miami
24	Oakland Raiders	Tre'Davious White, CB, LSU
25	Houston Texans	Marlon Humphrey, CB, Alabama
26	Seattle Seahawks	Forrest Lamp, OL, Western Kentucky
27	Kansas City Chiefs	John Ross, WR, Washington
28	Dallas Cowboys	Taco Charlton, DE, Michigan
29	Green Bay Packers	T.J. Watt, LB, Wisconsin
30	Pittsburgh Steelers	Tim Williams, LB, Alabama
31	Atlanta Falcons	Dan Feeney, OG, Indiana
32	New Orleans (from NE)	Budda Baker, S, Washington

Latest Buzz

McCaffrey Shows Versatility at Pro Day

There are a couple of reasons why teams might fall for former Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey early in the draft. One is the productivity he displayed during his career with the Cardinal.

Last year, he produced 1,603 yards rushing, 310 yards receiving and 16 total touchdowns. The year before, he rushed for more than 2,000 yards and racked up 645 yards receiving.

Teams are also going to like McCaffrey's ability to contribute in many different phases of the game. He can work out of the backfield, out of the slot or split wide, and he can return kicks. His ability as a wide receiver was recently on display at Stanford's pro day.

According to Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post, McCaffrey participated in wide receiver drills in order to show prospective employers just how versatile he can be.

"It's something I pride myself on, being extremely versatile and I feel like I can do that stuff," McCaffrey said, per Jhabvala. "To show coaches I can play running back, I can play receiver, I can do all the return game stuff—that's important to me."

McCaffrey's versatility is part of the reason it's difficult to predict where he'll land. Even franchises with an established starting running back could find roles for him on their teams.

Kizer Show Improvements at His Pro Day

While I don't have him going in the first round, there's a good chance former Notre Dame quarterback DeShone Kizer will end up there on draft weekend. Some quarterback-needy team could easily decide to pull the trigger on him before the draft's opening night is over.

However, teams are going to be drafting Kizer based on his potential, not necessarily what he's already shown on the field. After all, he couldn't even lock down the starting job for all of last season.

This is why the combine could have hurt Kizer's stock. His footwork was inconsistent, as was his ball placement.

"Spraying the ball when not wearing pads is a big concern," Will Brinson of CBSSports.com wrote after Kizer's performance. "Kizer did himself zero favors when it comes to trying to work his way into the first round of the draft."

Fortunately, the former Golden Domer was able to show some improvement at Notre Dame's pro day. NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock told Laken Litman of IndyStar.com:

"

He's gotta be a more consistent player and you can see that out there today. You see the big arm, but then there are some occasional inaccuracies which are typically tied to the footwork. As he gets older, more mature, works on his team, he's just gotta get a lot more consistent. And I think that's gonna be his challenge.

"

Showing improvement from the combine to his pro day is a big first step for Kizer as he works to shape himself into a pro.

Jones Now a Potential Steal?

When former Washington cornerback Sidney Jones suffered a torn achilles at his pro day, it was a truly sad occurrence that undoubtedly had a major effect on his draft stock.

"I hate it for Sidney Jones," NFL Media's Daniel Jeremiah said, per Chase Goodbread of NFL.com. "I think he was a lock to be a top-20 pick. Because of depth at the position and with the injury, I'd be surprised if he went before the third round."

Jones' injury, while unfortunate for him, could allow an NFL team to steal a first-round talent much later in the draft. At least, this is the thinking of ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay.

"I know Sidney Jones had a torn achilles the other day at his pro day, which is terrible," McShay said, per Adam Jude of the Seattle Times. "The timing of it is brutal for him, because he was a lock, I thought, as a first-round pick. He'll probably have to sit out a chunk, if not all, of his rookie season but still will be a Day 2 pick."

Whichever team drafts Jones may have to deal with not having him on the field as a rookie, but if he returns to pre-injury form, that team could be stealing one of the top defenders in this draft class.

Given that many teams don't like to rely on rookie defensive backs early, this might not even be that difficult of a decision for a team to make.