NFL Mock Draft 2017: Round 1 Projections for Top Prospects Based on Latest Buzz

Smokescreen season. 

Though not a byproduct of the NFL draft residing at the end of the month as opposed to earlier, the extended wait for one of the country's most popular sporting events produces more buzz than ever before.

If you let the buzz tell it, every major prospect has some sort of red flag, every front office is willing to wheel and deal, and next year's draft class—especially at quarterback—is even better.

It's all noise for now, though the payoff is always worth it after wading through with a head hardly above the water. Below, let's fashion a mock draft based on team need and the prospect stock market before looking at some of the notable buzz making the rounds.

2017 NFL Mock Draft

Pick	Team	Selection
1	Cleveland Browns	Myles Garrett, DE, Texas A&M
2	San Francisco 49ers	Solomon Thomas, DL, Stanford
3	Chicago Bears	Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson
4	Jacksonville Jaguars	Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU
5	Tennessee Titans (from Rams)	Malik Hooker, S, Ohio State
6	New York Jets	Mitchell Trubisky, QB, North Carolina
7	Los Angeles Chargers	Jamal Adams, S, LSU
8	Carolina Panthers	Christian McCaffrey, RB, Stanford
9	Cincinnati Bengals	Derek Barnett, DE, Tennessee
10	Buffalo Bills	Marshon Lattimore, CB, Ohio State
11	New Orleans Saints	Reuben Foster, LB, Alabama
12	Cleveland Browns (from Eagles)	O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama
13	Arizona Cardinals	DeShone Kizer, QB, Notre Dame
14	Philadelphia Eagles (from Vikings)	Fabian Moreau, CB, UCLA
15	Indianapolis Colts	Jonathan Allen, DL, Alabama
16	Baltimore Ravens	John Ross, WR, Washington
17	Washington Redskins	Corey Davis, WR, Western Michigan
18	Tennessee Titans	Mike Williams, WR, Clemson
19	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Quincy Wilson, CB, Florida
20	Denver Broncos	Garett Bolles , OT, Utah
21	Detroit Lions	Takkarist McKinley, OLB/DE, UCLA
22	Miami Dolphins	Malik McDowell, DL, Michigan State
23	New York Giants	Haason Reddick, Edge, Temple
24	Oakland Raiders	Kevin King, CB, Washington
25	Houston Texans	Patrick Mahomes, QB, Texas Tech
26	Seattle Seahawks	Cam Robinson, OT, Alabama
27	Kansas City Chiefs	Dan Feeney, OG, Indiana
28	Dallas Cowboys	Marlon Humphrey, CB, Alabama
29	Green Bay Packers	Forrest Lamp, G, Western Kentucky
30	Pittsburgh Steelers	David Njoku, TE, Miami
31	Atlanta Falcons	Caleb Brantley, DT, Florida
32	New Orleans Saints (from Patriots)	Obi Melifonwu, S, Connecticut

Picks Impacted by Latest Buzz 

2. San Francisco 49ers: Solomon Thomas, DL, Stanford

The buzz says the San Francisco 49ers are one of the likeliest teams to make a big move as draft day approaches. 

This isn't just some anonymous rumor, either—it's 49ers general manager John Lynch straight up saying the 49ers are prepared to make a move if one presents itself.

KNBR's Kevin Jones has the money quote:

"

There's the traditional trade chart. We've got one of our own. We know how we value that. As I've said, we're open for business. We'll listen to anything. But I've always said you don't like being a 2-14 team, but you like having the second pick. Because I think it puts you in the drivers seat. A lot of options at your disposal. And we'll explore every single one of them.

"

On paper, San Francisco moving down in the draft order would be a great move. The 49ers are the kings of extensive NFL rebuilds right now, looking massive roster turnover over the next few years right in the eye. The more picks gained by moving down, the better.

But that's on paper. The odds a team wants to move up in a deep draft like this aren't great, which could leave the 49ers searching for a consolation prize at No. 2.

Solomon Thomas is quite the way to settle. The Stanford product is a scheme-independent lineman who can move all over the place and use his 6'3", 273-pound frame to rush the passer from the edge or inside.

Known as of late for strong defense more than anything, San Francisco adding Thomas on a front featuring Arik Armstead and DeForest Buckner is a good way to produce a strong ripple effect on the defense as a whole.

6. New York Jets: Mitchell Trubisky, QB, North Carolina

In some ways, it was easy to think a rebuilding team like the New York Jets would go with the best player available at No. 6 and let young guys like Bryce Petty and Christian Hackenberg develop behind Josh McCown. 

Apparently not.

As CBSSports.com' Jared Dubin wrote, the Jets have now had extensive time with each of the top four quarterbacks in the class (Mitchell Trubisky, Patrick Mahomes, DeShone Kizer, Deshaun Watson) and the visits could be a sign the team is ready to pull the trigger on one with the sixth pick.

In the mock above, the Jets roll with Trubisky out of North Carolina. He's 6'2" and 222 pounds with a strong arm and quality pocket mobility. Compared to a Kizer or Mahomes, he has less built-in risk because of scheme or transition time, though his struggles under pressure are something coaches will have to patch over.

While it might be odd to think the Jets would take another quarterback with a high pick after Hackenberg (second round last year), shots at potential franchise quarterbacks don't come around often. There is too much smoke around the Jets and the position to ignore, and having two potential starters is what many would classify as a good problem to have.

McCown might beat out a rookie and others for the starting gig next year, but having Trubisky in the pipelines is nothing short of a good thing for a Jets team needing to solve the question at the position before looking at anything else.

13. Arizona Cardinals: DeShone Kizer, QB, Notre Dame

The tried and true "anonymous" had to make an appearance at some point—or it simply wouldn't be smokescreen season. 

This instance details the aforementioned Kizer, a 6'4", 233-pound prospect with a booming arm and an ability to bully defenders as a runner, though spotty accuracy and an inability to raise up the quagmire around him at Notre Dame pop up as issues.

According to Albert Breer of The MMQB, character has now come into question courtesy of an AFC head coach: "He's got the size, the arm talent and he's very bright. But there's a disconnect there. There are diva qualities there, and he seems to get voices in his head, like he's fighting who he is. And once the cycle starts, he can't get himself right."

This is a rather vague statement, though Kizer was benched last year at one point. Even so, teams have by now done plenty of digging on Kizer's character through an extensive draft process, so it's odd this is the first we're hearing of the issue.

Either way, Kizer looks like a guy who will take a slight dip on draft day—which might be what the smokescreens aim to do. The Arizona Cardinals scoop him out of a fall in the mock above, getting a developmental prospect who can learn behind Carson Palmer. Head Bruce Arians is a no-nonsense sort of leader, so one can reasonably expect any alleged character issues to get ironed out in a hurry in the desert.

Given Kizer's upside and a good situation in Arizona, he could easily turn out as the best quarterback from the class.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.