NFL Draft 2018: Top Prospects and 1st-Round Mock Predictions

We aren't even done with the 2017 NFL draft yet, but it's never too early to look ahead at a 2018 NFL mock draft. 

Obviously a lot will change in the next 12 months. Inevitably, many of these players will lose momentum and end up falling out of the first round. And other prospects who aren't even in the conversation right now will have a breakout season and rise dramatically this fall. 

But the evaluation process for next year's draft has to start somewhere, so here is a very early mock draft featuring 32 highly touted prospects who have the potential to land in next year's first round if their development continues as expected. 

1	San Francisco 49ers	Josh Allen	QB	Wyoming
2	Chicago Bears	Arden Key	DE	LSU
3	New York Jets	Sam Darnold	QB	USC
4	Los Angeles Rams	Orlando Brown	OT	Oklahoma
5	Cleveland Browns	Minkah Fitzpatrick	CB	Alabama
6	Jacksonville Jaguars	Sam Hubbard	DE	Ohio State
7	Buffalo Bills	Josh Rosen	QB	UCLA
8	Los Angeles Chargers	Derwin James	S	Florida State
9	New Orleans Saints	Christian Wilkins	DT	Clemson
10	Arizona Cardinals	Tarvarus McFadden	CB	Florida State
11	Denver Broncos	Derrius Guice	RB	LSU
12	Indianapolis Colts	Harold Landry	DE/LB	Boston College
13	Philadelphia Eagles	Saquon Barkley	RB	Penn State
14	Washington Redskins	Cameron Smith	LB	USC
15	Tennessee Titans	Derrick Nnadi	DT	Florida State
16	Minnesota Vikings	Connor Williams	OT	Texas
17	Miami Dolphins	Mitch Hyatt	OT	Clemson
18	Detroit Lions	Tyquan Lewis	DE	Ohio State
19	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Clelin Ferrell	DE	Clemson
20	Baltimore Ravens	Trey Adams	OT	Washington
21	Cleveland Browns (via HOU)	Jaire Alexander	CB	Louisville
22	Cincinnati Bengals	Da'Shawn Hand	DL	Alabama
23	Carolina Panthers	Mike McGlinchey	OT	Notre Dame
24	New York Giants	Bradley Chubb	DE	N.C. State
25	Seattle Seahawks	Ogbonnia Okoronkwo	DE/LB	Oklahoma
26	Buffalo Bills (via KC)	Courtland Sutton	WR	SMU
27	Pittsburgh Steelers	Maurice Hurst	DL	Michigan
28	Atlanta Falcons	Billy Price	OG	Ohio State
29	Oakland Raiders	Azeem Victor	LB	Washington
30	Green Bay Packers	Denzel Ward	CB	Ohio State
31	Dallas Cowboys	Christian Kirk	WR	Texas A&M
32	New England Patriots	Marquis Haynes	LB	Ole Miss

Draft order based on projected order of finish

Notable Prospects for 2018

Josh Allen, Wyoming

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Very few football fans have seen Josh Allen play, but you might want to seek out a Wyoming game at some point this fall. 

Allen spent time in junior college before enrolling at Wyoming last year and lighting up the Mountain West. After just one year with the Cowboys Allen considered entering the 2017 draft before ultimately deciding to head back to school, according to Benjamin Allbright of 104.7 FM in Denver. 

Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com recently praised Allen, calling some of his throws "jaw dropping" and predicted that he would have been in the conversation to be the first quarterback selected this year had he left school early. 

There are a number of highly regarded quarterbacks eligible for the 2018 draft, so Allen will have his work cut out for him to earn the top spot, but he has the potential to continue his development and be the No. 1 overall player selected in 2018.

Arden Key, LSU

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With Myles Garrett now in the NFL, the title of most explosive pass-rusher in the nation belongs to LSU's Arden Key. 

Key's draft status for 2018 was up in the air earlier this offseason when Tigers head coach Ed Orgeron released a statement indicating that Key was stepping away from football for "personal reasons." But Key answered any questions about his future with a recent tweet:

According to CFB Film Room, Key has generated 87 quarterback pressures through his first two seasons at LSU. That type of production makes Key a special talent, and the type of athlete who is probably already prepared for the pro game. 

Assuming he maintains that level of production and sorts out whatever personal issues he needed to away from the field, he should be considered one of the first-round locks for 2018. 

Sam Darnold, USC

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Last summer Sam Darnold couldn't even beat out Max Browne for the starting job at USC but after taking over early in the season, Darnold's draft stock skyrocketed. 

Despite having just 10 career starts under his belt, the redshirt sophomore is already one of the most popular prospects in the 2018 and many fans, including Scott Stump of The Today Show, are ready to tank for Darnold:

Darnold lost both of his top receivers, Darreus Rogers and JuJu Smith-Schuster, and most of his offensive line, including left tackle Chad Wheeler. So a regression is possible in 2017, especially early in the season as the Trojans break in new starters at those key positions. But as long as Darnold is able to continue his development, he could be an early first-round candidate in 2018. 

Josh Rosen, UCLA

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UCLA's Josh Rosen rounds out the big three quarterback prospects for 2018. 

Rosen suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in 2016, which raises some concerns as he enters his junior year. But he's already throwing again and has been participating in spring practices. 

He'll need to prove he's fully healthy, but if he's back to form Rosen will remain in the first-round conversation.

Rosen's place in the first round has been assumed since he stepped foot on UCLA's campus and immediately won the starting job as a true freshman in 2015. In fact, during September of his freshman year ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit was already comparing him to Andrew Luck, according to Zack Rosenblatt of the Tuscon Star:

Hopefully Rosen's health is no longer an issue and he can get back on track to live up to those lofty expectations in 2017.