Todd McShay NFL Mock Draft 2018: Notable Picks from ESPN Guru's Early Mock

With the 2017 NFL draft less than a week old, ESPN Insider Todd McShay (subscription required) released his first mock for the 2018 season on May 4, giving NFL draftniks an early look at some of the top prospects available come next season.

Pick	Team	Selection
1	Cleveland Browns	Sam Darnold, QB, USC
2	San Francisco 49ers	Josh Allen, QB, Wyoming
3	New York Jets	Josh Rosen, QB, UCLA
4	Cleveland Browns (from Houston)	Christian Wilkins, DL, Clemson
5	Minnesota Vikings	Calvin Ridley, WR, Alabama
6	Denver Broncos	Malik Jefferson, LB, Texas
7	Indianapolis Colts	Saquon Barkley, RB, Penn State
8	Buffalo Bills	Derwin James, S, Florida State*
9	New Orleans Saints	Harold Landry, DE, Boston College
10	Miami Dolphins	Minkah Fitzpatrick, DB, Alabama
11	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Arden Key, DE, LSU
12	Chicago Bears	Tarvarus McFadden, CB, Florida State
13	Washington	Christian Kirk, WR, Texas A&M
14	Philadelphia Eagles	Bo Scarbrough, RB, Alabama
15	Jacksonville Jaguars	Derrick Nnadi, DT, Florida State
16	Cincinnati Bengals	Maurice Hurst, DT, Michigan
17	Los Angeles Rams	Josh Sweat, DE/OLB, Florida State
18	Los Angeles Chargers	Da'Shawn Hand, DT, Alabama
19	Detroit Lions	Bradley Chubb, DE, NC State
20	New York Giants	Clelin Ferrell, DE, Clemson
21	Baltimore Ravens	Antonio Callaway, WR, Florida
22	Buffalo Bills	Tyquan Lewis, DE, Ohio State
23	Arizona Cardinals	Mike McGlinchey, OT, Notre Dame
24	Atlanta Falcons	Courtland Sutton, WR, SMU
25	Tennessee Titans	Cameron Smith, ILB, USC
26	Carolina Panthers	Sam Hubbard, DE, Ohio State
27	Oakland Raiders	Derrius Guice, RB, LSU
28	Dallas Cowboys	Vita Vea, DT, Washington
29	Green Bay Packers	Deon Cain, WR, Clemson
30	Pittsburgh Steelers	Iman Marshall, CB, USC
31	Seattle Seahawks	Orlando Brown, OT, Oklahoma
32	New England Patriots	Da'Ron Payne, DL, Alabama

The first surprise on this list may be the draft order. It's worth noting that McShay used an order generated by Football Outsiders and the site's projection for the 2017 season. It's a bit surprising that a Houston Texans team that went 9-7 with Brock Osweiler and Tom Savage and was without J.J. Watt for most of last season might regress with Watt back in the fold and Deshaun Watson likely starting at quarterback. 

Nonetheless, it would leave the Cleveland Browns with two top-four picks if the season plays out according to Football Outsiders' projections, giving the team the opportunity to pick arguably the top player in the draft (quarterback Sam Darnold) and best defensive player (Christian Wilkins).

Would it be unusual for the Browns to select a quarterback with a top pick a year after making DeShone Kizer a second-round selection? 

Traditionally speaking, yes. But given that Kizer is a major prospect and Darnold looks like one of the best potential quarterback prospects since Andrew Luck, the Browns would be hard-pressed to pass on the USC thrower if he has another excellent season in 2017.

As McShay wrote, "Watching WR JuJu Smith-Schuster in preparation for the 2017 draft, it was hard not to notice Darnold. He has the mental makeup, poise and arm strength you look for in an NFL quarterback."

He was excellent last year, throwing for 3,086 yards, 31 touchdowns and nine interceptions. If Darnold builds on last season, it's hard to imagine he won't be the first player off the board next April.

He's unlikely to be the only quarterback off the board quickly, however, with McShay projecting quarterbacks Josh Allen and Josh Rosen with the next two picks. Next year's quarterback class is expected to be excellent, so it isn't shocking to see the top three picks being used at the position.

For context, B/R's Matt Miller has all three quarterbacks in the top five on his big board for the 2018 draft, ranking Allen No. 1, Darnold No. 2 and Rosen No. 5. If three quarterback-needy teams find themselves at the top of the draft, three quarterbacks will be gone in as many picks.

For Allen, McShay noted, "Allen is very physically gifted, but he needs to improve his decision-making and be a little more consistent with his footwork. He has good mobility and the arm strength to make any throw in the book."

Still, with a strong 2017, he could be in the running for the top overall pick. 

Ditto for Rosen, though as McShay noted, " He has raw talent but needs to improve his accuracy."

Depending on how the draft order shakes out, of course, Wilkins could easily slide into the top three. He'll pair with Dexter Lawrence to give Clemson one of the top defensive lines in college football next season and with a big season should find himself in the argument to be the top defensive player off the board. 

Also of note is that 2017 projects to be a solid draft for teams looking to add talent at wideout or running back, with five receivers and three running backs off the board in the first round in McShay's first mock draft, highlighted by Alabama wideout Calvin Ridley at No. 5 and Penn State back Saquon Barkley gone at No. 7.