2011 NFL Mock Draft: Marcell Dareus or Cam Newton for Panthers at No. 1?
The 2011 NFL Draft is three days away.
Still, not much is decided.
The Carolina Panthers haven't decided who they will use the No. 1 overall pick on yet.
There is a lot of buzz that Cam Newton of Auburn will be the pick, but no one can tell just how accurate that information is.
The Panthers have a lot of holes to fill (as most teams with the No. 1 pick usually do).
Here's a scenario in which the Panthers address defense by making Marcell Dareus of Alabama the No. 1 pick.
1. Carolina Panthers: Marcell Dareus, DT, Alabama
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Cam Newton is a definite possibility here, but ultimately, the Panthers will decide he is too risky and go with Dareus as the No. 1 overall pick.
Dareus will provide Carolina with a stout defensive presence.
He can clog the run lanes and get to the quarterback occasionally, too.
He’s the safe pick at No. 1.
2. Denver Broncos: Von Miller, OLB, Texas A&M
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Scouts have been raving about Miller all offseason.
Now that Josh McDaniels is out of the picture in Denver, the Broncos will make a smart draft pick.
Miller is exactly what the Broncos need to help get their defense back on track.
3. Buffalo Bills: Cam Newton, QB, Auburn
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The Bills aren’t set on Ryan Fitzpatrick as their QB of the future.
They also need a guy who can sell jerseys.
That means Newton is a strong possibility for the Bills.
If he falls to No. 3, the Bills will take him in a heartbeat.
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4. Cincinnati Bengals: A.J. Green, WR, Georgia
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The Bengals probably need a QB, but the Carson Palmer situation is unsettled right now.
Though he says he’ll retire before playing for the Bengals again, the Bengals front office seems to think otherwise.
Though Gabbert would be a good pick here, the Bengals will go with Green.
Green’s a great pick, as long as the Bengals can find someone to throw to him.
5. Arizona Cardinals: Blaine Gabbert, QB, Missouri
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With Gabbert available at No. 5, the Cardinals will pounce on him.
Max Hall and John Skelton could be decent NFL quarterbacks, but Gabbert could be great.
The Cardinals won’t be able to pass up that potential and the chance to possibly make Larry Fitzgerald happy.
6. Cleveland Browns: Nick Fairley, DT, Auburn
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The Browns will be ecstatic to get Fairley at No. 6.
He's a guy who can get to the passer and stop the run.
The Browns would love to plug him into the middle of their defensive line for the next 10 years.
7. San Francisco 49ers: Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU
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The 49ers will luck into the best player in the 2011 NFL Draft class.
It just so happens that they also need a solid cornerback.
Though the Niners would like if Gabbert or Newton fell to them, they’ll take Peterson with a smile on their face.
8. Tennessee Titans: Da'Quan Bowers, DE, Clemson
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Bowers’ knee injury will cause him to drop out of the top five.
But, he won’t fall out of the top 10.
The Titans need to find someone to get to the quarterback.
They’ll take a chance on Bowers, the best defensive end in the draft.
9. Dallas Cowboys: Prince Amukamara, CB, Nebraska
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The Cowboys secondary was the weak link in their defense last year.
Mike Jenkins didn’t perform as well as he needs to.
Drafting Amukamara will give the Cowboys a good complement to Terence Newman.
It will also make Jenkins have to earn his playing time.
10. Washington Redskins: Julio Jones, WR, Alabama
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The Redskins will jump at the chance to grab Jones in the first round.
Then, they’ll focus on how to acquire a QB in the second round.
Getting Jones to help out whoever ends up being Washington’s QB in 2011 will be a smart move.
11. Houston Texans: Jimmy Smith, CB, Colorado
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The Texans desperately need secondary help.
With Peterson and Amukamara off the board, they’ll look to Smith.
He might not be quite as good as the top-tier corners, but he’s right up there with them.
And hey, he can’t make the Texans secondary any worse.
12. Minnesota Vikings: Robert Quinn, OLB/DE, North Carolina
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Quinn looked good at the Combine despite missing the entire 2010 season with eligibility issues.
We won’t know for sure until he starts playing, but it doesn’t look like he’s lost a step at all.
He can play some OLB and DE for the Vikings and help Jared Allen get pressure on opposing QBs.
13. Detroit Lions: Tyron Smith, OT, USC
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Matthew Stafford is apparently made of glass.
Therefore, if the Lions want him to be their QB of the future, they need to invest in protection for him.
Smith has more potential than any other tackle in the draft.
The Lions will take him and hope he can keep Stafford upright.
14. St. Louis Rams: Corey Liuget, DT, Illinois
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The Rams defense is one strong defensive tackle away from becoming dominant.
Liuget is just the guy the Rams need.
He was a force at Illinois in 2010.
He’ll make sure James Laurinaitis has plenty of room to make tackles.
15. Miami Dolphins: Mark Ingram, RB, Alabama
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The Dolphins running game was stale and ineffective last year.
It might be time to get some fresh blood into the rotation.
Ricky Williams isn’t going to be around much longer and Ronnie Brown’s bad year was worrisome.
Adding Ingram to the backfield will improve the running game in 2011.
16. Jacksonville Jaguars: Aldon Smith, OLB/DE, Missouri
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The Jaguars need a versatile DE/OLB to pair with Aaron Kampman.
Smith has a great motor, just like Kampman.
During his time at Mizzou, Smith was a nightmare for opposing QBs.
He should fit into Jacksonville’s scheme well.
17. New England Patriots (from Oakland): Ryan Kerrigan, DE/OLB, Purdue
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Ryan Kerrigan: Kerrigan is a guy who Bill Belichick will love.
He never quits, has a good head on his shoulders and is very coachable.
Belichick hates first round picks with egos and low work ethics.
Kerrigan is not one of those guys.
18. San Diego Chargers: J.J. Watt, DE, Wisconsin
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The Chargers need a guy who can get sacks.
After losing Shawne Merriman, they haven’t been able to get much pressure on quarterbacks.
J.J. Watt can help fix that problem from the DE position.
19. New York Giants: Nate Solder, OT, Colorado
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The Giants have an excellent offensive line, but they are getting old.
They need to start infusing some youth into the mix.
Letting Solder learn behind one of the best units in the league would benefit him greatly.
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Adrian Clayborn, DE, Iowa
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The Bucs are one of the worst teams in the league when it comes to sacking the opposing QB.
Therefore, they should be targeting a DE in the first round this year.
Drafting Clayborn to solidify their defensive line will go a long way towards helping this very young team compete for and eventually win a division title.
21. Kansas City Chiefs: Mike Pouncey, G/C, Florida
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The Chiefs need an interior lineman to rotate in with left guard Brian Waters (34) and center Casey Wiegmann (37).
Those guys aren’t going to be around much longer.
Letting Pouncey learn from them as their heir apparent would be a smart move.
22. Indianapolis Colts: Anthony Castonzo, OT, Boston College
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The Colts need to keep Peyton Manning healthy.
He’s starting to get old and took a beating in 2010.
A restructured offensive line would help preserve him and give him a shot to break several NFL records in the next few years.
Castonzo would be a guy who could protect Manning’s blind side for the rest of the QB’s Hall of Fame career.
23. Philadelphia Eagles: Gabe Carimi, OT, Wisconsin
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Michael Vick was rattled when he was under a lot of pressure last year.
He was battling a couple of nagging injuries down the stretch.
If he can stay upright in the pocket more often, he’ll be more able to run outside it.
Carimi can help manhandle opposing defensive ends and keep them away from Vick until he breaks the pocket.
24. New Orleans Saints: Mohammad Wilkerson, DT, Temple
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Wilkerson was dominant at Temple in 2010.
Though he played against lesser competition than most major conference guys on this list, his skills look like they will translate to the pros.
The Saints appear likely to take Wilkerson to shore up their interior defensive line alongside Sedrick Ellis.
25. Seattle Seahawks: Jake Locker, QB, Washington
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Matt Hasselbeck is getting old.
He might only have one more season in him, and the Seahawks don’t have a guy waiting to take over.
Drafting Locker will give them a guy who can take over if Hasselbeck gets hurt.
He can also be a franchise QB when Hasselbeck decides to call it a career.
26. Baltimore Ravens: Aaron Williams, CB, Texas
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The cornerback position was the weakest spot for the Ravens in 2010.
Williams can step in and help at cornerback in 2011.
He’ll be an upgrade at the position, but eventually, he’d be Ed Reed’s replacement.
27. Atlanta Falcons: Cameron Jordan, DE, California
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The Falcons need another defensive end to pair with John Abraham.
They’ll be happy to get Jordan, a ferocious DE from California.
He should keep teams from double-teaming Abraham so often, freeing up both of them for more sack opportunities.
28. New England Patriots: Mikel LeShoure, RB, Illinois
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With Mark Ingram off the board, the Patriots will look to LeShoure to fill their running back need.
Taking LeShoure in the first round isn’t that much of a stretch.
He had a dominant year at Illinois in 2010 and might be the most NFL-ready RB in this draft class.
29. Chicago Bears: Stephen Paea, DT, Oregon State
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Paea broke the NFL Combine record by bench-pressing 225 pounds 49 times.
The Bears might want to trade out of the first round, but if they can’t, they should take Paea.
Imagine him taking on opposing offensive lines, freeing up Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs for tackles.
It’s a scary thought for Chicago’s opponents.
30. New York Jets: Cameron Heyward, DE, Ohio State
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The Jets have a solid secondary and linebacking corps.
They do need some help along the defensive line though.
Heyward can play the 3-4 DE position.
He’ll help get pressure on the QB, making it even harder to throw against the Jets.
31. Pittsburgh Steelers: Benjamin Ijalana, OT/OG, Villanova
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The Steelers would like to grab Mike Pouncey to pair him with his brother, Maurkice.
But, unless they trade up, that won’t be possible.
They’ll have to settle for Ijalana, not that that’s a bad thing.
32. Green Bay Packers: Derek Sherrod, OT, Mississippi State
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Getting Sherrod with the last pick of the first round would be great value for the Packers.
He can learn from Chad Clifton for a year or two and then take over the starting left tackle role.
Pairing him with 2010 first round pick Bryan Bulaga will give the Packers a solid offensive line for years to come.
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