2012 NFL Draft Order: Battle for Andrew Luck Will Shape Entire Selection Process

The race for Andrew Luck has never been so close. The most interesting part, however, is that the team who drafts him may be nowhere near the No. 1 pick.

The Indianapolis Colts and St. Louis Rams will decide the No. 1 pick this weekend. A loss by both teams still gives the Colts No. 1.

But Indianapolis is taking on a hapless and very beatable Jacksonville Jaguars team. The Rams are battling a 49ers team still in a race for the No. 2 seed in the NFC and the all important home-field advantage over everyone but Green Bay. Needless to say, the Rams are expected to lose, while the Colts actually have a chance to win.

And there is a chance that whichever team "wins" No. 1 won't be picking at No. 1.

The Colts are expected to bring Peyton Manning back under center next season as long as he is healthy. Indianapolis could certainly draft Luck and sit him, but they owe Manning a $28 million roster bonus in March, and now we're talking about a ton of money guaranteed to two players at a position where only one can play.

Indianapolis' current roster won't make the playoffs with just Manning back, and they'd be wasting their time thinking otherwise.

The Rams have Sam Bradford under center and have more pressing needs to address, needs that can be best addressed by trading away the potential No. 1 pick. But if the Rams are No. 2, they should stay put and draft Matt Kalil of USC, Morris Claiborne of LSU or Justin Blackmon of Oklahoma State.

If the Colts truly believe they can win with Peyton Manning again, then they need to get him some help immediately. That won't be achieved by taking just one player.

Thus, the auction bid for Andrew Luck at No. 1 overall should open immediately after Sunday's games.

Washington, Miami, Seattle, Cleveland and potentially Buffalo will all be very interested in moving up for Andrew Luck. The Browns even have two first-round picks in this year's draft.

If Luck does go to the the Colts, then the rest of the quarterback-needy teams in the league will scramble to situate themselves for a potential run at Robert Griffin III, should he declare.

Either way, the Andrew Luck situation shapes the entirety of this draft.

*Draft order determined by a combination of current record and projected finish.

1. Indianapolis Colts (2-13): Andrew Luck, QB, Stanford

2. St. Louis Rams (2-13): Matt Kalil, OT, USC

3. Minnesota Vikings (3-12): Morris Claiborne, CB, LSU

4. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-11): Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State

5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-11): Dre Kirkpatrick, CB, Alabama

6. Cleveland Browns (4-11): Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama

7. Miami Dolphins (5-10): Robert Griffin III, QB, Baylor

8. Washington Redskins (5-10): Landry Jones, QB, Oklahoma

9. Kansas City Chiefs (6-9): Riley Reiff, OT, Iowa

10. Carolina Panthers (6-9): Quinton Coples, DE, UNC

11. Buffalo Bills (6-9): Jonathan Martin, OT, Stanford

12. Philadelphia Eagles (7-8): Michael Floyd, WR, Notre Dame

13. Seattle Seahawks (7-8): Devon Still, DT, Penn State

14. San Diego Chargers (7-8): Alfonzo Dennard, CB, Nebraska

15. Arizona Cardinals (7-8): Melvin Ingram, DE, South Carolina

16. Chicago Bears (7-8): Peter Konz, C, Wisconsin

17. Tennessee Titans (8-7): Vontaze Burfict, LB, ASU

18. Cincinnati Bengals (via OAK 8-7): Lamar Miller, RB, Miami

19. New York Jets (8-7): David DeCastro, OG, Stanford

20. Dallas Cowboys (8-7): Luke Kuechly, LB, Boston College

21. Detroit Lions (10-5): David Wilson, RB, Virginia Tech

22. Cincinnati Bengals (9-6): Janoris Jenkins, CB, North Alabama

23. Denver Broncos (8-7): Fletcher Cox, DT, Mississippi State

24. New York Giants (8-7): Zach Brown, OLB, UNC

25. Houston Texans (10-5): Mark Barron, S, Alabama

26. Pittsburgh Steelers (11-4): Cordy Glenn, OG, Georgia

27. Cleveland Browns (via ATL 9-5): Alshon Jeffery, WR, South Carolina

28. New England Patriots (via NO 11-3): Courtney Upshaw, DE/OLB, Alabama

29. Baltimore Ravens (11-4): Dont'a Hightower, LB, Alabama

30. San Francisco 49ers (12-3): Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor

31. New England Patriots (12-3): Mohamed Sanu, WR, Rutgers

32. Green Bay Packers (14-1): Nick Perry, DE/OLB, USC