Knee-deep into October, it is not uncommon for a mock draft to flow in. A lot looks different from what we saw earlier in the year, but we still see some very talented players firmly at the top.
There is one trade in this mock, and that is the Miami Dolphins dealing their first round draft pick this year (via San Francisco), and future picks for Deshaun Watson of the Houston Texans.
You can find the Week 5 edition of this mock draft here.
1) Jacksonville Jaguars- Kayvon Thibodeaux, EDGE, Oregon
Trevor Lawrence has struggled a bit so far, but that doesn’t mean at all that the Jaguars would even think about going away from him here. Thibodeaux is arguably the best player in this class and probably has the highest upside out of anyone on the board. This pick is pretty much a lock for the Jags.
2) Detroit Lions- Demarvin Leal, DL, Texas A&M
Despite feeling bad for Detroit due to all the heartbreaking losses, they are doing everything perfectly. This rebuilding team is competing greatly, but losing, which is what they need. This is a really tough pick to decipher. There’s a ton of talent on the board, and a lot of need as well, but positional value comes into play the most. Leal has recovered since a rough start to his season, and if he keeps it up, his play will be enough to warrant a top-five pick.
3) Houston Texans- Malik Willis, QB, Liberty
The quarterback class is the strangest of any position we have in this draft. QB1 is all a personal preference at this point but there isn’t really a guy that is a top-tier talent. However, the Texans need a quarterback badly, especially after trading Watson, and with Willis, they can really build something. It would take time, but they could transform this offense into a Lamar Jackson-type Ravens team. On top of that, Willis can develop into a tremendous passer, because of his arm talent alone.
4) New York Jets- Evan Neal, OT, Alabama
Zach Wilson still needs some help on the offensive side, and there’s none better in this class than Neal. He’s an athletic freak at tackle, but a technical maestro as well. Neal will slide into this line with former first-round picks Mekhi Becton and Alijah Vera-Tucker, which can eventually turn into one of the best units in the NFL.
5) Philadelphia Eagles (via Miami)- Kyle Hamilton, SAF, ND
This is the first of three picks the Eagles have in the top 10 here. So far, the team has one safety on the roster in 2022, and boy would Hamilton be quite the addition. He’s the best player in the class, and one of the best safety prospects of all time. Hamilton can cover, blitz, support the run, and is a surefire tackle. He just checks all boxes.
6) Philadelphia Eagles (via Indianapolis)- Derek Stingley Jr., CB, LSU
With their second of three picks in the top 10, the Eagles go right back to defense, and they luck out big time. Stingley is the best player on the board and only falls to six because of his injury this year that has led him to be out for the season. Stingley and Hamilton can be the cornerstones of a new defense in Philadelphia
7) New York Giants- Aidan Hutchinson, EDGE, Michigan
This season has gone from bad to worse for the Giants. They fell to 1-4 on Sunday and the team has gotten destroyed by the injury bug. However, there are still a lot of promising players on this squad, and with two first-round picks, they have a lot of options. Hutchinson has been one of if not the best players in college football this season, and a huge riser up draft boards. He brings immediate pass-rush support to New York but has serious moments where he can set the edge as well.
8) Atlanta Falcons- Kaiir Elam, CB, Florida
With Hutchinson, and some other top defensive players off the board, the Falcons turn to one of the players with the highest upside in this class. Elam is an uber-athletic corner with seriously fluid movement and dominant range. He’s still a little raw as well and can add to a solid young core in Atlanta.
9) New England Patriots- Andrew Booth Jr., CB, Clemson
If they can’t have Stingley or Elam, the Patriots will be more than content with Booth. After trading away Stephon Gilmore, secondary depth is lacking in New England. J.C. is developing into a number one corner but they need a shutdown guy on the opposite side of the field of him. The good thing for the Patriots is, Booth excels in man coverage, which New England runs religiously. There’s a ton of potential with this pick.
10) Philadelphia Eagles- Kenyon Green, OL, Texas A&M
The Eagles could honestly go right back to defense here, but with all they’ve invested into that side of the ball, they should go and get someone to address their biggest offensive weakness. It’s unclear where Green would plugin on this line, but he’s talented enough to make an impact right away. Even if they don’t play him off the bat, Green would be an awesome investment for the future.
11) Houston Texans (via San Francisco, via Miami)- Ikem Ekwonu, OL, NC State
After their trade with Miami, the Texans can now go in the direction they want to build their team with this pick. We’ve already asserted that they’re going to move to that run-and-gun style, so Ekwonu is the perfect pick. Like Green, he can move anywhere on the line, but this guy is a freak. He’s an absolute mauler who is ultra-aggressive on every play. This will be the first step in building the Texans around Willis.
12) New York Jets (via Seattle)- Chris Olave, WR, Ohio State
Why not give Zach Wilson another guy to throw to? Corey Davis passes as their “big body” guy, with Elijah Moore complimenting as a deep-threat, but Olave can be all three. He won’t go up and grab the ball like Davis maybe but he can get in on the intermediate levels. Besides, this Jets defense has actually been playing pretty well, and they can address the holes there in free agency.
13) Washington Football Team- Carson Strong, QB, Nevada
Strong has been very good in Nevada but has some inconsistencies which have led to him not being looked at as a top 10 pick. However, he’s still got the fundamental tools a GM will drool over. The size, arm strength, and ability to make all the throws slots Strong in Washington, where he doesn’t even need to play the first year if they don’t want him to.
14) Minnesota Vikings- Kingsley Enagbare, EDGE, South Carolina
The Vikings can go a number of ways here. Many would think earlier in the year that this pick would be George Karlaftis, but he just hasn’t been as good as we have hoped. Enagbare has one if not the best motors in this class and is relentless on every single down. To add on, he’s great in the pass-rush and can provide the Vikings a boost to a defense that could be losing a ton of talent this offseason.
15) Pittsburgh Steelers- Matt Corral, QB, Ole Miss
Our third quarterback in the first round, which is honestly a little hefty for this class. Corral has been very good for Ole Miss this year but can his game translate to the NFL? The Steelers are obviously in need of a new signal-caller that adds diversity to the offense and Corral can give them that with his sneaky dual-threat ability.
16) Kansas City- Ahmad Gardner, CB, Cincinnati
The Chiefs’ defense has been morbid this year. With only two cornerbacks set on the 2022 roster, Gardner is the obvious choice here. He has still yet to allow a touchdown in college ball and has basically created his own no-fly zone at corner. This would be a huge plus for Kansas City down the road, as they continue to try and build this defensive unit.
17) Cincinnati Bengals- Devin Lloyd, LB, Utah
Fans will be screaming for offensive line help here, but it’s not really needed. Lloyd is an incredibly underrated player, one that some are starting to see the light on. He’s been absurdly good for the Utes this season and flies to every ball-carrier. Lloyd will give an influx of talent to a somewhat unskilled Bengals linebacking core and can get reps right away.
18) New Orleans Saints- Treylon Burks, WR, Arkansas
The Saints kind of have a packed depth chart, so there are multiple routes to take with this pick. Burks is basically WR1b at this point in the draft and some could easily favor him over Olave. The Saints can now decide what they want to do with Michael Thomas who has barely been active for New Orleans in the last two years and still keep a very good wide receiver corps.
19) Tennessee Titans- Nakobe Dean, LB, Georgia
This pick was basically down to safety, tight end, or here with Dean. Dean will fit into this defensive scheme pretty well, as he can blitz and drop into coverage nicely. He’s been on the forefront of this stacked Georgia defense and can replace some underwhelming talents on the Titans.
20) Denver Broncos- Adam Andersen, EDGE, Georgia
Another big piece on the number one ranked Georgia defense, Anderson is as pure as they come on the pass-rush front. With Von Miller seriously getting up there in age, and Bradley Chubb‘s health in jeopardy, the Broncos need some pass-rush help and they can get it here with a guy who already has four sacks through six games so far.
21) Carolina Panthers- Darian Kinnard, OL, Kentucky
Sure, Kinnard might not be the best player available here, but he’s definitely a guy with a high floor and someone who can be used all over the line. Yes, the Panthers do like rookie tackle Brady Christensen a lot but it does not help to prepare for the future even more with Kinnard, especially when it seems like Sam Darnold is their guy.
22) New York Giants (via Chicago)- Daniel Faalele, OT, Minnesota
Year after year we’ve seen the Giants need help on the offensive line. They could’ve gone with a guy like Green earlier in this round, but taking the best player available in Hutchinson was the better move. Now, they get a raw tackle in Faalele who has some of the best measurable we’ve ever seen. He can hopefully be the swing guy for them with Nate Solder not getting any younger, and the team’s offensive line rebuild should finally be complete.
23) Cleveland Browns- Drake London, WR, USC
London’s 2021 season has been unmatched by any receiver so far. He’s a superb deep threat who is physically imposing and dominates Pac-12 cornerbacks. London will come in alongside Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry and can complement those two nicely with his big-play ability.
24) Detroit Lions (via Los Angeles Rams)- David Bell, WR, Purdue
For the second week in a row, this will be the pick to the Lions, despite calls for Garrett Wilson. Simply put, Bell has nearly asserted himself as a first-round, while Wilson has sort of bounced back a small bit. He’s produced tremendously for this Purdue team that has struggled to move the ball outside of using Bell. A jack of all trades receiver, he can come in and assist a core that is desperate for talent.
25) Las Vegas Raiders- Derion Kendrick, CB, Georgia
The Damon Arnette experiment is basically at the tipping point of failing, and youth is needed at the corner spot for Las Vegas. Kendrick is not a name that we really knew before the season, but because of his play in that dominant Bulldogs defense, he’s earned his first-round talk. Kendrick brings great man coverage ability to the table, as well as solid technique which he can continue to master early on.
26) Buffalo Bills- Trent McDuffie, CB, Washington
Buffalo needs a guy across from Tre’Davious White, and McDuffie, while most see him as a slot corner, can excel anywhere they want. Maybe he slides into the slot role for the Bills, locking down that position for years to come, and look elsewhere for a true CB2 on the outside. In any case, the already near lockdown secondary in Buffalo would get even better, and fill the final piece.
27) Tampa Bay Buccaneers- George Karlaftis, EDGE, Purdue
This is a hard spot to figure out, but the idea here is nice. Ndamukong Suh will be 35 at the start of the 2022 NFL season and is clearly headed out the door soon. Tampa Bay will need a guy to replace him in that big run-stuffing role that they so require and that guy could be Karlaftis. Karlaftis has the physical traits for this job and has set the edge nicely in Purdue’s 4-3 scheme. All he has to do is learn some inside techniques and he can start to take over for Suh.
28) Green Bay Packers- Garrett Wilson, WR, Ohio State
With the future of Davante Adams at an all-time uncertainty right now, the Packers would have to grab Wilson here, should Adams leave in free agency. If he doesn’t, Wilson could still be the move but at the same time they just got Amari Rodgers in last year’s draft, so they could go a different direction. However, here, they go with probably the best player on the board, and one who has fallen a bit too far, so he’ll play with a ton to prove and give Aaron Rodgers yet another deep threat.
29) Los Angeles Chargers- Jaxson Kirkland, OT, Washington
Kirkland’s stock took a big hit ever since getting dominated against Hutchinson and Michigan. Besides that, he’s had a rather clean year and has looked, for the most part, like he did last year. Kirkland is a bit of a jack-of-all-trades type tackle that will report to Los Angeles’ right tackle spot right away, with Rashawn Slater locking down Justin Herbert‘s blindside.
30) Dallas Cowboys- Daxton Hill, SAF, Michigan
The Cowboys begin their draft going right back to defense as they did in 2021. Hill is a versatile safety that will stay high most plays but can get down into the box. Where he excels best, however, is coverage. He can blanket receivers in man coverage and we’ve seen a quick adaptation from him in zone this season because of Michigan’s defensive switch-ups.
31) Baltimore Ravens- Drake Jackson, EDGE, USC
For the second year in a row, the Ravens roll with an edge rusher in the late first round. Jackson can be a serious threat in the 3-4 scheme that Baltimore runs, and will team up nicely with rookie Odafe Oweh. The bend that Jackson brings from the outside linebacking spot is spectacular and it’ll be at the forefront of his draft profile.
32) Arizona Cardinals- Jordan Davis, DL, Georgia
The play here for Arizona is simple, get the best player on the board. Davis is a top 20 talent that just happened to fall in this mock. He’s the fourth Georgia Bulldog taken in the first round and has potential to play right away, but does get the luxury of having some time to develop.
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