The 2016 NFL draft is coming up in a few months and teams like the NY Giants, Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints, Philadelphia Eagles, Oakland Raiders and LA Rams will be picking in the first half of the first round this year.
The Titans kick things off with the number one overall pick if they do not trade the selection, while the Browns, Chargers, Cowboys and Jaguars round out the top five. This draft class is considered to be a fairly deep one overall and at a number of positions, including quarterback, linebacker and cornerback. The Titans are expected to take the best player available, as they do not need a QB after taking Marcus Mariota last year.
Mel Kiper at ESPN has the top nine set up like this in his first mock draft: the Titans take Joey Bosa, the Browns take Goff, while the Chargers take Tunsil ahead of the Cowboys selecting DeForest Buckner. The Jaguars take Jalen Ramsey, while the Ravens select Ronnie Stanley ahead of the 49ers, who he has taking Treadwell. The next picks for Kiper have the Dolphins taking Shaq Lawson, while the Buccaneers take Vernon Hargreaves.
Kiper leads into this set of teams with the Giants taking Myles Jack, the Bears taking Reggie Ragland, the Saints picking A'Shawn Robinson, the Eagles taking Robert Nkemdiche, the Raiders taking Jack Conklin and the Rams taking Paxton Lynch. All of these teams are in interesting positions, as they all have some glaring needs on the roster and also have to weigh the value in taking certain players at certain picks.
The Giants desperately need some help at linebacker and this is the year they could go for that position in the first round. Jack makes a lot of sense at the pick, as he is considered to be a top five prospect at the position. If Clemson's Shaq Lawson is available, expect the team to take a hard look at him as well. The Bears are another team that has a need at linebacker and the team could go after whichever player the Giants pass up in Jack or Lawson (if they are on the board). Reggie Ragland also could be an option in this mix for the Giants and Bears.
The Saints have major needs on defense and while Kiper has Robinson as the pick, New Orleans also could consider players like Carson Wentz and Paxton Lynch. Drew Brees is not getting any younger and it would make sense at some point to try and get his future replacement on the roster. The Eagles defense struggled at times this season and while Doug Pederson is an offensive coach, the team could go defense here. Nkemdiche makes sense and the team also could consider one of the linebackers if they are still on the board when they pick.
The Raiders are in a good spot to take the best player available after making some progress this season and while Conklin would be a nice fit, the team desperately needs another RB behind Latavius Murray and could go after Elliott or Derrick Henry. The Rams have a star RB in Todd Gurley and now they need a QB as they move to LA. Lynch or Wentz could be the pick here.
Mock picks:
Giants: Myles Jack
Bears: Shaq Lawson
Saints: Carson Wentz
Eagles: Reggie Ragland
Raiders: Ezekiel Elliott
Rams: Paxton Lynch
