Razor's 2018 Mock Draft (With Trades)

[RazorStar 4,025]

It's that time of year again, Mock Draft season. With the draft just two weeks away, I thought it'd be prudent to make a mock of my own. I'm probably going to be incredibly wrong, but all mocks tend to be. This is just for funsies after all. In any case, let's just jump right in.

 

1. Cleveland Josh Allen, QB, Wyoming

 

So let’s get started with the obvious. The Browns are stupid, and their new GM lusts over the QBs with no talent other than freakishly big arms. Sounds like a match made in heaven for a QB who does nothing but look good in shorts. Allen makes the Browns think they’ve got their franchise QB, only to be disappointed in a few years when the most he can do is put on a good JaMarcus Russell impression.

 

2. New York Saquon Barkley, RB, Penn State

 

The Giants are gonna dance with the highest player on their board, rather than take a shot at a franchise QB. The Giants haven’t had a real running game since Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw left, trying to make things work with a pile of dung in the backfield. Barkley has hall of fame potential and is slated to become an immediate threat. After seeing the Cowboys and Jags make the playoffs after drafting a talented back early, I’m sure the Giants are thinking they can do the same thing.

 

3. New York Sam Darnold, QB, USC

 

The Jets made a monster trade in an attempt to get their franchise QB, but I’m sure they weren’t expecting Sam Darnold to still be sitting here. He’s got his fair share of question marks, but which QB in this class doesn’t? He’s got the look of a classic QB, but he’s definitely a project, and the Jets might be gun shy since the last time they traded up for a USC QB they got Mark Sanchez. Still, this is the FO that fell in love with Hackenburg so… J E T S, SUCK SUCK SUCK.

 

4. Cleveland Minkah Fitzpatrick, CB, Alabama

 

With their QB out of the way, and Saquon off the board, the Browns are going to look to the defense. I could see them considering Bradley Chubb pretty strongly here, but the Browns big problem last year was getting burned on deep passes and failing to stop key receivers in the red zone. Minkah is a guy who can do it all on the defense, whether you want to single him up on tight ends like Gronkowski, or put him on number one receivers like Antonio Brown, he can match up well against any threat the offense puts out there.

 

5. Denver Bradley Chubb, DE, North Carolina State

 

Losing DeMarcus Ware is still a loss this Broncos team hasn’t compensated for, and with the sudden investment in Case Keenum and the Paxton lynch project still in progress, I don’t honestly see the Broncos making a move for a QB in the early rounds this year. Chubb gives the Broncos another talented pass rusher on par with Von, and another junkyard dog to give this defense the bite that it’s been letting go over the past couple of seasons.

 

6. Buffalo (From IND): Josh Rosen, QB, UCLA

(Trade, 6th overall for 12th and 22nd overall)

 

The first trade of this mock, because teams get wild about trades. The Bills are not going to go into 2018 with AJ freaking McCarron as their starting QB. Once they see that the Broncos aren’t going to grab their guy, they feel the need to trade up to keep pace. The way they see it, they were a playoff team last year, and they want to continue that success. The Colts are content to trade down, trust that Luck will be healthy and build the team around him first and foremost. Meanwhile the Bills grab the best QB available, who may have some character concerns, but he can be woke as he wants to be in Buffalo.

 

7. Tampa Bay Derwin James, SS, Florida State

 

The Bucs used free agency to fix their pass rush problem, since they were certain that they wouldn’t be able to get Chubb, and they didn’t feel any other option was viable to pick this early on. So this pick is designed to fill their other holes, mostly their weak secondary play in general.

 

8. Chicago Roquan Smith, ILB, Georgia

 

The best way to help a young QB is giving him a good defense. Roquan provides leadership, and a nice one two punch with Danny Trevathan in the middle of their defense to cover all aspects of the field. It’s almost like having Brian Urlacher back there again, and the Bears just aren’t the Bears without an all star middle linebacker.

 

9. San Francisco Quenton Nelson, OG, Notre Dame

 

I think this is a little early for a guard, but John Lynch has shown that he’s willing to subvert convention if it means he can get a talented player under lockdown. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t, but Nelson is a highly sought after prospect, and considering the 49ers woes on the offensive line, a player like Nelson instantly improves the bunch.

 

10. Oakland Vita Vea, DT, Washington

 

Khalil Mack can do it all his own, but he’d be even better if he didn’t have to. Vita Vea is a giant buttplug and he’s gonna make Mahomes, Rivers, Keenum and whoever else ends up playing constipated in fear. The best way to neutralize a star pass rusher is only pass when needed, and Vita Vea is going to make passing a necessity for the Raiders’ opponents.

 

11. Miami Baker Mayfield, QB, Oklahoma

 

It sounds like Adam Gase is ready to give up on the Tannehill project, and try to build his own ‘Patriots way’. And in order to do that, he needs a QB he can mold into his perfect weapon. I don’t know if Mayfield is that guy, but he definitely has the potential to be, and Gase can utilize that giant chip on his shoulder.

 

12. Indianapolis (from BUF): Denzel Ward, CB, Ohio State

(Trade, 12th and 22nd overall for 6th overall)

 

The Colts spent two early picks on the secondary last year, but it’s still a major concern for them. Getting a complement to Hooker and Wilson on the back end is going to improve their pass defense tremendously, and might help them look a little legitimate for once.

 

13. Washington Harold Landry, OLB, Boston College

 

The Skins have a lot of holes on their team, and may just decide the best way to fix those holes is hide them with a dynamic playmaker. By adding Landry to their pass rush repertoire they can force turnovers and ease the load on their new Alex Smith led offense.

 

14. Green Bay Mike Hughes, CB, Central Florida

 

Tramon Williams, Quinton Rollins, Kevin King, and a bunch of UDFA’s. That’s what the packers are working with at CB this year. You can’t compete with the NFC North’s receivers with table scraps, and table scraps are all Green Bay has right now. Hughes gives the Packers a physical corner to fight with the physical receivers in the North.

 

15. Arizona Mike McGlinchey, OT, Notre Dame

 

If the Cardinals are serious about the Bradford experiment, they need to keep him upright. Lacking in a real LT, they go mining in the Notre Dame pipeline and hope to strike gold like the Ravens did with Ronnie Stanley and the Cowboys did with Zack Martin.

 

16. New England (From BAL): Tremaine Edmunds, LB, Virginia Tech

(Trade, 16th overall for 23rd and 63rd overall)

 

The Patriots are severely lacking in talent along their front seven. Most of it is Belichick’s fault for letting go of Jamie Collins, but he has a chance to get a new Collins with Tremaine Edmunds. He has great instincts and great athletic specs to strike in the NFL. Meanwhile the Ravens get to trade down and accumulate more value, as they are wont to do.

 

17. Los Angeles Maurice Hurst, DT, Michigan

 

The Chargers already have Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram, but why not bolster their pass rush even further with a guy like Hurst? Consider Liuget is spending the first few games of the season on PED suspension, it’s better to just get an immediate upgrade and cut ties with the dead weight Liuget.

 

18. Indianapolis (From SEA): Calvin Ridley, WR, Alabama

(Trade: 18th and 141st overall for 22nd and 67th overall)

 

The Colts have the trade capital to move around, and figure this is the optimal time to jump up and grab Ridley, jumping over the Cowboys who just recently released Dezly. Ridley and Hilton give the Colts a nice 1 2 punch at receiver, and forces defenses to match speed with speed against them, and can make catches under duress.

 

19. Dallas Marcus Davenport, DE, UTSA

 

While the Cowboys don’t get a Dez replacement, they do add to their pass rush group. Taco Charlton hasn’t quite been what they hoped from him, and he could still develop, but there’s no harm in having three very good pass rushers on the same squad. He’s going to need time to develop as well, but he’ll be a force as a rotational guy early in his career.

 

20. Detroit Derrius Guice, RB, LSU

 

GET DOWN AND SLAM, IF YOU WANT TO JAM. Guice is gonna ball out for the Lions, maybe. Probably. Now that I mocked him here he’s gonna bust. Ah well. If all things went as planned, Guice would be a dominant force the Lions.

 

21. Cincinnati Da’Ron Payne, DT, Alabama

 

It feels like every year Alabama has a DT come out to high acclaim and then they never do anything. Much like the Bengals… guess this is a match made in heaven. Payne should provide a good complement to Geno’s game, taking up blocks so Geno and the linebackers can make plays inside.

 

22. Seattle (From IND, From BUF): Connor Williams, LT, Texas

(Last Trade 22nd and 67th overall for 18th and 141th overall)

 

It feels like every year the Hawks are in a position to draft players to protect their MVP caliber QB, but they never go ahead and do so. Not this time, Connor Williams falls into their laps and they are gonna snatch him up.

 

23. Baltimore (From NE, From LAR): Will Hernandez, LG, UTEP

(Trade: 23rd and 63rd overall for 16th overall)

 

With Yanda getting healthy this year, and Ronnie Stanley improving each season, adding another pro bowl caliber lineman is going to take the Ravens places. They may still be stuck with Joe Flacco at QB, but they were a tiebreaker away from the postseason last year and could make a lot of noise if they sneak into the dance.

 

24. Carolina Josh Jackson, CB, Iowa

I didn’t know if I should have made a stupid pick for the Panthers or not now that Hurney is back as their GM. Still, I think Jackson is a great pick for their defense since they are severely lacking in a real number one corner.

 

25. Tennessee Leighton Vander Esch, LB, Boise State

Tennessee should just be able to put him in the middle of his defense and have him make plays all over the field. There’s a good chance he could be the next Keith Bulluck for them, and they should be pretty excited to have this guy fall into their laps.

 

26. Atlanta Taven Bryan, DT, Florida

Taven has a lot of potential, and I’m sure Dan Quinn is salivating at the chance to add a playmaker like him to his defense. He’s incredibly raw, but cooked right and the Falcons defense is gonna be a metaphor worth making.

 

27. New Orleans Lamar Jackson, QB, Louisville

I had considered having a team trade up above New Orleans to try and snag Lamar, but I don’t think any interested parties necessarily had the fuel to make the play, or had already grabbed a guy in the first. Lamar needs some time to catch up to the speed of the game, and learning under Brees can only be a boon to his development. He’s not going to start immediately, but when he does, he’ll be ready with a slew of talent to work with on the offense.

 

28. Pittsburgh Ronnie Harrison, SS, Alabama

While he won’t be the second coming of Troy Polamalu, he’s going to be a major impact on the Steelers defense, and a massive improvement over the garbage they had last year. He’s a natural leader, has great instincts and should put some fire in a lax Steelers defense that fell asleep against Blake fucking Bortles.

 

29. Jacksonville D.J. Moore, WR, Maryland

The loss of the two Allens and Marcedes means the Jags are a little thin on weapons for their offense. Marquise Lee and the rest of their corps is acceptable, but without anyone spectacular to divert top corners they don’t have the option to make the offense easier on Leonard Fournette. Moore should make magic happen for their squad.

 

30. New York (from MIN): Isaiah Wynn, OG, Georgia

(Trade: 30th overall for 34th and 139th overall)

 

The Giants added Nate Solder in free agency, but they’d be remiss if they thought that was all they needed to fix their offensive line, especially since they let their previous best lineman walk to Arizona. Other than LT and C, they still need to fill the other spots with talented players, so Wynn immediately slots in as a starter. Meanwhile Minnesota gets a bit more ammo to play with, and can take a player who falls further.

 

31. New England Jaire Alexander, CB, Louisville

The Pats are able to use their second first rounder, stay put and get a corner who they think can do serious work for them. They need a replacement for Malcolm Butler, and an aggressive spark plug like Jaire will pair well with Stephon Gilmore.

 

32. Tampa Bay (from PHI): Billy Price, C, Ohio State

(Trade: 32nd overall for 38th overall and a 2nd round pick next year)

 

The Bucs anticipate the Colts and Browns ahead of them will be investing their second round picks on offensive linemen, and want to ensure they get their guy ahead of them. Price gives the Bucs offensive line a real leader and a force in the middle to handle the interior pass rush that they were simply lacking. If Jameis is going to continue to be the franchise QB, they need to keep him safe, and a smart centre calling protections is definitely going to help immensely.

[.AirMcNair. 1,232]

I'll give it an A+ just cause you spelled Keith Bulluck's name right.

[butta54 371]

I appreciate everything about this mock....especially how the jokes increased as the round went on.

[RazorStar 4,025]

Looking over my mock here's what I got right

Browns take a QB number 1 that isn't Darnold. Sadly for me, it was Mayfield over Allen and Darnold. I did not see that coming in the slightest.

Giants take Barkley, Gettleman's picks always tend to be... well telegraphed. Scuttlebutt knew the Panthers were taking McCaffrey in the first last year, and they knew the Giants were taking Curtis Enis... I mean Barkley this year.

Jets nail Darnold, that's pretty much how I expected it to be once he fell past the Browns.

Browns pass on Chubb to grab a defensive back. Now I have Fitzpatrick valued higher than Ward, which explains my selection, but I guess the Browns felt like they'd rather have a pure corner, than a guy who might fit better as a safety.

Broncos scooping up Chubb. They have Keenum and Paxton Lynch, an early QB is not in the cards this year.

Buffalo trading up for a QB, but instead of it being Rosen, it's Josh Allen. Whoops.

Bears take Roquan Smith. Whenever the Bears have been good, they've had a pro bowl / all-pro middle linebacker. Let's see if Roquan can build a similar legacy to Singletary and Urlacher.

San Fran takes a Notre Dame offensive lineman. I slotted in the guard Nelson, but he went earlier than that so they grabbed McGlinchey instead.

Tremaine Edmunds goes 16th overall after a team trades up to get him. I thought it was gonna be the Patriots, but it turns out the Bills had enough capital to make the move, something I didn't think they would have.

Philly trades out of 32 to acquire picks. I got the wrong trade partner, but them fleecing the Ravens is much better than what I had given them.

and what I got wrong is pretty much everything else. As per usual, hahahaha.