This is a mock draft I wrote some time ago. It's a little bit outdated and a lot of things have happened since I wrote it (e.g., Jeremy Maclin signing, Foles-Bradford trade), but I hope you'll enjoy reading it. 
1: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Pick: Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon

No-brainer here. The first pick can’t possibly not be Mariota.

2: Tennessee Titans

Pick: Leonard Williams, DE, USC

A lot of people project Winston landing here, but the Titans are confident in Mettenberger and so am I. Williams is an explosive defensive lineman for a team that already has a few offensive pieces.

3: Jacksonville Jaguars

Pick: Randy Gregory, DE, Nebraska

He would be the perfect all-star lineman to anchor an already fierce front seven. The offense needs no help and appears to be up on its feet. After adding Gregory, this team could get real scary, real fast. 

4: Oakland Raiders

Pick: Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama

Okay, this team has FIRE. I mean it. They’re winners. The Heisman runner-up would be one more explosive target to go with Latavius Murray and Mychal Rivera. He is crazy fast, has hands like steel traps, and Derek Carr would love throwing to him. Could the Raiders make the playoffs?

5: Washington Redskins

Pick: Shane Ray, DE, Missouri

You’re probably getting sick of defensive ends. But who do you expect the Redskins to draft? A quarterback? (Wait a second, don’t answer that).

6: New York Jets

Pick: Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State

After five good picks, we arrive at the bust. (Every draft has one. Get used to it). This pick is a real paradox for the Jets. They can take a mega chance and pick Winston. Or, they can fail to address their biggest handicap by very, very far. In other words, take a chance on Geno Smith. The odds are stacked against them, either way. Winston is smarter than past QB busts, however, giving him a better chance of not busting.













7: Chicago Bears

Pick: Dante Fowler, LB, Florida

The Bears need a linebacker or pass rusher, and Fowler is both. Who knows, he might just make this defense good.

8: Atlanta Falcons

Pick: Malcolm Brown, DT, Texas

Very underrated pass rusher. That’s how it goes when you’re on a losing team. (No offense, Longhorns). Maybe I just rate him high because he’s from my favorite college, but the Falcons desperately need a pass rusher.

9: New York Giants

Pick: Vic Beasley, LB, Clemson

Couldn’t the Giants be any worse on defense? I mean, I’m sure they could if they tried. They need basically everything, and linebacker is a good place to start.

10: St. Louis Rams

Pick: Brett Hundley, QB, UCLA

Why are you looking at me funny? I mean, seriously. What else do the Rams need? If they had a good (sit down, Shaun Hill) quarterback who could stay healthy (you too, Sam Bradford), they could win the Super Bowl. And who cares if UCLA had a down year? Brett Hundley was the only good player on the team this year. 

11: Minnesota Vikings

Pick: DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville

This pick is perfect. Parker was Teddy Bridgewater’s favorite target in college. His only receivers now are Greg Jennings and Cordarrelle Patterson. Needless to say, they can’t win with an offense like that. 

12: Cleveland Browns

Pick: Kevin White, WR, West Virginia

This pick marks a lot of firsts. The first time the Browns pick a non-quarterback, the first time they pick a non-bust, and the first time anybody picks anybody from West Virginia. Their receiver situation is okay, but White is just too good to pass up and a total steal at number 12.  

13: New Orleans Saints

Pick: Brandon Scherff, OT, Iowa

Best player available. The Aints must start protecting Brees.




14: Miami Dolphins

Pick: Trae Waynes, CB, Michigan State

Well, the Dolphins need work on their Duct-taped secondary. The Ravens and their Scotch-taped secondary must be so mad at the Dolphins now. But I like making them mad.

15: San Francisco 49ers

Pick: Ereck Flowers, OT, Miami

Without Mike Iupati, their offensive line will look like the 48ers. And it was the only good thing about their team last year. So they draft Flowers and become the 53ers.

16: Houston Texans

Pick: Andrus Peat, OT, Stanford

Okay, this is pretty obvious. It’s kind of weird Peat fell this far. And they’ll need more offensive linemen in case anyone gets hurt trying to save Ryan Mallett from GigaWatt and Clowney in training camp. (I must admit, Garrett Grayson is rather tempting here…)

17: San Diego Chargers

Pick: Danny Shelton, DE, Washington

Two words: HUGE STEAL.

18: Kansas City Chiefs

Pick: Devin Smith, WR, Ohio State

This was KC’s problem last year: During his suspension, Dwayne Bowe had an innovative surgery transplant for his two broken hands. The hospital was out of hands so they replaced his hands with feet. Many sportscasters claim that Bowelegs was attempting to catch a ball with what were, in fact, hands. But I saw what I saw. 

19: Cleveland Browns (via Buffalo)

Pick: Arik Armstead, DE, Oregon

Two more words: HUGER STEAL.

(Side note: Poor Buffs. They would have loved to take Grayson here.)

20: Philadelphia Eagles

Pick: Byron Jones, CB, UConn

Jones just blew away the broad jump record. This pick also explains the Ozzie-Newsome’s-head-shaped crack in the Ravens war room.







21: Cincinnati Bengals

Pick: Eddie Goldman, DT, Miami

Best player available. Pretty much all I have to say about this pick.

22: Pittsburgh Steelers

Pick: Landon Collins, S, Alabama

This offseason, the Steelers have one question to answer: Is Troy Polamalu worth the money? I doubt it. Collins would fit well into the Steelers defensive scheme, although the fan base might not like this.

23: Detroit Lions

Pick: Melvin Gordon, RB, Wisconsin

This will definitely be a pick that everybody talks about. Ndamukong Suh will probably be resigned. Nick Fairley may have to go. Reggie Bush has been cut. So who do they call to rescue their ground game? The injury-plagued Heisman runner-up from Wisconsin. Imagine him as part of a high-octane Lions offense. This is pretty exciting for Detroit.

24: Arizona Cardinals

Pick: Jordan Phillips, DT, Oklahoma

It’s the old best-player-available thing again. But it would be cool to see Grayson go here. Palmer will either retire or be cut. But I like Logan Thomas so far. Let’s stick with defense for now. 

25: Carolina Panthers

Pick: La’el Collins, OT, LSU

Wow. Here is the second biggest steal of the draft. A lot of people have Collins going in the top ten. I don’t see that happening, but this is a steal.

26: Baltimore Ravens

Pick: Marcus Peters, CB, Washington

At last, the Wizard of Ozzie picks a defensive back. This is a steal, but I hope it is a bust. I so want that Scotch-taped secondary to fall apart.

27: Dallas Cowboys

Pick: Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia

It comes down to Dez Bryant or DeMarco Murray this offseason. For now, I’m going with Bryant. Todd is a great running back that may soon fill Murray’s shoes. My only concern is that in Breast Cancer Month, when those shoes are pink, he might complain that they’re too Gurley.







28: Denver Broncos 

Pick: Cedric Ogbuehi, OT, Texas A&M

Biggest steal of the whole draft, right here. He would’ve been the first or second pick if he hadn’t torn his ACL. It is actually good for him that he did that, because now he gets to play with the annual-contender Denver Broncos instead of the pathetic Tennessee Titans. The Broncos are going to revamp their offensive line, and it will look like this: Ryan Clady, Louis Vasquez, Matt Paradis, Ben Garland, Ogbuehi. AWESOME!!!

29: Indianapolis Colts

Pick: T.J. Clemmings, OT, Pittsburgh

Hey, why not? He has potential and is the BPA (best player available).

30: Green Bay Packers

Pick: Jaelen Strong, WR, Arizona State

Somebody has to fill Randall Cobb’s shoes. Who better than Strong?

31: Seattle Seahawks

Pick: Denzel Perryman, LB, Miami

They should probably move him to a position of need. He is athletic enough to perform at a different spot.

32: New England Patriots

Pick: Bernardrick McKinney, LB, Mississippi State

One word: BPA.

What's with all this Jameis Winston baloney?
Isn't it obvious that the draft's best prospect this year is Marcus Mariota? Yet everybody says that if they were the Buccaneers GM, they would pick Winston over Mariota. This seems foreign to me. I believe that the Oregon product will be the undisputed greatest player from his draft class. And I have proof.
First and foremost, his brain. His football IQ is even greater than Winston's, but he's smart enough to not get himself into trouble. (cough Jameis cough coughston cough cough cough). And he has a leadership mindset-in other words, the ability to command a team, to be a field general.
Then, there is his athleticism. He's tall, and very strong, and can run. Yep, he can run! Imagine Peyton Manning, in his prime, plus the ability to run. And I don't mean just run. He can run like the receivers he's throwing to. Not to mention his arm, which is every bit as strong as Manning's. I don't honestly think anyone can break Manning's records, but if someone can, here he is. 
There is one final score I must settle. People are afraid that he's not a pocket passer. They think he runs too much. Well, what about Fran Tarkenton? What about John Elway? What about Michael Vick? What about Colin Kaepernick? What about Russell Wilson? What about Andrew Luck? You recognize those names? They all ran-and run-a lot, some of them more than he does. The runs-too-much argument is hereby nullified.
If your number one pick is still Jameis Winston, start over and read this whole thing again-word for word. Then Google Mariota's stats and highlights. You'll arrive at the same conclusion I have-that Marcus Mariota is a winner no matter how you paint it. Combine all these awesome skills with a kind, friendly man, and you have a first-ballot Hall of Famer.