- Carolina Panthers
Original Pick; Cam Newton, QB, Auburn
New Pick; Cam Newton, QB, Auburn
No change here. Newton won an MVP with the Panthers, and I can’t see a reason the Panthers wouldn’t want that again.
2. Denver Broncos
Original Pick; Von Miller, OLB, Texas A&M
New Pick; Von Miller, OLB, Texas A&M
Again no change. Without Miller the Broncos never would have made, much less won Super Bowl 50. Miller’s physical presence on the field made him deadly for nearly a decade.
3. Buffalo Bills
Original Pick; Marcel Dareus, DT, Alabama
New Pick; JJ Watt, EDGE, Wisconsin
While Dareus was always a great player for the Bills, it is impossible to pass up a future HOFer in JJ.
4. Cincinnati Bengals
Original Pick; A.J. Green, WR, Georgia
New Pick; Julio Jones, WR, Alabama
Green was an electric playmaker for the Bengals but I think everyone in Cincinnati would prefer Jones.
5. Arizona Cardinals
Original Pick; Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU
New Pick; Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU
The Cardinals hit a grand slam with this pick. Peterson was a lockdown cornerback for the Cardinals. QB’s would throw away from Peterson on purpose.
6. Atlanta Falcons
Original Pick; Julio Jones, WR, Alabama
New Pick; A.J. Green, WR, Georgia
With Jones off the board already the Falcons take the next best player in Green. While Green didn’t have the size of Jones he does have the athleticism.
7. San Francisco 49ers
Original Pick; Aldon Smith, EDGE, Missouri
New Pick; Justin Houston, EDGE, Georgia
San Francisco gets an upgrade at the edge position switching from the underwhelming Aldon Smith, to the big and powerful Justin Houston.
8. Tennessee Titans
Original Pick; Jake Locker, QB, Washington
New Pick; Colin Kaepernick, QB, Nevada
Jake Locker never turned out while Kaepernick led the 49ers to a Super Bowl appearance. One of those two clearly turned out better.
9. Dallas Cowboys
Original Pick; Tyron Smith, OT, USC
New Pick; Cameron Jordan, DL, California
While Tyron Smith was a solid offensive lineman, Cam Jordan has been lights out for the Saints. If I was a Cowboys fan I’d want to see the defensive dominance of Jordan on full display in a Cowboys uniform.
10. Jacksonville Jaguars
Original Pick; Blaine Gabbert, QB, Missouri
New Pick; Tyron Smith, OT, USC
Why draft a quarterback if you can’t protect him. Smith would help solve the Jaguars decade long search for offensive line consistency.
11. Houston Texans
Original Pick; J.J. Watt, EDGE, Wisconsin
New Pick; Ryan Kerrigan, EDGE, Purdue
With Watt already gone the Texans turn to one of the best defensive lineman’s to ever play for Washington.
12. Minnesota Vikings
Original Pick; Christian Ponder, QB, Florida State
New Pick; Jurrell Casey, DT, USC
Christian Ponder’s NFL career screams the word bust. Casey was a phenomenal player with good speed for such a big guy.
13. Detroit Lions
Original Pick; Nick Fairley, DT, Auburn
New Pick; Marcel Dareus, DT, Alabama
While Dareus was Pro Bowl caliber for three or four seasons, that is way more than Fairley ever put up. I would call that an upgrade.
14. Los Angeles Rams
Original Pick; Robert Quinn, EDGE, North Carolina
New Pick; Richard Sherman, CB, Stanford
It’s hard to believe that Sherman fell all the way to the fifth round. While Quinn ended up being worthy of a late first round pick, 14th overall is still too early.
15. Miami Dolphins
Original Pick; Mike Pouncey, C, Florida
New Pick; Mike Pouncey, C, Florida
No change here. The Dolphins have always had offensive line inconsistency and Pouncey was always a reliable player.
16. Washington Football Team
Original Pick; Ryan Kerrigan, EDGE, Purdue
New Pick; Andy Dalton, QB, TCU
Washington was in desperate need of a replacement for Rex Grossman. Dalton is a solid starter that will not lose the game for you.
17. New England Patriots
Original Pick; Nate Solder, OT, Colorado
New Pick; Jason Kelce, OL, Cincinnati
Kelce is one of the most consistent lineman in the NFL of the past decade. While Solder was a great lineman, Kelce filled a more immediate hole at guard or center.
18. Los Angeles Chargers
Original Pick; Corey Liuget, DT, Illinois
New Pick; Chris Harris Jr., CB, Kansas
Harris Jr. went undrafted and worked all the way up to Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champion. Much better production than Liuget.
19. New York Giants
Original Pick; Prince Amukamara, CB, Nebraska
New Pick; Cameron Heyward, DL, Ohio State
Heyward is incredibly mobile for a 6′ 5 290 defensive lienman.
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Original Pick; Adrian Clayborn, EDGE, Iowa
New Pick; Nate Solder, OT, Colorado
Solder protected Brady for many seasons and will now get the chance to do it for the legend himself Josh Freeman.
21. Cleveland Browns
Original Pick; Phil Taylor, DT, Baylor
New Pick; Anthony Castonzo, OT, Boston College
Yet another team with an awful offensive line that would benefit from a phenomenal pass and run blocker.
22. Indianapolis Colts
Original Pick; Anthony Castonzo, OT, Boston College
New Pick; Mark Ingram ll, RB, Alabama
Just picture this, veteran Peyton Manning throwing to Reggie Wayne and Pierre Garcon and having the option of Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram in the backfield. Deadly.
23. Philadelphia Eagles
Original Pick; Danny Watkins, IOL, Baylor
New Pick; Doug Baldwin, WR, Stanford
Adding a third option to the DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin duo would make the Eagles offense nearly unstoppable.
24. New Orleans Saints
Original Pick; Cameron Jordan, EDGE, California
New Pick; Marcus Cannon, OT, TCU
With Jordan off the board the Saints turn to the other side of the trenches and pick up a huge tackle in Cannon.
25. Seattle Seahawks
Original Pick; James Carpenter, OT, Alabama
New Pick; Marcus Gilbert, OT, Florida
The Seahawks take the better tackle in Gilbert with their second chance.
26. Kansas City Chiefs
Original Pick; Jonathan Baldwin, WR, Pittsburgh
New Pick; Rodney Hudson, IOL, Florida State
Offensive line help is something that any NFL team would not turn down.
27. Baltimore Ravens
Original Pick; Jimmy Smith, CB, Colorado
New Pick; Robert Quinn, EDGE, North Carolina
Like I said earlier, Quinn is worthy of a late first round pick with his signature speed rush.
28. New Orleans Saints
Original Pick; Mark Ingram ll, RB, Alabama
New Pick; K.J. Wright, LB, Mississippi State
Wright was a hard hitting linebacker out of the SEC that thrived with the rest of the Seahawks defense. I would like to see if he would bring the same intensity to the Saints.
29. Chicago Bears
Original Pick; Gabe Carimi, OT, Wisconsin
New Pick; Torrey Smith, WR, Maryland
This Bears team would benefit greatly from a playmaker like Smith.
30. New York Jets
Original Pick; Muhammad Wilkinson, EDGE, Temple
New Pick; Randall Cobb, WR, Kentucky
Yet another playmaker off the board in Cobb. It would be interesting to see of his production would have been the same with the Jets.
31. Pittsburgh Steelers
Original Pick; Cameron Heyward, DL, Ohio State
New Pick; Jimmy Smith, CB, Colorado
The Steelers needed man coverage help way back in 2011 and Smith would have filled that hole well.
32. Green Bay Packers
Original Pick; Derek Sherrod, OT, Mississippi State
New Pick; Muhammad Wilkinson, EDGE, Temple
The reigning Super Bowl champions take a player that was big and speedy but couldn’t stay away from trouble. Maybe being on a better team would change that.