The WAY WAY WAY too early 2016 mock draft

[benchmobbin02]

Waiting for the preseason game to start and crediting Quake for getting the ball rolling, I put together an early prediction of our 2016 draft selections. This Mock takes into account our draft needs as S LB WR DE G RB WR. I have us winning between 5-8 games giving us between pick #6-12.


1st rd pick - S - Jalen Ramsey S FSU 6'1" 201 Ramsey is a play maker on defense. He can be another anchor along with Mack. He has the size and aggressiveness to play safety and the instincts and speed to play corner in KNJ's defense.

Safety position - Woodson, Asante and Ross are UFA after this year. Allen, J. Dowling and T. McDonald are signed thru 2018 or 19. I don't know that Allen or Dowling are the answer at FS and Allen can be let go in the offseason with no dead money if he doesn't produce. I can see us going after a SS in FA like Sean Richardson GB (planted the seeds this yr), Robert Blanton MIN or Jaiquawn Jarrett NYJ.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rL4MplOj2IU[/youtube]


2nd rd pick - OLB - Su'a Cravens OLB USC 6'1" 225 With added size he will be in the mix to start weakside LB. Aggressive and always around the ball. A USC LB/S that flys around the field.

LB position - The state of our LB position is not as rosy as we thought going into the offseason. Mack is still a potential generational player but he will split time at DE and strong side this year. Sio Moore had the skill set needed to start last year til injury derailed his progress. Now he is 50-60% healthy. Malcom Smith has shown some life at Will and KNJ hopes he can be the answer long term. Ray Ray Armstrong is athletic but undisciplined. He and Ball need more seasoning from KNJ and JDR. We look good at MLB with Lofton and Heeney capitalizing on strong interior lineman play. Max Valles is looks like a pass rush specialist in the making. FA options are Nick Perry GB (Reggie connection), Bruce Irvin + Michael Morgan SEA(KNJ connection), Shea McClellin Chi, Vincent Rey and Emmanuel Lamur Cin and Kyle Wilber DAL are all available in 16.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vd8LI7LRiMU[/youtube]


3rd rd pick - WR - MARQUEZ NORTH WR TENN 6'4" 224 Big body WR that would compliment Cooper on the other side and give Carr two great pass catchers. Looking to bounce back after minor injuries last year.

WR position - Cooper is our anchor at Wr for years to come but we're gonna need more hands to catch balls from Carr. Crab, Streater, Holmes, Thomkins, Durham and Roberts are all FAs next yr. Will any of them produce and be resigned? Butler, Harper and DeBose are the young guys with promise but can they step up? A lot of questions to answer. Look for us to target Wr in FA as well. Brian Quick STL, Jarrett Boykin GB, Mohamed Sanu + Marvin Jones Cin, Rueben Randle NYG, Travis Benjamin CLE, Keshawn Martin HOU and Rishard Matthews Mia are all guys looking to have nice years to capitalize on FA in 2016 and be a #1-2 WR. Any could be targeted.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNfFuohwaKI[/youtube]


4th rd pick - Shaq Lawson DE Clemson - 6'3" 270 Was stuck behind 3 senior last year but still looked explosive in limited snaps. Has the body and balance to play all 3 downs. Would compete with Edwards and Wilson to start opposite Mack if no one is brought in or Tuck isn't resigned.

DE position - 2nd rd pick Edwards and CJ Wilson are both signed (thru 2019 and 2017 respectively) and Mack is splitting time at SAM LB and RDE. Tuck, Mayowa, Harris and Autry are FAs. We need bodies. Mayowa could be resigned with a good showing this year and FAs to target are Olivier Vernon MiA, Jared Crick HOU and Derek Wolfe DEN. Keep an eye on Tuck signing a short deal and Reggie making a move to bring in JPP after his troubles this offseason. If the Gmen aren't able to get long term deal done during the year. The Raider have the cap space and the need for a dominate DE across from Mack.Think of a front 7 of JPP D Williams Jelly Edwards Mack Lofton and whoever wins weakside.



5th rd pick - Denver Kirkland G/T - Ark - 6'5" 340 - Moving from RG to LT this year and hoping to impress. Huge Man! Mauler that only gave up one sack last year and absolutely stream rolls in the run game. Drafting for depth and could be the Man at LT when Penn is gone.

OFF Line position- Hoping Penn resigns we will have Penn at LT, Jackson at LG, Hudson at C, Howard Watson and Morris at RT or reserve T or RG, Feliciano at RG or reserve G under contract. Oline looking more stable after years of moving pieces.


6th rd pick - Shock Linwood RB BAY - 5'8" 200 The Mighty Mouse type and shifty back had 251 carries for 1,252 yards and 16 touchdowns (4.99 yards per carry) last year and has a veteran offensive line returning this fall. Set to breakout this yr in a spread offense where he can get in space. Change of pace guy for Murray.

RB position - Murray Helu Jones RIchardson and Dyer are all signed next yr. That doesn't mean they will all survive that long. None have significant money guaranteed after this year. we could very well revamp the RB position totally if it does produce this year. Not much in FA. Matt Forte CHI, Doug Martin TB, Alfred Morris WAS, Lamar Miller MIA and Kendall Hunter SF all out there.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWurB5_hDMU[/youtube]


7th rd pick - Braxton Miller WR/TE/H-Back/QB/give him the ball and block. 6'2" 215 No one knows what he will do or where he will lineup this year for Ohio St and there is no guarantee what he does this year will be how he is used in the NFL. One thing is for sure he can make things happen.

Hard to predict what we will need or who can help this late in the draft but adding a play maker like Miller can't hurt with so many questions and slots to fill at RB and WR respectively.

[FNQ]

Hard to evaluate at this stage, but I will say this: I think its much easier to find a S in FA than it is to find an edge rusher, and I believe that has to be our #1 priority going into next year. I also tend to think that Mack is going to be a DE a lot this year. I dont recall seeing one of his snaps yet where he wasn't at DE. Putting another big-time talent near Mack would likely open up that player and Mack's games in one swoop..

We definitely need help at S, Will, DE, and possibly Sam going into next year, as well as CB. But the amount of gaping holes we have on our roster are dwindling fast.

[benchmobbin02]

Yup that is why I addressed all of those spots in my mock and listed them as areas of need. With JPP, Crick and Irvin, pass rusher is deeper this year with real playmakers than safety. We have been running with Mack on the end most of the time but he has stood up and dropped into coverage at time when we have our nickel in the game or we are running hybrid 3-4. Ofcourse we are looking for more playmakers up front but with Allen Dowling Mcdonald to hold down the position I think a blue chip safety in the 1st rd is more likely. We just drafted a DE in the top 2 and grabbed 3 lbs before we addressed safety and that guy may not even make the practice squad.

[FNQ]

We'll see where Mack winds up. If preseason is any indication, he will not be dropping into coverage much at all (1 time out of 40 snaps thus far)

As for how the draft looks, I'll take your word for now that S are more shallow than edge rushers, but having a premier edge rusher to pair with Mack (be it at DE or Sam) would make both of them pretty good. Maybe Mario can be that guy, but he seems to be more of a prospect right now.

[benchmobbin02]

Yup, I agree that Mack will mostly be rushing the passer this yr but will drop back at times as well. I have hope that Mario will develop but it is more likely that we sign a Pass rusher with Tuck Mayowa and Autry all free agents. I think we could see Reggie spend some money on a premier player or at least try to. bringing in JPP would be so nice (depending on how his situation play out this year. But Crick and Irvin arent half bad either. Also Cravens and Shaq Lawson would add to the pass rush. I know this is all just hopes and what if's but it's nice to look ahead.