Earlier this week, CBS Sports NFL insider Jason La Canfora sized up the quarterback landscape with free agency just days away to lay out how he and his source believe things will shake out. I've built those projections into the mock draft you'll find below.
That means: the Panthers (Teddy Bridgewater), Raiders (Cam Newton) and Titans (Ryan Tannehill) will likely consider themselves out of the first-round QB market with potential long-term options in tow; the Buccaneers (Philip Rivers), Patriots (Tom Brady) and Saints (Drew Brees) could be in play for a franchise QB with an eye toward the next 2-3 years; and the Bengals, Dolphins, Chargers, Colts will have high interest in drafting a quarterback, with the Jaguars lingering as a potential fit as well.
How can the NFC East teams improve through the draft? Ryan Wilson and Josh Edwards join host Will Brinson to answer that question and much more on Mock Draft Monday! Listen below and be sure to subscribe here for daily NFL goodness.
And now, let's get to the picks.
NFL Mock Draft
Round 1
Round 1 - Pick 1
Nothing changes at the top, and it seems unlikely the Bengals would even entertain trade offers. Burrow is the highest rated quarterback prospect in several years according to many analysts.
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Round 1 - Pick 2
The Redskins land a star to build the defense around for the new regime. Young has an even higher upside than last year's No. 2 pick, Nick Bosa.
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Mock Trade from
Detroit Lions
Round 1 - Pick 3
All the reports on Tagovailoa appear to be positive so far, but there's no way of knowing what's going on behind the scenes. Here, the Dolphins are satisfied with his health and part with No. 39 to move up two spots.
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Round 1 - Pick 4
After Wirfs blew the combine out of the water with his testing, he appears the favorite to be the first tackle off the board. His versatility should allow the team to start him at right tackle and plan to kick him to the blind side eventually, or inside to guard if he disappoints on the outside.
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Mock Trade from
Miami Dolphins
Round 1 - Pick 5
The Lions move down two spots, pick up the No. 39 overall pick and still land the guy many expect them to take at No. 3. Okudah can come in and immediately stabilize a secondary in flux.
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Round 1 - Pick 6
The Chargers might be fine moving forward with Tyrod Taylor as their QB of the present, but if they are high on either Love or Justin Herbert, landing a franchise QB here will be too tempting to pass up to address other needs.
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Mock Trade from
Carolina Panthers
Round 1 - Pick 7
Compared often to Derwin James for his versatility and break-the-mold profile, Simmons could also fall further than he should based on GMs finding it easier to envision how other top prospects fit onto their rosters. That means someone is going to get a steal, and like in my last mock, I have the Raiders packing No. 12 and 80 to move up for the chess piece.
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Mock Trade from
Arizona Cardinals
Round 1 - Pick 8
With the Jaguars as a possible QB team at No. 9 and the Bucs lurking as a potential trade-up team after fixing the position in the short term with Philip Rivers, the Colts get aggressive, giving up No. 13 and 44 while also getting back a fourth-rounder.
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Round 1 - Pick 9
With two teams trading ahead of them, the Jaguars are able to sit back and let the best interior defensive lineman in the draft fall into their laps. If one of the top four QBs is on the clock when they pick, it'll be interesting to see if they go that route.
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Round 1 - Pick 10
If four QBs do in fact get drafted before No. 10, the Browns should be in an excellent position to land much needed offensive line help. Wills' experience on the right side will also help should the team add a veteran left tackle in free agency or trade.
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Round 1 - Pick 11
The Jets are well-positioned to land one of the top four tackles in this class, and here they pick up the surprisingly athletic Becton after his ridiculous 40-yard dash at the combine.
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Mock Trade from
Las Vegas Raiders
Round 1 - Pick 12
The Panthers move down, pick up an extra Day 2 pick for the new regime and then draft the second-best edge rusher in this class. I could even see the Panthers looking to move down twice from No. 7 so they can amass several picks to bring in quality talent to remake the roster.
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Mock Trade from
Indianapolis Colts
Round 1 - Pick 13
The Cardinals are able to swap a fourth-rounder for No. 44 by moving down five spots, where they can still land a premier talent at offensive tackle or on the other side of the ball. Here they snap up Kinlaw for the defensive line.
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Mock Trade from
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Round 1 - Pick 14
The depth at receiver in this class has caused the teams in the top 13 to focus on other positions, so when we get to the Bucs and no receivers are off the board, the Eagles package No. 21 with 85 and a fifth-round pick to jump the Broncos for Lamb, who can raise the ceiling of Philly's passing attack.
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Round 1 - Pick 15
The Broncos alleviated some of their corner concerns with the A.J. Bouye trade, and that frees them up to take Javon Kinlaw if he slides this far or a top receiver to add to the passing attack with young QB Drew Lock.
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Mock Trade from
Atlanta Falcons
Round 1 - Pick 16
The Bills follow the Eagles' lead and give up No. 86 to jump for one of the top receivers with the fear of missing out if they sit at No. 22.
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Round 1 - Pick 17
It appears the Cowboys will lose Byron Jones to free agency, and this is a good spot to find a potential replacement. They may even have their pick of cornerbacks outside of top-five pick Jeffrey Okudah.
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From
Pittsburgh Steelers
Round 1 - Pick 18
The Dolphins moved up to land Tua Tagovailoa earlier in this mock, and here they're able to get a tackle to protect his blindside. Thomas was long considered the top tackle in this draft but found himself surpassed by three other names by the combine.
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From
Chicago Bears
Round 1 - Pick 19
The Raiders get sniped for Ruggs, but still land an excellent receiver to build the passing game around in Jefferson, who wowed at the combine to the point where he feels like the next WR off the board after the established top three.
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From
Los Angeles Rams
Round 1 - Pick 20
The Jaguars are facing a talent drain on defense, so they pick up another highly-rated player with their second first-round pick in McKinney, who could help at both corner and safety due to his versatility.
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Mock Trade from
Philadelphia Eagles
Round 1 - Pick 21
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Mock Trade from
Buffalo Bills
Round 1 - Pick 22
The Falcons move down to add a third-round pick, then pass on a defensive lineman after surveying the options to select cornerback help.
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Mock Trade from
New England Patriots
Round 1 - Pick 23
The Packers have a big hole to fill at linebacker, so they package No. 30 and 94 to get here for Murray, who's talented enough to go 10 picks higher.
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Round 1 - Pick 24
With no second-round pick, the Saints pass on receiver here with the plan of taking advantage of the depth at the position later and instead go with the best remaining cornerback in Diggs.
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Round 1 - Pick 25
If Everson Griffen proves too expensive to bring back, the Vikings can find a replacement here with Gross-Matos, who lands with a coach that's pulled the best out of defensive line prospects for years.
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From
Houston Texans
Round 1 - Pick 26
How bad was the Miami run game last year? The Dolphins' leading rusher was Ryan Fitzpatrick. The guy with the most carries averaged just 1.8 yards per rush. While there are other more important positions on the roster, Taylor is a guy who might not be there in Round 2 after his outstanding combine.
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Mock Trade from
Seattle Seahawks
Round 1 - Pick 27
The Seahawks do what they do, striking a first-round trade that involves landing three picks (No. 46, 77, 115) for this one so the Broncos can jump back into the first round for an excellent defensive end prospect who falls further than he should.
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Round 1 - Pick 28
Assuming Matt Judon is retained, the Ravens can look inside at a non-rush linebacker to take Queen, who can start immediately and help stem the expected loss of talented defenders in Baltimore.
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Round 1 - Pick 29
If Jack Conklin leaves for a big payday, the Titans will have to find a replacement. Jones has stood out during the predraft process and may be able to handle a starting role from the jump.
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Mock Trade from
Green Bay Packers
Round 1 - Pick 30
This isn't the biggest need for the Pats, but it's all about the value that comes with taking Delpit this low, and adding an extra Day 2 pick in the trade down.
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Mock Trade from
San Francisco 49ers
Round 1 - Pick 31
With potential fits for Blacklock ahead of them, the Lions sacrifice No. 106 to move up four spots and take the talented defensive tackle after passing on Derrick Brown earlier. The 49ers should be a prime trade-down candidate with their lack of picks.
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Round 1 - Pick 32
The first round ends with a Horned Frog run as the Chiefs snap up the rock solid Gladney to help overcome the expected talent loss at the cornerback position.
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