Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields appear destined for the Jets and Jaguars, respectively. After that, things get interesting. This week, the Bengals take the best player in the draft who doesn't play quarterback -- and he'll immediately make life easier for Joe Burrow in 2020.
Washington, New England and Chicago are also in the first-round quarterback business while we see wide receivers go off the board with four straight selections. And with the 32nd pick the Steelers take ... a running back, the first time they've done so in Round 1 since 2008 when they grabbed Rashard Mendenhall.
OK, let's get to all the picks. Just a reminder, the draft order is based on the team record, strength of schedule and the subsequent tiebreakers.
NFL Mock Draft
Round 1
Round 1 - Pick 1
The Jets only lost by eight points on Sunday to the Chargers and we feel like that's as close as they'll get to a win this season. We can't imagine Trevor Lawrence doesn't end up in New York.
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Round 1 - Pick 2
We've had Fields going to Jacksonville in each of the last six weeks. If the Jags have the No. 2 pick, Fields sure seems like the guy.
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Round 1 - Pick 3
Joe Burrow suffered a season-ending knee injury, which reinforced the idea that Cincy has to protect the future of their franchise. The team should draft several O-linemen this spring because Burrow took a lot of hits as a rookie.
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Round 1 - Pick 4
The Cowboys season clearly hasn't gone as expected and much of that can be traced to a ton of injuries, starting with Dak Prescott. Still, the team is right in the mix to win the NFC East and this defense has shown signs of life in recent weeks. That said, the pass rush needs to get better and Paye, who has improved greatly from last season, is a freak athlete and legit first-round talent.
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Round 1 - Pick 5
Wilson has been electric this season for BYU and it's clear that Dwayne Haskins isn't in Ron Rivera's plans going forward.
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Round 1 - Pick 6
Only cornerbacks Casey Hewyard and Chris Harris are under contract after the 2021 season and adding Surtain would give the Chargers another young, physical playmaker on a defense that has to play with more consistency.
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Round 1 - Pick 7
The Giants have needs along the offensive line but the defense could use some upgrades too. Micah Parsons has opted out of the 2020 season but he's the No. 1 LB in this class.
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 From
Houston Texans
Round 1 - Pick 8
Tua hasn't set the league on fire like Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert did over the first half of the season but maybe if the Dolphins surround him with more playmakers it will hasten his development. Chase opted out of the 2020 season but he was the second-best player on the 2019 undefeated LSU team that featured Burrow and won the national title.
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Round 1 - Pick 9
The Falcons cut Takk McKinley, their 2017 first-round pick, which only magnified their need at pass rusher. Rosseau has opted out for 2020 but his breakout 2019 campaign led to 15.5 sacks.
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Round 1 - Pick 10
Donte Jackson and Rasul Douglas have been solid in coverage at times this season but Jackson will be a free agent after 2021 and Douglas hits free agency in the spring. And Caleb Farley, a former WR, has big-play potential.
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Round 1 - Pick 11
The Lions have a lot of needs, and yes they drafted Jeffrey Okudah third overall in the spring. Okudah has been inconsistent at times this season (we're still confident he's going to be really good) but regardless, Detroit still needs to add depth in the secondary. Horn had a strong 2020 campaign before he decided to opt out earlier this month.
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Round 1 - Pick 12
Jones is legit. He's proven it week in and week out for Alabama, and he did it again on Saturday against Tennessee without Jaylen Waddle. Jones has been a lethal deep-ball passer this season and he always makes good decisions with the ball. It's probably fair to say that the Patriots won't be signing Cam Newton to a long-term deal all the while Jones is generating some buzz around the league.
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Round 1 - Pick 13
The Vikings have needs along the interior offensive line and Slater, who was dominant at left tackle last season -- and he played right tackle the two seasons before that -- has the versatility to line up anywhere. In fact, his future may be inside at guard.
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Round 1 - Pick 14
The 49ers have five cornerbacks headed for unrestricted free agency (including Richard Sherman and Jason Verrett) and two more as exclusive rights free agents. Campbell is an intriguing height/weight/speed guy whom NFL teams will be watching closely this fall.
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Round 1 - Pick 15
Ossai has been dominant for the Longhorns and he'd provide Bradley Chubb, who has had to go it alone without injured Von Miller, some much needed depth on the other side.
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Round 1 - Pick 16
The Mitchell Trubisky experiment has run its course and Nick Foles looks nothing like the guy who led the Eagles to the Super Bowl. Put another way: Foles also isn't a long-term answer. Meanwhile, Lance is short on experience but long on just about everything else you look for in an NFL quarterback, but he'll need time to grow into the starting role.
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Round 1 - Pick 17
Ereck Flowers has been much improved after moving inside to guard but Wyatt Davis is the best interior lineman in this class.
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Round 1 - Pick 18
The Ravens offense obviously runs through Lamar Jackson, but he's much more effective when he has playmaking tight ends to target. Mark Andrews remains a touchdown machine but Nick Boyle is injured, Hayden Hurst was traded and the wideouts have yet to produce consistently. Pitts is Darren Waller 2.0 and can take over games.
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Round 1 - Pick 19
Owusu-Koramoah is listed as a linebacker but you can find him all over the field. He's having a great 2020 campaign and he can come off the edge and has the athleticism, speed and change of direction to be an asset in coverage.
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Round 1 - Pick 20
Patrick Peterson, Dre Kirkpatrick and Johnathan Joseph are in the final year of their current deals, and Kendrick, who is still learning the position, has been a standout on the Tigers defense through the first half of the ACC calendar.
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Round 1 - Pick 21
The Raiders have struggled to get to the quarterback this season and Oweh is an athletic marvel who is only going to get better.
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 From
Los Angeles Rams
Round 1 - Pick 22
The Jags have needs everywhere but why not give new QB Justin Fields a home run threat like Waddle, who is also a dangerous return man too.
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Round 1 - Pick 23
TY Hilton is 30 years old and in the final year of his contract. Smith, meanwhile, is one of the best wide receivers in this draft class and if he weighed 12-20 pounds more he'd probably work his way into the top 10.
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Round 1 - Pick 24
Odell Beckham Jr. was lost for the season to an ACL injury and while Jarvis Landry remains a really good target, Moore is electric. We were reminded of that last week when he made his 2020 debut against Minnesota and looked every bit the first-round talent.
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 From
Seattle Seahawks
Round 1 - Pick 25
If Trevor Lawrence is the Jets future he'll need some weapons. Rashod Bateman needs to continue to prove that he can consistently win at the line of scrimmage. He put a lot of first-round reps on tape last season and he's a really good player who looks like an NFL wideout.
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Round 1 - Pick 26
Not surprisingly, 2019 first-rounder Jeffrey Simmons has been really good to start the season but he use some help on the interior. Barmore, who flashed often this season, was a part-time player a year ago and has the type of potential that could see him work his way into the first-round conversation.
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Round 1 - Pick 27
Injured Vita Vea will be back in 2021 but there won't be much depth behind him and adding an interior presence like Tufele will only make an already young and physical defense even more so.
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Round 1 - Pick 28
Stokes plays opposite Tyson Campbell at Georgia. Both players are tall, long cornerbacks with lockdown traits and both cornerbacks could end up going in Round 1.
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Round 1 - Pick 29
Marshall played in the shadow of Ja'Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson a year ago but he's a legit prospect. He already has 38 receptions and nine touchdowns in six games, and he's averaging 15.7 yards per catch. Imagine Rodgers having Davante Adams and Marshall on the field at the same time.
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Round 1 - Pick 30
The Chiefs have very few holes on offense but Kelechi Osemele is an unrestricted free agent after the season and Andrew Wylie will be a restricted free agent. Vera-Tucker, who is playing tackle this season for USC, excelled inside at guard the previous two seasons.
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Round 1 - Pick 31
Moses has been tentative at times this season as he recovers from an ACL injury that kept him on the sidelines for 2019. But when he returns to form he's one of the best defensive players in this class.
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Round 1 - Pick 32
Will the Steelers take a RB here? Probably not. And sure, we could just pencil in an offensive tackle here (which we've done the last three weeks) or mix it up and give them a playmaker in the backfield, especially if they don't re-up James Conner. Etienne is a special talent who can also contribute as a receiver out of the backfield.
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