The blog 'Behind The Steel Curtain' just released their most recent mock draft on Friday. In there, the writer finds one team to be picking a sure thing and two teams to be potentially reaching for players.
Starting off with the No. 5 overall pick, here is the summary for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
No. 5, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Morris Claiborne, CB, LSU
This pick is about as certain as Andrew Luck is to the Colts. The Bucs biggest need by far is at the corner position and the best player available is Morris Claiborne. Claiborne is a lockdown corner who in terms of coverage, is better than Patrick Peterson was coming out of LSU. He has the size, speed, and ability to be a lockdown corner in the NFL on the level of a Revis.
Claiborne is a player that the Bucs could really use on the defensive side. After using free agency to address some of the needs on offense, defense is a big need for them now and putting Claiborne with a veteran secondary member like Ronde Barber is only a good thing.
No. 7, Jacksonville Jaguars, Michael Floyd, WR, Notre Dame
This is where the draft gets tough for me. The Jags are in a terrible spot here being forced to either reach to fill a need or take a player who does not fill a need that is better value. Floyd is their best option here because he fills their biggest need and has the potential to be the best WR in this class.
A decent enough explanation as to why they would draft Floyd here, but wouldn't an offensive lineman like Riley Reiff work out a little better here than a wide receiver? Sure you need to surround Blaine Gabbert with some weapons moving forward, but if he doesn't have protection it won't matter who is lined up on the outside. Still a receiver like Floyd can certainly step in right away and contribute.
No. 8, Miami Dolphins, Ryan Tannehill, QB, Texas A&M
While I don't think Tannehill is worthy of a first round pick, I am trying to be accurate and it is looking more and more likely that the Dolphins will take Ryan at No. 8. The Dolphins forced themselves into this spot because they were unable to get any of the FA QB's to sign with them. Now they will be forced to reach for a QB prospect who is not very good.
Now I'm not fully sold on Tannehill either, but why the negativity? Isn't the whole point of a draft to be pulling talent that you think can lead your team going forward? Tannehill could very well amount to not a whole lot in the NFL, but obviously there is something there that coaches and scouts like in Tannehill and thats why he is starting to shoot up the draft board.
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