This is exactly how the draft will play out.
1. Indianapolis Colts – Andrew Luck, QB, Stanford.
2. Washington Redskins – Robert Griffin III, QB, Baylor.
3. Minnesota Vikings – Morris Claiborne, CB, LSU. The Vikings think they’re drafting the next Champ Bailey.
4. Cleveland Browns – Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama. The Browns replace Peyton Hillis with the best running back prospect since Adrian Peterson.
5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Stephon Gilmore, CB, South Carolina. The Bucs think they’re drafting the next Charles Woodson.
6. St. Louis Rams – Fletcher Cox, DT, Mississippi St. The Rams avoid The Blackmon Mistake and wisely choose to wait until the second round to draft a wide receiver.
7. Kansas City Chiefs (third and fourth round picks to the Jaguars) – Ryan Tannehill, QB, Texas A&M. The Chiefs trade up to grab Tannehill before the Dolphins can.
8. Miami Dolphins – Quinton Coples, DE, North Carolina. Flabbergasted that Tannehill’s off the board, the Dolphins gamble on the boom or bust defensive lineman because that’s something they would do.
9. Carolina Panthers – Michael Floyd, WR, Notre Dame. The Panthers want a wide receiver to complement Steve Smith and they feel Floyd’s a better fit than Blackmon.
10. Buffalo Bills – Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma St. The Bills are the team that makes the Blackmon Mistake.
11. Jacksonville Jaguars – Stephen Hill, WR, Georgia Tech. After they make the pick, the Jaguars announce Hill was the No. 1 receiver on their draft board all along, and they are very pleased with themselves.
12. Seattle Seahawks – Melvin Ingram, DE/OLB, South Carolina. The Seahawks think they’ve picked the best pass rusher in the draft.
13. Arizona Cardinals – Matt Kalil, OT, USC. The Cardinals think they’ve drafted the best left tackle prospect in a few years.
14. Dallas Cowboys – Mark Barron, S, Alabama. The Cowboys have needed a good safety for forever.
15. Philadelphia Eagles – Janoris Jenkins, CB, North Alabama. The Eagles are trying to trade Asante Samuel, so they’ll replace him with Jenkins, a worthy replacement.
16. New York Jets – Courtney Upshaw, DE/OLB, Alabama. The Jets think they’ve drafted the next LaMarr Woodley.
17. Cincinnati Bengals – David DeCastro, OG, Stanford. The Bengals want a power running attack so they draft the next Steve Hutchinson.
18. San Diego Chargers – Cordy Glenn, OG, Georgia. The Chargers draft Glenn to replace the retired Kris Dielman.
19. Chicago Bears – Chandler Jones, DE, Syracuse. They’d like a wide receiver, but they can’t pass up the opportunity to pair Jones with Julius Peppers on the defensive line.
20. Tennessee Titans – Whitney Mercilus, DE, Illinois. The Titans draft another pass rusher to complement Kamerion Wimbley.
21. Cincinnati Bengals – Dre Kirkpatrick, CB, Alabama. The Bengals like big cornerbacks and they need another one.
22. Cleveland Browns – Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor. The Browns make The Kendall Wright Mistake because Coby Fleener isn’t a good enough blocker for them.
23. Detroit Lions – Brandon Boykin, CB, Georgia. The Lions need a cornerback as desperately as the Vikings do, so they draft the best one available.
24. 49ers (fourth rounder and Delanie Walker to the Steelers) – Coby Fleener, TE, Stanford. The Steelers really want a guard, so they trade down. The Niners need another playmaker so they trade up six spots for Fleener, and it only costs them a fourth rounder and Walker, who would lose major playing time to Fleener anyway.
25. Denver Broncos – Michael Brockers, DT, LSU. Stunned they can’t get Fleener, the Broncos go with Plan B – defensive tackle.
26. Houston Texans – Riley Reiff, OT, Iowa. The Texans think they’ve drafted the perfect offensive tackle for their zone blocking scheme.
27. New England Patriots – Shea McClellin, DE/OLB, Boise St. The Patriots feel they’ve drafted the best pass rusher available.
28. Green Bay Packers – Andre Branch, DE/OLB, Clemson. With McClellin off the board, the Packers feel they’ve drafted the best pass rusher available.
29. Baltimore Ravens – Kevin Zeitler, OG, Wisconsin. The Ravens have enough firepower on offense and defense, so they replace OG Ben Grubbs with Zeitler.
30. Pittsburgh Steelers – Amini Silatolu, OG, Midwestern St. The Steelers have needs at offensive line and inside linebacker. Reluctant to spend a first rounder on an inside linebacker, Pittsburgh takes the guard.
31. New England Patriots – Kendall Reyes, DT, Connecticut. The Patriots have only one good player on their defensive line – Vincent Wilfork. Now with the addition of Reyes, they think they have two.
32. New York Giants – Mike Adams, OT, Ohio St. The Giants hope Adams can start at right tackle from Day 1.
The rest of the Niners picks:
2nd round: Casey Hayward, CB/S, Vanderbilt. Replacement for Reggie Smith at third safety/dime back.
3rd round: Brandon Washington, G, Miami. Competition for Daniel Kilgore at right guard.
5th round: Jarius Wright, WR, Arkansas. Competition/replacement for Kyle Williams.
6th round: Greg Childs, WR, Arkansas. Insurance/replacement for Randy Moss.
7th round: Marc Tyler, RB, USC. Competition for Anthony Dixon and Brandon Jacobs at third-string running back.
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