NFL Mock Draft 2.0

Luke Kuechly (above) is one of the most intriguing prospects in the 2012 NFL Draft

That's right folks. It's back! For one night only this blog is back and I have caught NFL Draft fever so here is my third mock draft for this Thursday's event from Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan, New York. My first mock is profiled here, and as you can see there are a lot of changes. But, as they say, the more things change, the more they stay the same and you'll also notice a lot hasn't changed at all. Fun to get back into this, and more of this will occur as the school year winds down for me. With that said, let's roll.

1. Indianapolis Colts // Andrew Luck, Quarterback, Stanford

2. Washington Redskins (from St. Louis) // Robert Griffin III, Quarterback, Baylor

3. Minnesota Vikings // Matt Kalil, OL, Southern California - This pick makes too much sense to me. After they swung and missed with Bryant McKinnie earlier in the decade, they have a chance to go safe here with the best tackle prospect since Jake Long in 2008.

4. Cleveland Browns // Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama - Cleveland needs a gamebreaker. Badly. And Trent’s the guy that they should take. QB Ryan Tannehill has been suspected to be the pick here and while that is a move that would be Browns-like, they should take Trent to fill a gaping hole that they have at running back.

5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers // Morris Claiborne, CB, Louisiana State University - Tampa Bay spent a lot of money in the offseason for Carl Nicks, Vincent Jackson, and Eric Wright but still are a team of many needs. Even though they got Eric Wright, Wright isn’t what they need out of a #1 CB. Ronde Barber is returning but his career shouldn’t be going on for too much longer so I see them taking Claiborne and getting a guy who should have gotten a lot more pub than his teammate Tyrann Mathieu.

6. St. Louis Rams (from Washington) // Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State University - If Matt Kalil isn’t taken by the Vikings I expect the Rams to take him but given the mock, I’ll say Blackmon goes here. I think Blackmon’s stats were a bit inflated in college due to the offense he played in but make no mistake he has the strength, size and speed to excel at the next level and will be a great addition for the Rams and finally give Sam Bradford a new toy to play with.

7. Jacksonville Jaguars // Michael Floyd, WR, Notre Dame - The lone Jaguar fan I know says it is unlikely that this occurs, but I don’t see a reason that it shouldn’t. The Jacksonville offense is as anemic as they come and despite the fact that they overpaid for Laurent Robinson and Lee Evans in the offseason, in no way are they top-flight wide receivers. Floyd has the talent to become one and Jacksonville should do SOMETHING about their offense with raw 2nd year QB Blaine Gabbert.

8. Miami Dolphins // Ryan Tannehill, QB, Texas A&M - After striking out with top-flight free agent Peyton Manning, Matt Flynn, and even Alex Smith, the Dolphins have two options: run with Matt Moore, or make a desperate move. While Matt Moore hasn’t been terrible, with former Texas A&M coach Mike Sherman becoming the Dolphins’ offensive coordinator Ryan Tannehill has been speculated to be the pick here. Tannehill is no doubt a raw prospect given that he’s only been playing the QB position for a little over a season, but a desperate team like the Dolphins may be willing to take a chance.

9. New York Jets (from Carolina) // Melvin Ingram, DL, South Carolina - The New York Jets have never been afraid to make moves to get the guys they want (see: Mark Sanchez in 2009). So it’s not unheard of to think that they could trade up to the 9 spot here. With the possibility that Melvin Ingram would be gone at 12 or 14, they hop up here inside the Top 10 to get what they have needed since Rex got to the Jets: a premier pass rusher. They’ve lacked a player that can consistently pressure the quarterback, and while Ryan draws up some of the most exotic blitz packages in the league, there is a need for someone to do this on his own. Ingram possesses a unique athletic ability unlike many in the draft and may turn out to be the best defensive player from this draft class if he reaches his potential.

10. Buffalo Bills // Riley Rieff, OL, Iowa - After filling the need for DE in the free agency period by making the biggest non-Manning splash by attaining Mario Williams, the Bills need OL help. Pretty easy pick here is to take Riley Reiff. Reiff is someone that can keep Ryan Fitzpatrick upright and after losing Demetress Bell and not having someone who can do it consistently since they lost Jason Peters, Reiff seems like a no-brainer. The only problem could be his short arms but Reiff has had experience with run-blocking so not only can he do a good job of keeping Fitzpatrick upright he could also help create holes for running back Fred Jackson.

11. Kansas City Chiefs // Dontari Poe, DT, Memphis - There's no middle ground when it comes to Poe this year. You either love him or you hate him as a prospect. The physical attributes Poe possesses cannot be denied however and Kansas City just can’t pass up a nose tackle like they have for the past few years. Poe’s big body in Romeo Crennel’s defense could provide similarities to Vince Wilfork in New England and would only help him out and keep top-flight inside linebacker Derrick Johnson clean.

12. Seattle Seahawks // Courtney Upshaw, OLB/DE, Alabama - A lot of people have pegged linebacker Luke Kuechly into this pick. I don’t know if I can see it seeing as the Seahawks need more pass rushers, and Courtney Upshaw is their man that could step in and be a perfect fit for their elephant LEO spot. Upshaw brings with him a lot of versatility, so he could put his hand down on the dirt and come off the edge or play in the standing position, which is something Pete Carroll's defenses have thrived on over the years so it's almost perfect. We saw this year what drafting a pass rusher could do for a team (their NFC West rival San Francisco 49ers drafted Aldon Smith and reaped the rewards) but considering Upshaw is more complete he could assist a defense that is quietly getting better year in and year out.

13. Arizona Cardinals // David DeCastro, OL, Stanford - Even though the Cardinals probably have a more pressing need for an offensive tackle and are hoping that Buffalo chooses not to take Riley Reiff, they’ll be more than happy to take one of the best guard prospects in recent memory in DeCastro. Protecting whomever it is at quarterback whether it be Kolb or Skelton is a main concern and something they desperately need to have happen. DeCastro would step in to their facility and onto the field and be better than anyone on their roster right now and has Steve Hutchinson written all over him.

14. Dallas Cowboys // Mark Barron, S, Alabama - This may be nearly the biggest lock of the draft aside from the first two overall picks of the draft. It’s as if Jerry Jones came out and said, “Hey guys, we’re taking Mark Barron, bye guys,” because damn near everyone has the Cowboys selecting the safety from Mobile, Alabama. And why not? Dallas’ secondary needs a big boost even after signing free agent cornerback Brandon Carr and facing teams in their division with receivers like DeSean Jackson, Hakeem Nicks, and Victor Cruz it is necessary to have somebody with the ability to cover over the top. And Barron is that man for America’s Team. (Shut up)

15. Philadelphia Eagles // Fletcher Cox, DL, Mississippi State - Even though virtually any player could be taken here (Kuechly, Floyd, Barron have all been in the discussion) I think the Eagles add Fletcher Cox to their roster. Cox’s versatility would be a big boost to an already solid defensive line with Jason Babin and Cullen Jenkins, as Fletcher could play on the inside and out and be successful. If Brandon Graham can come back from his injury and contribute to pressure the QB, the Eagles defensive line could be awesome.

16. Carolina Panthers (from New York) // Luke Kuechly, LB, Boston College - Carolina's run defense has been downright putrid the last couple of seasons. (seems to be the common theme with everyone in the NFC South sans the Falcons) While that had a lot to do with the loss of Jon Beason last season, the lack of consistency from the WLB. The Panthers are extremely thin at the linebacker position and adding Kuechly to play the WLB will give them a three down LB that many are anointing the best coverage LB prospect in years. Kuechly can land just about anywhere as any team could use him but I see him landing in The Queen City.

17. Cincinnati Bengals (from Oakland) // Stephon Gilmore, CB, South Carolina - Easy pick here. The lack of Johnathan Joseph hurt the Bengals a lot as did the loss of Leon Hall last year to injury and it showed that they need somebody to groom for the CB position. Stephon’s stock has sky rocketed ever since his Combine performance, displaying fluid hips in the DB drills and ran lights out. He was a natural playmaker at South Carolina and is a better press corner than playing off of receivers and that fits well with defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer’s defense. Gilmore can step in and start from day one at worse at the nickel position.

18. San Diego Chargers // Jonathan Martin, OL, Stanford - Once again the San Diego Chargers missed the playoffs, and somehow head coach Norv Turner still has a job. We’re all aware of the fact that that won’t be the case if that happens again and the Chargers need to begin by protecting All-Pro quarterback Philip Rivers. When tackle Marcus McNeil went down last year that was very apparent, and while Jared Gaither came back to play pretty well, you can’t rely on that happening again. Mario Henderson was a laughable signing and every Charger fan knew this from watching him play in Oakland. Jonathan Martin has the feet of a left tackle and has helped keep Andrew Luck upright for the last 3 seasons. He could step in and be an upgrade at the tackle position right away.

19. Chicago Bears // Quinton Coples, DE, North Carolina - I'm not entirely sold on Coples as a pro prospect, but I don’t see him going past the Chicago Bears here at the 19th pick. The Bears’ production out of their DL aside from Julius Peppers is worse than it should be when you have an elite edge rusher and it was apparent with how Israel Idonije dropped off this season from his solid season in 2010. Coples’ lack of effort in the season dropped him from what seemed to be a Top 10 lock, and it’s downright disturbing to constantly see him get rolled up by tight ends that blocking running backs as much as he did during his tenure at UNC. But he can learn from one of the best edge rushers in the game and eventually take the role of the premium pass rusher if all works out for him. Whether or not that happens is up for debate and Coples may turn out to be a huge bust in the blink of an eye.

20. Tennessee Titans // Michael Brockers, DT, Louisiana State University - The Titans have a lot of options at this pick. They can address their lack of a pass rush and take Nick Perry. They can address their lack of a 3rd cornerback and take Dre Kirkpatrick or Janoris Jenkins. But now that leaves them with their third biggest need which is a defensive tackle and Michael Brockers is the guy. Brockers is sort of like Kuechly in that he can be just about anywhere and provide a great fit but Tennessee shouldn’t and probably won’t pass on him here. Casey played extremely well last season and with Jason Jones moving on to Seattle, they’ll need someone to pair with him. Brockers possesses a big body with quick feet, and he can play the same role as Albert Haynesworth did that made him lots of money (hopefully he won’t flame out like him though).

21. Cincinnati Bengals // Cordy Glenn, OL, Georgia - This pick just makes sense. They need a guard and Cordy Glenn fits the mold and is the best one left. He played all over the offensive line during his time at The University of Georgia so he provides great versatility if necessary. This has been a very trendy pick for the Bengals and it’s for good reason.

22. Cleveland Browns (from Atlanta) // Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor - The Browns took Greg Little last season and after one season it didn’t seem to work out too well as Litle had the 4th worst dropped pass rate in the NFL last season according to ProFootballFocus.com. They need another weapon for Colt McCoy if they do intend on moving along with him (and, frankly, for whomever they go with because their receivers aren’t cutting the mustard) and Kendall Wright should be their guy here. Wright had a very impressive Pro Day and made some great catches during the session as well as running in the low 4.4’s.

23. Detroit Lions // Dre Kirkpatrick, CB, Alabama - The Lions had a very successful 2011, living up to the hype that they had around them, making the playoffs for the first time in over a decade. However there are still numerous holes to fill and Detroit should no doubt address one of their main holes in getting Dre Kirkpatrick here. Kirkpatrick possesses a lot of talent and his size and knowledge could allow him to be flexed to the safety position if the Lions choose to. He’s big, physical, and fully understands zone coverage and I absolutely love him as a cornerback. He may need some work to become more fluid with his hips but he should have no problem being a starting DB in the NFL.

24. Pittsburgh Steelers // Dont’a Hightower, ILB, Alabama - Here's another pick that just makes sense. With James Farrior getting cut this offseason, the Pittsburgh Steelers should find themselves selecting this big inside linebacker from the devastating Alabama defense. Hightower possesses excellent speed for a man of his size and he does an excellent job of finishing -- no, destroying -- tackles and there are countless amounts of videos showing proof. Although his coverage skills leave a lot to be desired he can improve and let’s face it, they won’t be dropping him into coverage much. Donning the black and yellow and joining Lawrence Timmons, James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley is just scary to think of. NFL, good luck running against the Steelers, as if you didn’t have enough trouble doing so already.

25. Denver Broncos // Devon Still, DL, Pennsylvania State University - With the loss of Brodrick Bunkley, the very best run stopping interior lineman in the NFL in the year 2011 according to ProFootballFocus.com, the Broncos should address that need and why not take Devon Still to fill the DT spot? It was already a weak one with Bunkley and with the loss they need to address this. Still’s flashes of dominance in big games is a bright spot, as he popped up quite frequently against Alabama earlier on in the season. Denver has a lot of pass rushers in Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil, and Still can create some pressure from the middle so the sack amounts can multiply by the bunches.

26. Houston Texans // Reuben Randle, WR, Louisiana State University - Randle's stock has been rising as of late and I can see Houston being his landing spot. The Bastrop, Louisiana native is an extremely physical receiver off of the line of scrimmage and he can use his height to get above corners and defenders. He’s excellent off of the catch, and is always willing to go over the middle to make a tough catch in traffic. Houston is in need of someone like him with the fact that they’ve got a deep threat/possession monstrosity of a #1 in Andre Johnson, perhaps the best WR in the league so taking Randle to compliment him as a slot/Y hybrid pass-catcher would be a perfect fit if you ask me.

27. New England Patriots (from New Orleans) // Nick Perry, OLB/DE, Southern California - New England probably won’t hold onto this pick as it always seems like they’re too busy trading down to attain more picks to address actual needs but nobody can really predict what Bill Belichick will do. Regardless, the need for a pass rusher may never be bigger for New England at this point and especially now that they lost Mark Anderson to fellow AFC East foe Buffalo and don’t seem to be jumping the gun at Andre Carter either. Perry is athetlic enough to put his hand to the ground or stand up and would fit perfectly in the hybrid scheme that New England uses. If there’s any coach that can get the best out of their picks it’s definitely BB and if the Pats want to get back to the Super Bowl they are going to need to get after the quarterback week in and week out.

28. Green Bay Packers // Whitney Mercilus, OLB/DE, Illinois - The loss of Cullen Jenkins for the Packers may have been the least discussed move that made the biggest impact for any team all season. Packers’ management has to be ecstatic to add another pass rusher to compliment Clay Matthews and Whitney Mercilus is a force off of the edge. The best part about him? After creating contact, he forces the ball away! Merclius has 11 career forced fumbles and had an extraordinary 2011 campaign. The Packers’ entire defensive scheme is built off of taking the ball away so they would gladly walk away with a beastly pass rusher here in Mercilus.

29. Baltimore Ravens // Peter Konz, C, Wisconsin - The Ravens lost Ben Grubbs this offseason to New Orleans and Matt Birk has made a lot of fiirtation with retirement. They need interior line help and Peter Konz looks to be the next great Wisconsin lineman and should help immediately. Linemen grow out on trees up in Madison and have been producing top-flight linemen from damn near the dawn of time and even though Cam Cameron can’t seem to grasp the process of figuring out how to give the rock to Ray Rice, but they’ve got to and Konz will help push and pave the way. Drafting a WR may be a possibility here since Boldin is showing his age.

30. San Francisco 49ers // Janoris Jenkins, CB, North Alabama - The 49ers defense was downright NASTY this past season and provided one of the bigger and sweeter surprises of the NFL season. Even with that said, and even with the re-signing of Carlos Rogers they still could use a lot of help at the CB position and Janoris Jenkins can do all of that. He’s a bit of a gambler but it usually ends in a play made by him and even though he has serious character issues, he is the best cover corner in this draft by far and showed it by locking down the best that the SEC had to offer while he was with Florida. That could help playing in the pass-heavy NFC with offenses like Green Bay, New Orleans, New York, among others that they’ll face this upcoming season.

31. New England Patriots // Harrison Smith, S, Notre Dame - The Patriots’ safety play was very subpar for a team that made it to the Super Bowl. They struggled to force turnovers on a consistent basis sans Kyle Arrington, who did surprise me in nickel packages, I’ll admit. But aside from Barron, Harrison Smith is the next best safety in the class and while it might be a reach, BB has been known for taking players where he wants them despite grades by scouts. Harrison is smart and is a leader, which may make him the perfect type of player for the New England Patriots. He’s got a nose for the football and is always making plays and is capable of playing centerfield or in the box. Bill will like his versatility to pair in the backfield with fellow safety Patrick Chung.

32. New York Giants // Mike Adams, OL, Ohio State - If you paid close attention to the New York Giants last season you would have noticed a gaping, gaping hole in their offensive line. That man is David Diehl and according to ProFootballFocus.com he was the worst rated offensive lineman in terms of pass protection from BOTH the guard and tackle position. You have to possess some kind of awfulness to do that so the Giants should, as opposed to addressing skill positions like the tight end or running back position or going with help for LB (which may have already been addressed with the low-risk high-reward addition of Keith Rivers) by selecting Mike Adams from The Ohio State University. Even though Adams has “character issues” (greatly exaggerated if you ask me) Adams is a first round talent at LT. He’s a superior athlete and was one of the best OL at the Senior Bowl and while he didn’t show consistency on tape he couldn’t be much worse than Diehl, right? Right?