The first thing that jumps out at me is that the second and third rounds are loaded with very good players.
There were some surprises in round one. Dion Jordan was a good pick, but I didn’t see him going that high, although I understand pairing him opposite Cameron Wake.
The surprise of the first round was the Dallas’ selection of Travis Frederick at No. 31. Like the Seahawks taking Bruce Irvin at No. 15 last year, it’s not that I think the player is bad, but I don’t think the market said the team had to take the player that high.
In my estimation, the deepest position left is running back, especially since there hasn’t been one selected yet. The position with the least depth is guard, although there are some centers that may ultimately move to guard based on a team’s need.
Here’s a legitimate question: Will Geno Smith be drafted in round two? The Jaguars, Eagles, Cardinals and Raiders could use QB help and have early second-round picks, but that doesn’t mean they like Smith. Matt Barkley, Tyler Wilson, Ryan Nassib or another quarterback could go before Smith at this point.
I could’ve seen players 1-8 go in the first round. That could mean teams are eager to trade up while these players are still available.
Basically what I’m saying is: Stay tuned. It’s about to get interesting!
Top players available
1-Geno Smith, Quarterback, West Virginia
2-Arthur Brown, Inside Linebacker, Kansas State
3-Keenan Allen, Wide Receiver, California
4-Damontre Moore, Defensive End, Texas A&M
5-Eddie Lacy, Running Back, Alabama
6-Jesse Williams, (Nose) Defensive Tackle, Alabama
7-Larry Warford, Guard, Kentucky
8-John Cyprien, Free Safety, Florida International
9-Johnathan Hankins, Defensive Tackle, Ohio State
10-Stedman Bailey, Wide Receiver, West Virginia
11-Menelik Watson, Offensive Tackle, Florida State
12-Terrance Williams, Wide Receiver, Baylor
13-Markus Wheaton, Wide Receiver, Oregon State
14-Sam Montgomery, Defensive End, LSU
15-Kawann Short, Defensive Tackle, Purdue
16-Jamar Taylor, Cornerback, Boise State
17-Alex Okafor, Defensive End, Texas
18-Kevin Minter, Inside Linebacker, LSU
19-Margus Hunt, Defensive End, SMU
20-Terron Armstead, Offensive Tackle, Arkansas Pine-Bluff
21-Zach Ertz, Tight End, Stanford
22-Cornellius Carradine, Defensive End, Florida State
23-Johnthan Banks, Cornerback, Mississippi State
24-Justin Hunter, Wide Receiver, Tennessee
25-Quinton Patton, Wide Receiver, Louisiana Tech
26-D.J. Swearinger, Strong Safety, South Carolina
27-Matt Barkley, Quarterback, USC
28-Tyler Wilson, Quarterback, Arkansas
29-Robert Woods, Wide Receiver, USC
30-Chase Thomas, Outside Linebacker, Stanford
31-Manti Te’o, Inside Linebacker, Notre Dame
32-Giovani Bernard, Running Back, UNC
33-Dallas Thomas, Offensive Tackle, Tennessee
34-Brandon Jenkins, Outside Linebacker, Florida State
35-Robert Alford, Cornerback, Southeastern Louisiana
36-Zac Dysert, Quarterback, Miami (OH)
37-Travis Kelce, Tight End, Cincinnati
38-Barrett Jones, Center, Alabama
39-Leon McFadden, Cornerback, San Diego State
40-John Jenkins, Defensive Tackle, Georgia
41-Bennie Logan, Defensive Tackle, LSU
42-David Amerson, Cornerback, N.C. State
43-Blidi Wreh-Wilson, Cornerback, Connecticut
44-Montee Ball, Running Back, Wisconsin
45-Tony Jefferson, Free Safety, Oklahoma
46-Sean Porter, Outside Linebacker, Texas A&M
47-Michael Mauti, Inside Linebacker, Penn State
48-Brandon Williams, Defensive Tackle, Missouri Southern State
49-Zaviar Gooden, Outside Linebacker, Missouri
50-Le’Veon Bell, Running Back, Michigan State
51-Andre Ellington, Running Back, Clemson
52-Ryan Nassib, Quarterback, Syracuse
53-Mike Glennon, Quarterback, N.C. State
54-B.W. Webb, Cornerback, William & Mary
55-Da’Rick Rogers, Wide Receiver, Tennessee Tech
56-Johnathan Franklin, Running Back, UCLA
57-Jordan Reed, Tight End, Florida
58-Christine Michael, Running Back, Texas A&M
59-Reid Fragel, Offensive Tackle, Ohio State
60-Jordan Poyer, Cornerback, Oregon State
61-Vance McDonald, Tight End, Rice
62-Khaled Holmes, Center, USC
63-Phillip Thomas, Strong Safety, Fresno State
64-Stepfan Taylor, Running Back, Stanford
65-Quanterus Smith, Defensive End, Western Kentucky
66-Gavin Escobar, Tight End, San Diego State
67-Khaseem Greene, Outside Linebacker, Rutgers
68-Joseph Randle, Running Back, Oklahoma State
69-Denard Robinson, Wide Receiver, Michigan
70-Brennan Williams, Offensive Tackle, UNC
71-Brian Schwenke, Center, California
Top 5 schools
T-1-Alabama (3 drafted: 9, 10, 11)
T-1-Florida State (3 drafted: 16, 24, 25)
T-3-Oregon (2 drafted: 3, 20)
T-3-LSU (2 drafted: 6, 18)
T-3-UNC (2 drafted: 7, 28)
T-3-Georgia (2 drafted: 17, 30)
T-3-Florida (2 drafted: 23, 32)
Top players available by position
Quarterback
1-Geno Smith (West Virginia)
2-Matt Barkley (USC)
3-Tyler Wilson (Arkansas)
4-Zac Dysert (Miami [OH])
5-Ryan Nassib (Syracuse)
6-Mike Glennon (N.C. State)
Running Back
1-Eddie Lacy (Alabama)
2-Giovani Bernard (UNC)
3-Montee Ball (Wisconsin)
4-Le’Veon Bell (Michigan State)
5-Andre Ellington (Clemson)
6-Johnathan Franklin (UCLA)
7-Christine Michael (Texas A&M)
8-Stepfan Taylor (Stanford)
9-Joseph Randle (Oklahoma State)
Wide Receiver
1-Keenan Allen (California)
2-Stedman Bailey (West Virginia)
3-Terrance Williams (Baylor)
4-Markus Wheaton (Oregon State)
5-Justin Hunter (Tennessee)
6-Quinton Patton (Louisiana Tech)
7-Robert Woods (USC)
8-Da’Rick Rogers (Tennessee Tech)
9-Denard Robinson (Michigan)
Tight End
1-Zach Ertz (Stanford)
2-Travis Kelce (Cincinnati)
3-Jordan Reed (Florida)
4-Vance McDonald (Rice)
5-Gavin Escobar (San Diego State)
Offensive Tackle
1-Menelik Watson (Florida State)
2-Terron Armstead (Arkansas-Pine Bluff)
3-Dallas Thomas (Tennessee)
4-Reid Fragel (Ohio State)
5-Brennan Williams (UNC)
Guard
1-Larry Warford (Kentucky)
Center
1-Barrett Jones (Alabama)
2-Khaled Holmes (USC)
3-Brian Schwenke (California)
Defensive Tackle
1-Jesse Williams (Alabama)
2-Johnathan Hankins (Ohio State)
3-Kawann Short (Purdue)
4-John Jenkins (Georgia)
5-Bennie Logan (LSU)
6-Brandon Williams (Missouri Southern State)
Defensive End
1-Damontre Moore (Texas A&M)
2-Sam Montgomery (LSU)
3-Alex Okafor (Texas)
4-Margus Hunt (SMU)
5-Cornellius Carradine (Florida State)
6-Quanterus Smith (Western Kentucky)
Outside Linebacker
1-Chase Thomas (Stanford)
2-Brandon Jenkins (Florida State)
3-Sean Porter (Texas A&M)
4-Zaviar Gooden (Missouri)
5-Khaseem Greene (Rutgers)
Inside Linebacker
1-Arthur Brown (Kansas State)
2-Kevin Minter (LSU)
3-Manti Te’o (Notre Dame)
4-Michael Mauti (Penn State)
Cornerback
1-Jamar Taylor (Boise State)
2-Johnthan Banks (Mississippi State)
3-Robert Alford (Southeastern Louisiana)
4-Leon McFadden (San Diego State)
5-David Amerson (N.C. State)
6-Blidi Wreh-Wilson (UConn)
7-B.W. Webb (William & Mary)
8-Jordan Poyer (Oregon State)
Strong Safety
1-D.J. Swearinger (South Carolina)
2-Phillip Thomas (Fresno State)
Free Safety
1-John Cyprien (Florida International)
2-Tony Jefferson (Oklahoma)
