Washington

Seattle has a huge need for interior lineman and Fauntanu might be the most versatile lineman in the class, able to play at all 5 spots. He is one of the best athletes in the position group with great blocking movement. He's extremely aggressive which helps in the run game, however, at times defenders take advantage of this making him overreach. He's a very solid prospect that may take some time to develop if the plan is to play him at tackle, but I believe he could contribute at the guard position immediately.

Duke

Barton is very flexible, with hips that allow him to effectively seal off defenders. He played tackle while at Dook but seems very likely he will make the transition to center, which is perfect for Jacksonville since they certainly need one. This is based on the pure dominance he showed when he was lined up inside against interior defenders in certain schemes, indicating potential high levels of success here.

Texas

An extremely athletic prospect on the defensive interior, Murphy figures to be a really solid pass rusher. He has a solid repertoire of rush moves and is consistently able to establish and utilize great leverage. He's a bit undersized for the position which does have its drawbacks in the run game, but can be negated by using his speed on his first step, to get into the backfield. Murphy should immediately become part of the Bengals' rotation as a 3-tech in passing downs if he were to land here, filling out a solid and versatile trio of interior defenders for Cincy to deploy this season.

Iowa

The logic behind this pick is pretty simple, the Rams absolutely need help on the defensive side of the ball and I believe they should select the best defender available at 19 regardless of position. In this scenario, it's going to net them DeJean. DeJean is a very versatile player, with prospects of playing either corner or safety in the NFL, with good athleticism and impressive instincts. A combination of these two features allowed him to be one of the best secondary players against the run in this class, flying downhill in run support. Because of this strength, many think a move to safety is inevitable, but I think he's good enough in coverage to corner as well.

Penn State

While the Steelers may end up going receiver here which is equally as big of a need, instead I have them going with the offensive line in the 1st round for the second year in a row. The Steelers get to stay in-state with Olu and get at pick 20 who some deem to be a top-2 tackle in this class, seems like great value. Olu is already impressive as a pass-blocker, and his athleticism suggests some serious upside. With Broderick Jones manning the right side of the line, adding Fashanu could give Pittsburgh a young and extremely talented pair of tackles, a luxury any team would kill for.

Oregon

I REALLY like Powers-Johnson, he's a complete bull-dozer up front and doesn't have many holes in his game at all. If not for a slight injury during senior bowl week or the lack of positional value NFL teams place on centers, I would have Powers-Johnson going much higher. Miami needs help on their offensive line and Powers-Johnson would hugely provide that. He's an incredible run-blocker who is capable of getting outside quickly on screens, a seamless fit for the Dolphins offense.

Clemson

With both Bradberry and Slay continuing to age and regress in the secondary, the Eagles could benefit from some reinforcements here. Wiggins has good size for a boundary corner, with the speed and strength to play aggressively in man and pressing off the line. Wiggins additionally has been tested throughout his career, given the blanket assignment of numerous high-level prospects in this class.

Georgia

After losing Tyron Smith this offseason the Cowboys don't currently have an immediate replacement. In all the better seasons the Cowboys have had this past decade, a large part of that has been attributed to stellar offensive line play. For that reason, I don't think it would be wise for Dallas to let this become a weakness and instead select the last remaining 1st round prospect of the group. He does only have 8 starts in his career due to injuries, which raises some questions. However, Mims has all the physical traits one would want in a high-caliber tackle prospect and with development could become a very solid starting tackle.

Minnesota

The Packers get unlucky here as all the offensive linemen and corners that I like enough to take here are all of the board. Instead of reaching for the next tier of the group, however, I'm giving them the best safety prospect in the class, another big area of need for them. He would make an intriguing piece next to McKinney as he's extremely versatile finding success playing both deep and up in the box as run support or even as an extra blitzer. Additionally, he was very productive during his time at Minnesota with 13 career interceptions. Unfortunately, he didn't test as well as one would have liked at the combine, but I'll take the bet on his shown field play.

Penn State

Robinson is an elite athlete who at one point not so long ago was being mocked as a potential lock for a top 15 selection. Since then his draft stock has taken a bit of a tumble but a team such as Tampa Bay in need of an edge rusher should absolutely take the chance on him at this point in the first round. At the moment he is still a great pass rusher, however, his inconsistencies playing run defense may limit him to solely those situations right out the gate. These issues derive more from his inability to recognize or read the handoff, which is certainly something that he will improve upon at the NFL level.

Illinois

Cardinals come out as one of the biggest winners of the draft, addressing two of their biggest needs and landing one of the best defensive players in this draft near the bottom of the round. Newton was unstoppable last season in one-on-one situations, wreaking havoc on both quarterbacks and running backs in the backfield. He struggles a bit handling doubles due to his slightly smaller size, which indicates he's likely more of a 3-tech in the NFL. The Cardinals get a talented player to add to a rather uninspiring defensive front here.

LSU

For how stacked this receiver class is this year I'm not quite sure how this mock has made it so far before the 4th came off the board but here we are with a receiver-needy team benefiting. After losing Diggs this offseason the Bills have nothing even close to a #1 wideout on the roster, and Thomas has the potential to develop into that. He's a big receiver with the strength to overmatch DBs and has the speed to excel in the deep game. He's exceptional after the catch, utilizing his size to pick up extra yards on a routine basis. Thomas will likely be long gone before 28 in the actual draft, but I think everyone agrees the Bills need to get Josh Allen someone to throw the ball to here.

Alabama

The Lions offense was electric last season and after keeping all their main pieces intact figure to be again in 2024. It's ultimately the defensive side of the ball that continues to need to be addressed, more specifically the secondary. There are a few corners that I like who could go around this range, and the Lions end up getting a guy who has been hyped up his entire playing career. As one would assume to be the case with elite corners, McKinstry was rarely targeted by opposing quarterbacks during his time at Alabama, sticking to and oftentimes eliminating receivers from the game plan. He will likely continue to play on the outside in the NFL, although could benefit from putting on some additional weight to deal with the more physical receivers of the league.

Oklahoma

I figured that the Ravens here should be drafting BPA rather than focusing on need, although it works out that there's both a WR (Mitchell) and Tackle (Guyton) who are left at the top of the board. Due to the depth of the receiver class and the likelihood of finding a talented prospect there on day two, we'll be shoring up the Raven's offensive line for what figures to be a dominant run game after the addition of Derrick Henry. Guyton is more of a raw player in comparison to his peers at the top of the Tackle class but would be worth the investment for the Ravens and their successful system of offensive line development.

Missouri

Again, the 49ers roster is stacked, and hard to find a weakness outside of their CB depth which incites this selection. Despite being the smaller size, Rakestraw is a 3-year starter who plays with a level of physicality that makes up for it. He played both in the slot and on the outside during his collegiate career, so he has the versatility to plug and play wherever he's needed. Additionally, he's a sound tackler and often provided Missouri's defense with big plays in run defense. He flies all over the field and this motor paired with his tendencies should make him translate as a player to the next level.

Texas

Hell. I don't know how he's managed to fall this far but Mitchell would be an incredible pick-up for Kansas City at the last pick of night one. It's very clear that with Kelce's production and ability to stay on the field slowing down, the Chiefs need to turn their attention to finding additional targets for Mahomes. Rice and Hollywood Brown are solid starting pieces for next year's receiver room, and the addition of Mitchell would give them that bigger-bodied X-receiver to round it out. He has some of the best hands in the class and was a top red zone threat at Texas. I don't believe that Mitchell was able to showcase how good he truly is in Texas' offensive scheme being heavily reliant on short RPOs and screens, as he seems better suited for more pro-style and vertical offense. If Mitchell can add some weight to his tall frame and get better with contact he will become an absolute stud. As I'm writing this I have no idea how he came off the board so late.