Damond Talbot’s First 2014 NFL Mock Draft

1. Houston Texans – Blake Bortles – QB – UCF – I feel this is the biggest reach ever, but the team will have him compete with Case Keenum, TJ Yates and Matt Cassel for the starting position.  I feel the team will look for their quarterback of the future, but this could go down as the biggest reach in the history of the NFL.

2. St. Louis Rams (from Washington) –  RAMS TRADE PICK TO BROWNS  – Johnny Manziel – QB – Texas A&M – The Browns finally get their read option quarterback to fit the Shanahan scheme.  Manziel will have some deep weapons but they had to give up their second rounder to move up 2 spots.

3. Jacksonville Jaguars – Teddy Bridgewater – QB – Louisville – The Jaguars strike gold with this pick, he is by far the best player on the board and is the best all around quarterback.  Teddy will eventually lead the Jags to the Playoffs.

4. Cleveland Browns –  Traded to Rams – Rams select – Greg Robinson – OT – Auburn – The Rams are able to pick up an additional pick and still get their guy.  This was a huge trade for the Rams, and will once again make them look like genius on draft day.

5. Oakland Raiders – Jadeveon Clowney – DE – South Carolina – Al Davis would be smiling with this pick.  Clowney opposite of Lamar Houston would be pretty nice.  Expect the Raiders to put quite a bit of pressure on opposing teams quarterbacks.

6. Atlanta Falcons – Jake Matthews – OT – Texas A&M – The Falcons desperately need help on the O-Line and they come away with the best lineman in the entire draft.  Matthews will help protect Matt Ryan so he can get the ball to his star wide outs.

7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Anthony Barr – OLB – UCLA – The Bucs get a guy to solidify their linebacking corps.  With Anthony Barr, LaVonte David and Mason Foster the Bucs will be hard to control.  Expect them to put quite a bit of pressure on opposing teams.

8. Minnesota Vikings – Derek Carr – QB – Fresno State – Carr has a great arm and the only real quarterback left on the roster is Christian Ponder.  With Matt Cassel becoming a free agent and voiding his contract today the Vikings have only one QB on their roster.

9. Buffalo Bills – Bills TRADE PICK with Baltimore Ravens – Ravens select Sammy Watkins – WR – Clemson – Baltimore needs a wide receiver bad and with them losing players via free agency they could be hurt.  Buffalo picks up the Ravens 1st and second rounder.

10. Detroit Lions – Darqueze Dennard – CB – Michigan State – The Lions need a cornerback badly and they get the best guy in the draft.  He is a Michigan State guy and will draw quite the crowd in D-Town.

11. Tennessee Titans – Khalil Mack – OLB – Buffalo – The Tennessee Titans land my favorite pass rusher in the entire draft.  Mack is a freak with a huge motor.  Expect him to ball out in Tennessee.

12. New York Giants – Kelvin Benjamin – WR – Florida State – The Giants are losing Hakeem Nicks in free agency and Benjamin will come in and fill the void.  Benjamin is a big wide out that will assist

13. St. Louis Rams – Ra’Shede Hageman – DT – Minnesota – The Rams understand that building in the trenches will help their young team, and in the first round they land two monsters in the Draft.

14. Chicago Bears – C.J. Mosley – ILB – Alabama – Adding an SEC-tested linebacker who can do it all while calling out plays at the line would be a good first step for Chicago to fix what’s broken. C.J. Mosley is a leader and a phenomenal young player who would become a fan favorite in no time.

15. Pittsburgh Steelers – Taylor Lewan – OT – Michigan – The Steelers offensive line was horrible last year but Lewan has a mean streak that would fit perfectly in the blue collar city of Pittsburgh.

16. Baltimore Ravens – Traded To BUFFALO  – Buffalo picks Jordan Matthews – WR – Vanderbilt – Some might feel this is a reach for the Bills, but the Bills want to put as many weapons they can around E.J. Manuel and Matthews is a stud with great hands.

17. Dallas Cowboys – Ha Ha Clinton Dix – S – Alabama – Dallas’ pass defense gave up more yards than all but three NFL teams last year, despite the fact that Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne are both talented cornerbacks. Without a viable safety in the middle of the field, the Cowboys were helpless to stop the pass.

18. New York Jets – Mike Evans – WR – Texas A&M – The Jets need a big target for Geno Smith and they get their guy in Evans.  Evans is a very solid wide out who can play in the cold weather.

19. Miami Dolphins – Cyrus Kouandjio – OT – Alabama – Miami allowed an astonishing 58 sacks last season, so there’s clearly a desperate need for help on the offensive line.

20. Arizona Cardinals – Eric Ebron – TE – North Carolina – The tight end out of North Carolina looks like a slightly slower version of San Francisco’s Vernon Davis, and he’s shown the ability to make big plays downfield, which is a must in today’s game.

21. Green Bay Packers – Justin Gilbert – CB – Oklahoma State – Gilbert should not be on the clock still, and this is a huge steal for the Packers who could lose Sam Shields in free agency.  Gilbert would be a perfect replacement.

22. Philadelphia Eagles –  Calvin Pryor – S – Louisville – Pryor is a physical player from snap to whistle. He loves to use his hands in coverage but does so in a way that allows him to avoid penalties at the college level.

23. Kansas City Chiefs – Marquise Lee – WR – USC – The Chiefs need help at wide out opposite of D-Bo and they get a receiver that can do it all. He has speed and great hands.  Lee is a solid player that will make an impact at the next level.

24. Cincinnati Bengals – Kony Ealy – DE – Missouri – The Bengals could lose Michael Johnson in free agency, and if they do they will need a player that can come in and rotate to fill the void.  Ealy can do that and produce.

25. San Diego Chargers – Jace Amaro – TE – Texas Tech – The Chargers have always relied on a tight end, from Kellen Winslow Sr. to Antonio Gates, they will need a future guy.  They found their future guy in Amaro.

26. Cleveland Browns (from Indianapolis) – Aaron Donald – DT – Pittsburgh – The Browns have a defensive guru in Mike Pettine, and Donald is an identical twin to Kyle Williams.  Williams killed the competition this year in Buffalo earning a spot in the Pro Bowl.

27. New Orleans Saints – Travis Swanson – C – Arkansas – The Saints could lose their center and just to be safe the Saints drafted the best center in the draft.  Swanson is a stud.

28. Carolina Panthers – Zach Martin – OT – Notre Dame – The Panthers understand that you can get better at every position.  Martin is the best player available on the clock is Martin.  This will be a huge steal at 28.

29. New England Patriots – Ahmad Dixon – S – Baylor – Patriots always find a player later in the first round that comes in and contributes.  Dixon is a nasty player that is not afraid to light a player up.

30. San Francisco 49ers – Timmy Jernigan – DT – Florida State – The Niners are known for defense and they get another run stuffer to rotate in.  Jernigan could become a Pro Bowler in San Fran.

31. Denver Broncos – Dee Ford – OLB – Auburn – He might be the most impressive player in the NFL Draft and he could be amazing opposite of Von Miller. The guy is a freak and would be a huge steal.

32. Seattle Seahawks – Austin Seferian-Jenkins – TE – Washington – The Seattle Seahawks lack only a tight end to be better than what they were this year.  ASJ is from Washington and could be a huge steal for the Hawks.