For the past few days I have been working on a first-round mock draft for SB Nation New York. It involved a separate post for each of the 32 selections, and I compiled it not necessarily as a "consensus" mock draft, but by relying on the draft analysts I trust the most and applying my own best judgment
The selection-by-selection results, along with links to the explanations for each pick, are below. Read it and let me know how you think I did.
- No. 1, Carolina Panthers -- Cam Newton, QB Auburn
- No. 2, Denver Broncos -- Marcell Dareus, DT, Alabama
- No. 3, Buffalo Bills -- Von MIller, OLB, Texas A&M
- No. 4, Cincinnati Bengals -- A.J. Green, WR, Georgia
- No. 5, Arizona Cardinals -- Blaine Gabbert, QB, Missouri
- No. 6, Cleveland Browns, Robert Quinn, DE, North Carolina
- No. 7, San Francisco 49ers -- Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU
- No. 8, Tennessee Titans -- Prince Amakumara, CB, Nebraska
- No. 9, Dallas Cowboys -- Tyron Smith, OT, USC
- No. 10, Washington Redskins -- Jake Locker, QB, Washington
- No. 11, Houston Texans -- Aldon Smith, DE/OLB, Missouri
- No. 12, Minnesota Vikings -- Julio Jones, WR, Alabama
- No. 13, Detroit Lions -- Anthony Castonzo, OT, Boston College
- No. 14, St. Louis Rams -- Nick Fairley, DT, Auburn
- No. 15, Miami Dolphins -- Ryan Mallett, QB, Arkansas
- No. 16, Jacksonville Jaguars -- Da'Quan Bowers, DE, Clemson
- No. 17, New England Patriots -- J.J. Watt, DE, Wisconsin
- No. 18, San Diego Chargers -- Cameron Jordan, DE, Cal
- No. 19, New York Giants -- Mike Pouncey, OG/C, Florida
- No. 20, Tampa Bay Buccaneers -- Ryan Kerrigan, DE, Purdue
- No. 21, Kansas City Chiefs -- Gabe Carimi, OT, Wisconsin
- No. 22, Indianapolis Colts -- Nate Solder, OT, Colorado
- No. 23, Philadelphia Eagles -- Jimmy Smith, CB, Colorado
- No. 24, New Orleans Saints -- Corey Liuget, DT, Illinois
- No. 25, Seattle Seahawks -- Andy Dalton, QB, TCU
- No. 26, Baltimore Ravens -- Brandon Harris, CB, Miami
- No. 27, Atlanta Falcons -- Adrian Clayborn, DE, Iowa
- No. 28, New England Patriots -- Mark Ingram, RB, Alabama
- No. 29, Chicago Bears -- Derek Sherrod, OT, Mississippi State
- No. 30, New York Jets -- Phil Taylor, DT, Baylor
- No. 31, Pittsburgh Steelers -- Danny Watkins, OG, Baylor
- No. 32, Green Bay Packers -- Cameron Heyward, DE, Ohio State
I did not factor in trades, though we all know there will be some in the first round. We can talk about the likely places for those to occur later in the week. For now, read the picks and let me know what you think.
-- The first round of the 2011 NFL Draft starts at 8 p.m. (ET) on Thursday, April 28th and SB Nation has everything you need to prepare for it - NFL mock drafts, draft