NFL Draft Diamonds Writer’s 2015 Mock Draft by Richard
2015 1st Round NFL Mock Draft by Richard Gerber
By now you have seen a hundred different mock drafts and chances are that particular mock draft is making an attempt to predict who will be selected and where they will go. Now as fun as that is I prefer to go a different route, the Mock that you will see below will be GM based…i.e who would I select if I were the GM of the team that is on the clock. This version of the mock draft will not be as satisfying initially but after this season and beyond. In short, when you see a redraft mock in the next couple of years that’s what I want to compare my mock to.
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Marcus Mariota QB, Oregon. A lot has been made of the system he has played in and lack of taking snaps from under center but I think it is an over rated analysis as Phillip Rivers took 92% of his snaps from the shotgun formation last season and Peyton Manning took only 96 drop backs from under center.
2. Tennessee Titans – Leonard Williams DT, Southern Cal. Williams is an absolute stud in the middle and I would look at lining up next to Jurrell Casey for the next 8-9 years creating a headache for Andrew Luck who I play twice a year.
3. Jacksonville Jaguars – Vic Beasley DE/OLB, Clemson. There are plenty of options for the team that needs a pass rushing presence badly, I select Beasley knowing Gus Bradley can utilize his talents and athleticism to the fullest. 21 sacks in 13 career starts impresses me.
4. Oakland Raiders – Amari Cooper WR, Alabama. Continuing on last year’s successful draft I give my QB Derek Carr a potential Pro Bowl WR in his rookie year. Yes Kevin White may have more upside but I know exactly what I am getting in Cooper and I believe that is 80 catches a year and 10 TD’s.
5. Washington Redskins – Dante Fowler Jr OLB, Florida. No matter who you are playing you need to get to the QB, with the loss of Brian Orakpo I replace him with Fowler and line him up opposite of Ryan Kerrigan and release the hounds on a weekly basis.
6. New York Jets – Shane Ray OLB, Missouri. Ray gets after it, plain and simple and if history of drafting a Missouri defensive player in the first round is any indication the Shane Ray will become one of the best players the Jet have. Previous Mizz 1st rd players (Justin Smith, Aldon Smith, Sheldon Richardson, William Moore).
7. Chicago Bears – Danny Shelton NT, Washington. The bears will be switching to a 34 defense this year and do not have a true NT on the roster, at 6’2’’ 340 lbs it’s just not fair when mixing in his athleticism. He would be an immediate upgrade to a team rebuilding their defense.
8. Atlanta Falcons – Todd Gurley RB, Georgia. Yes the defense needs upgrades but I am not sold on Bud Dupree at this point so I bring in who is probably the best RB to come into the draft in years and take some pressure off of Matt Ryan.
9. New York Giants – Brandon Scherff OL, Iowa. Scherff can play Tackle or Guard on this team and my main goal is protecting what Eli has left so he can air it out to what may possibly become the most explosive WR corp in football if Victor Cruz comes back from injury successfully.
10. St. Louis Rams – Andrus Peat LT, Stanford. No matter who the starting QB is protecting him has been a problem in St. Louis. I view Peat as a 10 year starter for them.
11. Minnesota Vikings – DeVante Parker WR, Louisville. An important aspect of a QB’s progression is familiarity with his WR’s, giving your 2nd year QB his ole college teammate will give you instant comfort.
12. Cleveland Browns – Arik Armstead DE, Oregon. Call me a sucker for height but the 6’8 Armstead will make a great 34 DE, his height/weight will allow him to bully the offensive line at the point of attack.
13. New Orleans Saints – Trae Waynes CB, Michigan St. His cover skills are great and the Saints need CB’s in the worst way, I start him day one and watch him grow.
14. Miami Dolphins – Melvin Gordon RB, Wisconsin. The gamble on Ryan Tannehill is paying off in my opinion and I want to give a proven work horse RB the chance to supplement him. Gordon his a 300 carry back and the dolphins need that.
15. San Francisco 49ers – Alvin Dupree OLB, Kentucky. I am looking at my Linebacking corp and wondering what the hell just happened…So I’ll draft the athletic Bud Dupree and hope that the lack of numbers at Kentucky was an anomaly.
16. Houston Texans – Kevin White WR, West Virginia. Earlier I stated that drafting a Missouri player in the first round tends to pay off, this is opposite…drafting West Virginia offensive players in the first round and second rd(Geno Smith) has not paid off. White has one VERY good season at WVU and this point of the draft I will go against my gut and hope it pays off and team him with Hopkins on the other side.
17. San Diego Chargers – Randy Gregory OLB, Nebraska. All year long he spent his time being a top 3 pick in every mock draft out there, the talent is there but failing drug tests has hurt his stock. I think he has learned from his mistakes and lining him up opposite of Melvin Ingram and next to Manti Teo will pay dividends.
18. Kansas City Chiefs – Jaelen Strong WR, Arizona St. The Chief’s had 0 TD’s from their WR’s last year…enough said.
19. Cleveland Browns – T.J Clemmings OT, Pittsburgh. I would put him at RT where I believe he will be able to hold his own against most of the NFL’s LE’s.
20. Philadelphia Eagles – Landon Collins SS, Alabama. The Eagles secondary got burnt more times than they would like to remember (just ask Dez Bryant), I think Landon Collins is the best Safety to come out of Alabama and that says a lot, he can cover a good amount of the field and he doesn’t mind coming up to smack a RB.
21. Cincinnati Bengals – Eddie Goldman NT, Florida St. Goldman is a large and strong human being, Peko is aging and finding his replacement is key. Lining Goldman next to Atkins could be a nightmare for a lot of people.
22. Pittsburgh Steelers – Marcus Peters CB, Washington. Talent wise Peters is a top 10 pick but being dismissed from Washington dropped his stock, the Steeler’s don’t take crap from anyone, knowing my organization I take a very talented CB and fix an abysmal and aging secondary.

23. Detroit Lions – Jalen Collins CB, LSU. This team needs an instant upgrade at CB and Collins provides that.
24. Arizona Cardinals – Malcolm Brown NT, Texas. Anyone will tell you everything starts up front in football, Brown will provide depth and add a pass rush and run stop threat all in one. With the teams in this division it is crucial you win the battle up front.
25. Carolina Panthers – Dorial Green-Beckham WR, Oklahoma. His talent is not in question, but I believe being so close to home at MIZZ was his downfall. The further from home that he is the better off he will be and giving Cam Newton another freak of nature to go along with Kelvin Benjamin will surely help in his progression.
26. Baltimore Ravens – Phillip Dorsett WR, Miami. This kid can flat out fly and make plays, I need to keep my franchise QB happy and feed him weapons. Dorsett does just that.
27. Dallas Cowboys – Owamagbe Odighizuwa DE, UCLA. The Cowboys need more depth and effectiveness along the front line and although he didn’t fulfill his 5* status while at UCLA I give one of the best defensive minds in football (Rod Marinelli) someone to mold.
28. Denver Broncos – Cameron Erving OL, Florida State. Erving played everywhere along the line while at Florida State, that kind of versatility is huge in the NFL and the broncos will capitalize on that versatility and keep Peyton Manning upright.
29. Indianapolis Colts – Denzel Perryman ILB, Miami. The Colts need to improve their defense so Andrew Luck doesn’t have to be superman every week. Perryman is an outstanding ILB and is all over the field. Every game I watched there was Perryman in on every tackle, that’s what I want out of my MLB.
30. Green Bay Packers – Jordan Phillips NT, Oklahoma. Yes they resigned Raji but I will rotate the two and let Raji walk next year and in my opinion it will be an upgrade in the long term.
31. New Orleans Saints – La’el Collins RT, LSU. This still rings true, keep your QB upright, the Saints didn’t do that too well last year. Plus bringing in a local product will bring a good amount of fanfare and PR, it’s a win win.
32. New England Patriots – Shaq Thompson OLB, Washington. The Patriots love versatility in their players and Shaq Thompson is one of my favorite players in this draft and I would take him higher. The only reason he falls in the real draft is teams are unsure of where he will play…LB, safety, will he run the ball? Who knows either way this high IQ defender will excel on this team.
Make sure you all follow NFL Draft Diamonds writer Richard Gerber on Twitter @richardgerber03
P.S. – Richard doesn’t feel Jameis Winston is worth a first round pick

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