While the National Football League draft will be held on April 29 in Cleveland, Ohio, sports commentators will be gearing up for their picks and predictions ahead of time.
Below will be listed the top five picks for this year’s draft. Other teams will be listed in chronological order to their ranking in the draft.
According to Sporting News, the Jacksonville Jaguars have the first-round pick on former Clemson Tiger quarterback Trevor Lawerence. The Jaguars ranking last season was 1-15.
“[Lawrence’s] a great leader and winner on top of being a strong-armed passer and capable tough runner,” reporter Vinne Iyer said.“Lawrence will clean up the Jaguars QB mess, attached to a new coach, big college winner Urban Meyer. Lawrence can have success right away, with the Jaguars having a decent line and top young skill players.”
The New York Jets are in second place for the drafts this year. Their ranking last season was a close 2-14 compared to the Jaguars.
The Jets have recently decided they want to draft quarterback Zach Wilson from Baylor University.
Wilson will become a main factor if the Jets replace quarterback Sam Darnold. Darnold is one of the many with a franchise tag. This means the Jets are more likely to let him go.
“It would be best to trade [Wilson], especially given that New York will have to pay him a large contract to retain him,” reporter Walter Cherepinsky said. “It would be smart to move him for a second or third-round pick”.
The San Francisco 49ers are picking third this year. San Francisco moved up in their ranking when they traded with the Miami Dolphins in exchange for the previous 12th pick this year, first and third-round picks in 2022, and first-round pick in 2023. The 49ers ranking last season was 4-12, identical to Miami’s ranking as well.
The 49ers have their eyes on quarterbacks Zach Wilson, Justin Fields and Trey Lance.
“[San Francisco] changed the course of this draft, Friday’s bold move vaulting the Niners nine spots up the board,” USA Today writer Nate Davis said. “Lance is a physically gifted, efficient player with the trappings of a great leader. Tantalizing to consider what a passer who can so effectively run the ball might bring to a Kyle Shanahan offense that operates at peak form when the ground game is humming”.
The team in fourth place for an advanced player is the Atlanta Falcons.
According to ESPN, the Falcons have the third-worst salary cap problem in the NFL and are entering the drafts as a free agency.
With free agency in place, the Falcons could potentially move on and proceed with quarterback Justin Fields from Ohio State University.
“They could move on from Matt Ryan as a result [of the cap]. New regimes mean new quarterbacks, so this selection could be used on the third signal-caller in this class,” Cherepinsky said.
Justin Fields has dominated his career at Ohio State. He continued to play strongly throughout his years and beat Clemson in the semi-finals. Fields has been compared to quarterback Deshaun Watson as a result of his accomplishments.
The Cincinnati Bengals are last out of the top five for this year’s drafts. Their ranking last season was 4-11-1.
The Bengals top pick is offensive lineman Penei Sewell. The Bengals are hoping Sewell will be available since his change in ranking to number five. The Bengals recently signed offensive tackle Riley Reiff as well but will attempt to pick Sewell in April.
Between now and draft day there can be changes in rankings, player positions and more. With the remaining NFL teams, there are numerous rounds and picks that they must go through to maintain their picked players. We will see how these predictions unfold over the next month, leading up to draft day.
NFL Draft List – from top picks
Jacksonville Jaguars
New York Jets
San Francisco 49ers
Atlanta Falcons
Cincinnati Bengals
Miami Dolphins
Detroit Lions
Carolina Panthers
Denver Broncos
Dallas Cowboys
New York Giants
Philadelphia Eagles
Los Angeles CHargers
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
Arizona Cardinals
Las Vegas Raiders
Miami Dolphins (repeat)
Washington Football Team
Chicago Bears
Indianapolis Colts
Tennessee Titans
New York Jets (from 12-4 SEA)
Pittsburgh Steelers
Jacksonville Jaguars (from 10-6 LAR)
CLeveland Browns
Baltimore Ravens
New Orleans Saints
Green Bay Packers
Buffalo Bills
Kansas City Chiefs
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
