2019 NFL Mock Draft 3.0: Let the Tanking for Justin Herbert Begin
By Jason McIntyre
The 2019 NFL Draft is six months away. As we approach the midway point of the NFL season, it’s becoming clear which teams are bad, and what their needs are. Our 1st 2019 NFL Mock Draft was back in April, right after the 2018 draft. Our 2nd 2019 NFL Mock Draft was in September.
1. NY Giants – Justin Herbert, QB, Oregon. The Giants are desperately in need of a QB, with only maybe Buffalo and Oakland in the same mode.
2. San Francisco – Ed Oliver, DT, Houston. The 49ers will need to bolster the offensive line, and they’ve invested a ton on the defensive line. But Oliver is the best player here.
3. Arizona – Nick Bosa, DE, Ohio State. In need of everything – including a new head coach – the Cardinals should tank, hope to get the #1 pick, and trade it to a QB-needy team.
4. Oakland – Quinnen Williams, DT, Alabama. Ideally, they’d tank for the #1 pick. Otherwise, here’s a 1st round blueprint for the Raiders. Williams is rapidly rising up draft boards with a dominant start to the season.
5. Indianapolis – Devin White, LB, LSU. Got better in the trenches last draft; White could play alongside their great 2018 2nd round pick Darius Leonard and now you’ve got the makings of a very good defense.
6. Buffalo – Jonah Williams, OT, Alabama. It’s early, but so far, this doesn’t appear to be a loaded offensive lineman draft. The Bills line is struggling after losing almost all of it last offseason.
7. Cleveland – Greedy Williams, CB, LSU. It figures to be a really interesting showdown for the top corner in the draft. Williams faces his toughest test in Alabama’s fleet of WRs next week. Browns hit a home run with Denzel Ward last year in the Top 10.
8. Oakland (via Dallas) – Deandre Baker, CB, Georgia. The Raiders need help. Everywhere.
9. Tennessee – JJ Arcega-Whiteside, WR, Stanford. This may seem high, but at 6-foot-3 – and he plays bigger, especially in the red zone – all he needs is a sub 4.5 40 to fall in this range. Arcega-Whiteside reminds me a little of Brandon Marshall.
10. Jacksonville – Dwayne Haskins, QB, Ohio State. Regardless of what happens with Blake Bortles the rest of the way, it has to be a QB here. Haskins, for now, is my guy. He’s thrown for over 400 yards in each of the last three games for the Buckeyes. He turns 22 in May, so he’s a month older than Sam Darnold.
11. NY Jets – Dexter Lawrence, DT, Clemson. There is an OL need, though I’m not sure about drafting one here. Increasingly, I’m liking the idea of a trade down to accumulate more picks, which were lost in the trade to move up for Sam Darnold.
12. Philadelphia – Deionte Thompson, S, Alabama. The Eagles secondary is a mess, and veteran Malcolm Jenkins turns 31 in December.
13. Atlanta – Jeffery Simmons, DL, Mississippi. Not a stat-sheet stuffer, and hasn’t been a huge factor against Florida, Auburn, or LSU, but the talent is there and boy would he look nice next to Grady Jarrett.
14. Denver – Drew Lock, QB, Missouri. Struggled against Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama in consecutive weeks (1 TD, 5 INT), but I expect a strong bounce-back Saturday against Kentucky.
15. Oakland (via Chicago) – AJ Brown, WR, Ole Miss. We’ll see how he runs at the Combine, and if it’s 4.4, pencil him in the Top 15. The WR he’s most-often compared to is Juju Smith-Schuster, who ran a 4.54 and was taken late in the 2nd round.
16. Tampa – Julian Love, CB, Notre Dame. Bucs have a terrible secondary; Love has been a 3-year starter who is a plug-and-play talent.
17. Seattle – Rashan Gary, DT, Michigan. He’s got a shoulder injury, and there’s some chatter he may just “pull a Bosa” and not return. Talent’s there for him to be a Top 10 pick.
18. Detroit – Dre’Mont Jones, DT, Ohio State. The Lions have the worst run defense in the NFL and just traded for DT Damon Harrison. If he doesn’t help stop the bleeding, it would have to be a defensive lineman.
19. Miami – Clelin Ferrell, DE, Clemson. The Dolphins pass rush looks good on paper, but the pressure’s not always there, and Cameron Wake is 36.
20. Baltimore – Marquise Brown, WR, Oklahoma. Fast-forward to 2020. Lamar Jackson at QB and Hollywood Brown at WR. That offense …
21. Houston – Greg Little, OT, Ole Miss. Save Deshaun Watson. Please.
22. Cincinnati – Te’von Coney, LB, Notre Dame. Having an All-American season for the Irish. Bengals secondary needs work, and you wonder, if the season goes south, do they consider a QB here.
23. Green Bay – Jachai Polite, DE, Florida. Emerging as the star on an improving defense (8.5 TFL, 7.0 sacks).
24. Minnesota – Montez Sweat, DE, Mississippi State. A tad undersized at 240 pounds, but when you add 15 pounds to his 6-foot-6 frame, look out. Had 10.5 sacks last year, and already has 8.5 this season.
25. Pittsburgh – Devin Bush, LB, Michigan. He may not fall this far, but if the Steelers were to get him, it’d be a huge win for their up-and-down LB corps.
26. Washington – Irv Smith, TE, Alabama. Caught 14 passes and three TDs last year; already has 22 receptions and five TDs this year. There are secondary concerns, but TE Jordan Reed can’t stay healthy, and backup Vernon Davis turns 35 in January.
27. Carolina – Noah Fant, TE, Iowa. There are needs in the secondary, but Cam Newton’s security blanket (Greg Olsen) nearly retired last offseason, and he’s 34 in March.
28. LA Chargers – Anfernee Jennings, LB, Alabama. Inability to stop the run ultimately will hurt the Chargers in the playoffs.
29. New England – Josh Allen, OLB, Kentucky. Easy to predict a trade here. But Patriots have zero depth at linebacker. Through seven games, no defense has given up more TDs to tight ends (5).
30. Green Bay (via New Orleans) – Anthony Johnson, WR, Buffalo. Yes, the defensive needs are many. But we’ll see what the future of Randall Cobb is with the Packers (hint), and Johnson would be a welcome addition and obviously keep the franchise (Aaron Rodgers) happy.
31. Kansas City – Byron Murphy, CB, Washington. Only a redshirt sophomore, but having a tremendous season and would instantly add help to a terrible Chiefs secondary.
32. LA Rams – Kaden Smith, TE, Stanford. There’s a need at linebacker to cover tight ends – and that will be very obvious if the Rams make the Super Bowl is against the Chiefs – but what if LA got another offensive weapon for Jared Goff?