Dan Levine 2013 NFL Mock Draft – 13 April 2013

April 14, 2013 · Dan Levine

1. Luke Joeckel 2. Ezekiel Ansah 3. Shariff Floyd 4. Dee Milliner 5. Dion Jordan

Round 1
1	Kansas City	Luke Joeckel	OT	Texas A&M
Joeckel is still the solid first pick after all these weeks and months of draft analysis. No matter what happens with tackle Brandon Albert, Kansas City can plug Joeckel in and protect their investment in Alex Smith.
2	Jacksonville	Ezekiel Ansah	DE	BYU
Jacksonville could go a number of different ways at number two, but they have been seeking a pass rusher off the edge for the last few years. Ansah is a bit unknown but draft experts like his upside. A good choice for a young team.
3	Oakland	Sharrif Floyd	DT	Florida
Floyd was a beast in the middle of the line for the Gators last season. He had more tackles for loss than a lot of outside linebackers did. He is a productive guy. His motor may be in question, but he’s a certified top-10 talent.
4	Philadelphia	Dee Milliner	CB	Alabama
Philadelphia is trying to build an actual team and not the so-called “Dream Team.” They have bolstered some positions already, but they need to get better in the secondary and Milliner is the best defensive back in the class. Chip Kelly is the X-factor here. He could throw a curve ball.
5	Detroit	Dion Jordan	DE	Oregon
Jordan is a physical freak who Detroit would love to see come off the edge. After losing Kyle Vanden Bosch, they could use a replacement. Detroit would have one of the strongest defensive lines in the league.
6	Cleveland	Star Lotulelei	DT	Utah
Cleveland does not really need much in the way of interior line help, but the Browns get good value here and they can always use good players. They really can’t afford to miss. Their defense is already the strength of the team. This pick adds to it.
7	Arizona	Eric Fisher	OT	Central Michigan
With the addition of Carson Palmer, Arizona has a quarterback they can play with. Now they just need to protect him. Fisher is a really good prospect. Filling a hole with Fisher allows Arizona to draft a quarterback in the next year or two and already have a good line around him.
8	Buffalo	Geno Smith	QB	West Virginia
Buffalo is the next team to try to experiment with Kevin Kolb and it doesn’t look promising. Ryan Fitzpatrick fizzled out after signing his contract. Smith is the best quarterback prospect in the draft and Buffalo needs to find their guy. Poor cold weather play by Smith might be a consideration here.
9	NY Jets	Barkevious Mingo	DE	LSU
The Jets had a tough time pressuring the quarterback last year compared to previous years under Rex Ryan. The down linemen, with Muhammad Wilkerson and Quinton Coples, are strong. Mingo is athletic with ability to get around linemen.
10	Tennessee	Chance Warmack	G	Alabama
Chance Warmack is an incredible line prospect. You figure he has to be a legit starter from day one. After signing Andy Levitre, Tennessee can form one of the strongest lines in the league for Chris Johnson to run behind.
11	San Diego	Lane Johnson	OT	Oklahoma
Philip Rivers is not getting any younger and San Diego has not been great at protecting him. His play has slipped in the last few seasons. Lane Johnson would be an upgrade over the shoddy play of the oft-injured Jared Gaither.
12	Miami	D.J. Fluker	OT	Alabama
This is kind of an interesting pick for Miami, but Jake Long bolted for St. Louis. They will need another bookend tackle to protect their investment in Ryan Tannehill. With Jonathan Martin on one side and Fluker on the other, Tannehill would feel pretty safe.
13	Tampa Bay	Bjoern Werner	DE	Florida State
Werner has faded of late, but this would be a solid pick for Tampa. DaQuan Bowers is not necessarily all he’s cracked up to be and Werner would just have to move from Tallahassee to Tampa. He would add to a young, up-and-coming defense.
14	Carolina	Jonathan Cooper	G	North Carolina
Carolina can use a lot of help. Their success is predicated on Cam Newton’s ability to escape the pocket and bulldoze defenders. With Cooper opening up holes in front of him, he should have no problem continuing his physical play.
15	New Orleans	Jarvis Jones	DE	Georgia
Possibly the best defender in college football last year, Jones would really help a New Orleans defense that was dreadful in all facets last season. He would provide a pass rush off the edge and slow down opposing passers.
16	St. Louis	Cordarrelle Patterson	WR	Tennessee
St. Louis gets Jake Long to protect Sam Bradford. After losing Danny Amendola, they need someone for Bradford to throw to. Patterson is the best wide receiver talent in this draft. He may not be all that well known, but he’s got skills for days.
17	Pittsburgh	Alex Ogletree	LB	Georgia
Every time I watched Ogletree play, he simply made plays. He pursued the ball every play and was superb sideline to sideline. He’s the kind of linebacker that could make a name for himself in Pittsburgh where they love to build around their defense.
18	Dallas	Sylvester Williams	DT	North Carolina
Dallas needs offensive line and defensive backfield help, but Sylvester Williams adds a strength upfront with Demarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer. He is great value here and Dallas’ defense needs a boost anywhere.
19	NY Giants	Desmond Trufant	CB	Washington
The Giants generally take the best player available. They could really use a cornerback though since theirs tend to get injured quite often. Trufant, brother of Marcus, is a solid prospect that can cover well.
20	Chicago	Manti Te’o	LB	Notre Dame
This is where Te’o lands. After not reaching an agreement with Brian Urlacher, Chicago needs a solid replacement and right away. Te’o could step in as an every down player and bring Chicago back to the defensive glory days.
21	Cincinnati	Kenny Vaccaro	S	Texas
Cincinnati is a strong team without any major weaknesses. Vaccaro would help boost their secondary with the likes Chris Crocker and Reggie Nelson. They are good players but Vaccaro could be a ten year starter.
22	St. Louis (from WAS)	Xavier Rhodes	CB	Florida State
St. Louis uses this pick from Washington to address the defense. Florida State is known for producing high quality defensive players. Rhodes is no exception. He was the best player in the Seminole defensive backfield last season.
23	Minnesota	Tavon Austin	WR	West Virginia
With the departure of Percy Harvin, Minnesota gets the player most similar to him in this draft. He’s fast and a nightmare to cover in the slot or out of the backfield. He creates a matchup problem for everybody, just like Harvin did.
24	Indianapolis	Matt Elam	S	Florida
Indy has done a great job this offseason in building a team around Andrew Luck. They could use help on defense. Elam would be a great complement to Antoine Bethea. Facing teams like Houston who love to throw, good coverage is essential.
25	Minnesota (from SEA)	Sheldon Richardson	DT	Missouri
Minnesota’s interior of the defensive line is not getting any younger. The Williams boys have also had some run-ins with the NFL disciplinarians. Richardson was a great player at Missouri that would add some youth to that defensive front.
26	Green Bay	Eddie Lacy	RB	Alabama
It seems like Green Bay has not had a number one running back for years. With Aaron Rodgers and that receiving corps, who really cared? Rodgers and Co. could use a reprieve from doing it all by themselves. Lacy is the best running back in the class. He’s a hard runner that would fit right in.
27	Houston	Keenan Allen	WR	California
Andre Johnson is getting older. They need to find someone to take the pressure off of him. If Allen blossoms into a really good receiver like many think he can, he could even be the heir apparent when Johnson retires.
28	Denver	Kevin Minter	LB	LSU
Denver’s offense is dynamic. They obviously had some defensive breakdowns in the playoffs last season. Minter would come and step in for the departed D.J. Williams and help keep the Broncos on a path to the Super Bowl.
29	New England	Jonathan Cyprien	S	Florida International
New England’s defense was not that great last year despite another good season. Cyprien is little known, but he has been climbing up draft boards since the combine. Belichick doesn’t care what school you’re from as long as you can play.
30	Atlanta	John Jenkins	DT	Georgia
Atlanta is a strong team. Their run defense sputtered a bit last year though. Jenkins is a big body on the inside that would help impede the paths of opposing runners. He had 50 tackles last year from the middle of the Georgia defensive line.
31	San Francisco	Tyler Eifert	TE	Notre Dame
Could you imagine a two tight end set with Vernon Davis and Eifert, the best tight end prospect in the class? Colin Kaepernick would have his hands full trying to get enough balls to enough guys. They would have one of the most dynamic offenses in the league yet again.
32	Baltimore	Arthur Brown	LB	Kansas State
Baltimore lost a lot on defense after their Super Bowl victory, including some Hall of Famers in Ray Lewis and Ed Reed. They signed Elvis Dumervil, but they will need to fill out that corps around him. Brown was a steady player in the Big 12 that would be able to handle a heavy workload.
Round 2
33	Jacksonville	Matt Barkley	QB	USC
This is the second quarterback off the board. I’m not sure anyone in Jacksonville is sold on Blaine Gabbert. Here they can get Barkley, whose stock has fallen since last year, at a lower risk than a first round pick.
34	San Francisco (from KC)	DaMontre Moore	DE	Texas A&M
Moore was once considered a top ten pick. He is a supreme talent with a lot of baggage that worries some NFL teams. San Francisco continues to bolster their strong defensive line. Justin Smith isn’t getting any younger.
35	Philadelphia	Mike Glennon	QB	North Carolina State
Here Philly gets its next quarterback. Michael Vick is only viable for another season or two. Glennon is a tough call this early in the second. He’s tall and has a big arm so he can get the ball to speedsters Jeremy Maclin and Desean Jackson.
36	Detroit	Menelik Watson	OT	Florida State
Jeff Backus has been protecting the blind side of Detroit quarterbacks for what seems like four decades. He is retiring, so now Matthew Stafford needs someone else to fill in. Watson is an ideal fit here.
37	Cincinnati (from OAK)	Da’Rick Rogers	WR	Tennessee Tech
Rogers began at Tennessee with high expectations. Things sort of derailed in Knoxville and he transferred to Tennessee Tech. He was one of the most talented players on the roster even at Tennessee. Marvin Lewis likes risky guys. Good fit.
38	Arizona	Montee Ball	RB	Wisconsin
Arizona has had some trouble with running backs staying healthy. Beanie Wells is out in the desert so they replace him with another bruiser of a running back in Montee Ball.
39	Cleveland (supplemental)

40	NY Jets	Landry Jones	QB	Oklahoma
The Jets take a shot on Landry Jones because Mark Sanchez isn’t really working out there. This is probably a little high for Jones, but he can make the throws they need to make. If he is mentally stronger than Sanchez, the Jets could use him.
41	Tennessee	Zach Ertz	TE	Stanford
Jared Cook is gone now and they’ve signed Delanie Walker. Walker is good but they could use a No. 1 tight end as a security blanket for Jake Locker. They could even sit Ertz early if Walker is productive and then move to a two tight end set if they see fit.
42	Buffalo	Justin Pugh	OT	Syracuse
With all these new quarterbacks in Buffalo, they could stand to bolster the line a little bit. With Andy Levitre gone now, there is no one of consequence on the Bills’ line. Pugh would be a good start towards rebuilding the protection.
43	Miami	Terrance Williams	WR	Baylor
The Dolphins signed Mike Wallace which was huge for Ryan Tannehill. They take Williams here as a second receiver. If he pans out then it’s a real strength of the team with Hartline, Williams, Wallace and Devone Bess.
44	Tampa Bay	Blidi Wreh-Wilson	CB	Connecticut
Ronde Barber won’t play forever, and Tampa Bay needs a replacement. Plus, drafting Wreh-Wilson will make the Bucs defensive backfield incredibly strong with Eric Wright and Mark Barron back there as well. If the Bucs end up trading for Darrelle Revis, this pick could change.
45	Carolina	DeAndre Hopkins	WR	Clemson
Steve Smith is still a viable receiver in Carolina for Cam Newton, but they should probably put someone beside him to create more of a threat in the passing game. Hopkins is a speedster on the outside.
46	New Orleans (forfeit)

47	San Diego	Gavin Escobar	TE	San Diego St.
Escobar is a little known tight end. Philip Rivers could use a backup to Antonio Gates. There would be less concern if the oft-injured Gates happened to go down with an injury.
48	St. Louis	Ricky Wagner	OT	Wisconsin
St. Louis does not look entirely sold on Roger Saffold as a member of the offensive line. They draft Wagner out of Wisconsin to help keep Bradford upright opposite Jake Long. St. Louis keeps building the offense.
49	Dallas	Jordan Poyer	CB	Oregon State
Dallas gets a defensive back that they desperately need. Poyer was one of the best corners in the Pac-12 last season. Versatility will be key for Poyer here. If they can play him at safety then he’s a total steal.
50	Pittsburgh	Johnathan Hankins	DT	Ohio State
Pittsburgh finds a replacement for an aging Casey Hampton and a good rotational player with Ziggy Hood. Hankins can play in a 3-4 or 4-3.
51	NY Giants	Kyle Long	OT	Oregon
The Giants line seemed to get old all at once last year. They re-signed Will Beatty to a big contract. With Long they can solidify the other side of the line. Eli Manning can keep his starting streak intact.
52	Chicago	Jordan Reed	TE	Florida
When Jay Cutler lost Greg Olsen to Carolina, he lost a favorite target. They haven’t had a great target at the tight end position since. Kellen Davis is good but Reed is more athletic. Cutler would love having him.
53	Washington	Tony Jefferson	S	Oklahoma
With a sparse secondary, the Redskins need to draft starting safeties if possible. Jefferson is a good player that would make a difference right away. He is far from polished, but would be a good pick in this spot.
54	Minnesota	Sio Moore	LB	Connecticut
Minnesota takes one of the highest players rated on the board. They get more depth for the linebacking corps with the Huskies’ linebacker. He had eight sacks last season.
55	Cincinnati	D.J. Swearinger	S	South Carolina
Cincinnati already drafted a safety in round one. This is a value pick for the Bengals. Swearinger was a productive player that popped off the screen whenever the Gamecocks played. They may try to trade out of this pick as well.
56	Miami (from IND)	Giovani Bernard	RB	North Carolina
With Reggie Bush gone, the Dolphins are going to rely a lot on Daniel Thomas and Lamar Miller. They are high on Miller, but Thomas has not been overly impressive. Bernard could be their change of pace back.
57	Green Bay	Dallas Thomas	OT	Tennessee
Aaron Rodgers is about to be the highest paid quarterback in the league. They seem to have had trouble protecting him over the last few years. Ever since Chad Clifton became ineffective, Green Bay has been searching for a replacement.
58	Seattle	Kawann Short	DT	Purdue
Seattle is a strong team, that really does not need too much help anywhere…especially on defense. But with Short they get another rotational tackle to slide in when Alan Branch or Brandon Mebane gets gassed.
59	Houston	Jesse Williams	DT	Alabama
Wade Phillips would love to incorporate a nose tackle like Jesse Williams to his rotation. Williams was a disruptive force at Alabama. That front would be stacked with J.J. Watt and Antonio Smith on either side of him.
60	Denver	Eric Reid	S	LSU
The big play that beat Denver last year was a breakdown by the last line of defense. By drafting Reid, the Broncos would get a speedy safety to play the ball and replace a shoddy safety tandem.
61	New England	Sam Montgomery	DT	LSU
New England drafts Montgomery for the depth. Once again they go on the defensive side of the ball. He would be a suitable back up for Vince Wilfork.
62	Atlanta	Travis Kelce	TE	Cincinnati
The Atlanta brass convinced Tony Gonzalez to come back for another year. Once he finally leaves though, there is nothing behind him. Drafting Kelce here would give them depth for this year and provide them easy transition going into 2014.
63	San Francisco	T.J. McDonald	S	USC
San Francisco signed Craig Dahl, but he is not any sort of long term answer at the position. T.J. McDonald was a very good safety for USC last season. He could be groomed to be the long term starter.
64	Baltimore	Jamar Taylor	CB	Boise State
Baltimore continues to try and replace its defensive losses. Jamar Taylor is a little bit underrated and unknown coming out of Boise State. He’s considered a fundamentally sound defensive back that would fit great with Ozzie Newsome’s team.

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Dan Levine 2013 NFL Mock Draft – 13 April 2013

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