That’s when the players who project as some of college football’s best this year will make their way to the stage and pass forward into the NFL.
Which players currently have first-round NFL Draft stock? And which teams could be picking early in 2016? Here’s a way-too-early look at the Top 15 picks for 2016.
Teams are in the reverse order of the Super Bowl odds on VegasInsider.com. Thursday night’s first-round picks were considered.
1. Jacksonville Jaguars - Laremy Tunsil, OT, Ole Miss
One of the top couple prospects for 2016, Tunsil projects as the top offensive tackle and the best fit for the Jaguars at No. 1. Landing Tunsil would allow Jacksonville to move Luke Joeckel to right tackle and give the Jaguars one of the best young tackle combinations in the NFL. That’s necessary to help developing quarterback Blake Bortles. Tunsil’s road to this point has followed a pretty straight line: he was the No. 1 offensive tackle in the 2013 247Sports Composite.
2. Tennessee Titans - Joey Bosa, DE, Ohio State
At this point, Ohio State’s Bosa may be the top prospect overall, and could well be the No. 1 pick. Here’s he’s at No. 2, where he’ll use his prototypical size (6-6 275) and outstanding consistency — he’s made at least one tackle for loss in 17 of his last 18 games — to give Tennessee an amazing pass-rushing building block.
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Robert Nkemdiche, DE, Ole Miss
The Buccaneers need another elite defensive lineman next to defensive tackle Gerald McCoy, and Nkemdiche offers the versatility to play multiple spots and the talent to supply some much-needed pass-rush. The former No. 1 player in the 2013 247Sports Composite has excellent size at 6-4 297 and can eat up single blocking.
4. Washington Redskins - Cardale Jones, QB, Ohio State
I know, I know, three games. But NFL scouts certainly took notice of what Jones did in the Big Ten Championship Game and both rounds of the College Football Playoff. Scouts are enamored with his prototypical size, arm and movement skills, and the Redskins seem to be tiring of the RG3 experiment.
5. Oakland Raiders - Shawn Oakman, DE, Baylor
Few players in the draft are going to pass the eye test like the 6-foot-9, 280-pound Oakman who looks like an American Gladiator. And few teams love players who pass the eye test like the Raiders. Oakland gave quarterback David Carr the NFL Draft’s best target in Amari Cooper on Tuesday night, which means they can use this pick to address the defense with a player who had 19.5 tackles for loss and 11 sacks this past season.
6. Cleveland Browns - Christian Hackenberg, QB, Penn State
Hackenberg struggled in 2014, throwing 12 touchdowns to 15 interceptions, but showed a tantalizing glimpse into his potential by throwing for 371 yards and four touchdowns to no interceptions in the Nittany Lions’ bowl game. The Browns, you might have heard, are in need of a quarterback, and Hackenberg might have the most upside in the draft.
7. Minnesota Vikings - Carl Lawson, DE, Auburn
Every year, a pass-rusher shoots up all the boards based on his athleticism and ability to get to the passer. In 2016, that player could be Lawson, a freshman All-American before sitting out last year with a knee injury. Expect Lawson to put up a double-digit sack season before heading off to be a Top 15 pick.
8. San Francisco 49ers - D’haquille Williams, WR, Auburn
Back-to-back Auburn picks. The 49ers went defense with the No. 17 pick, taking Arik Armstead after the top three wide receivers went in the first 14 picks. But there’s a pretty desperate need there, and the explosive Williams — once the No. 1 junior college prospect in the 247Sports Composite — would bring the best size/speed combination in the draft.
9. San Diego Chargers - A’Shawn Robinson, DL, Alabama
Robinson (6-foot-4, 312) has looked like an NFL player since his high school years, and led the Crimson Tide in sacks as a true freshman. Since arriving in Tuscaloosa, he’s played both a nose tackle and a five-technique, showing the kind of flashes that made him the No. 33 overall prospect in the 2013 class in the 247Sports Composite. That makes him a good fit for a Chargers team looking to upgrade its front seven.
10. New York Jets - Connor Cook, QB, Michigan State
One of the most interesting storylines in 2015 will be which quarterback out of the three Big Ten signal-callers — including Jones and Hackenberg — emerges as the top pro prospect. Here, all three earn spots in the Top 10 and Cook (6-foot-4, 220) might be the most polished pro prospect of the trio. The Jets have been looking to upgrade this spot for awhile, and Cook makes plenty of sense here.
11. New Orleans Saints - Vernon Hargreaves, CB, Florida
The Saints are in the middle of a rebuild job, one that would be aided immensely by a shutdown cover corner. And Hargreaves projects as the top corner in the 2016 draft. It’s a spot he’s occupied since his landing as the No. 1 cornerback and the No. 3 overall player in the 2013 247Sports Composite. Hargreaves is a likely 5-10 pick, so if he falls to New Orleans at 11, expect the Saints to be pretty ecstatic.
12. Houston Texans - Laquon Treadwell, WR, Ole Miss
Treadwell may have the most fluctuation of any player on this list as he comes back from his injury. When healthy, Treadwell is the top wide receiver prospect in the class, a player nearly uncoverable at his best. That’s why he was the No. 1 wide receiver in the 2013 Composite. The Texans, meanwhile, are trying to move on from Andre Johnson and build back the receiving corps.
13. Buffalo Bills - Kendall Fuller, CB, Virginia Tech
The Bills need young help at cornerback and land the second-best cornerback in the 2016 draft here in Fuller. At 6-foot, 197 pounds, Fuller nearly has the size of a free safety but owns the hips and fluidity of a cover corner. But the most impressive part of Fuller’s game might be his ball skills, as he defended 17 passes, intercepting two and breaking up 15.
14. Carolina Panthers - Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Ohio State
This may be too low for Elliott, who had a monster close to the 2014 season, emerging as college football’s best back and arguably the top Heisman Trophy candidate for 2015. Elliott blends great size (6-0 225) with wonderful feet and vision and surprising speed. He finished with 1,878 yards and 18 touchdowns as a sophomore. This is a great blend of pick and need, as the Panthers continue to age at running back.
15. Atlanta Falcons - Tyler Boyd, WR, Pittsburgh
Adding Clemson’s Vic Beasley helps to improve the pass rush, and now the Falcons must look to offense where two of Matt Ryan’s best weapons in recent years will be either gone (Tony Gonzalez, retired) or getting older (Roddy White). Adding the ultra-productive Boyd alongside Julio Jones would really help.
When I get the actuals, I will let you know. We'll go to vegas together before the draft and then buy our islands. Not too close together, but they can be in the same ocean. That's cool.