We arrive together at the end of our journey. These are the final picks of our 2014 NFL Draft Re-Draft with some notes about the teams without a first round pick.
Before we go on to the final picks, let’s give a few shout outs to some guys who nearly made it into this first round re-do and others who just deserve the mention. As far as guys who dropped out of the first round, Los Angeles Rams DT Dominique Easley and Chargers cornerback Jason Verrett and San Francisco 49ers safety Jimmy Ward all had a case to make for remaining in round one.
As far as guys who could have jumped into the round, the best contender you won’t see below is Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle Stephon Tuitt. Allen Hurns was on the bubble. Isaiah Crowell wasn’t, but both he and Hurns were undrafted free agents in 2014 and would both go high in the second round in this redraft.
Here’s your recap; 1. Houston Texans – Aaron Donald, 2. St. Louis Rams – Jadeveon Clowney, 3. Jacksonville Jaguars – Khalil Mack, 4. Buffalo Bills – Derek Carr, 5. Oakland Raiders – Teddy Bridgewater, 6. Atlanta Falcons – Odell Beckham, Jr. 7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Mike Evans, 8. Cleveland Browns – Blake Bortles, 9. Minnesota Vikings – Taylor Lewan, 10. Detroit Lions – Devonte Freeman, 11. Tennessee Titans – Zach Martin, 12. New York Giants – Kelvin Benjamin, St. Louis Rams – Jake Matthews, 14. Chicago Bears – C.J. Mosley, 15. Pittsburgh Steelers – Ha-Ha Clinton-Dix, 16. Dallas Cowboys – Dee Ford, 17. Baltimore Ravens – Telvin Smith, 18. New York Jets – Deone Bucannon, 19. Miami Dolphins – Jarvis Landry, 20. New Orleans Saints – Sammy Watkins, 21. Green Bay Packers – Ryan Shazier, 22. Cleveland Browns – Brandin Cooks, 23. Kansas City Chiefs – Allen Robinson, 24. Cincinnati Bengals – Kyle Fuller, 25. San Diego Chargers – Bradley Roby, 26. Philadelphia Eagles – Anthony Barr, 27. Arizona Cardinals – Jimmy Garoppolo, 28. Carolina Panthers – Jordan Matthews, 29. New England Patriots – Eric Ebron.
Let’s finish this!
30. San Francisco 49ers – Willie Snead IV, WR, Ball State
Original pick: Jimmy Ward, Safety, Northern Illinois University
Ward is a starter and far from a terrible pick here at No. 30, but there are multiple issues as to why I’ve switched up the pick. Ward doesn’t really give any better value that a couple of other safeties taken later int he draft; Lamarcus Joyner and Maurice Alexander. This is a 49ers team about to have a mass offensive exodus at the pass-catching skill positions. Wide receivers Michael Crabtree and Brandon Lloyd would both be gone the very next season and Anquan Boldin would follow the year afterwards. This was the time to address the need and Snead more than fits the bill.
No player in this first round mock draft makes a bigger leap than Snead, who didn’t even get drafted, but instead was signed by the Cleveland Browns as an undreafted free agent, was cut, then ended up on the Panthers then the Saints practice squads before hitting the field for the first time in 2015. Snead has played two full seasons with the Saints and caught 141 passes for 1,879 yards and seven touchdowns, averaging about 13 yards per catch. Sure, you could argue that then San Fransico quarterback Colin Kaepernick couldn’t have gotten him the ball anyway in a pass read, but regardless, Snead would be a significant upgrade to what the 49ers put on the field before this season when they brought in Pierre Garcon and Marquis Goodwin as free agents.
31. Denver Broncos – Lamarcus Joyner, Safety, ,Florida State
Original pick: Bradley Robey, CB, Ohio State
The 2014 Broncos were loaded nearly top to bottom with only two weak spots heading into the offseason, slot corner and safety. In our universe, they addressed that need drafting Roby here. Since he’s gone in our draft do-over, the Broncos take the next best guy for both positions, drafting Joyner who can excel both at slot corner and at safety. Joyner has been an excellent defender and one of the best slot corners in the league since the Rams drafted him. In his three seasons he has 178 tackles, four sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and 13 passes defended. How good would Joyner be in the Wade Phillips defense the Broncos fielded in 2014? We’ll get an idea when Joyner and Phillips team up in the Rams’ defensive backfield this season.
32. Minnesota Vikings – Jeremy Hill, RB, LSU
Original pick: Teddy Bridgewater, QB, Louisville
Using out special hindsight powers allowed in our alternate universe, we know that the Vikings will be in flux at best at running back over the next three seasons from 2014. That’s why Hill makes sense here at the bottom of the first round. Minnesota’s offense fell off a cliff due to suspensions and injuries to Adrian Peterson in 2014 and 2016, Hill puts a band-aid on that wound immediately and likely helps the Vikings move on from Peterson a year early. In Hill’s first two years in the league, he’s rushed for 2,757 yards and 29 touchdowns and caught 63 passes for 468 yards and a touchdown. His 11 touchdowns in 2015 led the NFL.
No First Round Picks
XX. Indianapolis Colts – Traded to the Cleveland Browns
The Colts shipped their first round pick to the Browns in exchange for running back Trent Richardson. At the time, I thought this was a solid deal that would fix the one glaring problem with Indianapolis’ offense. I was very wrong.
Trading that pick means the Colts missed out on adding Dee Ford to their defense, something they desperately needed to do. But an even better pick, considering their need at running back, would have been Devonte Freeman. They should still be kicking their asses over that one.
XX. Washington Redskins – Traded to the Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams
This was the final year the Redskins were without a first round pick thanks to the disastrous trade with the Rams for the rights to draft Robert Griffin III. It’s old news now that the Redskins nabbed their actual franchise quarterback later in that same draft in Kirk Cousins. Because this trade had already gone over the cliff at this point, the Redskins had to surrender the No. 2 pick in this draft. In any universe, that was a potential star player that Washington could really use on the roster right now.
XX. Seattle Seahawks – Traded to the Minnesota Vikings
The 2013-14 Super Bowl champs traded out of the first round on draft day so the Vikings could grab Bridgewater. Looking at the draft board even today, it was probably a smart move considering their loaded roster. The problem is the Seahawks kind of blew this draft. Only four of the nine men they drafted are still on the roster and none of them are serious contributors with the exception of starting center Justin Britt. Of the players acquired via pick trades, only wide receiver Paul Richardson remains on the roster and he’s on the edge of the bubble.
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