2013 NFL Mock Draft Picks 21-32 by Jason L
The last section of the first round in the 2013 NFL Mock Draft
21. Cincinnati Bengals Arthur Brown OLB Kansas State
If Andre Smith doesn’t get signed then DJ Fluker might be the pick here. I think something can still get done before the draft which will allow the Bengals to take the best OLB on the board in Brown. Brown has been moving up the boards and I have him going ahead of Ogletree, who I think falls a bit more than expected. If the Bengals do move on from Smith then they could go with either Fluker or Menelik Watson (although some mocks have Watson higher than he’ll ultimately go).
22. St. Louis Rams Kenny Vaccaro S Texas
The Rams couldn’t have had this work out much better. They most-likely chose Austin over Vaccarro at #16 but still get him at #22. Safety was arguably the weakest position for the Rams going into the offseason and they land the top safety in the draft. I don’t put Vaccaro at the same level as Eric Berry or Earl Thomas coming out so I think he might fall a bit further than most mocks. The Austin/Vaccaro 1-2 punch is huge for the Rams who look to improve in Jeff Fisher’s 2nd year.
23. Minnesota Vikings Desmond Trufant CB Washington
With the Vikings losing Winfield, depth at corner becomes pretty concerning. Chris Cook, when he’s on the field, is capable of being a #1 corner. The question is can he avoid injuries? After Cook, you have 2nd-year guy, Josh Robinson who was okay in his rookie year and AJ Jefferson who is a question mark. Trufant is certainly not the tackler that Winfield was (not many are) but is an upgrade on the outside in terms of coverage. Moving Robinson inside fulltime, putting Trufant on the outside and using Jefferson in the dime and as depth would be a big upgrade. Top DT’s are off the board and in this mock you still have Teo and Ogletree available in another 2 picks.
24. Indianapolis Colts Datone Jones DE UCLA
The Colts could go a number of directions. Their defense actually played better than I thought but there is definite room for improvement and getting a guy like Jones that they can move around a bit would help. You could see him at OLB, DE or even inside on passing downs. Been moving up in the last month and seems to be a good fit.
25. Minnesota Vikings Manti Teo ILB Notre Dame
I have to think this decision would come down to either the Vikings highest rated WR or between Teo and Ogletree. Ogletree IS the better athlete but he has both character issues and tackling/angle issues that are concerning. With Teo people point to two question marks, did the “imaginary girlfriend” indicate bigger personality issues and what happened vs. Alabama? I would think that Spielman would have an advantage on the personal stuff since he has plenty of ND references on his team. At the end of the day, I think the Vikings will bet on a lower risk with Teo and sure up the most glaring need on the team. Any team in this area is a candidate to trade down and Minnesota is no different.
26. Green Bay Packers Jonathan Cyprien S Florida International
The Packers, like the Saints, just need to improve their defense marginally to get back to where they ultimately want to be – in the Super Bowl. They could look at a number of different players to add to defense or could even surprise and take a WR to replace Jennings. I think they Packers ultimately trade down but if they don’t Cyprien is the right pick. The Packers didn’t get much out of Perry and Worthy last year due to injuries, so if they can come along, it would be a big benefit to the entire team.
27. Houston Texans DJ Fluker OT Alabama
The Texans have needs at ILB, #2 WR and possibly OT if Derek Newton’s recovery does not go well. That said, even before the injury Newton wasn’t a high tier RT and Fluker could elevate an already dominant running game. Alec Ogletree is another option but I think Kubiak will upgrade the OT position and getting Fluker here makes sense.
28. Denver Broncos Bjoern Werner DE Florida St.
The Broncos lost Elvis Dumervil on a last-minute paperwork issue and he ended taking his 11 sacks with him to the Baltimore Ravens. That leaves a pretty glaring issue at DE. Pairing Werner with Von Miller would keep talent at the end position. Manning was certainly the main reason for last year’s success but the 52 sacks they registered, didn’t hurt. Jamar Taylor could be an option as Champ Bailey can’t play forever, can he?
29. New England Patriots DeAndre Hopkins WR Clemson
Tom Brady isn’t getting any younger and needs weapons at the WR position. Losing Welker hurts and the talent takes a drop even after adding Amendola. Michael Jenkins is just a guy and even though they have the best set of TE’s in the league, they can’t stay healthy. I think you need to take the best playmaker available and I have Hopkins over Woods. The Patriots haven’t drafted WR all that well and have missed on free agents like Lloyd and Gonzalez. I think with Hopkins they get a guy that can be a difference maker in his first couple of years. Other option would be for Robert Woods out of USC.
30. Atlanta Falcons Tank Carradine DE Florida St.
The Falcons continue to be a pass rusher away from taking the step toward the Super Bowl. The team is set at most positions and can take a risk on Carradine who tore his ACL last year. Before the injury, he was going in the top 20 in early mock drafts. The Falcons did pick up Osi Umenyiora but lost John Abraham who was their most reliable DE. They could look at CB but they can probably address the position in the 2nd round.
31. San Francisco 49’ers Eric Reid S LSU
San Francisco has a million (well 14) picks this year so they could be one of the teams that are actually looking to move UP in the draft. They have a need at safety and could certainly upgrade the WR position, even after bringing over Boldin. The safe pick is Reid who could be the 2nd best safety in the draft. They also could grab Reid at #34 with the pick they got from KC.
32. Baltimore Ravens Alec Ogletree ILB Georgia
In typical Baltimore fashion, the Ravens let good players come to them. In this instance, they find Ray Lewis’s replacement. Ogletree has issues but the Ravens organization seems to do well with talented kids that have character issues. The Ravens did recently add Rolando McClain which might buy them an extra year or so but based on his history, he’s not the long-term answer. WR is another huge need and there are a number of guys that could be tagged to replace Boldin although the success he had at the end of the year and into the Super Bowl run would be hard to replace. A bigger, underneath/YAC WR like an Allen or Hunter might last until round 2.