Mike D’s 1st Round Projections….
1. Arizona Cardinals- Kyler Murray-QB. Oklahoma
2. San Francisco 49ers- Nick Bosa- DE. Ohio State
3. New York Jets- Josh Allen- OLB. Kentucky
4. Oakland Raiders- Quinnen Williams-DT. Alabama
5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers- Devin White- ILB. LSU
6. New York Giants- Ed Oliver-DT. Houston
7. Jacksonville Jaguars- Christian Wilkins-DT. Clemson
8. Detroit Lions- Montez Sweat-DE./OLB. Mississippi State
9. Buffalo Bills- T.J. Hockenson-TE. Iowa
10. Denver Broncos- Dwayne Haskins-QB. Ohio State
11. Cincinnati Bengals- Drew Lock-QB. Missouri
12. Green Bay Packers- Andre Dillard-OT. Washington State
13. Miami Dolphins- Jawaan Taylor-OT. Florida
14. Atlanta Falcons- Rashan Gary- DE./DT. Michigan
15. Washington Redskins- D.K. Metcalf- WR. Ole Miss
16. Carolina Panthers- Brian Burns-DE./OLB. Florida State
17. New York Giants (from Cleveland B.)- Daniel Jones-QB. Duke
18. Minnesota Vikings- Jonah Williams-OT./OG. Alabama
19. Tennessee Titans- Dexter Lawrence-DT. Clemson
20. Pittsburgh Steelers- Devin Bush-ILB. Michigan
21. Seattle Seahawks- Greedy Williams-CB. LSU
22. Baltimore Ravens- Marquise Brown-WR. Oklahoma
23. Houston Texans- Cody Ford-OT./OG. Oklahoma
24. Oakland Raiders (from Chicago B.)- Noah Fant-TE. Iowa
25. Philadelphia Eagles- Josh Jacobs-HB. Alabama
26. Indianapolis Colts- Johnathan Abram-SS. Mississippi State
27. Oakland Raiders (from Dallas C.)- Byron Murphy-CB. Washington
28. Los Angeles Chargers- Rock Ya-Sin- CB. Temple
29. Seattle Seahawks (from K.C. Chiefs) Clelin Ferrell-DE. Clemson
30. Green Bay Packers- Jeffery Simmons-DT. Mississippi State
31. Los Angeles Rams- Garrett Bradbury-OC./OG. North Carolina State
32. New England Patriots- Deandre Baker-CB. Georgia
*** The New Orleans Saints at pick # 62 have a long ride for their first overall selection and I went through the scenarios of players like South Carolina wide receiver Deebo Samuel, Iowa State wide receiver Hakeem Butler, Michigan defensive end Chase Winovich, Notre Dame cornerback Julian Love and Ohio State wide receiver Terry McLaurin, but I made my choice with Texas A&M tight end Jace Sternberger.
The Saints did add a quality pass catching tight end in Jared Cook in free agency, but Cook is 32 years old and while he still has a couple of really strong seasons left to play in the NFL I would want a young tight end who could be another big target for Drew Brees in the redzone and short yardage areas of the field.
Last season the 6-4, 250 pound Sternberger caught 48 passes for 832 yards, averaged 17.3 yards per catch and scored 10 touchdowns for the Aggies. He also had 6 receptions in 2018 that went for 30 yards or more. While he is still rough around the edges as a route runner and he needs to upgrade his run blocking skills he is exactly what the Saints would be looking for in a young tight end who can stretch the middle of the field and he has really good run after catch skills.
But if the versatile return man/wide receiver Deebo Samuel from South Carolina is on the board, he would be hard to pass on for the Black and Gold.