Jeff Little’s 2014 NFL Mock Draft

1. Houston: Jadeveon Clowney, DE, South Carolina – In a decision between Clowney or a quarterback, the Texans draft Clowney.

2. St. Louis (From WAS): Greg Robinson, LT, Auburn – If the Rams are going to find out if QB Sam Bradford is their man, they must protect him.

3. Jacksonville: Sammy Watkins, WR, Clemson – The new regime needs a franchise QB, but are also in desperate need of a #1 WR in light of current wide out Justin Blackman’s issues.

4. Cleveland: Jake Matthews, LT, Texas A&M – In need of a franchise QB, the Browns select the highest rated player on their draft board. Matthews could also start on the right to give the Browns two bookend offensive tackles.

5. Oakland: Khalil Mack, OLB, Buffalo – In need of an impact players, the Raiders select a difference maker on defense. Mack would instantly upgrade the Raiders’ pass rush and give the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Top-10 picks in back-to-back years.

6. Atlanta: Taylor Lewan, LT, Michigan – QB Matt Ryan was sacked 44 times, hit 100 times and hurried on 206 plays in 2013. Matthews could be the Falcons LT for the next 10+ years.

7. Tampa Bay: Mike Evans, WR, USC – WRs Vincent Jackson and Mike Williams were productive in 2013, but the Bucs did not have a speed receiver to stretch the field. Evans has deceptive long speed to fill that need.

8. Minnesota: Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M  – In need of a franchise quarterback, the Vikings select the most exciting quarterback in college football in 2013. Manziel must adjust his game when he gets to the pros.

9. Buffalo: Eric Ebron, TE, UNC – The Bills are in need of a big, physical wideout who can make plays down the field and in the red zone. With Mike Evans off the board, the Bills select the top rated tight end.

10. Detroit: Calvin Pryor, FS, Louisville – The Lions played well defensively, but need help at safety. Pryor could replace former starter Louis Delmas (just signed with the Miami Dolphins) and solidify the backend of the Lions defense.

11. Tennessee: Teddy Bridgewater, QB, Louisville – The uncertainty of QB Jake Locker’s health and lack of depth at the position makes quarterback a huge need. The Titans look past Bridgewater’s Pro Day workout, focus on his game tapes and select the former Louisville Cardinal.

12. New York Giants: Zack Martin, LT, Notre Dame – QB Eli Manning, under constant pressure in 2013, threw 27 interceptions and was sacked 39 times. Both stats are career highs.

13. St. Louis: Ha’Sean Clinton-Dix, FS, Alabama – After providing protection for their franchise quarterback, the Rams add a free safety to play next to current young safety, T.J. McDonald, and solidify the backend of a talented defense.

14. Chicago: Aaron Donald, DT, Pittsburgh – The Bears lost DT Henry Melton and are in need of someone to help plug the inside as well as provide an interior pass rush.

15. Pittsburgh: Stephen Tuitt, DE, Notre Dame – The Steelers are in need of a cornerback, although the run defense was terrible. The pick up of NT Cam Thomas in free agency was huge, but it is time to replace veteran DE Brett Keisel and solidify that position opposite starter Cameron Heyward.

16. Dallas: Jimmie Ward, SS, Northern Illinois – The Cowboys could trade up or down. They need to improve a defense that gave up the most total yards, most passing yards and most first downs in team history. Ward is a well-rounded safety, known for his man coverage skills.

17. Baltimore: Kelvin Benjamin, WR, Florida State – The Ravens add a playmaker that could replace WR Anquan Boldin and start opposite deep threat wide out Torrey Smith.

18. New York Jets: Odell Beckham, WR, LSU – The Jets need receivers in the worst way; Jeremy Kerley, their leading receiver, had 43 catches — the fewest by a Jets’ leading receiver since 1979.

19. Miami: Cyrus Kouandjio, LT, Alabama – The Dolphins allowed a franchise-worst 58 sacks in 2013.

20. Arizona: Anthony Barr, OLB, UCLA – The Cardinals are solid defensively, but their best pass rusher, John Abraham, is 35.

21. Green Bay: C.J. Mosley, ILB, Alabama – The Packers are after help at safety, tight end and defensive end. No player at those positions rate high enough to take at this spot so the Packers select a the top rated inside linebacker after that position was depleted in the 2013 NFL Playoffs.

22. Philadelphia: Ryan Shazier, OLB, Ohio State – The Eagles are in need of help at outside linebacker and select the the third-highest-rated player at that position in the draft to replace veteran starter Trent Cole, who struggled on the outside in 2013.

23. Kansas City: Justin Gilbert, CB, Oklahoma State – The Chiefs have three solid corners in Brandon Flowers, Sean Smith and Marcus Cooper… but in today’s NFL you need serious depth at that position.

24. Cincinnati: Bradley Roby, CB, Ohio State – The Bengals lost cornerback Leon Hall to injury in 2013. Veteran starter Terence Newman was one of the 10 most targeted corners in the league, but had few very breakdowns. Due to age, the Bengals are in need of depth at the position.

25. San Diego: Kyle Fuller, CB, Virginia Tech – The Chargers had issues in the secondary in 2013… blown coverages and missed tackles were the norm until late in the season.

26. Cleveland: Carlos Hyde, RB, Ohio State – The Browns were without a starter when RB Trent Richardson was traded during the 2013 season. They subsequently scored only four rushing touchdowns and struggled in short yardage situations. Hyde is a workhorse running back that would help the Browns eliminate the issues with the running game.

27. New Orleans: Demarcus Lawrence, OLB, Boise State – The Saints linebackers were active and aggressive under first-year defensive coordinator Rob Ryan. Starting linebacker Victor Butler will return from injury, but the unit is in need of depth.

28. Carolina: Darqueze Dennard, CB, Michigan State – The Panthers had a pieced-together secondary in 2013, their weakest unit coming into the year, that held up very well. Dennard could start and be a playmaker opposite starting CB Captain Munnerlyn.

29. New England: Jace Amaro, TE – Texas Tech – The Patriots are hopeful that TE Rob Gronkowski will be healthy enough to start in 2014. Amaro would allow the Patriots to run their two tight end offense.

30. San Francisco: Jordan Matthews, WR, Vanderbilt – The 49ers are in need of depth at wide receiver behind Anquan Boldin, Michael Crabtree and Quinton Patton. They will decide to select a big, physical receiver who is a solid route runner with good long speed who also happens to be Jerry Rice’s cousin.

31. Denver: Davante Adams, WR, Fresno State – The Broncos are in need of getting the taste of  “35” (the amount of points they lost the Super Bowl by: 43-8) out of their mouths. They choose to replace starting wide out Eric Decker with the sixth highest rated wide receiver.

32. Seattle: Troy Niklas, TE, Notre Dame – Seahawks’ tight end Zach Miller had 33 receptions in 2013 and battled some nagging injuries. Seattle needs depth at the tight end position.