2017 NFL Mock Draft: NFL Conference Championship Edition
By Tyler Brooke
With the stage now set for Super Bowl LI, let’s jump into first-round projections for the 2017 NFL draft.
After another exciting weekend of the NFL playoffs, the stage for Super Bowl LI is now set. Meanwhile, 30 other teams are now diving deep into the 2017 NFL draft class as they start to prepare their big boards for April.
The college football season has now been over for a couple of weeks, and there are a handful of prospects who have stood out as first-round talent. The landscape is bound to change after the Senior Bowl, Pro Days and the NFL Scouting Combine, but for now, here’s an entire mock draft for the first 32 selections.
Myles Garrett. 1. player. 53. . EDGE. Texas A&M
The Cleveland Browns are going to be tempted to take a quarterback with the No. 1 overall pick. However, considering how that’s worked for them in the past, they might want to avoid reaching for a quarterback and instead find someone at a different position who could make an immediate impact.
There are a pair of defenders in this draft class that belong in the argument for the No. 1 overall selection, but Texas A&M’s Myles Garrett is the more appealing option for Cleveland. The Aggies’ edge rusher was a dominant force this season, racking up 8.5 sacks and 15 tackles for loss in 11 games.
Garrett will be an intimidating matchup for even the most seasoned NFL offensive tackles, coming in at 6-foot-5 and 270 pounds. He’s an extremely powerful edge rusher who explodes off of the snap and wreaks havoc in the backfield, whether that’s rushing the passer or stopping the run.
As far as prospects go, Garrett is probably one of the safer bets, and his upside as an NFL pass rusher is through the roof. The Browns are reportedly enamored with Garrett, and they’d be wise to take him with the No. 1 pick instead of another quarterback.