JACKSONVILLE – It's early. Really early.
At the same time, the nature of the NFL offseason is it's never too early to throw out and/or take a stab and/or throw a dart at mock draft, so here we go …
Throwing, stabbing and darting.
This is version 1.0 of the jaguars.com 2015 mock draft. It isn't to be confused with the countless other mock drafts out there, and it's certainly not to be confused with the real 2015 NFL Draft that will take place in Chicago, Illinois, April 30-May 2.
It's also certainly not to be taken overly seriously.
It is absolutely, positively for entertainment purposes only and with that in mind, we'll get started with the idea that Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston will go No. 1 overall to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
That's the idea because that appears to be the consensus right now – two-and-a-half months out – and it makes sense because many observers now see Winston as the more pro-friendly quarterback between he and Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota.
We'll assume, too, for these purposes that the Tennessee Titans also worry about Mariota's ability to adapt to NFL offenses. Assuming that, we'll project Southern California defensive tackle/end Leonard Williams at No. 2 overall to Tennessee.
That brings us to the Jaguars at No. 3 overall.
With the combine still a few days away, most observers have Williams as the best non-quarterback available. So, if Williams was there at No. 3, we'd project him to the Jaguars.
Because he's not, we'll go with Nebraska defensive end/outside linebacker Randy Gregory.
We project him there not because of any public statement or even any public hinting on the matter from Jaguars General Manager Dave Caldwell, who isn't like to state or hint anything of the kind anytime soon – certainly not publicly.
We project Gregory there because the feeling here is pass rusher/defensive end makes sense for the Jaguars at this stage of the building process. Right now, before the combine, many observers rank Gregory atop the list of draft-eligible pass rushers.
Will that hold after the combine? Stay tuned.
There's a long, long way to go.
Here's v1.0 of the jaguars.com 2015 mock draft:
Selection. Team| Player, Position, School
1.Tampa Bay | Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State
2.Tennessee | Leonard Williams, DE/DT, Southern California
3.Jacksonville |Randy Gregory, DE/LB, Nebraska
4.Oakland | Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama
5.Washington | Shane Ray, DE/LB, Missouri
6.New York Jets | Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon
7.Chicago | Dante Fowler, DE/OLB, Florida
8.Atlanta | Vic Beasley, OLB, Clemson
9.New York Giants | Landon Collins, S, Alabama
10.St. Louis | La'el Collins, OT, Louisiana State
11.Minnesota | Kevin White, WR, West Virginia
12.Cleveland| Andrus Peat, OT, Stanford
13.New Orleans | Brandon Scherff, OT, Iowa
14.Miami | Shaq Thompson, OLB, Washington
15.San Francisco | Danny Shelton, DT, Washington
16.Houston | Marcus Peters, CB, Washington
17.San Diego | Eddie Goldman, DT, Florida State
18.Kansas City| Dorial Green-Beckham, WR, Oklahoma
19.Cleveland | Trae Waynes, CB, Michigan State
20.Philadelphia | T.J. Clemmings, OT, Pittsburgh
21.Cincinnati | Kevin Johnson, CB, Wake Forest
22.Pittsburgh | Malcom Brown, DT, Texas
23.Detroit | Melvin Gordon ,RB, Wisconsin
24.Arizona |Cameron Erving, OT, Florida State
25.Carolina | Devante Parker, WR, Louisville
26.Baltimore | Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia
27.Dallas | Bud Dupree, OLB, Kentucky
28.Denver | Jaelen Strong, WR, Arizona State
29.Indianapolis | Devin Funchess, WR, Michigan
30.Green Bay | Bernardrick McKinney, ILB, Mississippi State
31.Seattle | Sammie Coates, WR, Auburn
32.New England | Jordan Phillips, DT, Oklahoma
