CFB 24/7's panel of experts give their fearless predictions for the 2015 NFL Draft.
D.J. Humphries is the best left tackle in the draft. I'm a big fan, and he'll go higher than people think. I don't know if that means he goes in the early 20s or the late teens, but he's a good player. I think he'll be the second offensive lineman to go. He's got great feet, he's just 20 years old, and when he's been healthy he's played at a very high level. And he can actually play left tackle. A lot of these tackles are right tackles, but he can play on the left.
Seven wide receivers will go in the first round: Kevin White, Amari Cooper, DeVante Parker, Breshad Perriman, Nelson Agholor, Dorial Green-Beckham, and Devin Smith. Phillip Dorsett is a wild card, and Jaelen Strong is not out of the mix. I had a GM tell me you have to get to 28 points now if you want to win a game in the NFL. That's different than the NFL we grew up with. That said, I think people might make the decision to go offense rather than defense.
I have Bud Dupree going to Chicago. When I looked at all the other edge rushers -- Vic Beasley, Randy Gregory, Shane Ray -- all those guys to me are one-trick ponies, Dupree isn't. His assignment at Kentucky wasn't to go after the passer every play, so his numbers in college weren't as big as you'd like. But when I watched him run at the combine, saw his tape and looked at his size, I think he's more suited to stay on the field every down. The guy that measures up to Dante Fowler, Jr. physically is Bud Dupree. Fowler plays the game with a little more intensity than Dupree, but I think Dupree will be fine.
The third quarterback drafted will be Bryce Petty. I think he's just got a lot of talent, upside and good feet, and he's a natural thrower. He has a good release. There are a lot of things to like physically, and he's a good kid. There are a lot of questions about what he'll become mentally with the system he played in at Baylor, but I think he'll be the third QB to go.
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- Chase Goodbread College Football 24/7
Former MSU teammate will be drafted before McKinney
How's this for fearless: Mississippi State's Benardrick McKinney, a potential first-round pick, isn't even the first player from his own college to get picked. I'll instead call for former Bulldogs defensive end Preston Smith to get the call before McKinney. While I think McKinney will make the better pro and was undoubtedly the better college player, he plays a devalued position and could find himself tumbling if other inside linebackers such as Denzel Perryman, Stephone Anthony and Eric Kendricks get picked ahead of him. Meanwhile, Smith plays a position that is considered more of a premium, and plenty of NFL scouts view him as a rock-solid second-round talent. They're both gone by the end of Round 2, just not in the order people expect.
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- Mike Huguenin College Football 24/7
Eleven RBs will come off board by Day 2
I think two running backs go in the top 20, five more go in the second round and four more in the third round. In all, that's 11 running backs in the first three rounds. Georgia's Todd Gurley and Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon (in that order) go in the first round. In the second round (in order), Indiana's Tevin Coleman, Miami's Duke Johnson, Alabama's T.J. Yeldon, Nebraska's Ameer Abdullah and Boise State's Jay Ajayi come off the board. In the third round (again in order), Northern Iowa's David Johnson, Minnesota's David Cobb, South Carolina's Mike Davis and Michigan State's Jeremy Langford are selected. The last time 11 RBs went in the first three rounds was 2008, when Jamaal Charles was the 10th back off the board.
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- Bryan Fischer College Football 24/7
Character risks won't tumble far
Character concerns won't drop some prospects as much as expected. I'm talking about Nebraska edge rusher Randy Gregory and Washington corner Marcus Peters in particular -- both will be taken in the top 20. LSU offensive lineman La'el Collins' situation is still up in the air, but he's a top-10 pick if he can get things cleared up by midday and I anticipate him sticking in the first-round no matter what. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if a team made a trade up in the first round to grab Georgia tailback Todd Gurley.
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