NFL Draft Day 2020 Part 3

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Alexander Thomas, Staff Writer

With yesterday being the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, let’s see if my draft board matched up with the actual selections…

FIRST PICK – Cincinnati Bengals

Joe Burrow

Everyone knew this was gonna happen.

SECOND PICK – Washington Redskins

Chase Young

Since DC did not have the first pick, the second best player is Young.

THIRD PICK – Detroit Lions

Jeff Okudah

The Lions traded their best corner in Darius Slay to the Eagles. This was another easy pick to make.

FOURTH PICK – New York Giants

Andrew Thomas

I originally had the Giants picking Jedrick Wills off the board. In my eyes, he’s the best OT prospect this year but I guess the Giants felt better with Thomas as he is a natural left tackle. Either way, this is a good move in protecting Daniel Jones this coming season.

FIFTH PICK – Miami Dolphins

Tua Tagovailoa

#TankForTua accomplished.

SIXTH PICK – Los Angeles Chargers

Justin Herbert

In my mock draft, I had the Chargers picking Isaiah Simmons. Now I know the Chargers had to get a QB in this draft but they could have picked up Herbert in the second. Simmons would’ve helped make their defense a lot better though.

SEVENTH PICK – Carolina Panthers

Derrick Brown

With Austin Thomas off the board, the Panthers could’ve helped shore up their by taking Jedrick Wills. But the need for defense was greater with many figures leaving in free agency and Luke Kuechly’s surprise retirement.

EIGHTH PICK – Arizona Cardinals

Isaiah Simmons

With the season Kyler Murray had, I was sure the Cardinals were going to find help in Tristan Wirfs, but the potential in Isaiah Simmons was to great for the front office to pass up.

NINTH PICK – Jacksonville Jaguars

C.J. Henderson

This was a smart move. The Jaguars’ defense has lost many key players this past off-season but I thought they could snag Javon Kinlaw from South Carolina to bolster the hole Calais Campbell left. Instead they opted to secure the secondary first.

TENTH PICK – Cleveland Browns

Realizing Jedrick Wills was still  on the board, the Browns made the right move in drafting him. He was a right tackle in Alabama, but he should have a smooth transition to left tackle once training camp starts.

PICK #11 – New York Jets

Mekhi Becton

I thought the Jets would get CeeDee Lamb to add to the number of weapons Sam Darnold could use, but instead they opted to bolster the offensive line. Tristan Wirfs would’ve been a better option in my opinion, but all in all this was a good move by the Jets.

PICK #12 – The new Las Vegas Raiders

Henry Ruggs

It sucks we didn’t get to the grand spectacle the draft would’ve have been had COVID-19 not existed. But don’t worry Raiders fans, next year’s draft will be held in Las Vegas. Great pick by the Raiders organization, but I feel Lamb would’ve have been even better.

PICK #13 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tristan Wirfs

Finally someone got him off the board! Awesome pick by the Bucs as Tom Brady needs all the help he can get.

PICK #14 – San Francisco 49ers

Javon Kinlaw

This is the last pick I correctly predicted. The 49ers saw the need to beef up their defensive line and made the right call.

PICK #15 – Denver Broncos

Jerry Jeudy

An excellent choice by the Broncos, this adds weapons for their QB Drew Lock.

PICK #16 – Atlanta Falcons

A.J. Terrell

With the department of Desmond Trufant, the Falcons needed to find his successor quick. The did so by selecting the best corner in this draft, A.J. Terrell

PICK # 17 – Dallas Cowboys

CeeDee Lamb

Hailing from Richmond, I was surprised the wide out dropped into the Cowboys’ lap. This is great for the Cowboys’ offense, but they should have used this pick on defense. Byron Jones was their best corner last season, but went to Miami during free agency. Still happy for Lamb though.

PICK #18 – Miami Dolphins

Austin Jackson

With the Dolphins second pick in the first round the chose to protect their QB of the future. Smart move by them, I originally had them adding to the secondary.

PICK #19 – Las Vegas Raiders

Damon Arnette

This truly was a weird pick. I had this guy as a second round pick, as did many others. The Raiders should have picked a better CB off the board. Kinda of wasted their second pick here.

PICK #20 – Jacksonville Jaguars

K’Lavon Chaisson

A guy from Houston, it’s great he moved up a few spots than where I had him originally. The Jaguars again opted to pick a defensive player; he should be a great cog in their LB core for years to come.

PICK #21 – Philadelphia Eagles

Jalen Reagor

This was another strange pick that occurred during the draft. I thought Reagor would be picked on day 2 of the draft since this year’s wide receiver class was pretty stacked with talent. The Eagles should have used this pick on a better wide out.

PICK #22 – Minnesota Vikings

Justin Jefferson

Capitalizing on the Eagles pick, the Vikings chose a good receiver in Justin Jefferson. Great pick by a team that needs all the receiving help it can get with Stefon Diggs in Buffalo now.

PICK #23 – Los Angeles Chargers

Kenneth Murray

Hailing from MO City, and former teammate of CeeDee Lamb at Oklahoma, Murray should help an out of sorts Chargers team on defense. Great pick by the Chargers (plus he should look good in their updated uniforms).

PICK #24 – New Orleans Saints

Cesar Ruiz

With Drew Brees playing for another year, it was the best call to make for the Saints. However, I think they should have picked Jalen Hurts as a backup who would learn under Brees and probably be his successor when Brees hangs his cleats.

PICK #25 – San Francisco 49ers

Brandon Aiyuk

Having gone defensive with their first pick, and needing to bolster their receiving core, the 9ers made a good choice in picking Aiyuk.

PICK #26 – Green Bay Packers

Jordan Love

With this pick, the Packers basically angered their fan base. Love is a good player and would be willing to learn under Rodgers, but the Packers  needed to get offensive targets that Rodgers could use.

PICK #27- Seattle Seahawks

Jordyn Brooks

Another Houston native and the last Houston area player to be drafted in the first round, the Seahawks felt a need to strengthen their defense.

PICK #28 – Baltimore Ravens

Patrick Queen

The Ravens offense has enough weapons for Lamar Jackson to use. However, the need to bolster the defense is a good move for them. Queen is a quality LB who should feature for years to come in purple and black.

PICK #29 – Tennessee Titans

Isaiah Wilson

The Titans did not give much help to Ryan Tannehill last season, so beefing up the O-Line was the best they could do for the organization.

PICK #30 – Miami Dolphins

Noah Igbinoghene

With their third pick, the Dolphins chose to ramp up their defense. Their secondary has Byron Jones and Xavien Howard so by adding Igbinoghene they may have one of the best secondaries in the league.

PICK #31 – Minnesota Vikings

Jeff Gladney

This was an easy pick for the Vikings. Their secondary is pretty weak, so by adding Gladney they should see production very soon.

PICK #32 – Kansas City Chiefs

Clyde Edwards-Helaire

The only RB drafted in the first round, CEH should be an awesome fit in a very pass happy Chiefs offensive system. His ability to catch out of the back field should see the Chiefs make another championship run in January.