Monday Morning Draft is back! This is a column that delves into the past weekend’s action from an NFL Draft perspective. As the season goes on, the draft picture and slotting will become more clear, but every Sunday will provide a few hints for next April.
By Charlie Campbell.
Send Charlie an e-mail here: [email protected]
Follow Charlie on Twitter @draftcampbell for updates.
Play like a Carcass For Marcus:
Oakland Raiders: Oakland lost on the road at Seattle by only six points, but the Raiders are in serious danger of going 0-16. Remaining on Oakland’s schedule are games with Denver (twice), San Diego, San Francisco, Kansas City (twice) and Buffalo at home. That is a tough slate for the Raiders to find a win in.
Oakland is very likely to land the first pick. If the Raiders want to stick with Derek Carr, they could look to move down and get a boatload of picks to jump start their rebuilding process. After moving down, Oakland could land any top player who would be a big improvement. Candidates for the organization include USC defensive lineman Leonard Williams, Nebraska defensive end Randy Gregory, Stanford left tackle Andrus Peat, Georgia running back Todd Gurley and Alabama wide receiver Amari Cooper. The Raiders have needs at all of those positions, so moving down to get more picks while landing a top talent like one of those players would be a good plan.
A few weeks ago, Oakland played San Diego tough with a 31-28 loss in Tony Sparano’s first game as the Raiders’ interim head coach. They showed some real fight as they gave one of the top teams in the AFC all it could handle. After getting blown out in the U.K., the Raiders fired head coach Dennis Allen during their bye week. No coach was going to win in the awful situation that Allen inherited, yet he’s the scapegoat for a plethora of front office mistakes under the current and previous regimes.
Within Striking Distance:
Jacksonville Jaguars 1-8
New York Jets 1-8
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1-7
Let’s Play Matchmaker:
This section will look at some of the top talent in college football and match those prospects up with teams that have a dire need at the position.
New Orleans Saints: DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville 
The Saints are getting back on track, but one thing has been clear: New Orleans still needs more help at wide receiver. Marques Colston looks like he is in firm decline. Kenny Stills could be a nice No. 2 receiver with Brandin Cooks in the slot, but the Saints could use a young, big receiver to replace Colston. Parker would be a perfect fit.
Parker missed the first seven games with a foot injury this year, but has played well in his return to the lineup. He lit up Florida State to the tune of eight receptions for 214 yards. Across two games, Parker has 17 receptions for 346 yards. He has demonstrated the quickness to get open with the size and strength to make contested catches. The 6-foot-3, 208-pounder could warrant consideration with the Saints’ first-round pick in the 2015 NFL Draft.
Minnesota Vikings: Denzel Perryman, ILB, Miami 
It wouldn’t be surprising if Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer wants a middle linebacker who fits his defense. Jasper Brinkley turns 30 after the season and had only two tackles, while Alfred Morris ran well on Minnesota. Landing a linebacker early in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft could improve the Vikings’ defense, especially considering veteran Chad Greenway turns 32 after the season.
Perryman is a physical force in the tackle box, but has shown the quickness and instincts to function in pass coverage. The tough Perryman could help cover tight ends in the NFL with his three-down ability. He put that on display as he blanketed tight ends from Virginia Tech recently. In 2014, Perryman has 72 tackles, two forced fumbles, four passes broken up, five tackles for a loss, one interception and a sack. He could bring a physical element to Minnesota’s defense.
Miami Dolphins: Buck Allen, RB, USC 
The Dolphins rolled San Diego despite not having a running back total 50 yards on the ground. Miami could use a power runner to pair with Lamar Miller. Allen’s receiving ability would make him a nice fit in Joe Philbin’s offense.
Allen has been excellent in 2014 as he has run for over 100 yards in eight-of-nine games thus far. The bruising Allen has averaged 5.7 yards per carry for 1,124 yards with eight touchdowns. He also has 28 receptions for 334 yards with a score. The 6-foot-1, 220-pounder is a bellcow back who can run over offenses. Allen could end up being a steal on the second day of the 2015 NFL Draft.
Arizona Cardinals: Hau’Oli Kikaha, OLB, Washington 
The Cardinals beat the Cowboys with Dallas starting the inept Brandon Weeden. Arizona recorded only one sack coming from nose tackle Dan Williams. The outside linebacker position hasn’t been producing a lot of sacks for the Cardinals, and John Abraham is nearing the end of his great career. Finding an edge rusher has to be a top priority for Arizona this offseason.
Kikaha has been a sack machine this year. He already has 15.5 sacks with four multi-sack games. To go along with his pass-rush production, Kikaha has 50 tackles, 21.5 tackles for a loss, two passes broken up and two forced fumbles. He isn’t the biggest edge defender, but he has a natural knack for getting after the quarterback. Kikaha would be great fit in the Cardinals’ 3-4 defense.
Philadelphia Eagles: Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, CB, Oregon 
The Eagles were fortunate that Ryan Fitzpatrick was the quarterback for the Texans, because he left a lot of points on the field. Philadelphia could have ended up losing that game as Houston had openings to exploit, but Fitzpatrick was just not capable of taking advantage. Still, DeAndre Hopkins totaled 115 yards with a score on only six receptions. The Eagles have had a big hole at cornerback for the past two seasons. One of these drafts, the organization should fill it.
Philadelphia may not be picking early enough to land Ekpre-Olomu, but he would be a great fit as a cover corner in the Eagles’ defense. He has man-coverage skills plus the speed and athleticism to prevent receivers from separation. This season, Ekpre-Olomu has 49 tackles with six passes broken up and two interceptions. It wouldn’t be surprising if Philadelphia traded up for Ekpre-Olomu.
Cleveland Browns: Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama 
The Browns would have to probably package their first-round picks together to move up for Cooper, but that could be worth it. Cleveland clearly needs a No. 1 receiver and can’t really count on Josh Gordon staying on the field. If the Browns had Gordon and Cooper together, that could be a lethal combination for opponents.
Cooper is a dynamite play-maker with the speed to turn any reception into a scoring play. He has 71 receptions for 1,132 yards with nine touchdowns this year. The 6-foot-1, 210-pounder would a home-run threat to the Browns’ offense. With Cooper and Gordon, defenses would have a hard time doubling both of them, and if a defense did that, it would open up a lot of running room. Cooper could make a big difference for Cleveland.
New England Patriots: Melvin Gordon, RB, Wisconsin 
The Patriots rolled Denver even though New England never got the ground game going. Then again, the Patriots didn’t need that aspect as Tom Brady destroyed the Broncos’ defense. Still, it would make sense for New England to draft a running back considering Steven Ridley is a future free agent and coming off a season-ending knee injury.
Gordon has been dominating the Big Ten this season. The redshirt junior has averaged 7.5 yards per carry for 1,296 yards with 18 touchdowns. He also has eight receptions for 39 yards. Gordon is a Chris Johnson-type running back who would add an explosive element to New England’s offense. Gordon (6-1, 207) has surprising strength to pick up yards after contact. Late in the first round, the Patriots would land a great value if they could land Gordon.
Team Draft Report:
In this section, we take a deeper look at specific teams and where they stand in regards to the 2015 NFL Draft.
Seattle Seahawks: The defending champs cruised to a win over Oakland, but Seattle has a few needs to fill in order to bring home another Lombardi. Obviously, the Seahawks have a talented roster, but they could use a few more play-makers to help the team navigate through the playoffs.
This season, Marshawn Lynch hasn’t really gotten on track, and many believe this is his last year in Seattle. The team has young runners Robert Turbin and Christine Michael ready to take his place, but what the Seahawks need to do to reestablish their ground game is improve the blocking up front. Justin Britt was selected last year to play right tackle, and Seattle could use a power guard to go next to him. Players to consider include Alabama’s Arie Koundjio and Duke’s Laken Tomlinson. Drafting one of them on Day 2 could make sense.
Elsewhere on offense, a wide receiver could be the Seahawks’ choice in Round 1. It didn’t work out with Percy Harvin, and the team could use more receiving weapons for Russell Wilson. Obviously, Seattle won’t be picking high enough to land Alabama’s Amari Cooper, and that probably goes for West Virginia’s Kevin White as well. The Seahawks have some talented smaller receivers, but could use one with size. Arizona State’s Jaelen Strong would be a great addition, and he could be available late in the first round. Another player to consider there would be Stanford’s Ty Montgomery. With his deep speed, he would add some explosiveness to the Seahawks’ offense. Additionally, Seattle likes versatile play-makers and Montgomery contributes as a running back, punt returner and kick returner. He makes a lot of sense for the Seahawks.
Seattle could use some help on the defensive line, too. Defensive end Cliff Avril is set to hit free agency, while veteran defensive tackle Kevin Williams isn’t a long-term starter. Staying in state, the Seahawks could land a talented tackle in Washington’s Danny Shelton. He could be a good consideration in the first round. A pass-rushing defensive end like Utah’s Nate Orchard would make sense on the second day.
The Seahawks don’t have a lot of needs, so they can build up the depth on their roster as well. If Seattle reloads well, there is no reason to think that the team can’t bring home another Lombardi.
Cincinnati Bengals: The Bengals don’t often get credit for it, but they have been one of the best drafting teams in the NFL over the last five years. Cincinnati has built up a very talented and deep roster, plus has also developed those players well. The organization’s tremendous depth could be seen this Sunday as the team was without a ton of starters, yet had plenty of talent to dispatch the Jaguars. The Bengals string of playoff appearances is proof of how well the team has done building up its roster.
Given a series of excellent drafts, Cincinnati doesn’t have a lot of needs. On the offensive side of the ball, the team has multiple good young play-makers at wide receiver, running back and tight end. The one position the Bengals could consider early in the 2015 NFL Draft would be left tackle. Andrew Whitworth turns 33 later this season, so drafting his eventual replacement and letting that youngster learn behind the veteran could be a good plan. Going back to Whitworth’s alma mater would make sense as LSU left tackle La’el Collins could be a nice fit. Bengals rookie running back Jeremy Hill had a lot of success running behind Collins in college, and Collins has improved his pass blocking steadily. He would make a lot of sense if he gets to Cincinnati’s first-round pick. If the Bengals can’t land him, Texas A&M’s Cedric Ogbuehi and Iowa’s Brandon Scherff are worth considering.
Defensively, Cincinnati also has a lot of talent, but one area the organization could address is defensive end. Carlos Dunlap is a long-term building block – a great second-round pick in 2010 -, but the Bengals need to replace another good former draft pick in Michael Johnson. Margus Hunt has flashed, including a sack versus Luke Joeckel on Sunday, but the organization could use another end to pair with Dunlap and Hunt. Some players Cincinnati could consider in the first round include Florida’s Dante Fowler, Jr or Michigan State’s Shilique Calhoun.
The other early defensive need could be at linebacker. Rey Maualuga is entering free agency, while Vontaze Burfict has dealt with injuries this season. There are a few players the Bengals could consider in the first two rounds of the 2015 NFL Draft. Miami’s Denzel Perryman, UCLA’s Erik Kendricks, Washington’s Shaq Thompson and Mississippi State’s Bernardrick McKinney would all be good players to target. If Cincinnati took Kendricks or Thompson – natural outside linebackers-, the team could move Burfict to the middle.
The Bengals could use some depth at cornerback, too. They have two past first-round picks they’re developing to become starters in Dre Kirkpatrick and Darqueze Dennard. However, the team currently plays veterans Terence Newman (36), Adam Jones (31), and Leon Hall (29). Adding some young secondary depth would make sense.
All those needs are relatively minor, so Cincinnati is in the enviable position of being able to select the best player available. That will continue to build up the talent and depth on the organization’s roster. Very few teams enter the 2015 NFL Draft in a better position than the Bengals.
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