2019 NFL Mock Draft – WalterFootball

Last update: Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019. Major changes. Compensatory picks added.
Next update: Occasionally. Follow me @walterfootball for updates.

The order of this 2019 NFL Mock Draft is based on the real 2019 NFL Draft Order.

NFL Draft Recent Links:

2025 NFL Mock Draft (UPDATED 11/13): Round 1 /Picks 17-32 /Round 2
Other 2025 Mock Drafts: Charlie Campbell (11/15)
2026 NFL Mock Draft (UPDATED 7/24): Round 1 /Picks 17-32
Other 2026 Mock Drafts: Charlie Campbell (10/26)
(More links to previous NFL mock drafts at the bottom of this page)

archived mock section

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Arizona Cardinals: Nick Bosa, DE, Ohio State
The Cardinals have just one viable edge rusher in Chandler Jones. Given that they’re in a division with Russell Wilson, Jared Goff and Jimmy Garoppolo, Jones isn’t nearly enough on his own. Fortunately for the Cardinals, they can remedy this problem by selecting the current favorite to go No. 1 overall, Nick Bosa.

Bosa has a tremendous skill set, and he was off to a great start in 2018 before injuring his knee. He’s the likely first-overall pick unless a team moves up for Dwayne Haskins.

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San Francisco 49ers: Quinnen Williams, DT, Alabama
It would be ideal for the 49ers to trade down with a team that needs a quarterback. Quinnen Williams is the best player available, but the 49ers aren’t filling a need with him. That said, he’s the likely pick if there’s no deal, as San Francisco can’t pass up on someone as talented as him.

Williams had a breakout performance this season, and sources Charlie Campbell spoke to early in the season believed Williams would be a high first-round pick. Williams is now a likely top-three selection.
New York Giants: Dwayne Haskins, QB, Ohio State
TRADE!!! I’m going to project different trades in the mock draft updates leading up to the combine. The Jets likely want to move down after trading up last year for Sam Darnold. They could stay put and select Josh Allen, but with lots of needs on offense, it would be best to move down and acquire extra selections. Here, they obtain the Giants’ 2019 second-round selection.

The Giants, meanwhile, need to make sure they obtain their desired quarterback. Moving up will prevent other teams from leaping them and acquiring the best signal-caller in the 2019 class.

Dwayne Haskins has a tremendous skill set, but is not a finished product at the moment. However, with Justin Herbert going back to school, he’s the top quarterback prospect in this class, though as Charlie Campbell reported in the NFL Hot Press, three NFL general managers believe Daniel Jones will be the first quarterback selected.

Oakland Raiders: Josh Allen, DE/LB, Kentucky
The Raiders likely won’t be able to obtain Josh Allen if there aren’t any trades made in the top three, but someone is likely to move up for a quarterback. If so, Allen could be available. He’d definitely go a long way in aiding Oakland’s awful pass rush.

Josh Allen counts as a dynamic edge rusher. He can basically play anywhere you want him to on defense. He’s a terrific player, as he was the primary reason why Kentucky was in contention for the SEC East title so late into the season. He’s compared to as a hybrid of Leonard Floyd and Zach Cunningham, as he can play in coverage and also rush the quarterback effectively on the edge.

Pick change; previously Rashan Gary, DT
Washington Redskins: Daniel Jones, QB, Duke
TRADE!!! I projected this one last week, and I’m going to keep it in this update. The Redskins have nothing at quarterback in the wake of Alex Smith’s injury. Drafting at No. 15, they may miss out on all the first-round signal-callers. They have to move up, and it makes sense to move past the Giants so they can get their guy. The Buccaneers, meanwhile, aren’t in a great spot at No. 5, as it’s a bit too early for Jawaan Taylor. A trade between the two teams could happen, and I imagine the Redskins would surrender their 2020 first-round pick, their 2019 second-rounder and maybe something else.

So, which quarterback will it be? Based on Charlie Campbell’s reporting in the Senior Bowl Rumors page, it sounds like Washington prefers Daniel Jones over the other quarterbacks at this time, but fears that he’ll be off the board by No. 15.

Daniel Jones has positive arm strength and athleticism, and he could be the second quarterback off the board because of his upside. In fact, Charlie Campbell reported that three NFL general managers believe he’ll be the first quarterback taken in the 2019 NFL Draft. Some are comparing him to Carson Wentz.

New York Jets: Jawaan Taylor, OT, Florida
The Jets lost the opportunity to select a dynamic edge rusher in Josh Allen, but they’re in a more logical spot to obtain someone to help Sam Darnold with this pick. Plus, an extra second-round pick can help the pass rush.

Speaking of the pass rush, the Jets need to obtain better blockers to help neutralize it. Their offensive line was just 18th in adjusted sack rate, while their run blocking was the league’s worst.

Jawaan Taylor has some great feet for his size (6-5, 340) and likely will be the first tackle off the board.

Pick change; previously Josh Allen, LB
Jacksonville Jaguars: Ed Oliver, DT, Houston
I’ve been mocking a quarterback to the Jaguars for as far as I can remember. However, in the wake of the hire of John DeFilippo as offensive coordinator, I believe there’s a good chance that the Jaguars will pursue Nick Foles to be their next signal-caller. DeFilippo coached Foles when the two won a Super Bowl together during the 2017 season, so the pairing makes a ton of sense.

With quarterback being off the table, the Jaguars can take a defensive lineman. Yes, another one. Jacksonville is loaded up front, but it also has one of the worst cap situations in the NFL. There’s a good chance the Jaguars will have to cut Malik Jackson and/or Marcell Dareus, plus Calais Campbell turns 33 in September, so Oliver would be a great, cheaper replacement in 2020 and beyond.

Oliver was a highly productive defensive lineman for Houston, recording a ridiculous 22.5 TFLs as a freshman. He was a monster this season before getting hurt and currently projects to be a top-10 talent in the 2019 NFL Draft.

Detroit Lions: Devin White, LB, LSU
The Lions have one of the worst linebacking corps in the NFL. They can’t cover anyone over the middle of the field. They need to add a player who can become the leader of their defensive unit at the position. If they do so, perhaps they’ll finally be able to compete with some of the top teams in their division.

Devin White was extremely productive this past season, logging 133 tackles. A projected running back, White is still learning the position, which is crazy considering how great he was in 2017. White is already generating a buzz for the 2019 NFL Draft, as Charlie Campbell reported in the NFL Hot Press.
Buffalo Bills: Rashan Gary, DE/DT, Michigan
The Bills need offensive help, but the top tackle off the board and no top-10 receiver in this class, they may have to take the best defensive player available. Finding someone to replace the retired Kyle Williams is necessary anyway.

Rashan Gary is an athletic freak. He wasn’t extremely productive as a freshman, but he recorded five sacks and 11 tackles for loss in 2017. His teammates believe he’ll be a top-10 pick.

Pick change; previously Jawaan Taylor, OT

Denver Broncos: Drew Lock, QB, Missouri
Charlie Campbell was the first to report in the Senior Bowl Rumors page that the Broncos like Drew Lock more than any other quarterback, so it sounds like Lock would be the pick if available.

Drew Lock has a great arm and can make any throw, but he really needs to work on his field vision and accuracy. He should probably be taken in the second round, but we’ve seen teams reach for quarterbacks over the years. And besides, teams like Lock’s gritty attitude and work ethic. He loves football, so he’ll try hard to improve his flaws.
Cincinnati Bengals: Cody Ford, OT/G, Oklahoma
The Bengals are always on the lookout for rare athletes, and this could qualify. Cody Ford is a massive, 335-pound right tackle who has great athleticism for his massive frame. The Bengals must continue to rebuild their offensive line, and Ford would be a tremendous addition to the unit.
Green Bay Packers: Montez Sweat, DE/OLB, Mississippi State
Clay Matthews could be gone this offseason, but the Packers will be targeting an edge rusher early in the 2019 NFL Draft regardless, as they struggled to get to the quarterback from the outside in 2018.

Montez Sweat registered 10.5 sacks in his first season, and he has major potential. He has a big frame and could stand to pack on 20 pounds of muscle, so the potential is there. Sweat was terrific at the Senior Bowl and has risen into top-15 consideration.
Miami Dolphins: Kyler Murray, QB/WR, Oklahoma
NFL teams all soured on Russell Wilson leading up to the 2012 NFL Draft despite the fact that Wilson had more experience and was more accomplished than Kyler Murray over a longer span. While Wilson didn’t win the Heisman, he probably would have if he played in the Big XII. Instead, Wilson thrived in two conferences where teams actually play some sort of defense. Despite this, Wilson fell to the third round. Now, just because Wilson has been an exception rather than the rule, Murray is somehow expected to be chosen in the opening round even though he’s two inches shorter and 20 pounds lighter than Wilson!

None of this makes any sense, especially when factoring in Murray’s lack of starting experience, his extremely easy schedule this past season against all of the woeful Big XII defenses, his struggles against Alabama prior to garbage time, and the fact that teams may not be convinced that he’s going to dedicate himself to football with baseball being a possibility. All of these things are strikes against Murray, which was relayed to me by an NFC personnel man I spoke to on Friday afternoon. I asked him about Murray, and while he expressed concern about his size, it was his dedication to football that was the major concern.

“Murray should probably go on Day 2, but will probably go in the first round because he’s a hot name,” the personnel man said. “We assumed he was going into baseball because of Scott Boras, so no one wrote up any reports on him.”

Adam Schefter reported that general managers told him that Murray will be a first-round pick. This obviously came from general managers who didn’t want Murray; otherwise, they wouldn’t have said anything. Quite often, NFL teams don’t know what others are going to do. I spoke to an assistant general manager days before the 2017 NFL Draft and asked him what he thought the 49ers would do at No. 2 overall. He said he thought they would take Patrick Mahomes. Last year, Charlie Campbell spoke to a general manager who thought the Giants would go with Sam Darnold with the second pick. Both of these people we spoke to are great talent evaluators, but they simply didn’t know what other teams would do. Thus, the general managers Schefter spoke to were just guessing, like the NFC personnel man I spoke to. The possibility of Murray declaring has shocked the league, to say the least.

That said, the general managers Schefter spoke to were doing something else as well. They were building hype for Murray. We’ve already established that those general managers don’t want Murray, so they’re trying to raise his value so that some team in front of them takes Murray, causing a better player to fall to them. I coined the phrase, “bad teams make dumb picks” a long time ago, and this is a case where the good teams are trying to bait a bad team to make yet another dumb pick.

I then thought about it. Who could take Murray in the first round? Well, there’s no dumber owner of a bad team in the NFL than Stephen Ross. I’m sure he’s smart in real life, but when it comes to managing his football team, Ross has made countless blunders. Ross also loves hype. He constantly invites celebrities no one cares about to games to try to draw a crowd. This would be another instance of Ross trying to draw attention to the Dolphins. He may demand for his next regime to draft Murray because he thinks a 5-foot-9, 190-pound quarterback, who thrived in a conference where zero defense is played, won’t get half of his passes batted at the line of scrimmage somehow.
Atlanta Falcons: Christian Wilkins, DT, Clemson
The Falcons were expected to address their defensive line during the previous draft, but they didn’t do enough to improve that area. They’ll need to make amends for that next spring.

Christian Wilkins has superior speed and athleticism as an interior disruptor. He was unstoppable in the national championship.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Jonah Williams, OT, Alabama
The Buccaneers missed out on the top tackle in the 2019 NFL Draft by trading down, but for a 2020 first-round pick and a 2019 second-rounder, it definitely makes sense. Besides, there are at least two other first-round-caliber tackles worth taking for the Buccaneers to improve their dire situation on the blind side.

Jonah Williams had a great freshman year as Alabama’s right tackle. He then took over on the blind side with Cam Robinson gone. Charlie Campbell spoke to sources who believe Williams will be taken in the second half of the opening round.

Carolina Panthers: Clelin Ferrell, DE/OLB, Clemson
The Panthers have major issues in their secondary, but perhaps they wouldn’t be as dire if they had a better pass rush. Carolina was just 20th in adjusted sack rate in 2018, so that would improve with this selection.

Clelin Ferrell has elite athleticism, and he could’ve been a top-15, or even a top-10 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft had he declared (perhaps No. 6 overall to the Colts.) Charlie Campbell has reported in the NFL Hot Press that teams aren’t as high on Ferrell this year, but he should still be taken in the 12-20 range.

Go to 2019 NFL Mock Draft: Picks 17-32

Sorry for cutting this into two halves; I’ve received complaints about load times and putting the mock draft on two pages saves bandwidth.