The First 10 Picks of the 2012 NFL Draft

Talk about an interesting first several picks in the 2012 NFL Draft. With the first two picks being locked, it seemed things were going to be a little lacking in the excitement department. All in all, 4 of the first 5 picks were traded. Here is the recap.

Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III went 1-2 and surprised nobody. About half an hour before the draft started, the Vikings traded the 3rd pick to the Browns, who selected Alabama do it all back Trent Richardson. Minnesota selected Kalil at 4 and Jacksonville moved up to 5th and finally got a receiver in Justin Blackmon. Dallas moved up from 14th by trading with the Rams and got LSU standout Morris Claiborne. Tampa Bay ended up with Mark Barron from Alabama and, in a move that shocked nobody, the Dolphins selected Ryan Tannehill.  Rounding out the top 10 were the Panthers, who selected Luke Kuechly, and the Bills, who added Stephon Gilmore of South Carolina.

Biggest Surprises: St. Louis traded down yet again and the Cowboys paid a big price to move up. St. Louis gave the Cowboys the 6th pick while gaining the 14th overall pick and the 45th pick (2nd).

Riskiest Pick: This is easily the Dolphins. Tannehill is a quarterback with a ton of question marks. It will be interesting to see how he does in Miami.

Take it to the Bank: Both the Colts and the Redskins got their quarterbacks. Both of these guys are going to be great to watch and should make an immediate impact on two terrible teams. The same can be said for the Panthers and Kuechly. Kuechly will be a productive and intelligent player for the Panthers who will be a tackling machine.

Charger Madness 2012 NFL Mock Draft v 1.0 Picks 21-32

Today rounds out the first round of the Charger Madness 2012 NFL Mock Draft 1.0. Here are picks 21-32.

21) Cincinnati Bengals- Stephen Hill (WR, Georgia Tech)

The Bengals surprised a lot of people this year, making the playoffs before falling to another surprising team in the Texans. The defense needs help, especially at corner, but they already addressed that at 17th with Dre Kirkpatrick. The team does have some good weapons for Andy Dalton in A.J. Green and company, but I think they could add one more receiver to help Dalton. Hill has been limited in his development playing in a triple-option system, but he has great speed and is a willing blocker. With time, his routes should improve. He should be a nice addition to the team.

22) Cleveland Browns- Doug Martin (RB, Boise State)

I had the Browns passing on Trent Richardson at 4th to take Claiborne. The next several picks for this team will be offense. This unit is dreadful. To me, Martin seems like a back who can do just about everything. He is probably a bit underrated and should be a nice fit for the Browns. He has great acceleration and strength, can catch out of the backfield, bowl over defenders, and run both inside and out. The only knocks I have head are that he doesn't have elite top end speed and he sometimes doesn't always carry the ball away from defender. he will need to improve his pass blocking, but what rookie doesn't? Martin better be ready to take a beating.

23) Detroit Lions- Janoris Jenkins (CB, North Alabama)

Detroit has put together a great defensive front and has a decent group of linebackers. The weakest link in this unit is the secondary. Delmas is a great player, but they really need help against the pass. Just look at how they were shredded by Matt Flynn and Aaron Rodgers. Jenkins isn't the typical small school guy. He played for the University of Florida and is an all around great back, possessing great agility and speed. He has a knack for making big plays and was lights out at the Senior Bowl.