Will the Steelers or Saints move up for a QB? Will the Bengals go offensive line at No. 31? And which fringe prospect might crack Day 1? ESPN s NFL Draft Day Predictor breaks it down.
A team s own NFL draft board isn t the only one that matters to them on draft night. A key ingredient to draft success is also understanding the other 31 competitors, and accurately determining the likely ranges where prospects should be selected based off of that.
Why? First, a failure to recognize a prospect s likely range means a team could draft that player far earlier than it needs to take him. The Raiders taking cornerback Damon Arnette at 19th overall and the Seahawks selecting Jordyn Brooks at 27th last year are perfect examples. Second, it can inform trade decisions. How far do we need to trade up to land this linebacker? Can we afford to drop back eight spots and still have a good chance to nab that corner? It all plays in. We might not have a war room ourselves, but we still want to answer those questions.