The 2013 NFL Draft will be held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City in April 2013. Below you will find the very early first-round projection from EDSFootball.com owner Kevin Hanson.
If the Colts end up with the first overall pick again in 2013, it is likely that they trade down with a quarterback-needy team. After drafting Notre Dame's Michael Floyd with 13th overall pick in 2012, the Cardinals have a pair of stud receivers with a dud quarterback. With Kevin Kolb due to earn $9 million in 2013 and a $2 million March roster bonus, the Cardinals may opt to go with another USC quarterback named Matt that decided to return for his senior season. Hopefully, that works out better for the Cardinals this time around.
By drafting Trent Richardson, Brandon Weeden and Mitchell Schwartz with their first three picks in 2012, the Browns have improved at three offensive positions in need of an upgrade. That said, they still have one glaring weakness on the offensive side of the ball -- playmakers at wide receiver. In his sophomore season, Woods finished with 111 receptions for 1,292 yards and 15 touchdowns and is likely to be the top receiver selected in next year's draft.
I'm not sure what Gene Smith was thinking when he drafted a punter in the third round. Perhaps he figured that the Jaguars would have plenty of three-and-outs with Blaine Gabbert under center. With an improved receiving corps that includes rookie Justin Blackmon and free-agent addition Laurent Robinson, Gabbert needs to take a big step forward from his dismal rookie season. If he doesn't, the Jags could draft his replacement. In his first year as a starter, Wilson posted a 24:6 touchdown-to-interception ratio last year.
With two first-round picks, the Rams could use help on the offensive line and at wide receiver (although the team used two top-100 picks on receivers in the 2012 draft). No team allowed more sacks than the Rams (55) last year and Fluker (6-6, 335 pounds) is one of the top offensive tackles in the country.
Although they used two of their first three picks on defensive backs (Notre Dame safety Harrison Smith and Central Florida cornerback Josh Robinson), no defense allowed more passing touchdowns (34) or had fewer interceptions (eight) than the Vikings last year. The Vikings have to face Aaron Rodgers, Matthew Stafford and Jay Cutler a minimum of six times per season. Amerson, who led the country in interceptions (13), has the size (6-3, 195 pounds), ball skills and athleticism to help significantly upgrade the Vikings secondary.
Although the Bucs have used some early picks to improve their interior defensive line, those picks haven't yet lived up to expectations. As a sophomore, Hankins, who has great size but the versatility to also play defensive end, had 67 tackles (fourth on team), 11.0 tackles for loss (second) and three sacks (tied for second).
As a first-team All-SEC selection last year, Montgomery led LSU in sacks (9.0) and ranked third in the conference. Montgomery should be one of the first pass-rushers off the board in 2013 and gives the Dolphins a pass-rusher to pair with Cameron Wake.
With Carson Palmer due to earn $13 million in 2013 and Matt Leinart signing a one-year contract to back him up in 2012, the Raiders need a long-term (and perhaps short-term) solution at quarterback. Thomas (6-6, 262 pounds) has as much upside as any other quarterback in the draft. In his first year as a starter, the sophomore signal-caller completed nearly 60 percent of his passes for more than 3,000 yards and 19 touchdowns. He also ran for 469 yards and 11 touchdowns, which is a Virginia Tech quarterback record.
