We're down to the final days so the let's keep the mock drafting going!
Here is the last edition.
With only five picks to work with in the roster reformation Adofo-Mensah has quite a boulder to try and roll. The lower value of the 23rd pick diminishes the opportunity to trade down while simultaneously getting high value in return and maintaining a presence in the first round for the fifth-year-option. The best chance to stay above this year's 32nd would be to bamboozle another GM the way he was bamboozled during Thursday & Friday last year, that's not a given though. It also makes trying to project selections more of a pickle than usual, which is also adds intrigue.
Enough pretense though, it's time to get on with it!
23 came with a trio of potential game-1-impact players as CB Joey Porter Jr. (Penn. St.), DE Isaiah Foskey (Notre Dame) & DT Bryan Bresee (Clemson) were all still available. That was also the number of trade possibilities that were presented with the pick. All three included seconds next year while "Cincy" paired it with the 28th. After bumping it down to a third next year but adding the 131st the "Orange & Black" were up. The calculated decision resulted in Foskey & Bresee sliding down and Brian Flores getting a young agent of pressure for his operation as the heir to the Golden Dome legacy which Harrison Smith has established.
From the front to the back, Texas A&M CB Jaylon Jones was far & away the best player at a position of need when 87 rolled so with no good trade proposals the corner got it.
Due to the emphasis on getting younger, faster & generally more athletic, Auburn LB Owen Pappoe is another player that may get the call during the third or fourth round. The second player under consideration at 119 was Arkansas' Rick Stromberg (C/G).
The Razorback remained on the board to 131, so should the team get near that spot he could also be in-play. During this iteration there were four interior OL in the top-10 so round four into round five could see a run on them. Getting the best of the bunch as insurance would make a lot of sense and Stromberg could be that guy.
Five picks and four going the way of defense would be another good step toward putting the Donatell operation further in the rearview! With the last pick of this mock, Maryland CB Jakorian Bennett was the preferred player.
The trade(s) down that KA-M is likely to make will hopefully increase the overall number of swings but whether they end up with two, five, six, nine, etc., success or failure won't be known til the games are played. (but there's no doubting that more picks make following the draft much more fun!)
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