McShay Mock 4.0 4/4/23

[Sydla]

Bruce Feldman did a writeup for The Athletic and talked to college coaches who faced Mayer:

"We came up with a coverage to double him. Their QB would look for him specifically and (Mayer) would still beat us. I think he's a real guy. He is an elite receiving tight end."

"He's not elite at any one thing but he's really, really good at all of it. Actually, I take that back his ball skills are elite. He is intelligent and a tough human being. He's everything that you're looking for. Even though he doesn't run away from people, he understands how to use his body, understands spacing. He just knows how to get open."

"On tape, he reminded me of (Georgia tight end) Brock Bowers He has great ball skills, but also is physical in the run game. He plays faster than he times and is really fluid."

"He's a unique matchup. There're quality tight ends and you kinda put them in the wide receiver category. The difference with him was he does everything, and does everything well. He's a presence when he's in-line (as a blocker). You can't have a linebacker responsible for him, and the struggle is in zones, that linebacker just doesn't have to try and cover him, he also has to tackle him. He's a matchup issue."

 

[J-man]

No way is CB and DE are needed more than TE in 2023. I get the contract situation and that you are drafting for 5-years but you want a 1st round pick to start day 1 and I struggle to see that happening in these positions. We also have too many guys in both positions, I don’t want us to carry 7 CB’s and 6 DE’s which is likely to be the case if we drafted either in the 1st round. I’m okay carry four TE’s though and McKeon could easily be cut trimming us to three.

You can make an argument for CB or DE on positional value grounds but it’s definitely not a bigger need.

Sorry but I disagree. IMHO, we absolutely need another starting caliber CB and another DE to pair with Williams. I don't see TE as much of a need at all. Tell me why is TE such a major need in your opinion?
Here's why I think CB and DE are:
It is always a good idea to draft for a need, before you need it. Recognizing those potential needs early and preparing for them early, is what smart teams do. And draft value absolutely plays a part in when you draft these guys.

Adding Gilmore is a plus, but it's obvious they plan on losing Brown to FA and there is talk of cutting Lewis as well. There’s a potential $4.7 million in cap relief in the final year of his deal. Even if one, or both stay they're coaming off major injuries. Brown will be 30 and Lewis will be a FA next year. Not to mention that he and Bland play the same position, so who's going to the bench? Losing them leaves us very, very thin and our depth is trash, as evident last season. We’d love to assume that Bland, Joseph, and Wright will all develop and improve over the offseason. But while Bland seems to have a bright future, there’s little evidence to support the idea of either Joseph or Wright being ready for a significant role. If Diggs, Bland or Gilmore go down with an injury we will be screwed. And everyone wants to forget that, with the exception of last year, Gilmore hasn't exactly been a great CB in recent years. And he's 32! There is nothing to say that we will get the same guy we saw last season and especially not for the next two seasons.
So if we lose both Brown and Lewis, or if Gilmore struggles or we have an injury to one of the starters what's your plan? What's your plan for next season?

And DE is a sneakier need than most realize. Yes with D-Law, Armstrong, Fowler, Golston and Williams you would think that we are pretty set. But lets look closer. Williams looks like a stud, but he's going into year 2 so we shall see. But he is viewed potentially as a long term starter/difference maker. D-Law is solid all around, but because of D-Laws contract/age situation he may very well be cut after the season. He will have a cap hit that is probably unrealistic to keep on the books. Fowler is decent but aging and definitely not the long term answer, I doubt he's brought back again next year. Armstrong is decent, but is really just a good rotational piece, not a difference maker. Golston is a jag, not worth worrying about his spot. What happens if D-Law or Williams goes down with an injury? Who's the starter next year? Would you want to wait and bank on us drafting a stud rookie DE with a late first rd pick to fill that role? I don't they do.

 

[ElGatoGrande]

1. Carolina Panthers (Chicago) - C.J. Stroud QB Ohio St.
2. Houston Texans - Bryce Young QB Alabama
3. Indianapolis Colts (Arizona) - Anthony Richardson QB Floridap
4. Arizona Cardinals (Indianapolis) - Will Anderson Jr. OLB Alabama
5. Seattle Seahawks (Denver) - Jalen Carter DT Georgia
6. Detroit Lions (L.A. Rams) - Tyree Wilson DE Texas Tech
7. Las Vegas Raiders - Devon Witherspoon CB Illinois
8. Atlanta Falcons - Christian Gonzalez CB Oregon
9. Chicago Bears (Carolina) - Peter Skoronski T/G Northwestern
10. Philadelphia Eagles (New Orleans) - Lukas Van Ness DE Iowa
11. Tennessee Titans - Jaxon Smith-Njigba WR Ohio St.
12. Houston Texans (Cleveland) - Nolan Smith OLB Georgia
13. New York Jets - Paris Johnson Jr. T Ohio St.
14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (New England) - Will Levis QB Kentucky
15. Green Bay Packers - Myles Murphy DE Clemson
16. Washington (Red)skins - Joey Porter Jr. CB Penn St.
17. Pittsburgh Steelers - Broderick Jones T Georgia
18. Detroit Lions - Bijan Robinson RB Texas
19. New England Patriots(Tampa Bay) - Darnell Wright T Tennessee
20. Seattle Seahawks - Zay Flowers WR Boston College
21. Los Angeles Chargers - Calijah Kancey DT Pittsburgh
22. Baltimore Ravens - Quentin Johnston WR TCU
23. Minnesota Vikings - Hendon Hooker QB Tennessee
24. Jacksonville Jaguars - Dalton Kincaid TE Utah
25. New York Giants - Emmanuel Forbes CB Mississippi St.

26. Dallas Cowboys - Michael Mayer TE Notre Dame

Dalton Schultz out, Mayer in. The latter is the most complete tight end in this draft class and could be a plug-and-play starter as Dak Prescott's new security blanket. At 6-foot-5 and 249 pounds, Mayer is a legit blocker who would provide Tony Pollard with more running lanes. And while he's not much of a vertical threat, his excellent ball skills would open up the offense at the intermediate level. Mayer posted back-to-back seasons with at least 800 receiving yards and seven touchdowns, and he's a bulldozer after the catch.

27. Buffalo Bills - Jordan Addison WR USC
28. Cincinnati Bengals - Deonte Banks CB Maryland
29. New Orleans Saints - (San Fran thru Mia, Den) - Adetomiwa Adebawore DE/DT Northwestern
30. Philadelphia Eagles - Will McDonald IV DE Iowa St.
31. Kansas City Chiefs - Felix Anudike-Uzomah DE Kansas St.

32. Pittsburgh Steelers (Chicago) - Mazi Smith DT Michigan
33. Houston Texans - Jalin Hyatt WR Tennessee
34. Arizona Cardinals - Jahmyr Gibbs RB Alabama
35. Indianapolis Colts - Julius Brents CB Kansas St.
36. Los Angeles Rams - Kelee Ringo CB Georgia
37. Seattle Seahawks (Denver) - Keion White OLB Georgia Tech
38. Las Vegas Raiders - Bryan Bresee DT Clemson
39. Carolina Panthers - O'Cyrus Torrence G Florida
40. New Orleans Saints - Darnell Washington TE Georgia
41. Tennessee Titans - Drew Sanders ILB Arkansas
42. New York Jets (Cleveland) - Joe Tippmann C Wisconsin
43. New York Jets - Brian Branch CB/S Alabama
44. Atlanta Falcons - Keanu Benton DT Wisconsin
45. Green Bay Packers - Luke Musgrave TE Oregon St.
46. New England Patriots - DJ Turner CB Michigan
47. Washington (Red)skins - John Michael Schmitz C Minnesota
48. Detroit Lions - Jack Campbell ILB Iowa
49. Pittsburgh Steelers - Cam Smith CB South Carolina
50. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Anton Harrison T Oklahoma
51. Miami Dolphins - Dawand Jones T Ohio St.
52. Seattle Seahawks- Steve Avila C/G TCU
53. Chicago Bears (Baltimore) - Zach Charbonnet RB UCLA
54. Los Angeles Chargers - Brenton Strange TE Penn St.
55. Detroit Lions (Minnesota) - Sam LaPorta TE Iowa
56. Jacksonville Jaguars - Tyrique Stevenson CB Miami
57. New York Giants - Josh Downs WR North Carolina
58. Dallas Cowboys - Trenton Simpson ILB Clemson

Despite re-signing Leighton Vander Esch, Dallas could look to add to the linebacker corps. Simpson is a good value pick for the Cowboys here, and he brings versatility, man coverage skills and range against the run.

59. Buffalo Bills - Riley Moss CB Iowa
60. Cincinnati Bengals - Matthew Bergeron T Syracuse
61. Chicago Bears (San Fran thru Car) - Byron Young DE Tennessee
62. Philadelphia Eagles - Antonio Johnson S Texas A&M
63. Kansas City Chiefs - Jonathan Mingo WR Mississippi

A really good tight end would help a QB like Dak but I always want linemen, drafting that Center from Wisconsin would be fine by me!