Time for NFL Mock Draft 3.0, projecting every first-round pick in the 2020 NFL draft. As we enter uncharted territory on the draft calendar — the league has prohibited all pre-draft visits between prospects and teams because of the coronavirus pandemic — we can still look forward to Day 1 of the draft, which kicks off April 23.
This is my first mock draft since before the combine, and you’ll see a few prospects who rose after their performances in Indianapolis. And this is also the first mock draft in which we know how most of NFL free agency has played out, so team needs are much clearer.
OK, let’s get to it. Check out my new Big Board and position rankings, too.
More NFL draft coverage:
Rankings: Kiper | McShay
Draft order: Picks 1-255
McShay’s Mock 3.0 | Podcast
Joe Burrow, QB, LSU
Andy Dalton is still on the Bengals’ roster — there aren’t many teams left on the quarterback carousel that make sense as a trade partner — but this is a no-brainer: Take Burrow and build your team around the Heisman-winning quarterback. Cincinnati already has a WR1 in A.J. Green and RB1 in Joe Mixon, and there are a few solid offensive pieces elsewhere, including the impending debut of 2019 first-round pick Jonah Williams, who missed all of last season with a shoulder injury but can step in immediately and protect Burrow’s blind side.
Chase Young, DE, Ohio State
If Washington is serious about Dwayne Haskins as its unquestioned starter at quarterback, it has to take Young, the clear top pass-rusher in this class and one of the best edge-rushing prospects of the past decade. Ron Rivera already has some talented defenders with whom to work (including Jonathan Allen, Montez Sweat, Landon Collins and free-agent signing Kendall Fuller) and Young could top 10 sacks as a rookie. The big question for the Redskins: Can they get back a decent pick in a Trent Williams trade? He wants out, and they don’t have a second-round pick after moving up for Sweat last year.
