TMG Draft Zone Mock Draft 2012 1.0

The NFL off-season is well into free agency, and with a month before the draft the teams have been filling holes in their rosters with veterans before they get the chance to select their future rookies. The mock draft season has been going on even longer, and I waited to see who would sign where before putting my first mock out here. I've also been way too busy with work, but I've been able to piece together where the picks are going to fall. So here is the TMG DraftZone Mock Draft 1.0 for 2012:

1) Indianapolis Andrew Luck
2) Washington Robert Griffin III
3) Minnesota Matt Kalil
4) Cleveland Trent Richardson
5) Tampa Bay Morris Claiborne
6) St. Louis Justin Blackmon
7) Jacksonville Quinton Coples
8) Miami Ryan Tannehill
9) Carolina Melvin Ingram
10) Buffalo Riley Reiff
11) Kansas City David DeCastro
12) Seattle Luke Kuechly
13) Arizona Jonathon Martin
14) Dallas Janoris Jenkins
15) Philadelphia Courtney Upshaw
16) NY Jets Michael Floyd
17) Cincinnati Dre Kirkpatrick
18) San Diego Dontari Poe
19) Chicago Stephen Hill
20) Tennessee Whitney Mercilus
21) Cincinnati Cordy Glenn
22) Cleveland Stephon Gilmore
23) Detroit Mike Adams
24) Pittsburgh Nick Perry
25) Denver Fletcher Cox
26) Houston Kendall Wright
27) New England Michael Brockers
28) Green Bay Peter Konz
29) Baltimore Mark Barron
30) San Francisco Coby Flenner
31) New England Lamar Miller
32) NY Giants David Wilson

The top three picks appear to be set. Cleveland holds the key to the rest of the first round. Although many mock draft have Ryan Tannehill going there, I believe the Browns will look to continue their tradition of power running and select Trent Richardson. The smart pick for Cleveland might be Justin Blackmon, but I see them going after the replacement for Peyton Hillis instead. I also have the Browns selecting Stephon Gilmore with their second pick in Round 1, and the pairing of him with Joe Haden could become the premier cornerback pair in the NFL.

St. Louis has had Blackmon on their radar since before the trade with Washington, and if he is still there at #6 then they will make out like bandits. The pick they acquired from Washington along with their own will go a long way to filling holes on their defense after getting the playmaking receiver for Sam Bradford to throw to in Round 1.

The NFL Draft is in four weeks. There are going to be many more mock drafts hitting the net in that time. I'll be putting one more out before my final mock draft the day before the NFL Draft. If Ryan Tannehill has a stellar pro day, I wonder if Cleveland will be looking to take him at #4. If so, then there will be more shuffling in mock drafts than with cards at a blackjack table in Vegas. We shall see.