2016 NFL Mock Draft: 1st-Round Predictions and Assessing Buzz on Top Prospects

A pair of risky knees, one talented running back, an iffy quarterback class encouraging reaches and more smoke than the last five years combined define the 2016 NFL draft.

The 2016 class will find itself defined by the reaches and falls of top prospects. There are prospects with serious injury histories, others with off-field issues and beyond. Then there’s the scarcity at the most important position of all, which suggests more than the big three quarterbacks could come off the board in the first round.

Not that the NFL would want it any other way. The intrigue means viewers are locked to screens and entertained; it’s why the Los Angeles Rams won’t reveal who the pick is at No. 1 even though a team wouldn’t sell the farm to move up without knowing who it is.

Alas, let the fun begin. Here’s a look at an updated mock and some notable prospects receiving plenty of buzz.

2016 NFL Mock Draft

Assessing Buzz on Top Prospects 4. Dallas Cowboys: Myles Jack, LB, UCLA

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Myles Jack is one of the biggest question marks in the draft because of a knee injury he suffered last year.

For shame, too, because he’s also one of the best linebackers to come out in a long time. It’s why NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein compared him to NaVorro Bowman and an NFL executive told him, “I wouldn’t get cute with him. I would stick him at ‘Will’ and just let him be a free-running chaser. He has the speed to get to everything, and his cover talent will set him apart.” 

A rare player indeed, Jack is the subject of never-ending smokescreen material thanks to the knee. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport summed it up well:

Teams drafting in the teens are having internal debates about taking #UCLA LB Myles Jack. Here’s why: https://t.co/xRayiJZ4dW

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 26, 2016

Within, Rapoport explained the latest rumblings about Jack’s issue:

The repair of the lateral meniscus that tore off the bone when he suffered the injury in September is not the issue, according to several sources with direct knowledge of Jack’s situation. Instead, the cartilage and bone have begun to separate, creating what is referred to by medical professionals as an osteochondral defect.

Remember, though, mid-round teams debating about Jack implies he’ll fall. Some teams will have Jack off their draft boards completely, while others won’t worry about the …

continue reading in source www.bleacherreport.com