25. Minnesota Vikings: Tee Higgins, WR, Clemson
As we’ve already detailed, the mass exodus out of Minnesota’s cornerback room — the release of Xavier Rhodes and Bengals’ signing of both Trae Waynes and Mackensie Alexander — is only a problem in that Alexander was pretty good in the slot last season. That said, the trade of receiver Stefon Diggs to Buffalo opens up a rather large hole in the Vikings’ passing game, and given the team’s continued commitment to Kirk Cousins, a new contested-catch receiver who can go deep with a wide catch radius will be a must. It’s possible for Minnesota to address one of the cornerback spots with the first-rounder they picked up in the Diggs trade, but that receivers room would look a lot better right now with Higgins, who proved in three years at Clemson that he could do all those things. Last season, 815 of Higgins’ 1,167 receiving yards last season came through the air before the catch.
26. Miami Dolphins (from Houston Texans): Zack Moss, RB, Utah
Since 1970, just five quarterbacks have led their teams in rushing yards: Bobby Douglass for the 1972 Bears, Randall Cunningham for the 1987-1990 Eagles, Russell Wilson for the 2017 Seahawks, Josh Allen for the 2018 Bills … and 37-year-old Ryan Fitzpatrick for the 2019 Dolphins. Fitzpatrick was able to accomplish this ignoble feat with just 243 yards on the ground, and he also led Miami with four rushing touchdowns.
An embarrassment? Quite. Picking up former Bears and Eagles running back Jordan Howard in free agency helps, but there is no current NFL team more in need of quality running backs. To that end, let’s give the Dolphins a new hammer for their running game in the person of Moss, who gained 1,416 yards on 235 carries last season and broke 89 total tackles along the way. Moss combines power and elusiveness on a level that brings peak Marshawn Lynch to mind, and if we’re splitting hairs over his downfield speed … well, he’s got answers for that, as well.
27. Jacksonville Jaguars (from Seattle Seahawks): Yetur Gross-Matos, EDGE, Penn State
Hypothetical trade alert: Even if the Seahawks are able to re-sign Jadeveon Clowney, they’ll still need edge-rush help. General manager John Schneider and his allies will have to free up some cap space for this move, but let’s have Seattle trading its first-round pick to the Jaguars for edge-rusher Yannick Ngakoue, the franchise-tagged star who would be a force in Pete Carroll’s pass-rush packages. If Ngakoue becomes another former key cog in Jacksonville’s depleted defense, Penn State’s Gross-Matos could help to replace Ngakoue’s suddenness and effort through the snap. Last season, despite needing a lot of work with hand use and rush diversity (something that can be said of many collegiate ends), Gross-Matos managed nine sacks, five quarterback hits and 22 quarterback hurries. Once he develops the ability to do more than shoot gaps and wrestle people to the ground, he could be a very dangerous individual.
28. Baltimore Ravens: Zack Baun, LB/EDGE, Wisconsin
The acquisitions of Earl Thomas and Marcus Peters turned the Ravens’ 2019 defense from good to great. Because the secondary was top-shelf, Baltimore was able to blitz to a nearly alarming degree — 54.9% of its snaps, by far the most of any NFL team. Edge-rusher Matthew Judon was the primary beneficiary of this strategy last season, and the Ravens responded by placing the franchise tag on him. If defensive coordinator Don Martindale is to back himself out of this blitz-heavy approach, he’ll need more top-tier pass-rushers. Baltimore also has a need for coverage linebackers, and Baun is able to fill both requirements to a unique degree. In 2019, he put up 12.5 sacks, 12 quarterback hits and 28 quarterback hurries. Over the past two seasons, per Pro Football Focus, he played coverage 195 times, allowing just 112 yards, picking off two passes. He’s a unique player who would fit very well into what the Ravens want to do.
29. Tennessee Titans: K’Lavon Chaisson, EDGE, LSU
Pairing ex-Falcons edge-rusher Vic Beasley with Harold Landry gives the Titans an ostensibly impressive set of bookends if Beasley can regain his 2016 form (15.5 sacks and 65 total pressures) after subsequent seasons that have been relatively pedestrian. If Beasley can’t, and/or if Landry can’t hit the proverbial next level, there will be a need for developmental edge talent. Few players in this class scream both developmental and talent more than Chaisson, who has ridiculous athleticism to do everything from bending the edge against some of the NCAA’s best tackles, to surprising with his off-ball versatility. Not unlike Vikings defensive end Danielle Hunter, another LSU alum, Chaisson will require some patience and coaching before he puts it all together, but the rewards could be extreme.
30. Green Bay Packers: Laviska Shenault Jr., WR, Colorado
Last season, the gap between Green Bay’s top receiver (Davante Adams) and all their other wide receivers was almost as stark as any NFL offense faced. There’s no questioning Adams’ abilities, but beyond that, there’s a whole lot of maybe. What Aaron Rodgers needs, and what tight end Jimmy Graham couldn’t consistently provide in 2019, is a contested-catch receiver who can make plays downfield and create openings for other targets. Shenault may be raw in some respects, but he’s been a yards-after-catch monster during his entire time at Colorado (something Rodgers has always appreciated), and at 6-foot-1 and 227 pounds, he can put the sting on cornerbacks in tight situations, take the ball on gadget plays and burn defenders downfield. In Matt LaFleur’s offense, Shenault might be a decent player in his first season, with a chance to explode in future years as he tightens up the little things.
31. San Francisco 49ers: Brandon Aiyuk, WR, Arizona State
Last season, the 49ers made it all the way to the Super Bowl with the best offensive play-designer in the NFL (head coach Kyle Shanahan) drawing up wizardry that transformed tight end George Kittle into a one-man wrecking crew and turned rookie receiver Deebo Samuel into a fascinating weapon all over the field. What the 49ers do not have, heading into the 2020 season — especially with the departure of Emmanuel Sanders — is a high-volume receiver who can extricate himself from different kinds of coverage and present a serious threat both downfield and after the catch in a more traditional sense. Aiyuk has the ability to both of those things. Last season, he caught 65 passes for 1,192 yards and eight touchdowns, averaged 10.9 yards per reception after the catch and had 384 yards on just 19 deep targets, per Pro Football Focus. With his smooth style and understanding of the nuances of his position, Aiyuk could bridge the gap and complete the scope of attributes for San Francisco’s receiving corps — especially with Shanahan calling the shots.
32. Kansas City Chiefs: A.J. Terrell, CB, Clemson
The defending NFL champs don’t have many issues on offense, and with the combination of defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and super-DB Tyrann Mathieu, Kansas City’s defense was just good enough to take everything over the top. Regarding the cornerback group, re-signing Bashaud Breeland would be a really good move, and both Charvarius Ward and Rashad Fenton have shown potential. Still, Spagnoulo surely wouldn’t mind more talent in the cornerback room, especially after the Kendall Fuller era didn’t quite work out as expected. Terrell might be known a bit too much for getting roasted by LSU’s receivers in the national championship game. But aside from that series of disasters — he allowed five receptions for 143 yards and two touchdowns, per PFF — Terrell projects well as a very good outside corner over time. Even considering that LSU game, he still allowed just 23 catches on 44 targets for 392 yards, three touchdowns, two interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 86.6.
Picks: 1-8 | 9-16 | 17-24 | 25-32
Touchdown Wire editor Doug Farrar previously covered football for Yahoo! Sports, Sports Illustrated, Bleacher Report, the Washington Post, and Football Outsiders. His first book, “The Genius of Desperation,” a schematic history of professional football, was published by Triumph Books in 2018 and won the Professional Football Researchers Association’s Nelson Ross Award for “Outstanding recent achievement in pro football research and historiography.”