NFL Network draft expert Mike Mayock only does one mock draft, which airs on the night before the first round. This afternoon NFL Media released the Top 15 from Mayock’s mock, and one noteworthy name is missing: Johnny Manziel.
As Mayock sees it, Manziel won’t go off the board in the Top 15. You’ll have to watch NFL Network tonight at 9 p.m. Eastern to find out where (or whether) Mayock has Manziel going in Picks 16-32, but there are some potentially interesting landing spots after the 15th pick.
At No. 16 is Dallas. If the Cowboys took Manziel it would be the most-discussed story of the draft, although Cowboys owner and General Manager Jerry Jones indicated this week that he doesn’t see it happening. If Mayock is right and Manziel won’t go in the Top 15, other potential landing spots include Philadelphia (coach Chip Kelly tried to recruit Manziel to Oregon), Kansas City (it’s up for debate whether they view Alex Smith as the long-term answer) and Cincinnati (although they’re publicly behind Andy Dalton, there are reports that they’re privately interested in drafting his replacement).
It’s also quite likely that if Manziel slips out of the first half of the first round, there will be teams interested in trading up from the top half of the second round to grab him. The longer Manziel remains undrafted, the more intriguing things will get on Thursday night.
Mayock does have one quarterback going in the Top 15, with the Titans taking Blake Bortles at No. 11. Like just about everyone, Mayock has Jadeveon Clowney going first overall to Houston. His full Top 15 is right here.