17. San Diego (9-7) – Ereck Flowers, OT, Miami: San Diego needs to keep Phillip Rivers from being broken in half. *Jim Ross Voice* Flowers allows them to move DJ Fluker inside to guard where he has the tools to be an All-Pro instead of a human turnstile. Flowers size and athleticism is something many teams covet in a tackle but he could improve fundamentally as a run blocker at the next level.
18. Pittsburgh (11-5) *Trade w/KC* – Landon Collins, FS, Bama: Troy Polamalu retired and the Steelers really have no back up in place for him. That’s why I have them jumping up a few spots to select the best safety available in this draft. Collins is a safety that can hit and cover, something their defense could use. His physicality is something that will make him a fan favorite with the Steelers.
19. Cleveland – from Buffalo (9-7) – La’el Collins, OG, LSU: Cleveland uses their second first round pick to help the offensive line. They completely fell apart in the running game late last season and even though they have one of the best young offensive guards in the league, Joe Bitonio, they add a huge mauler opposite of him to give them one of the best interior lines in the league.
20. Tennessee (2-14) *Trade w/ Phi* – Arik Armstead, DT/DE, Oregon: The Titans slide back 18 spots due to their trade with the Eagles and Chip Kelly. They have a lot of holes to fill and the most important is defensive line. Here the get a monster of a man, Arik Amstead, to hold down the interior of the d-line and free up some of their outside rushers. The bounty of picks that they got in the trade will help them find their QB of the future or trade for Philip Rivers.
21. Cincinnati* (10-5-1) – Jordan Phillips, DT, OU: Cincy’s offensive problems stem from Dalton’s uncanny ability to choke during Playoff games, their defense on the other hand can always get stronger to help them make up for Dalton’s mistakes. They already have Geno Atkins at DT and if he’s healthy he’s one of the best in the league and adding a big man like Phillips to command double teams only helps free him up.
22. Kansas City (9-7) *Trade w/ Pitt*- Breshad Perriman, WR, UCF: The Chiefs were unsure of who to draft so they traded back. They run into the same problem here but this time Andy goes with his gut (no pun intended) and selected Breshad Perriman from UCF. Many see Andy going for DGB here but Perriman reminds me of a young Jeremy Maclin, who the Chiefs just signed. He has the strength and moves to take a slant pass to the house, which is good because Alex Smith doesn’t throw the ball further than 20 yards down field.
23. Detroit* (11-5) – Malcolm Brown, DT/DE, Texas: Suh decided to leave Detroit for Miami and that leaves a pretty large hole in the middle of the Lions’ defense. In steps Malcolm Brown. He isn’t the caliber of lineman that Suh was but his athleticism and agility will fit nicely in the Lions’ scheme.
24. Arizona* (11-5) – Eli Harold, OLB, UVA: Arizona was the surprised team of 2014 and they have the tools to build upon that this year. The QB situation is still a huge question mark but until they can get a top 10 pick to address that need they’ll need to go with the best player available philosophy. Here they take Harold to solidify their pass rush and help chase down the elusive Russell Wilson twice a season.