So it turns out we did draft Jarvis Jones...

To be honest I was prepared for this and had built a mock,... just in case.

17 Jarvis Jones, OLB Georgia- a beast on tape vs SEC competition and a snail in the Combine and his Pro Day.  Hmmm

48 LeVeon Bell, RB Michigan State- While there is recent news that Franklin has our eye, I happen to think this news, along with inviting both he and Lacy, were on purpose.  There are some that have said Bell is indeed the best all around back in the draft.  Some say its Franklin.  And some Lacy.  What better way to allow Bell to be there at 48 than to show other teams were interested in the other RBs.  Let them take Franklin and Lacy, only to have Bell come right to our doorstep.  Side note- Id be fine with any of these RBs (Franklin, Ball, Bell, Gillislee, maybe even Michael) but Bell is at the top of my list.  And if you look further, hes a junior.  And Tomlin loves juniors.  He feels younger players are more open to being coached.  Bell has soared up the draft boards, and had dinner with MT and Colbert.  In my opinion Bell looks and plays a lot like Steven Jackson.  As a matter of fact, Jax also said Bell reminds him of himself.  While he doesnt have scary 4.4 speed, he does have the patience to find the best hole, and then deliver a brutal stiff arm to give himself separation.  He has experience in the inside and outside zone blocking scheme, and while the stretch play might be more difficult for him to pull off in the NFL, a counter or misdirection could give him plenty of room to break away.  And thats not to mention his threat in the passing game.

79 Stedmon Bailey, WR WVU- Yes we invited mid to late rounders with speed in Boyce, King and Brown, but with Wallace gone and Sanders to probably follow we need to act sooner to fill the WR spot. Why Bailey?  He happens to have similar YPC to Patterson, but is a 3 year starter, and runs superb routes (everything Patterson is not).  He is similar in size to the "Young Money Family", and is about the same speed as Sanders, and like Sanders he can play in the slot or outside.  He is very physical at the LOS, and can get off the snap with damn near anyone in his face.  To put more fuel to the fire he worked out with Mr. Richard Mann to get ready for the Combine.  Recognize the name?  Hes our new WR Coach and has raved about Bailey from day 1.  I also did some math recently on the number of players we draft that were also brought in for a workout.  We average 3-4 per year.  While the number of visitors sits only at 24/30, my other mocks had far too many visitors being drafted by us.  So I tweaked it, but kept with the history of MTs most successful drafts, 2010, 2011 and 2012 (maybe).  Bailey falls right into place here.

115 Josh Evans, FS Florida- OK, yes, Im a Gator fan.  But so is Tomlin.  While Elam was more of a Polamalu type safety, Evans is more like Clark, but faster.  Can can play either safety spot as well as nickel when needed.  He has also covered the TE or Slot while Elam had the top of the umbrella.  Depending on the scheme, play, and down/distance, Evans played solid at safety wherever needed.

150 B.W. Webb, CB William and Mary- Here is my only player falling.  Why? Height and lack of competition.  Or so I hope.  The more I read and watch this kid, the more I like him.  He is a total ball hawk that will knock the bejesus outta you if given the chance in run support.  Plus, hes from MTs  Alma Mater.  Weve invited a few mid round CBs all with 2 things in common- speed and hands.  Webb grabbed the attention of scouts and coaches with his play at the Senior Bowl.  While he doesnt have the height Id prefer at CB, he does happen to be the same size as a certain former MT draftee... Ugh, William Gay.  Webb usually plays the LCB spot, but has also played nickel as well as returned punts.  And what makes his 5'10 height ok?- a 40 inch vertical.  Go ahead, put it up.  This kid will give everything he has to go get it, or at least knock it down.  He can give Brown some competition at the dime spot, while actually getting playing time on special teams as a punt returner.

186 Michael Mauti, LB PSU- Its about time we drafted a LB from Penn State.  Oh, this one has had 3 ACL tears?  3 ya say?  Not 2?  No.  3.  Shit.  The way I understand it is that weve been involved with the kid for a long long time, and will give him every chance to start out on special teams and maybe fill in for the other seriously injured ILB Spence at some point.  Ive also read that his football smarts are extremely high, and he has a big love for the game.  Its the 6th round, so what the hell.  Why not?  I did move him up 1 pick from my former mocks, more so to meet the history trends of MTs prior mocks.  I have also read that if not for the ACL tears, he coulda been a top 60 pick.

206 Ryan Griffin, QB Tulane- Ive written about him before.  He is known for his accuracy, though against iffy competition.  Were not looking for the next Big Ben, but competition for the 2nd and 3rd QB spot is fine.  And damn near anything besides Leftwich is a step up.

223 Nik Embernate, OL San Diego State- We might have struck gold with the Beachum pick here last year.  Could we do it again?  While Nik (easier to type than his last name) isnt as position flexible, he does have something in common with a former Steeler.  Kemoeatu.  Niks nickname is EmberNASTY.  His coaches yanked him from his starting spot after being thrown out of a game in his freshman year.  He simply enjoys hitting people.  And in a zone blocking scheme both in college and now here, that isnt a "bad" thing, as long as its under control.  He hasnt had any issues of the sort since that one episode, saying that it really woke me up".  Like Destro he is very familiar (and enjoys) trapping to the left from the RG spot.  While I thought finding a OL that had spent time as a OT would be the best, this mock just didnt turn out that way.  I do have 2 UDFAs that could help with that matter though.  In the meantime, Nik can probably be worked out at OC at some point, as well as LG.