So the pro days are just about done, and with the Jay Cutler trade, there could be some changes made. There are also some rumblings about the 49ers looking at Mark Sanchez, but I’ll get into that later on.

On a more personal note, I think the Giants pulled the Plax plug a little too soon. I don’t think he’s going to do any jail time and the Giants aren’t a contender without him. However, I can see it from the Giants point of view. I see why they would cut him, but its almost as if they’re cutting off their nose to spite their face.

1. Detroit Lions – Matthew Stafford, QB, Georgia – Live I’ve been saying, you can’t pass up on a potential franchise quarterback. I know the Lions could possibly take Jason Smith from Baylor. Taking a lineman number one overall worked out for the Dolphins. But the Dolphins also had Bill Parcells in the front office and a rejuvenated Chad Pennington fell into their laps. This is a completely different situation. This is a team with an inept front office, a first year head coach, and a lot of other issues. I know they’re afraid after the Joey Harrington debacle, but they need a quarterback.

2. St. Louis Rams – Jason Smith, OT, Baylor – The Rams essentially are an offensive line away from being a playoff team. You know going in that they’re going to run the ball so they’ll definately be addressing the line.

3. Kansas City Chiefs – Aaron Curry, LB, Wake Forest – Aaron Curry could really be the number one overall pick. He’s that good.

4. Seattle Seahawks – Eugene Monroe, OT, Virginia – Whats all this about the Seahawks taking Mark Sanchez? Why do that when you have a very capable Matt Hasselbeck? They’ll have to pay Sanchez a lot to ride the bench for a few years. They could trade out of this spot to take a wideout, but if not Monroe is a solid pick here.

5. Cleveland Browns – Brian Orakpo, LB/DE, Texas – Orakpo’s versatility is what makes him so attractive. Mangini shouldn’t have the same excuses with him that he did with Vernon Gholston.

6. Cincinnati Bengals – Andre Smith, OT, Alabama – The Bengals always take guys with questionable backgrounds. Why should this pick be any different?

7. Oakland Raiders – Michael Crabtree, WR, Texas Tech – Al Davis will not, I repeat, WILL NOT, pass up on a chance to take Crabtree if he’s there. Then again, what the hell do I know? The smart pick would be a lineman.

8. Jacksonville Jaguars – Jeremy Maclin, WR, Missouri – The difference between Maclin and Heyward-Bey is really Maclin’s return ability. I think MoJo is going to get a good amount of snaps in the backfield so I wouldn’t use him in the return game as much. That said, Maclin is a great returner and they wouldn’t miss a beat with him back there.

9. Green Bay Packers – BJ Raji, DT, Boston College – Do you really think that this whole allegation of a failed drug test for Raji is going to affect him? He’s the best defensive line prospect in the draft. They can’t afford to pass on him. And call me naive, but he’s disputing the test and I believe him. The smart thing to do if a test comes up positive is to admit it… unless you didn’t fail it.

10. San Francisco 49ers – Everette Brown, DE, Florida St. – I don’t think that the Niners would take another quarterback knowing how Shaun Hill has played and how much they’ve invested in Alex Smith.

11. Buffalo Bills – Michael Oher, OT, Ole Miss – As much as taking Aaron Maybin would be nice here, why would the Bills draft another defensive end when they have Schobel and Kelsay there on the edges? Especially when they have a need along the offensive line?

12. Denver Broncos – Brian Cushing, LB, USC – There is no way BJ Raji is falling to the Broncos here, even though he’d be an awesome pickup for them. I wouldn’t be surprised if they traded up to take him. If they don’t, Cushing is a good pick for them.

13. Washington Redskins – Tyson Jackson, DE, LSU – Jackson’s stock has risen over the past few weeks, and the Redskins could use someone to play opposite of Andre Carter. Plus, Albert Haynesworth is going to draw a lot of attention and may free things up for Jackson and Carter.

14. New Orleans Saints – Chris Wells, RB, Ohio St. – The Saints might be looking to get a Deuce McAllister type player to complement Reggie Bush. If not, Vontae Davis makes the most sense here.

15. Houston Texans – Vontae Davis, CB, Illinois – Davis is virtually a steal here for the Texans. They need help in the secondary and Davis could be a playmaker.

16. San Diego Chargers – Rey Maualuga, LB, USC – Rey Rey reminds me of Junior Seau and he could help solidify that linebacking corps with Shawne Merriman and Shaun Phillips.

17. New York Jets – Mark Sanchez, QB, USC – All these rumors about Sanchez to Jacksonville and San Francisco don’t make much sense to me on a few levels. 1) Jacksonville has David Garrard as a starter it wouldn’t make sense to pay Sanchez that much to be a backup. 2) San Francisco has cheaper alternatives in Shaun Hill and Alex Smith, especially the way Hill played toward the end of last season. The Jets have a legitimate need at quarterback and the options they have aren’t starters. It doesn’t matter if Ratliff has a strong arm because he’s shown it off against backup defenders. I wouldn’t put it past the Jets to trade up for Sanchez, either.

18. Denver Broncos – Aaron Maybin, DE, Penn St. – Now that the Broncos have addressed a need at linebacker, they should address another need and pick a pass rusher. The Cutler trade worked out better for the Bears because they got a franchise quarterback. The Broncos may have taken a few steps back but they can build on the picks they have and take advantage of the weak AFC West.

19. Tampa Bay Bucanneers – Josh Freeman, QB, Kansas St. – Its always nice to have the highest paid tight end in football, but who the hell is going to pass to him?

20. Detroit Lions – Robert Ayers, DE, Tennessee – The Lions need a pass rusher and Ayers’ stock has been rising since his pro day where he showed a lot of versatility.

21. Philadelphia Eagles – Knowshon Moreno, RB, Georgia – I’ve said this before and I’ll keep saying it. If Moreno is available when Philly is on the clock, as a Giants fan, I won’t be comfortable.

22. Minnesota Vikings – Percy Harvin, WR, Florida – His durability is an issue, but not only is this kid versatile but he’s a lot stronger than people give him credit for.

23. New England Patriots – Malcolm Jenkins, CB/S, Ohio St. – Last season, Aqib Talib could have been an option, but I really feel like Jenkins is a great value pick for the Pats right here.

24. Atlanta Falcons – Clay Matthews, LB, USC – The Falcons lost Michael Boley to the Giants but could have a capable replacement in Matthews.

25. Miami Dolphins – Darrius Heyward-Bey, WR, Maryland – The Dolphins don’t have a lot of depth at wide reciever and whatever Sparano did for Ginn may work for Heyward-Bey.

26. Baltimore Ravens – James Laurinitis, LB, Ohio St. – The Ravens might be looking to replace Bart Scott and Laurinitis is a tough, gritty linebacker that fits into their system.

27. Indianapolis Colts – Evander “Ziggy” Hood, DT, Missouri – The Colts could use the interior presence to help out Brock and Dwight Freeney.

28. Philadelphia Eagles – Eben Britton, OT, Arizona – Britton gets a lot of comparisons to Joe Thomas. And all he’s done is go to a Pro Bowl in his first two seasons.

29. New York Giants – Hakeem Nicks, WR, North Carolina – In my opinion, the Giants showed their hand too early by cutting Plaxico Burress. The consensus was that they would likely draft a wide reciever but now that they don’t have Plax, its pretty much a foregone conclusion that they’ll take a wideout. They still have options though. I would consider trading this pick, along with one of the second rounders to Arizona for Anquan Boldin. Torry Holt is also available.

30. Tennessee Titans – Michael Johnson, DE, Arizona – I still like this pick for Tennessee.

31. Arizona Cardinals – LeSean McCoy, RB, Pitt – I don’t know if JJ Arrington is still a factor in Arizona so McCoy would look good here. With Tim Hightower getting a majority of the snaps and Edgerrin James being used a blocker, McCoy would be essential.

32. Pittsburgh Steelers – Alphonso Smith, CB, Wake Forest – Like I said before, the Steelers could look to replace Bryant McFadden or maybe they draft an offensive lineman like William Beatty, Alex Mack, or Max Unger.

So there’s version 3. It might be the last. Once again, here are a few things going on in the sports world that have caught my eye.

— I told you that Courtney Paris would be eating her words, and stupid Oklahoma won’t let her pay back the scholarship. I don’t care if her dad is rich, it still would have been funny because I’m tired of these damn athlete guarantees.

— So Jack Elway decided he doesn’t want to play football anymore. My question is, why did he wait this long? You get all the way to Arizona St and you (the son of legendary quarterback John Elway) don’t want to play football anymore. Nice one.

—  Who didn’t expect UNC to win the national title? Now we get to hear how bad of a pro Tyler Hansbrough will be but he’ll get drafted because of his heart and toughness. Yay.

— Andrew Gallo isn’t just one guy that got drunk one time and caused a hit and run. Gallo is a disgusting human being and his possible 55 year sentence for killing Nick Adenhart is not nearly enough. Its one thing if its a first time offense, but he’s a multiple offender with a suspended license. Nick Adenhart will be missed.

Yes, people. That’s right. Now that I just watched the Pro Bowl, I’ve come to grips with the fact that the NFL season is over. Luckily, I get to watch the NFL Network and get myself ready for the NFL draft, which in essence is like a season by itself with all the pro days, combines, and workouts. So, technically, the season hasn’t really ended. Score one for Stan.

Now before I  get on with my first (of many) mock draft of the year, I want to put a few things out there.

1. I met Scott Steiner at Target the other day.

2. This mock draft will not take into consideration trades. I’m only human people.

3. I met Scott Steiner at Target the other day.

4. This mock draft will change over the coming weeks and months, so expect some changes.

So here we go. Oh… by the way, did I mention that I met Scott Steiner at Target the other day? I’m a huge fan.

1. Detroit Lions- Matthew Stafford QB, Georgia- If they don’t take Matthew Stafford here, then I really believe that Matt Millen is secretly still working for the organization ala Isaiah Thomas. The one thing you can point to as the reason for the Lions continued crappiness (besides horrible defense, bad coaching, and abysmal front office moves) is quarterback play. At one point, their starting quarterback was Dan Orlovsky. Yeah, that Dan Orlovsky. They could also go offensive line here, but I think if they’re going to fix the line, they should trade down.

2. St. Louis Rams- Andre Smith, OT, Alabama- The Rams have really been lacking a presence along the offensive line since the days of Orlando Pace. Part of me feels like they’ll go for a defensive guy since Steve Spagnuolo is the new head coach but they need a lot more than defense. What they need is consistency on offense. Later on in the year, the Rams found a threat in Donnie Avery but if they can keep Marc Bulger off his back and maybe clear some lanes for Steven Jackson, they’ll be fine.

3. Kansas City Chiefs- Mark Sanchez, QB, USC- Again, I’m not completely sold on Sanchez. I think he came out a bit early, I think he’s a little above average and he’ll be exposed on a talentless team. Granted, there’s Dwayne Bowe, but with Larry Johnson possibly on his way out and Tony Gonzalez looking for a trade, that offense isn’t going to be that great. Don’t be surprised if the Chiefs trade down here.

4. Seattle Seahawks- Michael Crabtree, WR, Texas Tech – I was conflicted here because I think the Seahawks could take a running back here but it would be almost impossible for them to pass up on a guy like Crabtree. I still wouldn’t be surprised if they traded down to take a running back. They have the wideouts, they just couldn’t stay healthy this past season.

5. Cleveland Browns- Aaron Maybin, DE, Penn St. – The Browns need an impact pass rusher and I think the difference between Florida St’s Everette Brown and Maybin is very slight. That said, I like Maybin more and I think he’ll play well for Eric Mangini.

6. Cincinnati Bengals- Aaron Curry, OLB, Wake Forest – The Bengals could go offensive line here but I think they still have issues on the defense. With the continued development of Keith Rivers, Aaron Curry could flourish with the Bengals. I also could have gone with Everette Brown here.

7. Oakland Raiders- Eugene Monroe, OT, Virginia – The Raiders took Darren McFadden last year and he did absolutely nothing. Needless to say, the Raiders may want to consider drafting someone to actually block for him. But hey, what do I know?

8. Jacksonville Jaguars- Jeremy Maclin, WR, Missouri – The Jaguars have had issues at wide reciever for a while and I think Maclin is a perfect fit. He doubles as a returner and he could help that not-so-dynamic offense of the Jaguars.

9. Green Bay Packers- B.J. Raji, DT, Boston College – The Packers would be smart to take the best available player here and I think Raji is that player. The Packers offense is set with what they have in place and the defense is starting to come together. If they bring a big defensive tackle that could plug up some holes up front, it would allow their linebackers to do some good things.

10. San Francisco 49ers- Jason Smith, OT, Baylor – I think the 49ers could go a number of directions here, especially with Mike Singletary staying as head coach. But, I think they should have an offense built around Frank Gore and Jason Smith is a pretty good run blocker and will be an even better pass blocker for Alex Smith.

11. Buffalo Bills- Brandon Pettigrew, TE, Oklahoma St. – The Bills’ defense kept them in a lot of games last season and their offense is starting to come together. With some consistency at quarterback and a guy like Pettigrew as a safety net for Trent Edwards/JP Losman, the Bills will be a factor in the AFC East.

12. Denver Broncos- Everette Brown, DE, Florida St. – The Broncos really get on my nerves. They never take anyone great on defense. They always bring in defensive players as free agents. They can’t pass up on Brown.

13. Washington Redskins- Rey Maualuga, LB, USC – This actually scares me because I’ve seen a lot of what a healthy Rey-Rey can do. Hell, Rey-Rey at 75% scares me. As much as I’d like to see him as a Giant, it’s not going to happen and I have to be stuck with him in the division.

14. New Orleans Saints- Brian Orakpo, DE, Texas – The Saints took Sedrick Ellis last year and they need to keep adding on to that defense. They can also go cornerback here but I think the more pressing matter is along the line.

15. Houston Texans- Malcolm Jenkins, CB, Ohio St. – As much as I think the Texans would be willing to go offense here, I think they’re satisfied with Steve Slaton getting the majority of the snaps and they could always grab a back later on in the draft. What they should address here is their lack of an impact cornerback.

16. San Diego Chargers- Darrius Heyward-Bey, WR, Maryland – Do you really think the Chargers are dumb enough to get rid of the best running back in the NFL? With LT and Sproles, where are the Chargers going to put a guy like Beanie Wells or Knowshon Moreno? They should get another target for Rivers and bring in Heyward-Bey to spread the defense and keep guys out of the box for LT.

17. New York Jets – Josh Freeman, QB, Kansas St. – With the recent retirement of Brett Favre, the Jets can’t possibly go into next season with Brett Radcliffe as the projected starting quarterback. Josh Freeman is a big, strong-armed quarterback. He’s been getting a lot of comparisons to Joe Flacco and we all know what happened there. I think with Rex Ryan as the new head coach, he’ll be willing to give Freeman a “baptism by fire” the way Flacco was handled last year.

18. Chicago Bears- Vontae Davis, CB, Illinois – The Bears lack depth in the secondary and Davis is considered to be one of the top corners in college football. Plus, it helps that he’s sort of a hometown guy and has a good football pedigree as his older brother is Vernon Davis.

19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers- Percy Harvin, WR, Florida – Tampa Bay needs a quarterback, there’s no doubt about that. However, I don’t know if I’d use a first round pick on a guy like Nate Davis. Harvin would probably be the best available prospect on the board at this point, so I’d definately take him here.

20. Detroit Lions- Chris Wells, RB, Ohio St. – The Lions at this point will have already taken a quarterback. Now they need to address more needs on offense. Most teams have implemented the two-back system. With Kevin Smith and Beanie Wells in the same backfield, the Lions may have some sort of consistency on offense.

21. Philadelphia Eagles- Brian Cushing, OLB, USC – The Eagles were 4th last season in rushing defense. What they need is an instinctive, tough linebacker to keep that trend going. Cushing has great instincts and is as tough as they come.

22. Minnesota Vikings- Cornelius Ingram, TE, Florida- The Vikings have never addressed their needs at tight end and I think this is as good of a time as any. Ingram is coming off of a national championship and despite not having great numbers, its simply because he was on a team with a number of different playmakers.

23. New England Patriots- Louis Delmas, S, Western Michigan – The Patriots are going to be looking to replace Rodney Harrison. Unfortunately, Taylor Mays went back to school, so they’ll have to settle for Delmas, who isn’t exactly a gamebreaker.

24. Atlanta Falcons- Larry English, DE, Northern Illinois – With John Abraham having health issues, English might not be his replacement but it’ll be more of an insurance policy. The Falcons already have a good offense that led them to the playoffs and under Mike Smith, English could prosper.

25. Miami Dolphins- Tyson Jackson, DE, LSU – The Dolphins defense is still aging and Vonnie Holliday is on his way out of the league. Jackson is one of those guys that flew under the radar at LSU with Glenn Dorsey being the star two seasons ago and Ricky Jean-Francois getting all the attention this past season.

26. Baltimore Ravens- Clay Matthews, OLB, USC – The Ravens are going to have a tough time bringing back Ray Lewis, Bart Scott, and Terrell Suggs. Don’t be surprised if Lewis leaves and the Ravens have Scott fill in his spot and take a guy like Matthews to come in and be another piece to that defense.

27. Indianapolis Colts- Peria Jerry, DT, Ole Miss – The Colts will finally be completely healthy on offense and they need a run stopping defensive tackle on defense. With Foster and Dawson still developing, the Colts are going to have to rotate guys into the defensive line.

28. Philadelphia Eagles- Duke Robinson, OG, Oklahoma – The Eagles were 22nd last year in rushing offense. Robinson was part of an offensive line that blocked for two 1,000 yard rushers.

29. New York Giants- James Laurinitis, LB, Ohio St. – The Giants seemed to lack intensity from the defensive side of the ball late in the season. Whether it was because Justin Tuck was being triple-teamed while fighting the flu, or if it was because of whatever may have been distracting Antonio Pierce, the Giants couldn’t get it done against an inferior Eagles team that could barely run the ball.  Laurinitis, as well as the return of Osi Umenyiora should help those matters.

30. Tennessee Titans- Kenny Britt, WR, Rutgers – Personally, I don’t think Britt is a first round caliber talent, and I think the Titans would be better off trading up for a wide receiver. Unfortunately, I’m not a fortune teller so this pick will have to do.

31. Arizona Cardinals- Fili Moala, DT, USC – The Cardinals were horrible on defense and their offense literally carried them to the playoffs. Even with the possible departure of Anquan Boldin and Kurt Warner, the Cardinals still have a playoff caliber team because they play in the NFC West. The Cards will have to fix that defense and they should start with Moala.

32. Pittsburgh Steelers- DJ Moore, CB, Vanderbilt – The Steelers have no major holes. They’re bringing everyone back on both sides of the ball, and there’s no reason to believe the defense won’t be as good as it was before. At this point, all they can do is add some depth along the offensive line or in the secondary.

Now, I know what you’re thinking and I agree. How can I have a mock draft with Knowshon Moreno? You know what? This is the first of several mock drafts. Until I’m convinced that the Chargers are going to get rid of LT, I can’t see them taking another running back. I also thought they Lions could have taken him, but then that leaves Wells out of the mix. You see what I’m saying? This isn’t easy.