Note: Apologies for the confusion and lost votes/comments. I accidentally deleted the original post.
2012 SB Nation NFL Mock Draft: Round 1, Pick 7
The SB Nation two-round NFL mock draft continues along with each lead NFL team blogger making the pick for their team. Up now is the Jacksonville Jaguars with the No. 7 overall pick.
With the seventh pick in the 2012 SB Nation NFL Writers Mock Draft, the Jacksonville Jaguars select North Carolina defensive end Quinton Coples.
Adam Stites of Big Cat Country breaks down the choice and I respond after the jump. For more on the Jaguars, follow along at BigCatCountry.com.
Adam Stites explains: Picking Coples at 7th overall has become the cliché, boring pick for the Jaguars, but with Morris Claiborne off the board, it’s really the only player that makes sense. The Jaguars have lacked a legitimate pass rusher since...well, forever. Tony Brackens was quite the pass rusher, but he hasn’t been on the team since 2003. The failures of Derrick Harvey and Quentin Groves from the 2008 Draft only further stagnated the pass rush.
Jeremy Mincey emerged for the team in 2011 with eight sacks, but he’s less a pure pass rusher and more an every-down player that forces quarterback pressures with his high motor. Even if he does continue to improve in 2012 though, there is no pass rusher on the roster to have much faith in on the other side of the line.
A 6-6, 284 pound athletic freak like Coples is a risky, home run type of pick, but the Jaguars need more star power and need to swing for the fences to find stars. In my opinion, the best idea would be for the Jaguars to trade down 10-15 picks and go after another pass rusher like Illinois DE Whitney Mercilus.
Dan Kadar responds: Much like Andrew Luck to the Colts, Coples has been associated with the Jaguars for months. The Jaguars have needed pass rushers for some time, and many view Coples as the top one in this year's draft. The trouble picking Coples is that you're gambling on his effort. He could be that home run, or a swing and a miss. Coples has admitted to not playing hard as a senior and that might turn off General Manager Gene Smith. There has been some discussion that Smith may prefer someone like South Carolina's Melvin Ingram.
Mocking the Draft's Top 5 Remaining Prospects
| OVR | Name | Pos. | College | Report |
| 7 | Dre Kirkpatrick | CB | Alabama | scouting report |
| 8 | Courtney Upshaw | OLB | Alabama | scouting report |
| 9 | David DeCastro | G | Stanford | scouting report |
| 10 | Jonathan Martin | OT | Stanford | scouting report |
| 12 | Devon Still | DT | Penn State | prospect notes |
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