Mel Kiper’s 3rd 2017 mock draft has the 49ers going defense instead of QB with No. 2 pick

While college players are participating in drills at their pro days, ESPN’s Mel Kiper continues to predict where some of them will land in the 2017 NFL Draft. He released his third mock draft on Wednesday, but you will notice glaring differences from his last one.

This is Kiper’s first mock draft after the combine, and he still believes Myles Garrett will be the first player selected in April. However, he changed his mind about who will go second.

Here’s the entire first round mock, courtesy of Adam Schefter:

Kiper had the San Francisco 49ers drafting quarterback Mitch Trubisky in his second mock draft. However, he doesn’t feel that way now, as he thinks the 49ers will select defensive lineman Solomon Thomas with the second pick. Thomas is now the favorite to land with the 49ers across all mock drafts.

Our own Dan Kadar’s latest mock draft doesn’t agree, though. He also has the 49ers going defense, but he has them drafting safety Malik Hooker.

So what has changed since Kiper’s last mock draft? Well, San Francisco signed Brian Hoyer and Matt Barkley in free agency, and Hoyer could be the starter once the season starts.

After all, Hoyer reunited with Kyle Shanahan, who was his offensive coordinator in 2014 as a member of the Cleveland Browns and who is now the head coach of the 49ers. On the other hand, just because the 49ers aren’t selecting a signal caller with the second pick doesn’t mean the team will not try to bolster the position.

They can still draft a quarterback in later rounds. Kiper even floated Patrick Mahomes out of Texas Tech as a possibility.

In Kiper’s second mock draft, he had only two receivers going in the first round. Now, he has four of them. He predicts the Buffalo Bills will use their 10th pick on Mike Williams, and Tennessee will draft 40-yard dash record holder John Ross.

Kiper has Kansas City selecting Zay Jones and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers choosing Corey Davis. Other than Tampa Bay, all of these teams need a receiver who can make plays consistently. The Buccaneers already have Mike Evans and DeSean Jackson, but Kiper thinks the pick makes sense.

“Davis, who had 331 catches for 5,278 yards and 52 touchdowns in his collegiate career, would give Jameis Winston another fantastic option, but he’s a different player than both Jackson and Evans,” Kiper wrote.

Unlike the 49ers, the Browns didn’t sign any quarterbacks in free agency. Sure, Cleveland traded for Brock Osweiler, but that was a salary-dump trade so the Browns could secure the Texans’ second-round draft pick in 2018. Now they’re expected to release or trade Osweiler.

The Browns could also still try to trade for Patriots backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. Unless that happens — or the Browns decide to sign a free agent like Jay Cutler — they’ll probably draft a quarterback early. Garrett seems like a sure thing with the first pick, so that likely means they’ll take a quarterback with their second first-round pick.

Kiper predicts the Browns will use their 12th pick to draft Ohio native Mitch Trubisky, while Kadar has them drafting Deshaun Watson. For the Cardinals at No. 13, it’s the opposite: Kiper has Watson going to Arizona and Kadar mocks Trubisky there.

Trubisky and Watson are the only two quarterbacks in Kiper’s first round.

Players like Thomas, Christian McCaffrey, and O.J. Howard are climbing the draft boards quickly. Before the combine, all three players were expected to be late first-round picks, but Kiper has them going earlier than that.

Thomas jumped from No. 11 to No. 2, while McCaffrey — who was incredible at the combine — went from sneaking into the first round at No. 32 in Kiper’s second mock draft to Washington taking him at No. 17 in the latest version. Meanwhile, Howard could be the first tight end to go in the top 10 since Eric Ebron was drafted 10th overall by the Detroit Lions in 2014. Kiper has him at No. 6 to the Jets, all the way up from No. 18.

However, players like Reuben Foster, Dalvin Cook, and Sidney Jones are falling in the draft. Their stocks are decreasing for a number of reasons. Foster got into a heated argument with a hospital worker, and that could scare some teams off even though Foster issued an apology letter to all 32 teams.

Kiper has Foster dropping, too — from No. 9 to No. 15 — but not because of that incident.

“Let’s be clear here: I don’t have Foster, a top-five talent, dropping because of his bizarre combine ejection. He’s dropping here because not many teams above the Colts at No. 15 need a true inside linebacker,” Kiper said.

Meanwhile, Cook is a threat at the running back position, but he didn’t have a great combine and McCaffrey and Leonard Fournette are seen as the premier backs in the draft. Cook fell to the Packers at No. 29 in Kiper’s mock draft, a pick he said could be a “a great value.”

Jones tore his Achilles at Washington’s pro day, but he is a great player when healthy and still thinks he can be a first-round round pick.

“I’m the best corner in the draft, plain and simple,” Jones told USA TODAY Sports this week.

He dropped out of Kiper’s first round, and Kadar doesn’t have him as a Day 1 pick, either.