NFL Mock Draft 2016: Chip Kelly lands his quarterback

There are many public voices surrounding the NFL Draft process, but none are more recognizable than Mel Kiper Jr. of ESPN.

Kiper has been “the guy” in evaluating the NFL Draft for more than three (!) decades, and because ESPN has been the home of the draft on television for many years, his profile has continued to skyrocket. There is some debate, as always, surrounding whether he is actually the “best” pundit, but no one doubts his credentials and there is real respect around the industry for his impact on the craft.

Today, we will unveil a new mock draft for 2016, but this time, it will have a slightly different lean. Some teams will be tied directly to positions of great need and that won’t change, but for others who simply may take the “best player available”, we will be assigning those players to their organizations based solely on Mel Kiper’s latest Big Board.

Make no mistake, the analysis of each player is mine and mine alone (aren’t you lucky?!), but Kiper’s thoughts on the overall draft class will provide the backdrop for many of the actual selections. In the future, we will be doing similar deep dives based on other titans of the NFL Draft punditry, but in this case, we will kick things off with the godfather himself.

Let’s roll through the first round, making all 31 (yes, 31) picks with gusto.

Next: No. 1 Tennessee Titans select...