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In Mel Kiper Jr.'s first mock since the massive trade that sent the Titans from 1 to 15, the ESPN analyst went against the grain a bit with Tennessee's pick. It's important to note that this isn't a projection mock, rather a what he would do mock. At pick 15 Kiper gave the Titans the high-flying TCU receiver, Josh Doctson.
Doctson is a pick that I could get on board with pretty easily. He's a go-getter -- something that the Titans haven't had for a long time. Doctson and Green-Beckham would be a really nice pair of big, young receivers going forward.
There's just one problem with the Doctson pick. It leaves a gaping hole on the right side of the line to be filled in the second round. I don't know if you can take a risk on a starting caliber tackle being available at pick 33. I certainly wouldn't feel comfortable doing that.
Kiper doesn't address tackle at 33. Instead, he give the Titans the small heavy-hitting safety prospect Karl Joseph. Joseph jumps off the tape at you with his athletic ability and hard hits, but a small frame and durability concerns could doom his NFL career.
Finally with pick 43, Kiper gives the Titans their tackle in Jason Spriggs. Spriggs might be the most athletic tackle behind Laremy Tunsil in this class. He's a converted tight end and is far from a finished product, but probably has the most upside of the second tier of tackles.
Kiper follows up by doubling-down at tackle and receiver, taking Sterling Shepard and Le'Raven Clark. This is an interesting move that would certainly add depth, but also would ignore other needs like corner and defensive line. The receiver room is already crowed as it is, but both Justin Hunter and Kendall Wright could be on their way out after this season.
The Titans finish off their sixth pick in the top 76 of Kiper's mock with Eric Murray, a smaller nickel type corner out of Minnesota. The Titans certainly bolstered right tackle and receiver in this mock, but I feel like they would be missing out on a ton of talent along the defensive front. I can't see Jon Robinson trading for all these picks just to double down at a couple positions.