Rick Gosselin of the Dallas Morning News is one of the top mock draft experts. His mocks over the years have consistently been noted for their accuracy. Peter King cites him, along with Mike Mayock, as top sources for 2011 NFL Mock Draft information. Gosslin's latest mock draft is behind the pay wall, but thanks to our friends and overlords at SB Nation HQ, we have a peak under the skirt for you.
Gosselin's top five in his mock draft looks very similar to what the other experts -- Kiper, McShay, Mayock -- are reporting. Cam Newton first, followed by Von Miller, Marcell Dareus, and A.J. Green in the two through four slots. Like most of the mocks, Gosselin also has Patrick Peterson going fifth to the Arizona Cardinals.
Where things get interesting is with the quarterbacks. Gosselin has five (FIVE) quarterbacks going in the top 12. They are: Newton to the Panthers, Blaine Gabbert to the 49ers, Jake Locker to the Titans, Christian Ponder to the 49ers and Andy Dalton to the Vikings. That's a lot of reaching right there.
Another surprise involves Apollo High School (Glendale, AZ) star, CB Prince Amukamara. Prince is a top 10 pick in most mock drafts but Gosselin has him falling all the way to the 25th pick and going to the Seahawks. That's a double-gut punch for Arizona football fans, but fortunately, this is just one man's mock.
The first round of the 2011 NFL Draft starts at 5 p.m. (AZT) on Thursday, April 28, and SB Nation has everything you need to prepare: NFL mock drafts, draft projections, scouting reports, the full NFL draft schedule and more. Check it out at SB Nation's NFL Draft page and our NFL Draft blog, Mocking the Draft or for Cardinals coverage, visit Revenge of the Birds.