We are not taking a DT in the first round. To quote Terrell Austin from the season ticket holder's meeting:
“We don’t ever want a guy that has a lot of ability but, well, he doesn’t show it all the time, he doesn’t do it all the time, because what’s going to happen is, if you get him in your system, you’re going to be disappointed because he’s only going to do it some of the time. You want a guy that’s going to go out and compete like crazy and be able to do it to the best of his ability, whatever that is, all the time.”
That is a consistent knock against almost every first round defensive tackle. Eddie Goldman, Malcom Brown, Carl Davis. They all have issues of consistency. Brown disappears for entire quarters. Goldman has never lived up to his potential in any way. Carl Davis was routinely shown up by Louis Trinca-Pasat, his linemate who is likely to be taken in the 5th/6th round.
OT/OG will likely be off the board. The only two prospects worth taking in the 1st are La'el Collins and Brandon Scherff. Jake Fisher is an option, but there are serious concerns about his strength and ability to run block. TJ Clemmings, DJ Humphries, Andrus Peat, Ereck Flowers are all incredibly raw. Flowers in particular is someone that I see mocked to us routinely. While he's strong as an ox, his tape is atrocious.
CB and RB are our most likely options.
RB has two options. Todd Gurley and Melvin Gordon. Gordon needs a power running scheme to be successful while Gurley benefits from a zone blocking system. We run a zone system. There are other factors that point towards Gurley, but system fit is one of the more important ones.
We need to draft a successor to Shean, plain and simple. It will either be this year or next. This year would likely be better. There are a few different options that might fall to us. Waynes will be taken well before us. Marcus Peters may fall because of his character concern issues that directly affect his coachability. Kevin Johnson is an interesting candidate as a zone corner like Shean. Byron Jones is the final option that I would consider taking in the 1st at corner. He has positional versatility with his ability to play safety and has ridiculous athleticism.
I think it comes down to either Todd Gurley, Marcus Peters or Byron Jones. If I were Mayhew, despite his ceiling, I would rule out Peters. So, Gurley or Jones.