When NFL Draft coverage starts, the network analysts and others always start talking about teams taking the "best player available." But best player available (BPA) doesn't always mean the same thing to every team. Player X may be the BPA for Team Y with Scheme Z, but not for Team A with Scheme B.
When a team like the Denver Broncos has the No. 2 overall pick, best player available usually means somewhere close to the objective meaning of that phrase. The newest SB Nation NFL mock draft does exactly that when selecting for the Denver Broncos:
2. Denver Broncos (4-12): Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU (JR). Without the benefit of knowing how John Elway will help re-structure the Broncos, we'll simply give them the best player available. Peterson would fill a need and help prepare for the eventual departure of Champ Bailey.
At this point, without any real clear indicators as to where the Broncos want to go with their draft pick, it is still clear that defense is the biggest need for the team. Is cornerback the biggest need for this team if Champ Bailey leaves through free agency? His absence would leave a hole in the secondary with only Andre Goodman to hold things together (well, maybe Brian Dawkins, but we'll need to see if his age is finally catching up to him).
The defensive line was unable to stop most every running back it faced this season. In this mock draft, Clemson DE Da'Quan Bowers went No. 4 to the Cincinnati Bengals and Auburn DT Nick Fairley went No. 6 to the San Francisco 49ers. Right now Bowers and Fairley appear to be the top two defensive linemen in the draft. We'll see those names pop up in other mock drafts soon.