This is a look at the first-round order for the 2020 NFL Draft heading into Week 7, along with the top three needs for each team. The order is determined by record, using strength of schedule as the first tiebreaker (click here to see a full list of the draft-order tiebreakers). Keep in mind — teams 21-32 would make the playoffs if the season ended today and are marked as PL (short for playoffs) in the order below. The draft order for playoff teams is determined by the results of postseason play.
The Dolphins put what everyone assumes is a huge part of their rebuilding plan in legitimate jeopardy on Sunday.
They were a two-point conversion away from potentially costing themselves the first pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, but a play that was doomed from the start ended with an incomplete pass to Kenyan Drake, giving the Redskins their first victory of 2019.
So, the Dolphins are still rocking a zero in the win column and stand at the top of the draft order thanks to the strength-of-schedule tiebreaker that places them ahead of the Bengals, who are the only other team remaining in the NFL Victory Green Room. Cincinnati has played one more game than Miami, and therefore has one more loss, but since their winning percentage is the same, the tiebreaker gives The Fins the nod (they have a lower SOS) this week.
Anyway, circle Dec. 22 on the calendar. Christmas will come a few days early when the Dolphins host the Bengals in what could easily be a play-in game for first overall pick. Get excited!
Now, the needs for each team listed below offer just a snapshot of the areas that project to require the most attention as of today. Draft needs for NFL teams don’t crystallize until the spring, after free agency plugs some holes and creates others, but we are firm believers that it’s not too soon to see what might be coming around the corner.
The order and needs will evolve as we go along. Stay tuned. It’s going to be a rather inglorious ride.
Arrows indicate how far up or down a team has moved relative to last week.
Record: 0-5 (.533)
Previous week: No. 3
This week’s game: at Bills
Biggest needs: QB, OT, edge rusher
Remember the thing we said earlier about the grand plan in Miami? It still seems like it’s going to include replacing
Josh Rosen. Brian Flores benched Rosen four days and three quarters after saying the second-year QB would be the QB1 for
the rest of the season, then said after the game that Rosen is still the starter. He joined an exclusive club on Sunday, becoming the first starting QB to fail to throw a TD pass when facing Washington this season, but as NFL Network’s Kurt Warner reminds us,
it’s not easy being Josh.
Bengals
Record: 0-6 (.662 strength of schedule)
Previous week: No. 1
This week’s game: vs. Jaguars
Biggest needs: QB, OL, LB
Bengals coach Zac Taylor says
they’re not trading A.J. Green, which I assume means they won’t let him walk this offseason. He’s in the final year of his contract and it only makes sense to not deal him before the trade deadline if you plan to keep him around in 2020 and beyond. Consequently, I swapped out WR for LB in the needs section.
Redskins
Record: 1-5 (.500)
Previous week: No. 2
This week’s game: vs. 49ers
Biggest needs: OL, CB, TE
There are a couple of nice built-in excuses to wait a couple more weeks before giving
Dwayne Haskins his first start, since the Niners are devouring quarterbacks right now and then Washington has a short week with a Thursday Nighter in Minnesota. Once the calendar turns to November, it’s gotta be time to give the rookie a shot, right?
Falcons
Record: 1-5 (.529)
Previous week: No. 6
This week’s game: vs. Rams
Biggest needs: DL, DB, RB
Hot mess. This turnstile defense didn’t register a sack or a single QB hit against
Kyler Murray in Atlanta’s fourth straight loss. In fact, for the first time in eight years, the
Falcons‘ defense has gone three consecutive games without recording a sack. Time to rebuild the pass D.
Jets
Record: 1-4 (.621)
Previous week: No. 4
This week’s game: vs. Patriots
Biggest needs: OL, edge rusher, CB
Adam Gase doesn’t
sound too enamored with
Leonard Williams, who’s in the final year of his rookie deal and picking the absolute worst time to have a down season. He’s one of the few
Jets players to make the
Pro Bowl in recent years, but the excitement about pairing him with
Quinnen Williams on Gang Green’s front line could be short-lived.
Chargers
Record: 2-4 (.409)
Previous week: No. 9
This week’s game: at Titans
Biggest needs: OL, CB, pass catcher
The
Chargers have invested only one first- or second-round pick in an offensive tackle over the past 13 drafts (and that player —
D.J. Fluker — moved to guard in his third season and didn’t get a second contract from the team). Their deficiency at the position is part of the reason a team many expected to compete for the AFC West title currently looks more like the division’s doormat.
Titans
Record: 2-4 (.412)
Previous week: No. 11
This week’s game: vs. Chargers
Biggest needs: QB, OL, CB
The Week 6 benching of
Marcus Mariota tells us all we need to know about his future with the team, and
Ryan Tannehill isn’t the answer at quarterback. It would help if GM Jon Robinson gave his next QB a better O-line.
Broncos
Record: 2-4 (.500)
Previous week: No. 5
This week’s game: vs. Chiefs
Biggest needs: Interior D-line, DB, OL
This week will tell us a lot about the direction the
Broncos are headed in. If they aren’t able to hang with a
Chiefs team that is struggling right now, we’ll know that they probably just caught a couple nose-diving teams (the
Chargers and
Titans) at the right time in the two weeks prior. If they beat the
Chiefs, the AFC West could get very weird.
Giants
Record: 2-4 (.571)
Previous week: No. 10
This week’s game: vs. Cardinals
Biggest needs: WR, DB, edge rusher
The
Giants are currently in position to draft inside the top 10 picks for the fifth time in the last six years, but they’re also only one game out of first place in the NFC East despite losing two in a row by at least three scores. I’m not sure what to make of that other than to say the team, while showing some promising signs for the future, doesn’t look like it should be that close to a playoff spot this season.
Jaguars
Record: 2-4 (.583)
Previous week: No. 12
This week’s game: at Bengals
Biggest needs: CB, offensive playmaker, DL
The
Jaguars, who have lost
13-12 and
13-6 this season, are the first team to lose multiple games while allowing 13 points or fewer in the first six games of a campaign since the 2005
Browns. We’ve enjoyed Minshew Mania, but there’s just not enough offensive punch in Duval. Jacksonville scored fewer than 10 points for the seventh time since 2018 on Sunday (the most such games in the NFL over that span).
Browns
Record: 2-4 (.588)
Previous week: No. 13
This week’s game: On bye
Biggest needs: OT, S, interior OL
Can’t put this last loss on the O-line. A leaky defense didn’t get the job done
against the Seahawks, and the
Browns are two games out of first place with a bye week before a trip to New England. Scary stuff.
Buccaneers
Record: 2-4 (.657)
Previous week: No. 14
This week’s game: On bye
Biggest needs: QB, edge rusher, OL
RIP, my hope for
Jameis Winston.
Sunday’s nightmare in London wasn’t a huge surprise, given Winston’s track record of giving the ball away when he isn’t holding it for too long, but I think it’s an unwritten rule that you cease giving a guy the benefit of the doubt after he commits SIX!!!!!! turnovers in the span of a few hours.
Cardinals
Record: 2-3-1 (.471)
Previous week: No. 8
This week’s game: at Giants
Biggest needs: OL, edge rusher, offensive playmaker
This offensive line is better than a lot of people, including me, give it credit for, but it’s definitely not
great, and five Arizona O-linemen, including starting LT
D.J. Humphries and C
A.Q. Shipley, are in a contract year. Protect the franchise, folks.
Eagles
Record: 3-3 (.426)
Previous week: No. 15
This week’s game: at Cowboys
Biggest needs: DB, edge rusher, LB
When you make
Kirk Cousins look like an MVP candidate, you have a problem. The
Vikings QB, who was in rock-bottom territory a couple weeks ago, and
Stefon Diggs torched Philly’s porous secondary over and over again
on Sunday. As we noted
last week, there could be large-scale turnover in the defensive backfield next year.
Lions
Record: 2-2-1 (.550)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: vs. Vikings
Biggest needs: CB, WR, OL
Well, that was a gut punch to Detroit, and a reminder that Bob Quinn has to make the O-line a priority in the offseason. The
Lions had trouble with the heat the
Packers brought in passing situations on third down.
Rams
Record: 3-3 (.657)
Previous week: No. 20
This week’s game: at Falcons
Biggest needs: CB, OL, edge rusher
Maybe playing the
Falcons and
Bengals — who have one win between them — in consecutive weeks will be the antidote for these losers of three straight. The
Rams‘ O-line is ranked second to last in pass blocking by Pro Football Focus, but Atlanta and Cincinnati have two sacks combined in their past three games.
Colts
Record: 3-2 (.414)
Previous week: No. 18
This week’s game: vs. Texans
Biggest needs: DL, pass catcher, OL
Juicy matchup up next for the last two teams to beat the
Chiefs at Arrowhead. If the
Colts defeat the
Texans at home on Sunday, Indy will lead the AFC South and the schedule (vs.
Broncos, at
Steelers, vs.
Dolphins, vs. Jaguars) sets up nicely for this team to have momentum heading into its Nov. 21 rematch with Houston. Oh, and see
last week’s file for an explanation of why OL is included on the needs list.
Raiders (via Bears)
Panthers
Record: 4-2 (.431)
Previous week: No. 17
This week’s game: On bye
Biggest needs: DB, pass catcher, edge rusher
I know things are going great for Carolina, winners of four straight, right now. What a fascinating offseason lies ahead for this club, though. Obviously, the QB situation is getting all the headlines right now, but eight of the 11 players that started for a
Panthers defense that forced seven turnovers
on Sunday are ticketed for free agency in 2020. That’s a lot.
Cowboys
Record: 3-3 (.412)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: vs. Eagles
Biggest needs: DB, pass catcher, DL
The
Cowboys get a chance to exploit a vulnerable
Eagles secondary in one of Week 7’s marquee matchups, and they’ll line up across from another defensive backfield that’s been ripe for the picking coming out of a Week 8 bye, when they travel to face the
Giants. If
Dak Prescott doesn’t get back on track now, when will he?
Raiders
Record: 3-2 (.571)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: at Packers
Biggest needs: WR, edge rusher, LB
If the
Raiders take the field on Nov. 3 for their first game in Oakland since Sept. 15 as an above-.500 outfit, Jon Gruden will have to be in the running for Coach of the Year. They’ll have to get at least a split in their two games — at Green Bay, at Houston — to do it, but even if they lose both, they’ll then have five of their next seven games at home and only one contest remaining against a team with a winning record (the
Chiefs in Week 13). This is an interesting group right now.
Ravens
Record: 4-2 (.300)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: at Seahawks
Biggest needs: Edge rusher, CB, ILB
We’ll get a much better feel in the next few weeks for whether Wink Martindale has found a solution for some of the problems that dogged this defense earlier in the season, because …
sorry, Bengals offense. You’re not much of a test right now. The
Seahawks and
Patriots await, though.
Vikings
Record: 4-2 (.500)
Previous week: No. 19
This week’s game: at Lions
Biggest needs: OL, QB, CB
As you can see from the needs listed, I’m not here to suggest everything will be just fine with
Kirk Cousins long-term, but since
Adam Thielen called him out, he’s gone 44 of 56 for 639 yards, six TDs and one INT. Can he keep it going on the road against a division rival?
Dolphins (via Texans)
Chiefs
Record: 4-2 (.561)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: at Broncos
Biggest needs: CB, LB, OG
The
Chiefs did some heavy remodeling to their defense in the offseason, but it still ranks 28th in yards allowed per game. They gave up
35 first downs in their second straight home loss. It’s going to be hard for this team to take the next step (or even make the playoffs) with a disaster on that side of the ball.
Bills
Record: 4-1 (.379)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: vs. Dolphins
Biggest needs: WR, DE, CB
Starting wide receivers
John Brown and
Cole Beasley are nice complementary pieces, but they’re both under 6 feet tall. Adding a true No. 1 — a big, outside pass catcher — could help
Josh Allen make a leap.
Seahawks
Record: 5-1 (.403)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: vs. Ravens
Biggest needs: Edge rusher, DT, OL
The
Seahawks declined the fifth-year option on
Germain Ifedi‘s contract, but Pete Carroll believes the 2016 first-round pick is playing the
best ball of his career right now. Perhaps there won’t be a hole to fill at right tackle this offseason.
Packers
Record: 5-1 (.515)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: vs. Raiders
Biggest needs: OT, WR, TE
It didn’t result in disaster on Monday night, but the win over the
Lions provided more evidence that the
Packers haven’t given
Aaron Rodgers enough targets he can trust. I know injuries are playing a role in the problems, but miscues by receivers were costly for Green Bay against Detroit.
Saints
Record: 5-1 (.528)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: at Bears
Biggest needs: CB, WR, QB
Eli Apple‘s career year could price him out of the
Saints‘ range in free agency, and the same goes for
Teddy Bridgewater. Who will be in the
Saints‘ QB room in 2020?
49ers
Record: 5-0 (.300)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: at Redskins
Biggest needs: DB, OL, WR
While the Niners continue to roll, it’s at least worth noting that San Francisco has had a wide receiver go over 45 yards in only one game all season (a Week 2 rout of the Bengals). That doesn’t seem sustainable.
Patriots
Record: 6-0 (.303)
Previous week: Playoffs
This week’s game: at Jets
Biggest needs: Pass catcher, interior OL, S
It’s easy to understand why the
Patriots are holding out hope that Gronk will
come out of retirement and reportedly want the
recently released Benjamin Watson back when you see their tight ends have combined for 11 catches in six games.
TEAMS WITHOUT A FIRST-ROUND PICK
Chicago Bears (3-2)
Biggest needs: DB, OG, edge rusher
While Matt Nagy tries to jumpstart an offense with problems that start at the quarterback position this year, right guard looms as a question mark in 2019 and beyond with Kyle Long, who has no guaranteed money attached to his deal beyond this season, being placed on injured reserve.
Houston Texans (4-2)
Biggest needs: Edge rusher, OL, CB
The Texans don’t have a first-round pick next year and are without a first- and second-round pick in 2021, so yes, it’s all about the NOW in Houston. It’s too early to make a definitive ruling on Bill O’Brien’s late-August gambles, but they’re looking at least a little better than they did before the season now that his squad is atop the AFC South after a win in Patrick Mahomes‘ house.
Pittsburgh Steelers (2-4)
Biggest needs: Edge rusher, pass catcher, OL
The Steelers have a bye week to get healthier and then a home game against the Dolphins, so … they aren’t dead yet. They’re still going to need a heck of a second half to the season to avoid an offseason of some pointed second-guessing about the decision to trade a first-round pick for Minkah Fitzpatrick a month ago.