Spoiler alert: drafts are unpredictable. Experts and analysts will mock them up six ways to Sunday, but you just never know how it’s going to go. Teams have different needs and timelines and as much planning as even the best front offices can do, the ripple effect of one pick to the next can be devastating in real time.
That doesn’t mean teams don’t do their homework. Measurements at the combine matter. Analytics can help predict a player’s ceiling and floor. The hours of tape that a player compiles in high school and college or abroad are dissected and studied.