As you all know, we lost our best cornerback in James Bradberry to the New York Giants in free agency. While he probably was overpaid, it doesn't look as bad now compared to the contracts of Byron Jones and Darius Slay, and personally I'd rather have an overpaid No. 1 cornerback who can lockdown the NFC South wide receivers. But, he's gone and there's nothing we can do about it. So how do we replace him? There are some decent cornerbacks left in free agency, but I have a feeling we're done signing people until after the draft is over. Well as always in the draft, we have three options: trade up, trade down, or stay where we are. I will be looking at how our draft could go in each of those scenarios.

Option 1: Trade up

Round 1 (Pick No. 4): Jeff Okudah, CB, Ohio State

This trade depends on Burrow going No. 1 overall, Young going No. 2, and the Miami Dolphins trading up with the Detroit Lions to select Tua Tagovailoa. If this were to happen, we could trade our third round pick to the Giants, who have stated that their first round pick is "open for business" when it comes to trading down. In general I prefer to trade down rather than trade up whenever possible, since it is important to have as many picks within the first three rounds as you can possibly have, and right now we only have one in each. However, Okudah is by far the best cornerback in this class, and since we just lost our best cornerback in free agency, I'd argue that getting a No. 1 cornerback should be our first priority in the draft. So while I'd prefer Okudah to just fall to us naturally, I don't see him getting past the Lions, and a trade-up would probably be necessary to get him.

Round 2: Raekwon Davis, DT, Alabama

If we are able to get Okudah in the first round, then we can focus on our atrocious run defense in the second with this pick. While Davis had to deal with some injuries last year, and wasn't a consistent pass-rusher, he was described as being a "tremendous run defender" for Alabama. He's also versatile enough to play in a 3-4 or a 4-3 defense, which is useful.

(Round 3 pick was traded to the Giants to move up to No. 4)

Round 4: Keith Ismael C/G, San Diego State

Considering we were already likely to use an early or mid round pick on a guard before the Turner trade, I think it would make sense to get one here. Ismael played left guard, center, and right guard during his career, so his versatility can be very useful to us. He can start as a backup, or perhaps even compete to be the starting left or right guard, until he's ready to succeed Matt Paradis at center.

Round 5: Evan Weaver, ILB, California

This is the fifth round pick that we got from Washington in return for Kyle Allen. After losing Luke Kuechly to retirement, it's difficult to imagine a scenario in which we don't draft an inside linebacker in this year's draft. Weaver is described as a "tackling machine".

Round 5: Harrison Bryant, TE, FAU

Joe Brady said that he likes having multiple talented tight ends, so we get a decent one here to round out the depth chart.

Round 6: Ben Cleveland, G, Georgia

Considering we have no definitive starter at left or right guard, and our center could use an upgrade soon, I think it would be wise to get as much offensive line depth as possible. Cleveland was a solid rotational right guard for Georgia.

Round 7: Tyler Bass, K, Georgia Southern

With Graham Gano being old, expensive, and unreliable, and with Joey Slye still being inconsistent, we could use some competition for them.

Option 2: Stay put

Round 1: Isaiah Simmons, LB, Clemson

In this scenario Okudah does not fall to our pick, so we are left to choose between Mekhi Becton, Derrick Brown, and Simmons. With Russell Okung and Greg Little on the team I do not see any reason to draft Becton, especially with Andrew Thomas being the better player. Brown would also be a good pick here since we need defensive tackle help and because he's great against the run and versatile enough to play in a 4-3 or 3-4 defense. But I went with Simmons here since he is just as good of a prospect, and it is seeming more and more likely that he will be our pick come draft day. He is the definition of the modern linebacker, and he is a Swiss Army knife who can play literally any position on defense. While he's not an exact replacement for Kuechly, he will help ease the loss of him, and should be a huge boost to our atrocious run and tight end defense.

Round 2: A.J. Terrell, CB, Clemson

This wasn't meant to be a Clemson-related draft, but that's just how it ended up happening. Out of all of the second round cornerbacks, Terrell seems to be the best fit for us due to his combination of size (6 feet 1 inch) and speed (4.42 40 time). While he's not anything special in coverage, and is a definite downgrade from Bradberry, he's the only one here with the size and speed to even try to match up with the NFC South wide receivers.

Round 3: Solomon Kindley, G, Georgia

Kindley is very talented and was originally seen as one of the better guards in this class, but because of his weight issues, supposedly teams now see him as a late second round or early third round pick.

Round 4: James Lynch, DT/DE, Baylor

We've seen already that Rhule really likes to get people, whether it be coaches or players, that he's worked with at some point in his career, so I wouldn't be surprised to see a Baylor player be selected by us come draft day. Lynch's versatility makes him useful, and he had an insane 13.5 sacks last year.

Round 5: Harrison Bryant, TE, FAU

Since we drafted Simmons in the first round, we can now get Bryant a few picks earlier. Joe Brady said that he likes having multiple talented tight ends, so we get a decent one here to round out the depth chart.

Round 5: Josiah Coatney, DT, Ole Miss

Since we waited until the fourth round to get a defensive lineman, I think that makes this position one of importance to double dip for. I feel like Lynch is more of a natural defensive end, so we get help specifically at the defensive tackle position with this pick. Coatney is described as a "big run-stuffing nose tackle", and that sounds like exactly what our defense needs.

Round 6: Frederick Mauigoa, C, Washington State

Mauigoa doesn't offer any versatility, so he would most likely just be a backup center until he's ready to replace Paradis.

Round 7: Tyler Bass, K, Georgia Southern

No change here.

Option 3: Trade down

Round 1 (Pick No. 15): C.J. Henderson, CB, Florida

In this scenario we trade back with the Denver Broncos, who most likely traded up for Simmons, Becton, or one of the top wide receivers, and we get their second round pick in return. Henderson is good, but not a top 10 talent, so the only threats to take him before this pick would be the New York Jets, Las Vegas Raiders, San Francisco 49ers, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Jets desperately need offensive tackle and wide receiver help, so they're more likely to go with one of those positions. The Raiders are committed to getting more weapons for Derek Carr, so a wide receiver seems likely. The 49ers will probably also go with one of the top wide receivers to help replace Emmanuel Sanders and to make their offense even more powerful. The Bucs are probably our biggest threat to take him since they desperately need defensive back help, but I feel like they'll trade down with the Philadelphia Eagles so they can select Henry Ruggs.

Henderson had a down year, but in every other year he was talented enough to be considered a top 10 pick and the No. 1 cornerback of this class. He still has the size, speed, and athleticism to be a Pro Bowl cornerback in the NFL. While he isn't as polished as Okudah, and isn't reliable as a tackler in any sense of the word, he should still be considered a top 15 talent after a good combine performance. One NFL comparison for him is Marcus Peters, and I think that's a fair comparison. Both are ball hawks who are pretty reliable in coverage, but aren't the best tacklers, and occasionally let their instincts get the better of them.

Round 2: Raekwon Davis, DT, Alabama

If we are able to get our new No. 1 cornerback in the first round, then we can focus on our atrocious run defense in the second with this pick. While Davis had to deal with some injuries last year, and wasn't a consistent pass-rusher, he was described as being a "tremendous run defender" for Alabama. He's also versatile enough to play in a 3-4 or a 4-3 defense, which is useful.

Round 2 (from Broncos): Shane Lemieux, G, Oregon

Trading back allows us to select one of the better guards in this class. Lemieux is seen as a starting-caliber left guard in the NFL.

Round 3: Thaddeus Moss, TE, LSU

Trading back also allows us to select a very talented tight end to pair with Ian Thomas. Moss makes sense here since he is very familiar with Brady's system.

Round 4: Jacob Phillips, ILB, LSU

Since we already double dipped from one of the College Football Championship teams in the previous draft, why not do the same here? Phillips is seen as a solid inside linebacker, and while he won't replace Kuechly as well as somebody like Simmons would, he should at least provide good linebacker depth.

Round 5: Darryl Williams, C, Mississippi State

Williams' natural position in the NFL appears to be at center, but since he also had a lot of playing time at guard, he could be a backup or starter at one of the guard positions until he's ready to succeed Paradis.

Round 5: Trevis Gipson, DE, Tulsa

After losing Addison, our starting defensive end and leader in sacks, to free agency, we could use more defensive end depth. Gipson should be solid enough to provide that.

Round 6: Tanner Muse, S, Clemson

Since we have an extra pick from the trade down, we can add some safety depth here in case Tre Boston or Juston Burris don't pay off for us. Muse isn't that great of a safety, which is why he's available so late in the draft, but he has good size (6 feet 2 inches) and speed (4.41 40 time).

Round 7- Tyler Bass, K, Georgia Southern

No change here.