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.
**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.
**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.
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**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?
**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.
**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.
**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.
**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.
**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.
**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.
**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. Oh, and now there's officially a gaping hole at corner following the departure of Jalen Ramsey. The Jags have four first-round picks over the next two years to help them fill it, though.
**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.
**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.
**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.
**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.
**Previous week:** Playoffs
**This week's game:** vs. Vikings
**Biggest needs:** CB, WR, OL
**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.
**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.
**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?
**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.
**Previous week:** Playoffs
**This week's game:** at Seahawks
**Biggest needs:** Edge rusher, ILB, interior O-line
We'll get a much better feel in the next few weeks -- the Seahawks and Patriots await -- for whether Wink Martindale has found a solution for some of the problems that dogged this defense earlier in the season. The newly acquired Marcus Peters certainly isn't a cure-all, and he's in a contract year, but I don't think the Ravens would trade for him if they weren't interested in signing him long-term. So, CB is bumped off the needs list for now.
**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?
**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.
**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.
**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.
**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.
**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?
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**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.
**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 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.
Los Angeles Rams (3-3)
Biggest needs: OL, edge rusher, DB
We have to assume the Rams will do whatever it takes to get a long-term deal done with Jalen Ramsey, who is signed through the 2020 season. However, Aqib Talib is in the final year of his contract. John Johnson and Eric Weddle will be free agents after next season. We'll move the defensive backfield to the end of the needs list for now, but as you can see, there's still work to be done in that area, even with Ramsey in the fold. Maybe playing the Falcons and Bengals -- who have one win between them -- in consecutive weeks will be the antidote for the the Rams' O-line woes. It's ranked second to last in pass blocking by Pro Football Focus, but Atlanta and Cincinnati have two sacks combined in their past three games.
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.
