NFL Draft Order 2016: Miami creeping toward top 5 pick

Earlier today, we took a look at the AFC Playoff picture, with the Miami Dolphins falling another position, down to 13th, after the Baltimore Ravens beat the Cleveland Browns on Monday night. A fall in the AFC Playoff Picture does carry a silver lining, if you want to look for it: Miami is climbing in the 2016 NFL Draft order.

The Tennessee Titans moved into the first overall pick this week, having been projected to be the third pick last week. The Browns loss to the Ravens pushes them into the second position, while the Dallas Cowboys, who were seventh last week, would now be picking third, if the Draft were to start today. The San Diego Chargers moved from the second overall pick to the fourth position, having beaten the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, followed by the San Francisco 49ers with the fifth pick.

After the 49ers' selection, as of right now, the Miami Dolphins would be on the clock. Miami lost to the New York Jets on Sunday, knocking them to 0-5 in the AFC East and 4-7 overall. There are seven teams tied with a 4-7 record right now, with Miami having the weakest strength of schedule in the group, giving them the top pick from the group.

The NFL sets the draft order based on the preceding season's win-loss records. The team with the worst record gets the first pick, the next worst the second, and so on through the first 20 selections. The final 12 picks are determined based on Playoff finishing order, with teams that are eliminated in each round of the postseason tournament then slotted based on records among the group. Ties are broken bye overall strength of schedule, followed by conference record, then division record, then, finally, a coin toss at the NFL Scouting Combine.

The current 2016 NFL Draft order, via Mocking the Draft, is:

1. Tennessee Titans: 2-9 (.511 strength of schedule)
2. Cleveland Browns: 2-9 (.517 SOS)
3. Dallas Cowboys: 3-8 (.523 SOS)
4. San Diego Chargers: 3-8 (.528 SOS)
5. San Francisco 49ers: 3-8 (.534 SOS)
6. Miami Dolphins: 4-7 (.477 SOS)
7. Jacksonville Jaguars: 4-7 (.489 SOS)
8. Baltimore Ravens: 4-7 (.494 SOS)
9. Philadelphia Eagles: 4-7 (.511 SOS)
10. St. Louis Rams: 4-7 (.517 SOS)
11. New Orleans Saints: 4-7 (.523 SOS)
12. Detroit Lions: 4-7 (.528 SOS)
13. New York Giants: 5-6 (.489 SOS - 4-5 in conference)
14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 5-6 (.489 SOS - 4-3 in conference)
15. Oakland Raiders: 5-6 (.506 SOS)
16. Buffalo Bills: 5-6 (.511 SOS)
17. Chicago Bears: 5-6 (.528 SOS)
18. New York Jets: 6-5 (.455 SOS)
19. Atlanta Falcons: 6-5 (.489 SOS)
20. Pittsburgh Steelers: 6-5 (.517 SOS)

Projected to make the playoffs:

21. Washington Redskins: 5-6 (.477 SOS)
22. Seattle Seahawks: 6-5 (.489 SOS)
23. Houston Texans: 6-5 (.511 SOS - 4-3 in conference, 2-1 in division)
24. Indianapolis Colts: 6-5 (.511 SOS - 4-3 in conference, 3-0 in division)
25. Kansas City Chiefs: 6-5 (.511 SOS - 5-2 in conference)
26. Green Bay Packers: 7-4 (.500 SOS - 5-3 in conference)
27. Minnesota Vikings: 8-3 (.500 SOS - 5-2 in conference)
28. Arizona Cardinals: 9-2 (.449 SOS)
29. Cincinnati Bengals: 9-2 (.455 SOS)
30. Denver Broncos: 9-2 (.506 SOS)
31. New England Patriots: 10-1 (.455 SOS) - PICK FORFEITED
32. Carolina Panthers: 11-0 (.443 SOS)