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First Choice - Houston Texans
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Why want Mack in Houston? Well first because it would make him the first overall pick which would be great for Mack and very good for the program. If UB can follow up last year with another bowl worthy season in 2014 the team would have had two Bowls and an NFL first over draft pick at the same time.
Beyond wanting the hype of being number one overall though is the fact that Mack fits perfectly into the Houston defensive scheme and he would be on a defense that already has the star power needed to help Mack be a better player.
At Houston Mack would be along side a formidable set of players in the front seven which would prevent the rookie from being the sole focus of the opposition, can you say Rookie of the year?
I think the Texans are well on their way to being a power meaning Mack can be a Bruce Smith type player, a guy who was there when the Bills turned from punching bag to knock out king.
Second Choice - Jacksonville Jags
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Other than Tampa or Miami (Bleh) the Jags put Mack closer to his family than any other NFL team. I think playing close to home would be fitting given the role Khalil's mom played in keeping him at Buffalo for his senior season. It would be a great reward for Mack and his loved ones.
Going beyond the Awwwwww factor thought there is another room to put the Jags at #2.
This year we all got to see the Denver Bronco's turned into Geldings by the hand of the Seattle Seahawks. The Superbowl saw big play makers take the ball out of Denver's hands time after time.
Seattle defensive architect Gus Bradley is now in Jacksonville. Jacksonville has brought in from Seattle Chris Clemons and Red Bryant but the depth and talent in the front seven is severely lacking. While the Houston scheme may better fit mack the Bradley style could make great use of a player who set the NCAA record in forced fumbles and took two interceptions back for touchdowns last season.
Third Choice - Atlanta Falcons
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Mack could not play the last time his team was in Georgia, perhaps at the next level he can play 8 games, or more, in The Peach State.
The Falcon's are an offensive power but the team has struggled because they are incomplete. scoring machine who are badly in need of a pass rush. While making your offensive line better is always a priority the Falcons would get more bang for the buck taking Khalil Mack over Greg Robinson.
What this means for Mack is that he could quickly become one of the Marquee players for the Falcons. For a lot of rookies that might go to their head but Mack is a guy who stuck around to anonymously clean the locker room after UB games. HE would get all of the benefit of being the face of their defense with little risk it would bring out a "bad boy" mentality.
Fourth Choice - Oakland Raiders
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I'm not a huge fan of Oakland but I am secretly a guy who roots for them more often than not. Even though they showed a proper amount of hate for Kiffin when Davis fired him, and then called him out as a bad coach I have other motives for thinking Oakland is a good fit.
The Raiders took a chance on Trevor Scott in the 2008 NFL draft. They took the UB end in the late rounds and he became a good elephant back and fan favorite in the bay area.
Picking Mack would also save the Raiders from making another disastrous pick at Quarterback. Oakland has not had a great history with drafting Quarterback's and I'd hate for my favorite team in California to once again waste a good pick.
Fifth Choice - Saint Louis Rams
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The Rams have an early pick this season because they traded with Washington last season. The primary need in Saint Louis is probably the offensive line. So long as Sam Bradford is a tackling dummy he, or anyone else behind center is going to fall short of expectations.
So the conventional wisdom is that the Rams will take Greg Robinson.
The Rams may have the strongest front seven among the first half dozen teams picking in this years NFL draft. So Mack would be with a group of players that should help elevate his play on day one.
I also believe in the Rams ownership. Sometimes teams drafting low are there because the Management has been failing for decades an has no clue how to be winners. With the Ram's I don't believe that is the case. With Saint Louis Mack could be on a team which wins a lot of games.
Sixth Choice - Cleveland Browns
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There is a certain appeal to seeing Mack play in Cleveland. I've rooted Browns since Art Modell screwed over Cleveland. It would also be pretty close to Buffalo meaning that the friends that Mack has made at UB could easily get to Cleveland to see him play.
I have to put them last though because they are a moribund football team.
They have only been to the Playoffs once since the team was reestablished in 1998, they have had just two winning seasons, and only three with more than six wins. I'm not sure that I want Mack to become an offensive version of Barry Sanders.
The Browns also don't really need an outside linebacker right now, they need an inside linebacker. Mack could play the ILB spot but it's not the perfect place for Khalil. I'm afraid if they pick him that's where he ends up. That would be a waste of his potential.