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AJ McCarron works through his Pro Day throwing session during Alabama football's Pro Day, Wednesday, March 12, 2014, at the Hank Crisp Indoor Facility in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama -- Count ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. among those who believe Cyrus Kouandjio is still a first-round draft pick.

In his latest mock draft, which he debuted Thursday after two days' worth of free agent signings, Kiper Jr. slotted Kouandjio at No. 28 to the Carolina Panthers. Kouandjio's been sharply criticized for his performance at last month's NFL Combine and dropped from many mock drafts, but Kiper Jr. said he remained a "borderline" first-round pick.

Kiper Jr. acknowledged the health concerns surrounding Kouandjio's knee -- which Kouandjio strongly denied Wednesday -- but said his "talent" and potential keeps him in the first 32 picks.

"It's worth remembering that he won't turn 21 until after the draft," Kiper Jr. wrote in his latest mock. "While Kouandjio has a high ceiling, he's not merely a physical talent who could develop -- this is a kid who was battering SEC defensive linemen at the age of 19. If the health is there, so is the ceiling."

Kiper Jr. has gone back and forth with his ranking of safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, but his latest mock projects him to be the first defensive back off the board at No. 13 to the St. Louis Rams.

He slots linebacker C.J. Mosley a few slots later at No. 21 to the Green Bay Packers. If Alabama puts three players in the first round, it would mark the fourth consecutive year in which that's occurred. Alabama's had at least two players selected in the first round since 2010.

The only sure thing on Day 2 (second and third rounds) of the NFL Draft for Alabama might be quarterback AJ McCarron, Kiper Jr. said on a conference call Thursday.

Like most analysts, Kiper Jr. groups McCarron with Fresno State's Derek Carr and Eastern Illinois' Jimmy Garoppolo. While the first group of quarterbacks -- Blake Bortles, Johnny Manziel and Teddy Bridgewater -- is expected to be off the board by the 10th pick, the members of the second group are likely to fall in the second or third round.

Kiper Jr. said he wondered if McCarron was a "right-handed Matt Leinart." Leinart starred at USC and won the 2004 Heisman trophy, but never caught on in the NFL after he was selected with the 10th overall pick in 2006.

Perhaps that's the kind of criticism McCarron has repeatedly referenced over the past month.

"I feel like I've been disrespected my whole college career because I won," McCarron said at the NFL Combine.

It could be a busy Day 3 for Alabama players, as Kiper Jr. projected Jeoffrey Pagan, Kevin Norwood, Ed Stinson, Deion Belue and Adrian Hubbard to fall somewhere between the fourth and seventh rounds.

Kiper Jr. said safety Vinnie Sunseri, who missed the second half of his junior season with a torn ACL, should have returned for his senior season and projected him to be a priority free agent. Sunseri, who is projected as a sixth-round pick by CBSSports.com, is anticipated to work out at Alabama's second Pro Day on April 8.