2021 NFL Draft storylines
Photo courtesy of NBCSports
The 2021 NFL Draft has come and gone. There was not as much movement with trades in the first couple of rounds as I anticipated, but as usual, some fans are ecstatic about their team’s picks, while others are left scratching their heads. The best part of the draft is dissecting the players drafted after a year or two in the league to see if the front offices made the right choices and wondering how good your favorite team would have been if they would have taken the right player.
As expected, former Clemson quarterback, Trevor Lawrence, was selected first overall to the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jags are now led by former college coach Urban Meyer and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell. Outside of one good season, Jacksonville has been a bottom-feeder team in the league, only making the playoffs once in the past 13 seasons.
A lot will be placed on the shoulders of Lawrence right away. Jacksonville has some pieces on offense and Meyer is hopefully the right coach to bring the Jags back to some sort of respectability. I read a stat that Lawrence has never lost a regular season game since becoming the starter as a freshman in high school. Needless to say, he will have to adjust to some losing this season.
Two other quarterbacks were taken right behind Lawrence in the draft. The New York Jets selected former BYU quarterback Zack Wilson second overall and the San Francisco 49ers took former North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance, third.
The Jets chose to hit the reset button at the quarterback position by drafting Wilson. They took USC quarterback Sam Darnold with the third overall pick in the 2018 draf;, however, that did not work out for either party. The Jets decided to ship Darnold to the Carolina Panthers this offseason and hitch their team to the Wilson wagon.
Wilson brings a fresh start to the Jets. He really shot up the draft board this season with numbers he was able to accumulate. This season he threw for 3,692 yards, with 33 touchdowns to only three interceptions. He also had a 73.5 completion percentage this season. His improvisation once the play breaks down, coupled with his other tools, is probably what attracted the Jets to him.
Some analysts wonder if the lower level of competition Wilson played against inflated some of his numbers this season. The Jets are probably going to hand the keys to Wilson immediately and are hoping for better results than they received from Darnold.
Lance rounded out the three quarterbacks selected at the top of the draft. He is the one that is going to the best possible situation as the 49ers are a playoff team and just two years removed from playing in the Super Bowl. The Niners still have Jimmy Garoppolo as the starter, but if he falters or gets injured, Lance will be ready to step in.
Lance only had 17 starts in college and played on the FBS level, so there are question marks about how good he actually is. He is a good-decision maker, only throwing one interception in his college career. He is also an excellent runner, which is perfect for head coach Kyle Shanahan’s zone-read scheme.
The most debated quarterback in this year’s draft was Justin Fields. Due to some negative press prior to the draft, Fields dropped a bit in the draft. That will probably be a blessing for Fields in the long run as he was selected 11th overall by the Chicago Bears, who moved up to take him.
The Bears are ready to win now and Fields will have every opportunity to take the starting job as a rookie if he performs well in off-season workouts. Fields could go down as one of the biggest steals of the draft when it’s all said and done.
The Alabama Crimson Tide had a big day in the first round of the draft. Six Crimson Tide players were selected in the first round, tying a record set by the Miami Hurricanes in 2004. Alabama was loaded with talent and their skill position players at running back and wide receiver usually pan out well on the NFL level.
The Crimson Tide quarterbacks have not panned out as well as other positions and Mac Jones is attempting to turn that around. Jones was taken by the New England Patriots with the 15th pick. The Pats already have Cam Newton as their starter for next season, so Jones does not have to step in and play right away.
Najee Harris, former Crimson Tide running back, was taken by the Pittsburgh Steelers. In recent years, the running back position has been somewhat devalued, so for the Steelers to take Harris means they really like him. Harris is the prototypical Steeler running back. He is big, physical, and runs with power. The perfect back for the Steel City.
While it’s great to see how all the draft picks will pan out, especially the ones for your favorite team, it’s the quarterbacks that I will keep an eye on the most. Every year there are multiple quarterbacks that go in the top half of the first round, but routinely only one or two ever pan out to be franchise quarterbacks.
The success of the quarterbacks goes well beyond just their talent. There are several other factors that come into play such as coaching style, offensive personnel, and injuries. Lawrence has been touted as the can’t-miss project, so the other teams are hoping they made the right decision with their selections at the quarterback position.
