Welcome to the ESSports Talk official 2021 NFL Mock Draft. I am doing one of these, and that's it. There will be no 5.0 version, and the basis of this mock is based on what I think will happen, what will probably happen, and what I think the best fits are. With that said, I will give short descriptions of each pick, so please sit back and enjoy. 1. Jacksonville Jaguars - QB Trevor Lawrence, Clemson
This is about as good as done and the biggest no brainer in Jaguars history. Trevor Lawrence is the best prospect and quarterback in this draft and Urban Meyer came out of retirement to get him, so that should say enough about this selection for Jacksonville. 2. New York Jets - QB Zach Wilson, BYU The Jets moved on from the Sam Darnold experiment by trading him Carolina this offseason, and after a solid year for BYU, Zach Wilson has cemented himself as the second quarterback to be selected and will start day one for Robert Salah in New York, but the Jets will have to work hard to get weapons around him for Wilson to succeed. 3. San Francisco 49ers - QB Trey Lance, North Dakota St. Based on reports I have seen, San Francisco is locked in on either Trey Lance or Mac Jones at number three. I am not high on Jones, so if this is the case, I think the 49ers should select the more dynamic QB in Lance. Now in this case, I think the 49ers stay with Jimmy G and allow Lance to learn and grow behind him, making the move up to three a little more puzzling. 4. New England Patriots(via trade with Atlanta) - QB Justin Fields, Ohio State With Lawrence, Lance and Wilson all off the board, this pick for Atlanta would likely be Kyle Pitts if they stay, but I think New England offers a major haul to move up to 4, dropping Atlanta to 15 and allowing the Patriots to acquire my QB2, Justin Fields. Fields is stellar in and outside the pocket and can learn behind Cam Newton for a year and take over the signal calling in 2022. 5. Cincinnati Bengals - OT Penei Sewell, Oregon Here's the thing, the Bengals could reunite Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase here or add the offensive weapon that is Kyle Pitts, but after Burrow's season ending knee injury last year, the Bengals must prioritize protection for their franchise signal caller and trust the offensive weapons they already have instead of adding Chase or Pitts. 6. Miami Dolphins - TE/WR Kyle Kitts, Florida Miami is a team on the rise and traded back to 12 and then back up to 6, and with the Dolphins fully in on Tua, adding Pitts to an offense that features Devante Parker, Will Fuller, Preston Williams and Mike Gesicki, the Dolphins would be giving Tua the best chance to succeed in South Beach. 7. Detroit Lions - WR Ja'Marr Chase, LSU The Lions are clearly in a full rebuild after trading Matthew Stafford and acquiring Jared Goff. After losing Kenny Golladay to the New York Giants and Marvin Jones, the Lions need to give Goff a weapon and they get the best wideout in the draft in Chase without trading up. Chase has everything he needs to be a number one receiver and should see huge numbers in Detroit. 8. Carolina Panthers - OT Rashawn Slater, TCU The Panthers were in on a quarterback before trading for Sam Darnold, but with that addition, the Panthers must protect whichever signal caller they choose and give CMC some running room, so selecting the second best offensive tackle in the draft in Rashawn Slater should be a no brainer for the Panthers here. 9. Denver Broncos - QB Mac Jones, Alabama This is an interesting dilemma for the Broncos. They want to give a longer look at Drew Lock, but Mac Jones being available is too hard to pass on. Jones could fit well in Denver's offense and if Lock doesn't pan out, Jon Elway's trust in the new general management will be far better by drafting the QB of the future. 10. Dallas Cowboys - Patrick Surtain II, Alabama The Cowboys locked in Dak Prescott as their quarterback and have an electric offense, but when your defense gives up nearly 30 points per game, you have to go defense here. The Cowboys felt the effects of losing Byron Jones to Miami and select Patrick Surtain II here, solidifying a new, young number one corner on the roster. 11. New York Giants - WR Jaylen Waddle, Alabama A run of Alabama players here and although the Giants added Gollday, giving Daniel Jones another weapon, especially one in Waddle who can stretch the field, should help him continue to progress into a middle of the pack quarterback and bring a spark to the Giants offense with Saquon Barkley returning. 12. Philadelphia Eagles - WR Devonta Smith, Alabama Now the fourth Alabama player selected in a row, the Eagles have spent so much on receivers in the past few drafts, but none have been of the caliber of Devonta Smith, who won the Heisman in 2020. Adding Smith would give new QB1 Jalen Hurts another weapon to work with in Philadelphia who can run any route given to him. 13. Los Angeles Chargers - OT Christian Darrisaw, Virginia Tech The Chargers are in the same boat as the Bengals. Justin Herbert cemented himself as the franchise quarterback for the Chargers and they add Christian Darrisaw to slow in at left tackle and protect Herbert for the near future. 14. Minnesota Vikings - IOL Alijah Vera-Tucker, USC The Vikings have one of the best running backs in the league in Dalvin Cook. They also have plenty of weapons for quarterback Kirk Cousins, so adding protection here in Alijah Vera-Tucker, who can play tackle and on the interior, would be a huge win for a team that desperately needs help on both the offensive and defensive line. 15. Atlanta Falcons(via New England) - CB Jaycee Horn, South Carolina After receiving a huge haul from the Patriots to trade down from four, the Falcons still get a phenomenal player in Jaycee Horn to add to a defense that needs secondary help. I also think Horn is better than Surtain, so the fact he falls here to Atlanta after adding more picks in this draft and the future is a major win for the Falcons. 16. Arizona Cardinals - CB Caleb Farley, Virginia Tech Farley was regarded as the top corner in the draft before his injuries moved him down most boards, but after losing Patrick Peterson to Minnesota, the Cardinals add Farley, who should be ready for camp, to get Peterson's replacement and add another young prospect to an improving secondary in the dessert. 17. Las Vegas Raiders - LB Micah Parsons Yes, the Raiders need offensive line help, but Jon Gruden loves his defensive studs and Micah Parsons fits the bill. Parsons has had questions and incidents that have shaken some scouts the wrong way, but the Raiders add the best linebacker in the draft to improve their defense as an every down linebacker. 18. Miami Dolphins - EDGE Jaelan Phillips, Miami The Dolphins added Pitts at number six, so with Tua now having his weapons, the Dolphins address their need for a pass rusher by keeping Jaelan Phillips in South Beach and acquiring the best edge rusher in the class to improve a defense that lost Kyle Van Noy in the offseason. 19. Washington Football Team - LB Zaven Collins, Tulsa Washington is out on the quarterbacks after all were selected, so with a need for a linebacker, Washington adds Zaven Collins, who won the award as best defensive player in college football in his career for Tulsa and he joins a strong defense that features Chase Young and others that could torture the NFC East for awhile as the other teams continue to improve their offenses. 20. Chicago Bears - WR Rashod Bateman, Minnesota The Bears are another team that would be looking to trade up for a quarterback, but since they were not able too, the Bears opt to add a weapon for Andy Dalton alongside Allen Robinson, who could depart after 2021 after being franchise tagged this offseason. 21. Indianapolis Colts - OT Tevin Jenkins, Oklahoma St. The Colts have done a ton this offseason, but they lost longtime tackle Anthony Castonzo to retirement and address the tackle need immediately by adding Tevin Jenkins to give new quarterback Carson Wentz some protection in Indianapolis. 22. Tennessee Titans - CB Greg Newsome, Northwestern The Titans have a major need in the secondary and to take the next step in the AFC, the Titans have to address the secondary early, even if it is a reach. I don't think Newsome is a reach though as he is in the second tier of corners in this draft but showed impressive skills at Northwestern that can help the Titans immediately this upcoming season. 23. New York Jets - EDGE Kwity Paye, Michigan The Jets of course added their franchise quarterback in Zach Wilson at pick two, so now defensive guru Robert Salah gets his future edge rusher in Kwity Paye who has endless potential and should strive in Salah's scheme and add a good piece to the Jets defense. 24. Pittsburgh Steelers - RB Najee Harris, Alabama The Steelers were horrible in the run game last season, and although guys like Landon Dickerson or an offensive tackle are tempting here, adding the top running back in the class in Najee Harris would go a long way in helping the Steelers get back to their original, bruising style of running the football and play action. 25. Jacksonville Jaguars - OT Alex Leatherwood, Alabama The Jaguars of course need to protect Trevor Lawrence and have a ton of draft capital to help their defensive needs. At 25 and with a noticeable drop at the tackle position, the Jaguars pick safe and select Alex Leatherwood out of Alabama to protect their franchise quarterback in Duval County. 26. Cleveland Browns - IDL Christian Barmore, Alabama The Browns still may go edge here, but they also have a need at interior defensive line, so adding the clear number one prospect at the position in Christian Barmore is a no brainer, especially after the Browns acquired Jadeveon Clowney in free agency not too long ago. 27. Baltimore Ravens - Azeez Ojulari, Georgia The Baltimore Ravens took a step back last season despite winning a playoff game and lost Matthew Judon to New England this year, so the Ravens acquire Azeez Ojulari out of Georgia here to replace Judon. Ojulari is my edge two in this draft and brings an immediate impact to the Ravens defense. 28. New Orleans Saints - Terrace Marshall Jr., LSU The Saints are now in the post Drew Brees era. With Taysom Hill or Jameis Winston slated to take the signal calling duties, adding Terrace Marshall Jr. to have opposite of Michael Thomas would give either Hill or Winston good weapons on both sides of the field, especially on the outside against opposing cornerbacks. 29. Green Bay Packers - WR Elijah Moore, Ole Miss The Packers made the puzzling move last season of acquiring Jordan Love in round one rather than a receiver like Justin Jefferson, but they don't make that same mistake again as they take Elijah Moore out of Ole Miss who can get open easily with Davante Adams getting double teamed, giving Moore a huge chance to give Aaron Rodgers a reliable weapon outside of Adams and Jones. 30. Buffalo Bills - EDGE Jayson Oweh, Penn State The Bills defense is already strong, but they need pass rush help and it showed against the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game, so they opt to go Jayson Oweh here out of Penn State who can slot in as a day one edge rusher but play every other down with the other pass rushers in Buffalo. 31. Baltimore Ravens - WR Kadarius Toney, Florida Baltimore may have added Sammy Watkins in free agency, but they still need receiver help. They traded offensive tackle Orlando Brown to get this pick from Kansas City, so they use it to address the receiver position and acquire an electric talent in Kadarius Toney from Florida who can not only stretch the field but run well on short and medium routes with his big play ability. 32. Denver Broncos(via Tampa Bay) - Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Notre Dame Tampa Bay trades out of this spot with Denver. Although Denver could hope that Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah falls to them early in the second round, they decide to trade for the final pick in the first round to acquire his services and build him as a linebacker rather than a safety as some have speculated. Denver loves their defensive players and with Von Miller also nearing the end of his tenure in Denver, the Broncos opt to add help on the defense for Miller after adding their future QB in Mac Jones. Let me know how you feel about these picks and if you would change anything, let me know on Twitter @mvp_EtHaN!
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