2021 NFL Mock Draft: Bears surprise with Mac Jones, Cowboys nab Caleb Farley
New 2021 NFL Mock Draft with the Bears surprising at QB and the Cowboys helping the defense.
Though it once seemed like the 2021 NFL Draft might be an impossible process to navigate given the state of the college football season, things are starting to look up. The Big Ten will begin its season on Oct. 24 and the Pac-12 will be soon behind. As for the ACC, SEC and Big 12, they’ve already gotten their respective seasons underway at this point. With a handful of games in the books and plenty more coming, it feels like a good time for a new 2021 NFL mock draft.
While the league is dealing with issues stemming from COVID-19, there is still the future of the league to think about. And if there’s one thing we’ve seen from many teams throughout the NFL through the first four weeks of the season, it’s that they have plenty of work to do building their rosters as they trudge forward.
So let’s dive into what each team in the league could do in the 2021 NFL Draft as we go through the entire first round in this 2021 NFL mock draft. The draft order was determined using our latest NFL Power Rankings.
Full first-round 2021 NFL Mock Draft entering Week 5.
1. player. 30. . QB. New York Jets. Trevor Lawrence
The Jets are a broken franchise right now, largely stemming from head coach Adam Gase and his ineffectiveness in that role. But the result has been Sam Darnold essentially looking like damaged goods. They need both a major change and a spark, which Trevor Lawrence could bring.
The Clemson quarterback checks every box to be an elite franchise quarterback and the Jets should start a new era should they continue their path to the No. 1 overall pick.
31. . EDGE. New York Giants. Gregory Rousseau. 2. player
New York as a whole is struggling as the Giants aren’t much better than the Jets, especially with Saquon Barkley lost for the year. But their defense has been an absolute disaster for the past two seasons and they need a bonafide pass-rusher. Gregory Rousseau opted out of the 2020 season for Miami but his 2019 film showed an explosive playmaker who has double-digit sack potential in the NFL.
Micah Parsons. 3. player. 44. . LB. Atlanta Falcons
Things have gone south for the Falcons and, while the offense’s tendency to stall late in games hasn’t helped, their defense is the bigger issue. Penn State’s Micah Parsons is another player who opted out of the 2020 season but that shouldn’t affect his 2021 NFL Draft stock a bit. He’s a game-changer at linebacker with the ability to do it all from the position and do so at an extremely high level.
. OT. Miami Dolphins. Penei Sewell. 4. player. 59
(Pick via Texans) – Miami used one of three first-round picks this past year on offensive tackle Austin Jackson but the line is far from complete. With the Texans’ immense early-season struggles, they see Penei Sewell out of Oregon fall into their laps.
The Ducks standout is one of the best prospects at the position in quite some time with the strength, mobility and upside at a young age to be a stalwart at tackle for the next decade-plus.