2021 NFL Draft: The first tank for Trevor Lawrence mock draft

The 2021 NFL Draft is a year away, but that doesn’t mean we can’t try to look in the crystal ball and see what teams will try to tank for Trevor Lawrence.

The 2020 NFL Draft is only a week old, but that doesn’t mean we can’t take a look at the best prospects available in the 2021 NFL Draft class.

As a matter of fact, people have been looking forward to the 2021 NFL Draft for quite some time now. When Trevor Lawrence was coming out of high school as a superstar prep prospect, scouts and pundits were already counting down the days until he was eligible to go pro.

After watching him play as a true freshman, there were opinions flying all over Twitter that Lawrence was unquestionably the best pro prospect at the quarterback position anyone had seen since Andrew Luck and that he could have easily gone pro before the age of 20.

Lawrence will turn 21 in October, but who knows if we’ll get the chance to see him — or anyone else on this list — play football for their respective programs in 2020. It’s far too early to make any definitive statements about the college football season, but the major question marks with the coronavirus could actually end up causing some elite prospects to enter the NFL’s supplemental draft.

Let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves, though.

Let’s say, for the moment, that the college football season happens and none of these prospects leave early for the supplemental draft.

Who are the top prospects to keep an eye on for the 2021 class?

Doing a mock draft one year out might seem like a fruitless endeavor, but there’s nothing wrong with taking an early look at top prospects or assessing a team’s potential needs for the future.

We blame the NFL Mock Draft Database simulator for your team picking way too high. Unless you’re a Jacksonville Jaguars fan because clearly the tank is on in Duval.

As of right now, the 2020 NFL Draft starts with Trevor Lawrence, period.

Last year at this time, it was all about Tua Tagovailoa, so you never know what’s going to happen.

The Jaguars are making as strong of a case as any team to pick first overall in the 2020 season, trading away many of their best players and team leaders and doing absolutely nothing behind Gardner Minshew at the quarterback position.

As a matter of fact, the Jags decided to move on From Nick Foles just one year after their free agent experiment, and he’s now with the Chicago Bears.

So why Lawrence up top?

This kid has rare talent at the quarterback position — a rifle of an arm, a natural feel and understanding of the game, athletic ability, accuracy to all levels of the field, and poise in big moments.

He’s a blue-chip among blue-chip prospects. He’s got a chance to be really special in the NFL from a young age. He’s already thrown for over 6,600 yards and 66 touchdowns in two seasons at Clemson, and he’s been to two straight national title games, winning one and losing last year to Joe Burrow and the LSU Tigers.

The Georgia Bulldogs lost Justin Fields (and 2020 draft pick Jacob Eason, for that matter) when they decided to press onward and upward with Jake Fromm as their starting quarterback after the 2018 season.

Fields is a tremendous talent both as a passer and as a runner, and he got to put that on display this past season at Ohio State with 41 passing touchdowns, 10 rushing touchdowns, and a staggering three interceptions all season.

Fields is closer to Trevor Lawrence’s level as a prospect than people probably think or know at this point. He’s a tremendous physical talent with all of the skills you look for in a QB. So why the Washington Redskins? Don’t they already have another Ohio State quarterback they picked in round one on the roster?

I don’t think the Redskins are going to be picking this low in 2021, to be quite frank. Ron Rivera’s presence will be a huge factor in turning that franchise around, and the inclusion of Chase Young in that Washington defense is going to make a massive difference.

If they are picking this low again, however, Fields is the pick.

Had Penei Sewell been allowed to leave school after just two seasons, he probably would have been the top tackle prospect in the 2020 NFL Draft class and this was a loaded class.

In this particular scenario, Sewell gets the chance to go in and protect the blind side of Joe Burrow, the new prized franchise quarterback of the Cincinnati Bengals.

Burrow’s impact on the Bengals — if they can all stay relatively healthy — could make this one of the bigger turnaround stories of the NFL season in 2020, but if they are picking this high, they are going to need to consider further investing in their new franchise QB.

This kid doesn’t make mistakes. He’s as good of an offensive tackle prospect as we’ve seen in recent years and he’s a lock for the top five of next year’s draft.

The Carolina Panthers had seven draft picks in 2020, and they used them all on defensive players.

How about we make it eight consecutive to start the Matt Rhule era?

With the number of losses the Panthers have suffered at linebacker, it would make sense for the team to be prioritizing this position in 2021. Many thought the Panthers would take Isaiah Simmons if he were available to them at pick seven overall, but they took Auburn’s Derrick Brown instead.

The rebuild in Carolina continues on with Micah Parsons, an absolute monster at the linebacker position.

This guy plays at a completely different speed than everyone else.

At 6-foot-3, 245 pounds, Parsons has all kinds of speed, anticipation, and instincts. In his first two years at Penn State, he has 191 total tackles, 18 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, and six forced fumbles.

The sky is the limit for this guy and he would look good behind the new-look Panthers’ defensive front.

There were plenty of supporting cast members to the Joe Burrow show with the LSU offense in the 2019 college football season.

There was first-round receiver Justin Jefferson and first-round running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire. There was a third-round center in Lloyd Cushenberry III and a number of other drafted offensive linemen.

There as Thaddeus Moss, who would have been drafted were it not for an injury suffered in the pre-draft process.

And then there was Ja’Marr Chase, the best player on the team not named Joe.

Chase was the best wide receiver in college football in 2019, and he’s going to be one of the most coveted players for the 2021 NFL Draft.

He routinely made difficult plays look easy.

Chase caught 84 passes, and this is not a typo — he averaged 21.2 yards per reception. That is freakish, insane, and unfair. He caught 20 touchdown passes.

His statistical production may not be topped in 2020 but he is a complete receiver prospect who would be a great WR1 for Daniel Jones and the New York Giants offense.

Just a redshirt freshman in 2019, Gregory Rousseau is wearing the captain’s “C” on his chest.

After playing one game in 2018 and taking a medical redshirt, Rousseau blew up in 2019 to the tune of 54 tackles, 19.5 tackles for loss, and 15.5 sacks along with two forced fumbles.

Rousseau’s versatility as a pass rusher and the quickness with which he gets to the quarterback are downright impressive, and the next step for the Dolphins after getting Tua Tagovailoa in the program is building a tremendous defense.

The Dolphins could go a number of directions with this pick, but they also own Houston’s pick, so they have another selection in this round to work with.

Rousseau is considered one of the consensus top prospects and his ability to rush the quarterback from the inside or the edge will endear him to Brian Flores and the Dolphins.

Rondale Moore is not ranked in the top 32 of either mock draft machine I referenced, but that will change quickly.

This guy is the most electrifying playmaker in college football right now, and he’s been NFL ready for a bit.

Up there with the likes of Henry Ruggs and KJ Hamler in the 2020 class, Rondale Moore’s play speed is as elite as you will find. Tyreek Hill-caliber stuff here.

https://twitter.com/ESPNCFB/status/1161985114370392067

It’s one thing for guys to be fast. It’s a completely other thing for them to play fast consistently and Rondale Moore is not a one-trick pony. He plays the game with nuance and skill, which makes his speed and quickness all the more dangerous.

The Detroit Lions have an aging Marvin Jones and Danny Amendola at receiver, and Kenny Golladay is in a contract year.

Help is on the way.

It doesn’t feel like it was that long ago that Pat Surtain was out there on the field terrorizing quarterbacks.

Patrick Surtain II’s father Patrick Surtain played 11 years in the NFL, seven with the Miami Dolphins and four with the Kansas City Chiefs. He picked off 37 passes and for a period in the early 2000s, he was one of the elite cornerbacks in the game.

Now his son is about to carry the torch into the NFL and lock it down for some team at the cornerback position.

Surtain has been a star for the Crimson Tide since he stepped on campus and has 15 pass breakups, four forced fumbles, three interceptions, and 79 total tackles. He’s capable of shutting down his side of the field when he’s at his best.

The Jets went heavy on the offensive side of the ball with their top picks in the 2020 NFL Draft, so they address secondary here.

I’ve been predicting a quarterback for Jon Gruden and Mike Mayock for two years now, and they haven’t done it.

As surprising as it has been to see Gruden and Mayock not take a quarterback early with Derek Carr playing, let’s call it average football, they also might have something up their sleeves here.

The Raiders are setting the table for a quarterback to come in and have success, whether it’s Derek Carr or not.

They took one target after another for their passing game in the 2020 NFL Draft, starting with Alabama’s Henry Ruggs III, the fastest player in the class.

In this mock draft, they’re the team that winds up with this year’s mystery QB — North Dakota State’s Trey Lance.

For North Dakota State this past season, Lance accounted for 42 touchdowns (28 passing, 14 rushing) and had zero — as in none — interceptions.

He also ran for over 1,000 yards as a redshirt freshman.

This kid, only a redshirt sophomore in 2020, is the real deal.

The Los Angeles Chargers maneuvered around and got their franchise quarterback (Justin Herbert) and a new quarterback for the defense (Kenneth Murray) in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

What does this team need for 2021?

Well, ideally they’d probably love to reunite Herbert With Penei Sewell, but that doesn’t seem realistic unless Herbert causes the Chargers to skid completely off the tracks. This roster, especially defensively, looks outstanding.

With that said, the Chargers might want to look at a successor here for Linval Joseph, who signed a two-year contract in free agency in 2020.

Marvin Wilson had an injury-shortened 2019 season, but he’s got the potential to be the 2021 version of Derrick Brown — totally clean prospect on and off the field as far as his ability and personality type.

The Chargers would get themselves a new centerpiece for their talented defense.

This guy is a big, nasty, heavy-handed, quick, powerful player.

The Denver Broncos were all about Drew Lock and the offense in the 2020 NFL Draft, starting with wide receiver Jerry Jeudy and going back-to-back in the second-round with Penn State’s KJ Hamler.

The Broncos didn’t neglect the defense in the 2020 offseason, however. They brought in veterans AJ Bouye and Jurrell Casey from the AFC South, and they also re-signed Shelby Harris, franchise-tagged Justin Simmons, and they’re getting Bradley Chubb back from an ACL injury.

With that being said, the opportunity to take a playmaker in the secondary like Shaun Wade here, a player who is one of the rumored guys interested in the possibility of the 2020 supplemental draft if the college football season is in question.

He has 14 pass breakups in his first two seasons with Ohio State, and four interceptions. Wade can play inside in the slot and he’s tremendous locking up his man and reacting to the quarterback.

Perhaps most important for Vic Fangio — this kid is tough as nails.

This may not be the most glamorous reunion for Kyler Murray, especially after the idea of the Cardinals drafting CeeDee Lamb had once gained quite a bit of steam. But Creed Humphrey is absolutely necessary for the Cardinals and he would get to join forces with Murray again in Arizona.

Humphrey is a player that Lincoln Riley has been absolutely raving about for years.

At 6-foot-5, 325 pounds, Humphrey has a rare frame for the center position but as a former wrestler, he understands how to play with proper leverage and he’s a smart player with an intent to destroy on the football field.

Even as a redshirt sophomore, many thought this guy should have left school after his All-American season to go pro, but he’s going to be back snapping for the Sooners and he’ll be a first-round pick soon enough.

The Atlanta Falcons made one of the more intriguing moves of the 2020 offseason when they signed former Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley to a one-year contract.

No one knows how Gurley is going to work out in Atlanta, but it’s going to be fun to watch it all unfold.

Because he’s only on a one-year deal, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Atlanta go a completely different direction in 2021, and if Travis Etienne is on the board when they pick, he’s got a chance to be Gurley’s successor.

Etienne is special, for more reasons other than just his tremendous speed. This kid has playmaker written all over him. He can make defenders miss in a variety of ways and there’s no question he has some of the best speed of any skill player in this class.

Alabama had two first-round receivers in the 2020 NFL Draft (Henry Ruggs III, Jerry Jeudy), and they’re probably going to do it again in 2021, starting with Jaylen Waddle.

Waddle is an unbelievable talent both on offense and on special teams with the ability to score every time he touches the ball.

In just two seasons at Alabama and with the number of players ahead of him on the depth chart, Waddle has an astounding 19 total touchdowns — 13 as a receiver, two on punt returns, and one on a kickoff return.

His speed is unbelievable, but Waddle is going to emerge in 2020 as one of the best receivers at the catch point in all of college football.

Although his production took a bit of a step back in 2019, Justyn Ross is still one of the most talented wide receivers in college football, capable of making grabs like this:

At 6-foot-4, you would expect Ross to be somewhat of a clunky player or maybe a long-striding, build-up speed type of guy, but he plays with some really nice short-area quickness and his length combined with that quickness makes him very tough to defend.

The sky is the limit for this player but why here with the Browns?

Cleveland has had to shut down a bunch of rumors about trading Odell Beckham Jr. and even if they continue forward with Beckham and Jarvis Landry as their top two receivers, the Browns are going to need another player to play outside with Landry in the slot.

Ross can be that other outside receiver and he can stretch the field with his combination of speed and length.

The Jacksonville Jaguars began their rebuilding with Florida cornerback CJ Henderson and LSU edge rusher K’Lavon Chaisson on the defensive side of the ball.

After taking Trevor Lawrence with the top pick of this draft, the Jaguars go all the way across the country for the ball-hawking Paulson Adebo, a former wide receiver who has had a nose for the football since transitioning to defense for the Cardinal.

The early returns on Adebo’s transition to defense have been overwhelmingly positive.

He has a natural feel for the position and does a great job whether he’s playing inside or outside.

https://twitter.com/Pac12Network/status/1069727575071551488

Adebo joins CJ Henderson on the Jaguars in this mock draft to give the team a nice young duo at the cornerback position.

The Chicago Bears have been struggling to replace the departed Adrian Amos in the secondary now for two offseasons.

When Amos left for the Packers, the Bears initially replaced him with a former Packer, Ha-Ha Clinton-Dix. This offseason, the Bears took a flier on Tashaun Gipson to pair him up with Eddie Jackson.

They need someone to come in and be that source of consistency on the back end of their defense, and Jevon Holland could be that guy.

Holland has nine interceptions in his first two seasons at Oregon and 10 passes defended. He racked up 66 tackles last season, showing off his versatility, and the ball just seems to find this guy.

This guy flies around the field and plays the ball as well as any safety in college football over the last couple of years.

The Minnesota Vikings have a pretty underrated need all along their defensive line right now.

Gone are familiar names like Everson Griffen and Linval Joseph, and aside from the underrated Michael Pierce, the Vikings didn’t make many moves up front defensively in 2020.

A number of day three picks — James Lynch, DJ Wonnum, and Kenny Willekes — will have a chance to make their mark, but the defensive line will be an area of emphasis for the Vikings in 2021.

Carlos Basham Jr. has the size and pass rush ability to become a first-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.

The powerful defensive end racked up 57 tackles, 18 tackles for loss, and 10 sacks last season for Wake Forest. He also forced three fumbles and batted three passes.

Wake Forest had a pretty underrated team this past year with big-name transfer Jamie Newman at quarterback and a few NFL draft picks, but Basham might be the best overall player from that team.

He would fit in nicely opposite Danielle Hunter in Minneapolis.

Jamie Newman has a huge opportunity in 2020 with the Georgia Bulldogs after a tremendous junior campaign at Wake Forest.

He can establish himself as a first-round quarterback with the Bulldogs, and he’s well on his way with his 2019 tape at Wake Forest.

Newman has outstanding poise in the pocket and is one of the best and most accurate downfield throwers in college football right now.

He can run, too.

Newman had 10 rushing touchdowns over the last two years at Wake Forest, but his ability as a passer has really taken off.

The Colts only signed Philip Rivers for one season, so they need an heir apparent. Jamie Newman is a player NFL teams are going to love, especially if he can help take Georgia to the College Football playoff.

The Tennessee Titans become the first team to take a tight end in the first round since 2019 when the Denver Broncos used the 20th overall pick on Iowa’s Noah Fant.

Pat Freiermuth is a really fun prospect to watch with size, athleticism, a huge catch radius, and fantastic hands.

This guy’s hands are magnets to the football and he’s so athletic and nimble in space for a player of his size.

With Delanie Walker gone and Jonnu Smith in a contract year, the Titans have to look forward at the tight end position and Freiermuth is as good of a player you will find at that position.

At 6-foot-5, 256 pounds, Freiermuth has great overall size and in two seasons at Penn State, he’s been a machine with 15 touchdowns on 69 receptions.

Very nice, indeed.

The New England Patriots shocked everyone by not taking a quarterback in the 2020 NFL Draft, so maybe they have a plan for the position that no one really can see right now.

Do we really believe it’s going to be the Jarrett Stidham show in New England?

Maybe it will be.

We do know that Bill Belichick has a great relationship with Nick Saban and the Alabama program, and Dylan Moses sitting on the board with the 21st overall pick could be too tempting for Bill to pass up on.

Moses has speed, instincts, playmaking ability, and he’s a proven three-down guy — just not all that recently.

Moses spent the entire 2019 season recovering from an injury, and despite that injury, many felt like he’d put enough on tape to be a first-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Moses went back to school and will now have a chance to be one of the highest selected Alabama players in 2021.

Although they have Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf, the Seahawks don’t have much else to write home about at the wide receiver position.

Devonta Smith is one of my favorite Alabama players in the 2021 class and would have been a first-round receiver had he come out in 2020.

https://twitter.com/ESPNCFB/status/1212466843585327105

Smith isn’t the biggest receiver, but he more than makes up for it with speed, quickness, route-running ability, and strong hands no matter if he’s in a contested-catch situation or not.

This guy was one of Tua Tagovailoa’s most consistent and trusted targets over the past couple of years for Alabama, even in their star-studded wide receiver room.

He averaged over 18 yards per reception in 2019 and caught 14 touchdown passes. This guy has big-play ability but he can also be a consistent possession type of receiver with upside after the catch.

We know how much the Seahawks like to push the ball vertical, and Smith can provide them another top-flight weapon to do so.

If you want to know what kind of teammate Israel Mukuamu is, just take a look at his timeline during and after the 2020 NFL Draft on Twitter. He retweeted and cheered on every single South Carolina announcement of a player getting drafted or signed by an NFL team.

That’s maybe a small thing, but an important thing when you talk about guys you want part of your culture and locker room.

A rare 6-foot-4 cornerback prospect, Mukuamu could be a sleeper for the 2020 college season and 2021 NFL Draft.

He finished the 2019 season with four interceptions, nine pass breakups, and 59 total tackles.

Although three of his four interceptions came in one game last season, there’s plenty of athleticism, size, and upside to be excited about here.

The Green Bay Packers had a draft for the ages in 2020, and I don’t mean that as a compliment.

The Packers defied any and all logic by neglecting the wide receiver position in the deepest draft class for wide receivers we’ve seen in some time.

Who knows if they will correct that mistake in 2021?

If they do, Seth Williams would be a fantastic fit opposite Davante Adams.

https://twitter.com/SECNetwork/status/1117267428482977792

This kid made absolutely freakish plays all year for the Auburn offense, and stood out in a number of games where I was trying to evaluate other prospects for the 2020 NFL Draft.

Anytime a guy jumps off the tape consistently like that, you take notice.

At 6-foot-3, 224 pounds, Williams has tremendous size and body control. He is fantastic at the catch point and understands how to use his body to shield the defender.

Whether he’s a target for Jordan Love or Aaron Rodgers, he would be a nice fit here.

The Buffalo Bills are building a heck of a defense and could be the team to watch for the foreseeable future out in the AFC East.

Eric Stokes is entering his junior season at Georgia without an interception, but with a very nice 18 pass breakups in two seasons. He’s also been one of the highest-graded cornerbacks in the SEC for two seasons.

Stokes has the type of feisty mentality at the cornerback position that Sean McDermott loves and a knack for making plays on the ball. Hopefully, he is able to explode in 2020 with a bunch of interceptions to go along with those nice PBU numbers.

As far as quarterback names go, Brock Purdy is on a level of his own.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are understandably all-in on Tom Brady right now, but they need to put contingencies in place and they use the 2021 NFL Draft to do it in this case.

Brock Purdy was outstanding for Iowa State last season, completing nearly 66 percent of his passes with 27 touchdowns and just nine interceptions. He also showed off his value as a dual threat with eight rushing touchdowns.

Purdy has the raw talent and playmaking ability to be a starter at the NFL level, and being an understudy to Tom Brady his first year in the league would be a borderline ideal scenario.

Coming off of a season-ending injury he suffered early in the 2019 season, opinions about Walker Little are all over the map.

Some see him as a surefire top 10 type of guy for the 2021 NFL Draft, and others don’t have him in their top 32.

Based on what he’s shown so far with Stanford, I think he’s still in the first round conversation right now, but there’s definitely room to grow as a prospect. He’s 6-foot-7, 320 pounds, and was once considered to be one of the best offensive line prospects in the high school ranks.

He was a freshman All-American in 2017 and then a first-team All-Pac 12 selection in 2018, so the accolades and recognition are certainly there for him. He has to prove he has the quick feet to go along with his hulking frame against all kinds of pass rushers.

Ultimately, it’s possible that Kyle Pitts plays his way well out of this range for the Dallas Cowboys or any other team.

The big-time receiving threat out of Florida burst onto the scene in 2019 with 54 receptions and six touchdowns, and he had his first 100-yard receiving game against the eventual National Champion LSU Tigers.

Pitts is built like a big wide receiver at 6-foot-6, 240 pounds, Pitts has an outstanding catch radius, very good movement skills, after the catch ability, and an alpha mentality in contested catch situations.

He would be joining a Dallas Cowboys receiving group that already includes Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, and Michael Gallup.

Dak Prescott would certainly approve of this selection.

I’m going to go ahead and take a shot here that I don’t see anyone else taking.

If you ain’t first, you’re last, right?

Ihmir Smith-Marsette is the best player in the 2021 NFL Draft-eligible crop that no one is talking about.

One of the best playmakers in the Big Ten, Smith-Marsette is a weapon in the open field with speed, quickness, elusiveness, and home run type ability no matter where he catches the ball.

He’s one of the best all-around weapons in college football and showed it as a junior at Iowa with five receiving touchdowns, three rushing touchdowns, and a pair of kickoff return touchdowns.

For the Saints, he would obviously be joining one of the most talented groups of offensive weapons in the NFL, and I think he could add great value here in the late first round.

No matter what you project the Baltimore Ravens to do, it just doesn’t feel fair.

This team is always so balanced, well-developed, and with a great mix of both youth and veteran talent.

Quincy Roche is a transfer this year for the Miami Hurricanes, joining forces with Gregory Rousseau on that talented Miami Hurricanes front.

In three seasons for Temple, he racked up 137 total tackles, 39.5 tackles for loss, 26 sacks, and six forced fumbles.

He has a chance to improve upon that already impressive productivity by playing along with Rousseau, and scouts will be fascinated to see if he can be a first-round type of weapon off the edge this season for the Hurricanes.

He’s got some serious juice off the edge and is really tough to handle in a straight speed rush situation.

As he continues to add strength and bulk, he’s going to be a load to deal with.

The San Francisco 49ers have no shortage of fun weapons in their offense, so what’s one more?

There were rumors the team could be interested in trading away Tevin Coleman during the 2020 NFL Draft, and while that didn’t come to fruition, they did trade Matt Breida to the Miami Dolphins and the Niners could be eyeing running backs early in the 2021 NFL Draft as a result.

Chuba Hubbard is one of a few options they could consider, and we’ll certainly explore those over the next 12 months.

This is a ‘see it, hit it’ type of runner who has home run speed and the ideal type of plant-your-foot-and-score style that works tremendously well in Kyle Shanahan’s offense.

He finished with over 2,000 yards last season at Oklahoma State and 21 rushing touchdowns.

The Kansas City Chiefs took a running back in the first round in the 2020 NFL Draft (LSU’s Clyde Edwards-Helaire) and when you win the Super Bowl, you can do stuff like that.

In 2021, however, the Chiefs may have a more desperate need at the cornerback position even compared to the 2020 offseason, so you can pencil this position in for now.

Caleb Farley is an intriguing prospect out of Virginia Tech and one of the top returning defensive backs in the ACC.

He finished with 12 pass breakups and four interceptions as a sophomore for the Hokies, and has some big-time speed at the cornerback position.

In 2019, he flashed an alpha mentality at the position, locking down his side of the field with regularity.

This guy makes a ton of plays on the football and is not afraid of any matchup. With all of the receivers the Kansas City Chiefs have to go up against in their own division, having a player like this at one cornerback position would be very valuable.