Early look at the top 10 quarterback prospects for the 2021 NFL Draft.
The NFL has been blessed by an influx of talent at the quarterback position in the NFL Draft in recent years, and the 2021 NFL Draft class should be no different.
As a matter of fact, the 2021 NFL Draft class has been highly anticipated since the football world discovered Trevor Lawrence, the Clemson quarterback who was supposed to be the best thing since Andrew Luck in the 2018 recruiting class.
After everyone got the chance to see him play in 2018 for Clemson, the talk immediately shifted to the 2021 NFL Draft.
Thanks to the way the NFL has adapted some of its game to suit these college quarterbacks a bit better, more prospects have been coming out of the woodwork and even with Lawrence commanding so much attention, others have entered into the conversation to even share some of his spotlight.
Namely, Ohio State’s Justin Fields.
In addition to Lawrence and Fields are a variety of quarterbacks from all over the country who could either wind up in the first round conversation or at least be interesting prospects beyond that point.
Let’s take an early look at the top 10 quarterbacks eligible for the 2021 NFL Draft.
1. Trevor Lawrence, Clemson
Although I don’t think it will be the consensus by the end of the 2020 college season, there’s no doubt that right now Trevor Lawrence is the top prospect for the 2021 NFL Draft.
Lawrence has been one of the most highly anticipated football prospects in the last decade, and he has delivered so far in his two seasons at Clemson.
Lawrence helped lead the Tigers to a National Championship in his first season on campus and back to the title game in 2019.
He has thrown for nearly 7,000 yards in two seasons and has accounted for 76 total touchdowns with only 12 interceptions.
He has been tremendous throwing to every level of the field with velocity, accuracy, touch, and anticipation, and the Tigers opened up the offense for Lawrence to showcase his running skills last season.
2. Justin Fields, Ohio State
Justin Fields transferred to Ohio State last year and was granted immediate eligibility, which turned out great for everyone involved.
Replacing the production of Dwayne Haskins from the year prior would not be easy, but Fields was up to the task, emerging as an immediate Heisman candidate for the Buckeyes.
He threw for 3,273 yards, 41 touchdowns, and just three interceptions while completing a very strong 67.2 percent of his passes.
He also rushed for 10 touchdowns.
Even in limited action his first year at Georgia, Fields had four passing touchdowns and four rushing touchdowns with no interceptions.
He’s one of the most dynamic athletes you will find at the quarterback position with size, speed, and instincts in every phase of the game.
3. Trey Lance, North Dakota State
The 2021 NFL Draft’s mystery man at quarterback may already be known.
Trey Lance is one of the most talented young quarterbacks in the country and is playing at the sudden QB-factory up at North Dakota State.
If and when Lance is in the NFL, the Bison will have three quarterbacks in the league, and he has one of the craziest stat lines you will ever read or hear about at any level of football.
Lance attempted 287 passes for the Bison last season and completed 192 of them for nearly 2,800 yards, 28 touchdowns, and zero interceptions. He also ran for 1,100 yards and 14 touchdowns with one fumble lost.
For those keeping score at home, that means Lance accounted for nearly 4,000 yards of offense with 42 total touchdowns and a single turnover.
It’s no wonder the hype on this guy is massive right now. He’s got the NFL talking about a lot of other guys on the NDSU roster as well and he could be a top five pick himself in the 2021 NFL Draft.
4. Tanner Morgan, Minnesota
Along with a number of other players on the Minnesota football team, Tanner Morgan had a breakout campaign in the 2019 college season.
The sophomore completed 66 percent of his passes for 3,253 yards, 30 touchdowns, seven interceptions, and did a lot of his damage on downfield throws. He averaged over 11 air yards per attempt and his yards per pass landed over 10.
This guy didn’t just dink and dunk down the field — he made pinpoint accurate throws to every level of the field and helped both Tyler Johnson and Rashod Bateman look like future NFL stars.
Watching Morgan play, there are some definite Baker Mayfield-type vibes.
He isn’t the biggest or most athletic but he’s smart, makes great decisions with the ball, and he’s supremely confident in his ability to drop the ball in a bucket anywhere on the field.
5. Jamie Newman, Georgia
At this point in the offseason, I think I’m a bit higher on Jamie Newman than other folks.
Newman helped put Wake Forest back on the map the last couple of seasons and that program put out some significant NFL talent in the 2020 class and could have even higher draft picks in 2021.
Newman was a huge piece in that, throwing for almost 2,900 yards last season with a 60.9 percent completion rate, 26 passing touchdowns, and six rushing touchdowns.
The consistent accuracy is not quite there yet, but Newman has the skills to start at the NFL level if given time and he is a rocked-up 6-4, 230 pounds.
He will make his way to Georgia this year to replace Jake Fromm, a fifth-round pick of the Buffalo Bills.
Even if we’re projecting a bit here, I think Newman has proven enough over the last couple of seasons to be in the conversation for a top five quarterback in the 2021 class and he certainly has the physical makeup and skill set to be in there.
He is a very strong runner and is tough to take down in the pocket with his lower body strength.
Overall, there’s too much to like about Newman’s game to leave him out of the top five.
6. Brock Purdy, Iowa State
There are a lot of people who think Purdy is the next first-round candidate after Trey Lance.
He has shown a gamer mentality at Iowa State and even though he lacks ideal size and velocity on his passes, Purdy anticipates throws and always has it on target.
7. Kyle Trask, Florida
Projecting just a little bit here because he has not even started a full season of college (or high school) football, Trask showed some really nice traits last year when he became the Gators’ starter.
He’s a big-bodied QB with some nice pocket presence, and a lot of confidence in his arm. He had a tremendous game last year against LSU.
8. KJ Costello, Mississippi State
There was already plenty to like about Costello from his time at Stanford, but how he fares in the air raid offense of Mike Leach at Mississippi State against SEC competition will be a fascinating collision of drastically different worlds.
Costello has a live arm and great size, so if he can put up big numbers under Leach he could be a coveted player next offseason.
9. Desmond Ridder, Cincinnati
Desmond Ridder has tremendous dual-threat abilities with a really strong arm and outstanding athleticism.
The issue here has been consistency and efficiency as a passer. He completed just over 55 percent of his passes last season for the Bearcats and will need to substantially improve that number to remain on the radar of NFL scouts.
10. Sam Ehlinger, Texas
Ehlinger has gotten the Tebow comparisons in his Texas career, but so did Dak Prescott at Mississippi State.
Ehlinger doesn’t need to be Peyton Manning as a pocket passer in the NFL to be successful, but he does have to become more consistent from the pocket and maybe a little less physical when he takes off with the ball.
With that said, Ehlinger’s gamer mentality and ability to make plays on the move will be positives from NFL scouts, and if he can grow and develop as an all-around passer, he will be taken a lot higher than his current day three projection.