2021 NFL Draft prospects to watch: Mid-American Conference
By Kyle Edmond
2021 NFL Draft prospects to watch from the Mid-American Conference.
With the Power 5 conference outlooks for prospects completed, our attention shifts to the Group of 5 conferences, beginning with the Mid-American Conference. The MAC is often one of the more overlooked conferences in Division-I football despite being able to produce NFL talent. Although the teams don’t draw the coverage of other teams in the area like Ohio State or Michigan, the teams still consistently produce talent for the next level.
Over just the last few years the MAC has been a consistent pipeline of talent to the NFL. More recently, the conference has produced top talent and picks in Kareem Hunt, Khalil Mack and Corey Davis to name a few, while the longstanding history of the conference is even more decorated.
The long list of MAC players to make a big impact in the NFL in the last 15 years includes Antonio Brown, Julian Edelman, Joshua Cribbs, Ben Roethlisberger and Michael Turner among countless others.
Now looking ahead, the Mid-American Conference is primed to make an impact in the 2021 NFL Draft and in the 2021 NFL season. The conference is already showcasing a ton of talent at the running back position with NFL potential, as well as some of the top talent in college sports at other positions.
A year ago the MAC had over 70 players on NFL rosters throughout the season and that number should continue to grow with the amount of talent the conference should have entering the league in the coming year.
With most of the Power 5 schools canceling non-conference games, it could be an uphill battle for players in conferences like the MAC that don’t receive as much attention on their own. Regardless, this list of players should be on the radar of most NFL teams heading into the 2021 NFL Draft and the undrafted process that follows to find some diamonds in the rough.