2021 NFL Draft: Bears land top pick in preseason 2021 NFL mock draft
By Kyle Edmond
2021 NFL Draft Round 1, Pick 15 (Las Vegas Raiders, 8-8)
Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. Safety. 15. Pittsburgh. Paris Ford. player. 28
This is the first pick that really stumps me for which direction it will go. An 8-8 season for the Raiders leaves them in an interesting place and this pick isn’t one where you can normally land a top quarterback to try and improve that position.
The best guess I have is that Las Vegas continues to work on positions of need elsewhere on the field to try and give Derek Carr a better chance of winning under center. One area to improve is the safety positions that currently have 2019 first-rounder Jonathan Abrams paired with Erik Harris.
One player that fits the bill to make a difference at the safety position for the Raiders is Paris Ford. Ford was all over the field for Pitt in 2019, totaling 90 tackles on the season, 56 of which were solo. Additionally, he had nine passes defended, three interceptions and three forced fumbles.
Creating six turnovers from the safety position sounds like something Jon Gruden would love to have on his team. Ford only has 16 games of college football under his belt, which could be a bump in his road to the draft. In this case, though, it might make even more sense for Gruden and Mike Mayock to take him.