2021 NFL Draft: 49ers make aggressive move for QB in 3-round mock draft

2021 NFL Draft: Round 1, 15th overall

The New England Patriots need to find offensive playmakers in the worst way and will likely have a great opportunity to do so in the 2021 NFL Draft. No matter who ends up taking snaps for the team under center, the Pats need to improve their passing game weapons if they want to have a chance to seriously compete going forward.

With their first pick of this mock draft, the Patriots bring in Minnesota wide receiver Rashod Bateman. Bateman has nice size on the outside and a good combination of speed and quickness at the position. He is an extremely efficient route runner who can create space against man coverage and does a great job of finding the soft spots against zone.

Bateman also displays soft hands, uses his wide catch radius to his advantage in contested-catch situations and tracks the ball in the air extremely well. He has a knack for getting his feed down in-bounds along the sideline and also has some exciting ability after the catch.

In Bateman, the New England Patriots find themselves a potential number one receiver who can make plays at all levels of the defense. If they want to get him out in space and let him create after the catch, Bateman will shine. If they need him to go over the middle and move the chains on a tough 3rd and 8, Bateman will shine. If they need him to stretch the defense and be a legitimate deep threat, Bateman will shine.

Adding Bateman to the mix would not solve all of the Patriots’ offensive issues but he is undoubtedly an extremely gifted player who would help take the unit to the next level. New England fills an obvious position of need with an extremely talented player by making this pick.