The 2021 NFL Draft is loaded with intriguing prospects and there are always going to be players who project in the second or third round of mock draft machines that end up going much higher than the majority expected.
With no Scouting Combine in 2021, it’s hard to know which players could be rising for their intrigue in terms of pure athletic ability, but as more and more people dig deep into player tape, certain players are getting hyped now more than they were a few weeks or months ago.
Which players have emerged as some possible sleeper first-round targets with just over 50 days to the 2021 NFL Draft?
Let’s take a look through a number of names to keep an eye on with NFL teams maybe higher on these guys than the mock draft projections.
After Caleb Farley and Patrick Surtain II, who is the ‘consensus’ CB3 of the 2021 NFL Draft class?
There may not be one.
In fact, there may be some teams that rank Northwestern’s Greg Newsome II ahead of even Surtain on their final boards.
At 6-foot-1, 190 pounds, Newsome is one of the quickest and most instinctive defensive backs in this particular draft class. In just three games this past season, Newsome had seven passes broken up and an interception.
He has the type of athletic/speed combination you look for at the position and has shown inside/outside versatility to boot.
Newsome’s length, athletic talent, and playmaking ability all add up to a first-round player, so why is he not consistently predicted as such? He should be getting more and more first-round hype and if he does well at the Northwestern Pro Day, the hype will grow even bigger.
For some, seeing Daviyon Nixon in the first round of a 2021 NFL Draft scenario does not come as much of a surprise at all.
For those who watched the Iowa Hawkeyes a lot this past season, it would be a surprise if Nixon was not selected in the first round.
This year’s defensive line class is not great at the top. There does not appear to be a Quinnen Williams or Leonard Williams type of player in this draft, and that is okay. There are still players to be had but because of the fact that the top of this class is offense-heavy, a player like Daviyon Nixon could be had in the late-first or even early second round and some team is going to get a steal.
I think Nixon is scheme versatile and while he’s not going to be lining up consistently at the 0T or 1T at the NFL level, he can play anywhere outside of that and do it at a high level against the run or pass.
He took such a huge leap forward for the Hawkeyes in 2020 and with his burst, athleticism, and upper body strength, I think Nixon is a first-round defensive lineman without question.
Just in case Alabama didn’t have enough guys on an annual basis being considered first-round prospects, their starting center is getting love in NFL circles and could wind up being a first-round pick.
If you had said even a few months ago that Alabama would have a first-round offensive lineman, most people would have probably guessed it would be Alex Leatherwood, the left tackle who had been a projected first-round pick even dating back to before he decided not to enter the 2020 NFL Draft.
Landon Dickerson is not built like a traditional center. He’s not a shorter, squatty guy with shorter arms. He looks like he should be playing the left tackle position with his massive 6-foot-5, 325-pound frame, and he was the leader of a great unit at Alabama.
He won the Rimington Trophy last year, the award given to the best center in college football, and if there is a team in the first round that doesn’t have a long-term solution right now at the position, Dickerson could come in and solidify that pretty quickly.
Especially teams later in round one who would risk him not being there at the back end of the second round.
To put it bluntly, this year’s class of edge rushers is going to require a leap of faith from any NFL team drafting them early on.
With that in mind, Ronnie Perkins stands as good of a chance as any of his tape convincing NFL teams that he is worthy of a top 32 selection.
At 6-foot-3, 251 pounds, you would think that the name of Perkins’ game is speed, but he’s much more impressive with the power in his hand punch.
That doesn’t mean that Perkins can’t win with speed — he can — but he undoubtedly wants to let offensive tackles know that he is going to be a problem early on with his punch and strength to knock them back.
He will need to be grilled about a suspension he served while at Oklahoma due to a failed drug test, but this guy can get after the quarterback. He had 16.5 sacks and 32 tackles for loss in three seasons for the Sooners.
A well-rounded edge defender, there’s no question that Perkins could buck the mock draft trend and hear his name called in the first round next month.
The hype for Kentucky linebacker Jamin Davis is building at a rapid enough rate that him being labeled a possible “surprise” first-round pick could look funny in 50 or so days.
With that being said, a lot of mock draft machines project Davis somewhere in the 2nd-4th round range, but NFL guys are much higher on him than the machines.
Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network has Davis ranked 35th overall among his top 50 prospects.
As is often the case, there has already been some first-round love for Davis elsewhere.
At 6-foot-4, 234 pounds, Davis is an absolute specimen at the position who can play and make an impact on all three downs. If NFL teams are looking to take linebackers in the first round these days, they have to be able to do exactly that.
Davis had 102 total tackles, four tackles for loss, three interceptions, and 1.5 sacks last season for the Wildcats. He has untapped potential as a blitzer and with the range he showed this past season for Kentucky, he will undoubtedly be an intriguing option for teams at the back end of round one.
His combination of athletic talent and production last season as well as a three-down projection at the next level have people buzzing.