This past Saturday marked the end of the 86th National Football League (NFL) draft. Each year this event brings excitement to the NFL offseason and provides a special moment for the players drafted, their families, the fans, and the teams themselves as they look to improve their rosters. Here’s what you need to know about this year’s draft. 

Quarterback Is King

No less than five of the ten quarterbacks drafted this year were taken in the first round, speaking to the true wealth of talent that was up for grabs this year. Nearly all of the rookies in the first round look to have an immediate impact on their new teams, and most are expected to be starting and winning games immediately. The first three picks off the board were star quarterbacks, and for the Jacksonville Jaguars, holders of the first overall pick, this made perfect sense. Following a season of shoddy quarterback play and an abysmal 1–15 record, the Jaguars selected QB Trevor Lawrence with the first pick of the 2021 draft to try to jumpstart the organization back into relevance. Lawrence was an absolute beast for Clemson, with a passer rating of 164.3 over his three seasons as their starter.

Lawrence, who was projected to be the first pick by virtually every football pundit, discussed gaining the support of his new team.

“I want to earn the respect of everyone around me—teammates, coaches,” Lawrence said. “I’m not expecting for anyone to hand me anything. I want to come in there and earn the respect and the right to lead the team. That’s what I’m going to do.” 

For the New York Jets, quarterback Zach Wilson was their target of choice with the second overall pick. Wilson, who played quarterback for Brigham Young University, will look to provide new life to a rebuilding Jets program. While this may be a lot of pressure on the young rookie, Robert Saleh, the Jets head coach, made sure to let Wilson know that he will not be alone in their rebuilding process. 

“This organization is going to lift you, not the other way around,” Saleh said. 

The Jets are in the midst of a complete restructuring, having fired ex-head coach Adam Gase this offseason and traded away quarterback Sam Darnold, opting to invest instead in a new rookie talent.

The third quarterback to leave the draft board was none other than Trey Lance, who the San Francisco 49ers drafted with the third overall pick. In a move that was surprising to some, the Niners opted to pass on Mac Jones, another available top quarterback option. Evidently, Lance had obviously impressed the San Francisco coaching staff during his pro day earlier this offseason. 

Speaking with NBC Sports, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan had high praise for Lance. 

“He plays on tape like he’s a very poised, smart person who’s been playing the position for a while…Then you look into the other attributes, and you’re like ‘Oh, I haven’t even gotten to the running skill set. I haven’t gotten to the upside of how much better he can get, the more he plays.’ That’s what made me like him so much right away.”

Lance’s addition to the San Francisco team comes at a critical time for a city hoping to stage a comeback. The 49ers finished the 2021 season at 6–10, missing the playoffs.

Reunited at Last

College football fans will be thrilled to see some old partnerships on the field again in the NFL. This draft year reunited many old college teammates, most notably Clemson stars Trevor Lawrence (QB) and Travis Etienne (RB) in Jacksonville; former LSU Tiger Ja’Marr Chase (WR) with second-year quarterback Joe Burrow in Cincinnati; Alabama superstar Jaylen Waddle (WR) with his old quarterback Tua Tagovailoa at the Dolphins; and finally, my personal favorite as an Eagles fan, Alabama wide receiver Devonta Smith with former Tide quarterback Jalen Hurts. It will be great to see these old partnerships back in action and to see whether their successes in college will translate into success on the big stage. 

Winners and Losers

With all the picks set in stone, I can finally reveal who I believe to be this year’s biggest winners and losers of the NFL draft. 

Winners:

Atlanta Falcons: With the selection of Kyle Pitts in the first round and other picks bolstering their secondary, defensive front, and offensive line in the later rounds, Atlanta made sensible and exciting moves in this year’s draft. Pitts, whom pundits considered to be the most valuable non-quarterback player available, is a phenomenal athlete and will add explosiveness to the already dangerous Falcons offense. With a receiving core already led by stars Calvin Ridley and Julio Jones, the raw athleticism of Pitts gives this offense huge potential to cause problems in the secondary. While questions remain about Julio Jones’ future with the franchise, the Falcons are much-improved heading into the 2021 season.

Philadelphia Eagles: Now I’m definitely feeling the hometown energy here, but the Eagles were able to improve many of their weaknesses in this year’s draft. They also outmaneuvered their division mates with a sneaky trade with the Cowboys for the 10th overall pick, where they selected star wide receiver Devonta Smith. Smith has an established relationship with quarterback Jalen Hurts from their time at Alabama, and he was rated as one of the top receiving talents available in this draft class. Another notable pick was their second-round selection of lineman Landon Dickerson, another Alabama product who can play any position in the line and will help with his expertise in run-blocking. Further improvements to their secondary put the Eagles in a good spot to compete for the division in 2021…I hope. Go Birds.

Losers:

Los Angeles Rams: This was an uninspiring draft to say the least for the Rams, who didn’t have their first pick until the late second round. They chose to draft Tutu Atwell, adding yet another wide receiver to their already crowded receiving core (Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp, and Desean Jackson are all likely above Atwell on the depth chart). Outside of Atwell, they didn’t grab many big names on either side of the ball, although they still will likely be a force to be reckoned with in the 2021 season due to the offseason acquisition of Matthew Stafford and the offensive brilliance of Sean McVay. Still, Rams fans will likely be disappointed in the results of this year’s draft.

Houston Texans: A team that is in complete disarray following recent allegations of sexual assault against franchise quarterback Deshaun Watson had very little draft capital to spend in 2021, with their earliest pick not arriving until the third round. As a testament to the chaos engulfing the organization, Houston selected quarterback Davis Mills out of Stanford, a player they likely could have taken much later in the draft. Their other picks were nothing special, as they had no early picks with which to grab any of the high-profile options. For a franchise with so many glaring issues, they were unable to make much meaningful improvement to their roster, and will need to look elsewhere for opportunities this offseason.

Overall, it was lovely to see the NFL draft return this year (the 2020 draft was held entirely virtually due to COVID-19) and my anticipation for the NFL season is definitely mounting quickly. Now it’s time to start mock drafting for fantasy football research. Wish me luck.

 

Thad Bashaw can be reached at tbashaw@wesleyan.edu