I finished it!
Every year, I spend too much time worrying about something that, inevitably, will come undone an hour or two into the actual draft. But doing a mock, for me, is a great exercise to go through. And to steal my old coworker Daniel Jeremiah’s phraseology: I do this with my ears, not my eyes. I’m not scouting these guys. But over the last few weeks I’ve talked to a lot of people who have been doing that work for the last year, and as the draft’s drawn closer, with their help, I’ve worked on connecting players with teams.
One caveat, before we get started: I’m not projecting trades here. I considered doing it (my mock draft back in March had trades), but figured I’d leave the order as is this time around. Obviously, there will be trades, so here are a couple of things to look out for …
• The Lions, as I see it, are the most motivated team in the top 10 to move. And it wouldn’t shock me if the Broncos wound up being their trade partner. Denver could leapfrog the Panthers to get a quarterback if the one it likes slides into that range (which I think is possible).
• If both Kyle Pitts and Ja’Marr Chase are gone, my radar would go up for the Dolphins to bail out of the sixth pick. If it’s true that they like the Alabama receivers (and that’s out there), then they could afford to slide back at least a few slots. But maybe not far—I’d watch out for the Eagles and Cardinals if your target were Jaylen Waddle.
• Carolina is another team that I believe is very intrigued with the idea of moving down.
• I’ve mentioned in a few places that Philadelphia could move up for a corner if things fall a certain way. The other object of some teams’ affection is Penei Sewell. If he slides a little, it’s possible someone just outside the top 10 could get aggressive.
And with that, here’s my final mock for 2021.
