Kevin Hanson's 2021 NFL Mock Draft 7.0

BY KEVIN HANSON (@EDSFootball)
Updated: Thursday, April 8th

Kevin Hanson's mock drafts have been among the most accurate:
FantasyPros
- 2020: #14 of 210 mock drafts
- 2019: #6 of 138 mocks
- 2018: #5 of 137 mocks
The Huddle Report
- #4 in 5-year accuracy (2016-2020)
- Mock Draft Champion in 2015

Only three weeks to go until the 2021 NFL Draft, things are beginning to come more into focus. It's a virtual lock that the draft will start QB-QB-QB for only the third time since 1970 as noted in 2021 NFL Mock Draft 6.0.

Beyond that, however, it's unclear how high the other two top-five quarterbacks will be selected, but it's unlikely that they get out of the top 10.

Will we get more trades up for a quarterback? Will the Falcons draft Matt Ryan's heir apparent, or draft a generational talent like Kyle Pitts?

NFL Mock Draft - Round 1

1. Jacksonville Jaguars - Trevor Lawrence, QB, Clemson

New mock, same pick.

There is zero mystery with this pick as Urban Meyer told Peter King that Lawrence is "the direction we're going" and that Lawrence "checks all the boxes." With a league-low 44 wins over the past decade, the Jaguars not only start over with a generational talent at the most important position in sports, but they've amassed a treasure trove of draft capital -- five picks in the top 65 and nine picks in top 170 -- to begin the overhaul of the roster with an infusion of young talent.

2. New York Jets - Zach Wilson, QB, BYU

The only uncertainty that existed with this pick was whether or not Sam Darnold would be traded before or after becoming teammates with Zach Wilson. That mystery is now solved, as the Jets moved the No. 3 pick of the 2018 NFL Draft to the Panthers for a trio of picks including a second-rounder next year.

Appearing on the Dan Patrick Show, former NFL quarterback and current analyst Chris Simms said, "I'm blown away by Zach Wilson, Dan. You know I look at it, and look at, and say this is an Aaron Rodgers, a Patrick Mahomes, Brett Favre-ish type guy." On top of lofty comparisons to HOF/MVP-caliber quarterbacks, Simms actually ranks Wilson ahead of Lawrence, but the BYU product's meteoric rise up draft boards this draft cycle has been similar to that of Joe Burrow in last year's draft.

If Lawrence weren't in this draft class, Wilson would be worthy of the No. 1 overall pick.

3. San Francisco 49ers - Mac Jones, QB, Alabama

Almost universally, Trevor Lawrence is the QB1. As noted with the Jets pick, Chris Simms has Zach Wilson as his QB1. But not everyone has Lawrence or Wilson as their QB1, though. Former NFL head coach June Jones ranks (Mac) Jones as his QB1.

Taking the reigns from Tua Tagovailoa, the fifth pick in 2020, Jones really hit the ground running in 2020 as he completed 77.4% of his pass attempts and threw for 4,500 yards (11.2 Y/A), 41 touchdowns and four interceptions last season. While Jones may lack the elite arm strength and athleticism that the other top-four quarterback prospects possess, he makes quick reads and throws with outstanding accuracy and touch.

Continue reading Kevin Hanson's 2021 NFL Mock Draft

Brendan Donahue's 2021 NFL Mock Draft 4.0

BY BRENDAN DONAHUE (@donnycasino)
Updated: Sunday, April 4th

I am switching it up a bit this week and will be focusing more on where/why players are moving up or down or even staying the same from the last mock (Brendan Donahue NFL Mock Draft 3.0) to the current version.

I have also added some betting lines that are currently offered on DraftKings on a few players and will continue to track those and try to note if there are any major moves in odds. If you want to see what I think a team needs or more description of a particular player you can find those aspects addressed in the previous iterations. We have a lot of movement this week as the majority of pro days are now completed and the draft draws closer with under a month to go!

Since the Huddle Report started tracking his mocks, Brendan Donahue's mock drafts have the highest score over the past four years combined (175 points).

1. Jacksonville Jaguars - Trevor Lawrence, QB, Clemson

Even after impressive pro days from some of the other QBs, nothing has changed here and nothing will change here.

MORE: This is the first No. 1 pick in Jacksonville Jaguars NFL Draft History

2. New York Jets - Zach Wilson, QB, BYU

His pro day certainly did not hurt his draft status, as one of his throws went viral and had scouts claiming that Wilson is the pick and the draft really begins at pick No. 3.

MORE: New York Jets 2021 NFL Mock Draft Roundup

3. San Francisco 49ers - Mac Jones, QB, Alabama

And we have our first trade of draft season! I said last week when I had Trey Lance in this spot that I heard the Mac Jones speculation but I wasn't buying it. Well, life comes at you fast in draft season and things change quickly so I have moved Jones here because there is just too much smoke to not believe that he is a real possibility at No. 3. In fact, when asked about going to the Alabama pro day vs. some of the others, Shanahan said "now that you're up at 3, you don't have to hide as much." I'm not sure how else to interpret that so I think if the draft were tomorrow, Jones would be the pick. But let's see if Lance or Fields can change Kyle Shanahan's mind in the next month ...

Continue reading Brendan Donahue's 2021 NFL Mock Draft

2023 NFL Mock Draft: Top 10 Picks

We are more than two years away for the 2023 NFL Draft, which will be held in Kansas City, MO.

While we have posted a 2021 NFL Mock Draft and 2022 NFL Mock Draft, we've decided to take a way-too-early look at how the top of the 2023 NFL Draft could play out.

For our 2021 (and 2022) mock draft(s), we know which prospects have declared early (or decided to return for another season). For the pool of players for our early top-10 mock draft for 2023, we've limited our pool of prospects to only players that will become draft-eligible beginning in 2023.

The draft order used is based on the inverse order of NFL wins over the past decade.

1. Jacksonville Jaguars: Will Anderson, EDGE, Alabama

As noted in our 2021 NFL mock draft, the Jaguars own the rights to their first-ever No. 1 overall pick, which they will undoubtedly use on Clemson's Trevor Lawrence. More than likely, the Jags won't be picking first again in 2023 given their treasure trove of draft picks and ability to spend in free agency.

Nonetheless, they have the first pick based on our criteria for determining the draft order and get a disruptive edge rusher in Anderson. Among SEC defenders, only Georgia's Azeez Ojulari and former teammate Christian Barmore had more sacks in 2020 than Anderson had as a true freshman. Only the Cincinnati Bengals (17) had fewer sacks than the Jaguars (18) in 2020.

2. Cleveland Browns: Bryan Bresee, IDL, Clemson

The No. 1 recruit in the 247Sports Composite (2020), Bresee enjoyed immediate success for the Tigers. The ACC Defensive Freshman of the Year and First-Team All-ACC performer finished his true freshman season with 6.5 tackles for loss including four sacks and 33 tackles. With a rare combination of first-step explosiveness for a man his size, Bresee has the versatility to line up at various alignments along the defensive line.

3. New York Jets: Myles Murphy, EDGE, Clemson

Murphy stepped onto the Clemson campus with NFL-ready size and athleticism. As a true freshman, Murphy led the Tigers in tackles for loss (12.5) and forced fumbles (three), had four sacks and was as good as it gets against the run.

The highest-graded run defender last season was a true freshman

Myles Murphy, Clemson - 92.5 pic.twitter.com/NM7coDqv1B
— PFF Draft (@PFF_College) February 20, 2021

Continue reading our way-too-early Top-10 2023 NFL Mock Draft

Kevin Hanson's Way-Too-Early 2022 NFL Mock Draft

Updated: Thursday, February 18th

As difficult as it is to project how the NFL Draft will play out two months from now, it's (obviously) even more difficult when trying to project one year and two months from now.

Not only will two free-agency periods impact team needs, so will the actual 2021 NFL Draft.

For the purposes of this mock draft, we took into consideration the player projected in the first round of our latest 2021 NFL Mock Draft.

To project draft order, I used recent Super Bowl 56 odds.

1. Houston Texans: Sam Howell, QB, North Carolina

If the Texans are picking first overall in 2022, that likely means that they met Deshaun Watson's trade demands. Trading away a franchise player like Watson would be a tough pill for Texans' fans to swallow, but Howell has elevated the play of those around him and has been one of the best deep passers in college since his freshman season.

2. New York Jets: Kayvon Thibodeaux, EDGE, Oregon

The top-ranked recruit on the ESPN 300 in 2019, Thibodeaux burst onto the scene with 12.0 sacks and 23.5 tackles for loss over 21 games in his first two seasons.

Current Oregon (and former Texas A&M) DC Tim DeRuyter recently compared Thibodeaux's explosiveness to one of his former pupils (Von Miller). DeRuyter said that Kayvon is "probably the first person that I've seen in a while who has that explosiveness off the edge like Von" [Miller].

3. Jacksonville Jaguars: Evan Neal, OT, Alabama

Neal has starting experience at both left guard (2019) and right tackle (2020), but it's possible he moves to the other side to replace Alex Leatherwood at left tackle in 2021. Regardless of how the Jaguars fill the void created by left tackle Cam Robinson's impending free agency, Neal would help upgrade the offensive line no matter where he lines up.

+ Continue reading our 2022 NFL Mock Draft

2021 NFL Draft Big Board

Our 2021 NFL Draft Big Board ranks the top-150 draft-eligible prospects for this year's NFL draft.

Rank	Prospect	Pos.	School	Year	Hgt	Wgt
1	Trevor Lawrence	QB	Clemson	JR	6-6	220
2	Penei Sewell	OT	Oregon	JR	6-6	330
3	Ja'Marr Chase	WR	LSU	JR	6-1	200
4	Zach Wilson	QB	BYU	JR	6-3	210
5	Kyle Pitts	TE	Florida	JR	6-6	239
6	Justin Fields	QB	Ohio State	JR	6-3	228
7	Jaylen Waddle	WR	Alabama	JR	5-10	182
8	Rashawn Slater	OT	Northwestern	SR	6-4	315
9	DeVonta Smith	WR	Alabama	SR	6-1	175
10	Micah Parsons	LB	Penn State	JR	6-3	244
2021 NFL Draft Big Board: Top 150 Prospects

For our top 10 per position, check out our 2021 NFL Draft Prospect Rankings

Arizona Cardinals Mock Draft Roundup 8.0

Throughout the year and leading up to the 2021 NFL draft, we will update our Arizona Cardinals Mock Draft Roundup showing picks for the Arizona Cardinals from several prominent sites and draft analysts.

The following are picks in recent mock drafts for the Cardinals:

EDSFootball - Hanson (4/1)

16. Jaycee Horn, CB, South Carolina

With Patrick Peterson, Dre Kirkpatrick and Johnathan Joseph no longer on the roster, the Cardinals have signed Malcolm Butler and (cut and then) re-signed Robert Alford to one-year deals. In other words, cornerback remains one of the team's bigger needs heading into the draft.

Especially given the Stephon Gilmore rumors that have circulated in Foxboro, it wouldn't surprise me if Horn went off the board a pick earlier than this. (And interestingly enough, the 49ers trade up to No. 3 allows the Cards to get their man as he likely would have been their non-QB pick if they stayed at No. 12.)

The son of former Pro Bowl receiver Joe Horn, Jaycee excels in press-man coverage due to his size, physical playing style and competitive demeanor. He helped his case with a strong performance at South Carolina's Pro Day -- 4.39 forty, 41.5" vertical and 11'1" broad jump.

ESPN - McShay (4/1)

18. Caleb Farley, CB, Virginia Tech

Patrick Peterson is off to Minnesota, both starting outside corners -- Malcolm Butler and Robert Alford -- signed one-year deals and Byron Murphy Jr. is mainly a nickelback. Farley had a back procedure at the end of March, and though it isn't expected to impact his training camp availability, it's a concern. Still, he is the best cover corner in the class and fits what the Cardinals are looking for on the outside.

Baltimore Sun - Doon (3/31)

16. Caleb Farley, CB, Virginia Tech

The Cardinals will be happy to take whichever cornerback ends up falling to No. 16 after losing Patrick Peterson and Dre Kirkpatrick from what was a mediocre secondary in 2020. Farley has some injury concerns after another back surgery but was one of the nation's top corners in 2019.

Keep reading our Arizona Cardinals Mock Draft Roundup

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