The NFL Offseason is always a period in which fans are filled with excitement, joy, and hope. For many teams, the offseason means a blank canvas. A fresh start. A time period in which teams can fix the problems that held them back all season long. However, this year will be even more like reality television than any other year before. The reason being that many Quarterbacks will be on the move, as well as a loaded QB class of rookies ready to take the league by storm. So which rookies should we pay attention to? Let’s take a more in-depth look.
Top Names in The 2021 QB Class:
Trevor Lawrence
There isn’t much new to say about Trevor Lawrence that people haven’t heard dozens of times before. He is, simply put, the best player college football has seen in a long time. Lawrence is viewed by many as the best QB prospect coming out of college since Andrew Luck and Peyton Manning before that. Additionally, the guy is just a winner, plain and simple. Although Trevor’s Clemson Tigers fell short against Ohio State, Lawrence’s stock hasn’t changed very much. Trevor Lawrence is the best in this year’s QB class and the best player in the entire draft. He will most likely be headed to Jacksonville to join newly hired coach Urban Meyer. The Jags have a bright future with Lawrence, a chunk of cap space, a new coach, and 3 more picks in the top 45 after number one overall.
Justin Fields
I honestly feel bad for Justin Fields. His whole life, he was number 1. He was the number 1 ranked player coming out of high school and even starred in the hit TV show “QB1”. In most years, Fields would undoubtedly be the top pick in the draft; he just got unlucky that he happened to be in the same QB class as Trevor Lawrence. Nonetheless, Fields has the chance to be a tremendous dual-threat QB in the NFL. He just needs to focus on himself and not let the media comparisons to fellow QBs Zach Wilson and Trevor Lawrence get to his head. His size, speed, and arm talent will help him succeed. Fields will likely be a top-five pick in the draft.
Zach Wilson
Zach Wilson possibly raised his draft stock this season more than any other player in college football. Wilson earned the nickname “Mormon Mahomes” because of his explosive arm talent and throw on the run ability he put on display this season at BYU. He has even been considered the number two guy behind Lawrence and ahead of Justin Fields. Wilson will also likely go in the top ten; it will just be a matter of when teams pick and who wants who.
Mac Jones
Mac Jones has certainly proved that he can be a winning QB when put into the right system. Jones led the Alabama Crimson Tide to a National Championship over Justin Fields and the Ohio State Buckeyes. He has tremendous size and strength for an NFL QB, and his stature is similar to that of Ben Roethlisberger or Blake Bortles. However, the looming question is whether or not Jones’s success can be majorly credited to the fact that he had terrific weapons. Devonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle will both be first-round picks, and Najee Harris was stellar for Alabama.
So, where does that leave Mac Jones? He can’t be totally discredited; after all, he did put up tremendous numbers in big moments. But yet again, He had much better weapons than guys like Trey lance, who had nobody at North Dakota State. Jones will need to do a little more salesman work at the NFL Combine, where he will try to prove that there is yet another stud in this QB class.
Other Big Names in the 2021 QB Class
Trey Lance, North Dakota State
Kyle Trask, University of Florida