2021 NFL Mock Draft: 1st-Round Predictions for Top Prospects After Week 3

Week 3 of the 2020 NFL season came with its fair share of surprises and non-shockers—the tie between the Philadelphia Eagles and Cincinnati Bengals falls a little bit into each category—but the reality is that eight teams remain winless.

Not all of the league's winless teams will be in the market for a new quarterback in next year's draft, but at least a few teams will be chasing prospects like Clemson's Trevor Lawrence and Ohio State's Justin Fields.

Others—like the aforementioned Bengals, who drafted Joe Burrow No. 1 last April—will look to build around the quarterbacks they already have.

How might things unfold next spring? Here, we'll use Tankathon's draft order as an early guide and mock the first round of the 2021 draft.

2021 NFL Mock Draft

1. Atlanta Falcons: Trevor Lawrence, QB, Clemson

2. New York Giants: Penei Sewell, OT, Oregon

3. Denver Broncos: Patrick Surtain II, CB, Alabama

4. Minnesota Vikings: Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State

5. New York Jets: Trey Lance, QB, North Dakota State

6. Miami Dolphins (from Houston): Ja'Marr Chase, WR, LSU

7. Philadelphia Eagles: Gregory Rousseau, Edge, Miami

8. Cincinnati Bengals: Samuel Cosmi, OT, Texas

9. Dallas Cowboys: Caleb Farley, CB, Virginia Tech

10. Los Angeles Chargers: Micah Parsons, LB, Penn State

11. New Orleans Saints: Jaylen Waddle, WR, Alabama

12. Carolina Panthers: Dillon Radunz, OT, North Dakota State

13. Detroit Lions: Alex Leatherwood, OT, Alabama

14. Miami Dolphins: Jordan Davis, DL, Georgia

15. Jacksonville Jaguars: DeVonta Smith, WR, Alabama

16. Las Vegas Raiders: Shaun Wade, CB, Ohio State

17. Indianapolis Colts: Rondale Moore, WR, Purdue

18. San Francisco 49ers: Jaylen Mayfield, OT, Michigan

19. Washington Football Team: Dylan Moss, LB, Alabama

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Walker Little, OT, Stanford

21. Cleveland Browns: Jaycee Horn, CB, South Carolina

22. Arizona Cardinals: Trey Smith, OG, Tennessee

23. New England Patriots: Rashod Bateman, WR, Minnesota

24. Pittsburgh Steelers: Najee Harris, RB, Alabama

25. Jacksonville Jaguars (from L.A. Rams): Chris Olave, WR, Ohio State

26. Kansas City Chiefs: Christian Barmore, DL, Alabama

27. Chicago Bears: Sage Surratt, WR, Wake Forest

28. Tennessee Titans: Kyle Pitts, TE, Florida

29. Baltimore Ravens: Jevon Holland, S, Oregon

30. New York Jets (from Seattle): Paulson Adebo, CB, Stanford

31. Green Bay Packers: Andre Cisco, S, Syracuse

32. Buffalo Bills: Wyatt Davis, OG, Ohio State

1. Atlanta Falcons: Trevor Lawrence, QB, Clemson

Lawrence remains the big prize in the 2021 draft, and while the Atlanta Falcons have a Hall of Fame-caliber quarterback in Matt Ryan, it's hard to see them going with another pick should they land the No. 1 pick—a trade would be the obvious alternative, but we're not mocking trades here.

Ryan is 35 years old, and while he's still playing at a high level, he also has fewer than four years on his contract and a potential team out in 2022. If the Falcons actually do land the top pick in the draft, head coach Dan Quinn will almost certainly be out, and the new Atlanta regime will likely want its own guy under center.

This sets up a potential Green Bay Packers-esque scenario, where the Falcons draft Lawrence and allow him to sit behind Ryan until the team decides it's time to turn the page.

As is the case with the Packers and Aaron Rodgers, the time to move on from Ryan might not come in the next year or two. However, Atlanta will have its next franchise quarterback in-house when that time does come.

2. New York Giants: Penei Sewell, OT, Oregon

The New York Giants are less likely to pounce on a quarterback, even if landing in this spot means that second-year signal-caller Daniel Jones has struggled. New York has not put a strong overall team around Jones, so giving up on him after just two years seems unlikely.

Instead, the Giants would be smart to add another piece to Jones' blocking unit. They used the fourth overall pick this past April on Georgia offensive tackle Andrew Thomas, who has been learning on the fly against the defenses of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Chicago Bears and San Francisco 49ers.

"I think the way his career started already with who he's faced, he understands there's no easy days in the National Football League," head coach Joe Judge said of Thomas, per Howie Kussoy of the New York Post.

Thomas has had his ups and downs thus far, but even if he were having a flawless transition to the NFL, he wouldn't be able to transform the Giants offensive line entirely by himself. Adding another tackle, such as Oregon's Penei Sewell, would help give Jones the quality blocking unit he needs to succeed.

4. Minnesota Vikings: Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State

The Minnesota Vikings are in a tough spot because they are essentially stuck with quarterback Kirk Cousins for the next two seasons. He has three years left on his contract and has $62 million in dead money remaining on his deal.

The earliest Minnesota can realistically get out from under Cousins' deal is after the 2021 season. He'll be set to carry a cap hit of $45 million in 2022, but he'll only have $10 million remaining in dead money by then.

Would the Vikings eat $10 million in cash to part with Cousins? If he continues playing like he has over the first three weeks, probably. Cousins has completed just 59 percent of his passes for 623 yards with five touchdowns and six interceptions. The Vikings are 0-3, in part because of his struggles.

Drafting a quarterback like Ohio State's Justin Fields would make a ton of sense if Minnesota continues barrelling toward a top draft pick.

Minnesota would be paying Cousins a lot to be a bridge quarterback in 2021, but that might be the only realistic option. The Vikings need to plan for the future, because at this rate, there will be nothing to play for in the immediate future.