We are just two months away from the NFL Draft and all eyes are on this year’s class and seeing what they have to offer. Teams will shortly be making free agency decisions, and a big factor in that will be what is available in this year’s draft. Here is a rundown of each of the positional groups. I’ve highlighted the top three players at each position, along with their spot on my Big Board, with each position ranked from worst to best.
You can read more of my 2021 NFL Draft content here.
11. Interior defensive line
Top prospects
- Christian Barmore, Alabama (#17)
- Alim McNeill, NC State (#48)
- Levi Onwuzurike, Washington (#62)
This is easily one of the weakest interior defensive line classes in recent years. There is no consensus top player and it wouldn’t be surprising if we had to wait until Day 2 to see the first one go off the board. It was a position hit hard by opt outs, with names like Levi Onwuzerike, Jay Tufele, and Tyler Shelvin not playing since 2019.
Christian Barmore is easily the top player on my board and the only one whom I have given a first round grade to. He had an excellent 2020 season, racking up 39 pressures and eight sacks on his 324 pass rushing snaps. Whilst he is still a little raw and inexperienced, he has the potential to be an incredibly valuable pass rushing threat from the interior.
The other names to keep an eye on are almost all likely to be Day 2 picks. Alim McNeill seems to be a little underrated right now but shows tonnes of promise. The NC State nose tackle isn’t the most technically sound player, but he has the explosiveness and run-stuff ability to be a great NFL player. Levi Onwuzurike is an excellent athlete, but he has never had the production you’d expect from a player with his tools.
10. Tight End
Top prospects
- Kyle Pitts, Florida (#8)
- Pat Freiermuth, Penn State (#41)
- Brevin Jordan, Florida (#91)
Last year’s tight end class was one of the worst in recent memory. This year’s class is undoubtedly an improvement, but it lacks any real depth and there are only four tight ends in the top 100 of my Big Board. The one thing keeping it from coming in last place on this list is Florida’s Kyle Pitts. Pitts is the No. 8 player on my Big Board and is widely considered to be a transcendent talent at the position.
It is a measure of Pitts’ quality that he was shortlisted for the Biletnikoff Award, given to the best receiver in college football. He is the first tight end to be a finalist in the award’s 27-year history. His 2020 season saw him rack up 770 yards and 12 touchdowns on his 43 receptions. He didn’t log a single drop all season and he had a passer rating when targeted of 146.2. He would be a legitimate first round talent if he was considered as a pure wide receiver.
Outside of Pitts, there isn’t much to get excited about. Penn State’s Pat Freiermuth is the next best prospect and has earned the nickname “Baby Gronk”. Whilst they do share blocking ability and toughness after the catch, Freiermuth isn’t anywhere near the athlete that Gronk was coming out. Those two are pretty much the only two sure-fire picks in the first two rounds. Brevin Jordan and Tommy Tremble of Notre Dame both show promise, but are not pro-ready prospects at this point.
9. Interior offensive line
Top prospects
- Alijah Vera-Tucker, USC (#32)
- Landon Dickerson, Alabama (#39)
- Wyatt Davis, Ohio State (#47)
Whilst there is a tonne of talent at offensive tackle this year, the same cannot be said for the interior. At No. 32, Alijah Vera-Tucker is the highest ranked interior lineman on my board and he actually played at tackle in 2020. There are certainly some interesting names likely to be available in the later rounds, but none that really fill you with confidence.
Vera-Tucker is coming off an impressive season that saw him play as a left tackle for USC. By and large he was pretty comfortable, allowing just two pressures in his first five games. That said, he had a nightmare against Oregon and his limited athleticism and length mean his future is probably as a guard. He was excellent there in 2019, and brings real value as a both a run blocker and pass protector.
Landon Dickerson is my IOL2 in the 2021 class and his form for Alabama this season was really impressive. He’s a mauler in the trenches, but teams will have questions about his injury history after a torn ACL in the SEC Championship Game. Outside of the top two, players like Wyatt Davis and Trey Smith offer solid, if unspectacular play. There are also some later round gems like Quinn Meinerz and Kendrick Green but this is not a class to get too excited about.
8. Running back
Top prospects
- Travis Etienne, Clemson (#38)
- Javonte Williams, UNC (#53)
- Najee Harris, Alabama (#57)
It is becoming increasingly clear that running backs don’t carry the same value in the modern NFL. The days of seeing a back taken inside the top ten appear to be over, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t talented players coming out of college. There’s plenty of debate about the order of the top backs in this class, but this looks to be a real improvement on last year’s group.
Etienne would have been my RB1 in 2020 had he declared. In the end he returned for his senior year and developed his game even further. The biggest improvement came in the passing game, where he had 48 receptions for 588 yards. Etienne is super explosive as a runner and excellent at creating after contact. This season he broke the ACC records for career rushing and scrimmage yards and finished with 923 yards on 166 carries.
Javonte Williams was another back who had an excellent 2020 season. He finished with 1,168 yards and averaged 7.4 per carry. His 0.48 forced missed tackles per carry was the most PFF have seen since they began grading college football in 2014. Najee Harris is seen by some as the RB1 in this class thanks to his combination of power and receiving ability. He is undoubtedly an excellent prospect, but his lack of speed will be a concern at the next level.
7. Safety
Top prospects
- Trevon Moehrig, TCU (#27)
- Ar’Darius Washington, TCU (#35)
- Richie Grant, UCF (#46)
This year’s safety class is certainly going to be the subject of substantial debate and there is no consensus on who the top safety is. For me it is TCU’s Trevon Moehrig, who comes in at No. 27 on my board. He is the only safety that I’ve given a first round grade, but there is still plenty of interesting options likely to be available on Day 2. In total I have seven safeties inside my top 100.
Moehrig is a true ballhawking safety and has accounted for an astonishing 26 forced incompletions since 2019. He has given up a passer rating of just 54.7 across his 96 career targets. He offers the ideal combination of length and athleticism and has the range to play as a single-high safety in the NFL. He’s got the tools to play man coverage against tight ends and slot receivers and packs real power into his hits.
Moehrig’s teammate Ar’Darius Washington is my second ranked safety in the 2021 class. At 5’8″ and 178 lbs he is on the small side, but his performances in college were outstanding. Washington has allowed just 172 yards across his 601 career coverage snaps and has more forced incompletions than first downs allowed in coverage. UCF’s Richie Grant is not far behind, offering the ideal mixture of ball skills and football intelligence.
6. Cornerback
Top prospects
- Caleb Farley, Virginia Tech (#12)
- Patrick Surtain II, Alabama (#15)
- Asante Samuel Jr., Florida State (#21)
Unlike last year, there is no standout corner that could be taken inside the top five picks. That said, the positional group doesn’t lack for quality and I have nine players graded as first or second round talents. There will be plenty of debate around who is CB1 in this year’s class, but the group offers a variety of skillsets to suit all kinds of defensive schemes.
Caleb Farley of Virginia Tech has been my CB1 since the summer. He offers the prototypical size/athleticism combination that teams covet in the NFL. Farley opted out of the 2020 season, but his 2019 tape was absolutely worth a first round pick. On 50 targets, he allowed a 36 per cent completion rate, with four picks and eight pass breakups. His passer rating allowed was just 26.9, which led all Power Five corners.
Farley and Patrick Surtain II are the consensus top two corners. Surtain is the most polished corner in the draft, with three years as a starter for the Crimson Tide. His lack of long speed is a concern, but aside from that he has very few weaknesses to his game. Asante Samuel Jr. comes in at No. 3. He offers elite athleticism and incredible ball production, although some teams will have concerns about his lack of size.
