NFL Mock Draft: 2021 first round redraft

Lawrence hasn't been great in his rookie season -- he's thrown nine touchdowns to 10 interceptions -- but he's also done nothing to make us think he wasn't the right decision with the top overall selection. If he's lucky, he'll have a more stable coaching staff in his second season, along with the return of his college teammate, Travis Etienne.

Jones wasn't a prospect that was going to blow you away on his pro day, but he's done an excellent job in his rookie season with the New England Patriots. With 16 touchdowns to eight interceptions -- and a quiet confidence that an unstable organization could use from its leader -- Jones would be as good of a fit as any quarterback for the Jets.

With just six touchdown passes to 11 interceptions, Wilson has really struggled in his rookie season with the Jets. However, he has flashed some of the elite tools that made some believe during the draft cycle that he was the most talented quarterback in the 2021 NFL Draft class. With uncertainty about whether Trey Lance will even be ready to start in his second season, we're going to bet that Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch would probably like a mulligan on the No. 3 overall pick. The reality is, they'd probably like to undo the franchise-altering trade that saw them mortgage the future to move all the way up from No. 12 to No. 3. But if they were still picking at three, we like the idea of Wilson going to a much more stable situation than New York, and working with one of the game's most innovative offensive minds.

Perhaps because he's only found the endzone once and isn't on a very good team, Pitts' rookie season hasn't drawn the buzz that it deserves. But the 21-year-old has looked the part of being the next great pass-catching tight end, as he has hauled in 49 passes for 709 yards in 12 games. So far, the Falcons are getting the return that they expected from Pitts, so there would be no reason to change this pick.

Chase has cooled off a bit since he had eight catches for 201 yards in Cincinnati's Week 7 throttling of the Baltimore Ravens, but he still finds himself likely to surpass 1,000 yards receiving in Week 14. It appears that the Bengals made the correct decision to reunite Chase with his college teammate, Joe Burrow.

When the Dolphins selected Waddle with the No. 6 overall pick in April, we had this to say:

"Jaylen Waddle may not lead the 2021 NFL Draft class in receptions at the conclusion of his career, but from here, it would be far from shocking if he proves to be the most valuable overall weapon at the position from this crop of wideouts."

What's crazy is that while Waddle has demonstrated his game-breaking ability during his rookie season in Miami, he's also adapted to being a bit more of a volume receiver in an offense not built to take a ton of down-field shots. The former Alabama star has 86 catches for 849 yards, and only figures to become a more valuable piece as either Tua Tagovailoa begins to take more deep shots, or someone else more capable of doing so becomes the quarterback for the Dolphins.

We're not suggesting that Penei Sewell wouldn't still be taken at some point in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, but to this point, Slater has outperformed him. Pro Football Focus has Slater graded at 82.5% in his rookie season, which is not only the top mark among rookie offensive tackles, but No. 7 overall at the position in 2021.

It's perhaps unfair to write Jaycee Horn off given that he's only played in three games at the NFL level, but while he's been recovering from a broken right foot, Surtain has racked up 38 total tackles and four interceptions during an impressive rookie season for the Denver Broncos. Obviously, the biggest need in Carolina is a quarterback, but none of the remaining rookies have done enough to warrant being taken over Surtain here.

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Not only is Parsons likely to win Defensive Rookie of the Year, but he figures to garner some consideration from Defensive Player of the Year voters. The Penn State product has forced two fumbles, while recording 10 sacks and 72 combined tackles. He's the type of player that you draft him and he's immediately in his prime. If Denver wouldn't be able to keep Surtain in our redraft, Parsons is hardly a bad fallback option.

Nick Sirianni and the Eagles coaching staff have built a run-first offense around Jalen Hurts, but Smith still has 50 receptions for 701 yards in his rookie season. While the linebacker-needy Eagles probably would have been pretty happy with Micah Parsons as well, they appear to have secured a No. 1 wideout in Smith.

Fields has flashed enough in his rookie season to intrigue you, but still has a ways to go before you feel comfortable saying that the Bears made the right trade in sending four picks fo the New York Giants to move up and select the former Ohio State star. Fields has 311 rushing yards in 2021, but has thrown four touchdowns to eight interceptions, so he's been a mixed bag. We're very excited to see whether the Bears -- who almost certainly will have a new head coach in 2022 -- can unlock Fields' superstar potential.

The Chiefs offense has disappointed in 2021, but they appear to have found a couple offensive line stalwarts. Taken with the 63rd overall pick out of Oklahoma, Humphrey has been the No. 1 overall rated center during his rookie season, per Pro Football Focus. Of course, the Cowboys are ecstatic about Micah Parsons in real life. But he's gone in our mock, and Humphrey would help them to once again have one of the NFL's elite offensive lines.

With Rashawn Slater long gone, the Chargers could consider Penei Sewell here, in an attempt to protect Justin Herbert. But the Chargers need edge help, and Phillips has recorded 8 1/2 sacks during his rookie season for the Miami Dolphins. He would be a valuable addition for a team that has to face Patrick Mahomes two times a year.

With *Mac Jones* under center for the Jets in this redraft, the No. 14 overall pick should be used to build a stout offensive line in front of him. With all due respect to Alijah Vera-Tucker -- the real-life pick the Jets made at No. 14 -- Pro Football focus has Smith graded as the No. 9 overall offensive guard in the league this season. He's played at a first-round caliber, despite being a sixth-round selection by Kansas City in the actual 2021 NFL Draft.

For the Patriots, it would be hard to imagine not having Mac Jones, who appears ready to be the team's quarterback for at least a decade. But based on how the board has lined up here, our guess is that the Patriots wouldn't reach for a quarterback, and instead they would select Hobbs, who has gone from a fifth-round pick to the No. 7 rated cornerback in the NFL this season. In fact, Hobbs is graded one spot above J.C. Jackson, who would be his teammate in this scenario.