Piece by: Tyler Deakin
This article was written as a follow up to my analysis on NFL Draft Hot Takes, link here.
Listen, I was wrong about plenty of things as it pertains to the 2021 NFL Draft this year. My latest article where I examined relevant hot takes is no different, as I was only correct about 2 out of 5 my hot take analyses.
The NFL Draft is predictably unpredictable, so this was an exercise that was mainly just for fun. I did get a couple takes correct though, and I learned a lot from watching the draft this year. Without further ado, here is my reflection on my NFL Draft Hot Take Analysis article.
1. Five quarterbacks will be selected in the top 10
This one was…. FALSE! Five quarterbacks were selected in the top fifteen, but not in the top ten like I had originally hoped for. Justin Fields & Mac Jones fell slightly out of the top-10, going to the Bears (11th) & Patriots (15th) respectively. I was surprised that the Lions, Panthers, Broncos, & Eagles all passed on Justin Fields; however, it was even more shocking that the Bears were able to pull off a trade to get their guy. Mac Jones felt destined to be the Patriots next great quarterback, although I originally felt as though they would need to trade up to go get him.
2. The Atlanta Falcons will NOT draft a QB at No. 4
This one was… TRUE! The Falcons could’ve taken a quarterback here, but they are locked into Matt Ryan’s ridiculous contract for at least 2 more years. That’s why it made more sense to select Florida TE Kyle Pitts at No. 4, who will bolster the passing game for Matt Ryan now & help to develop a new QB down the line. I’m happy that the Falcons did not make the same mistake the Packers made with the selection of QB Jordan Love in last year’s draft.
3. The San Francisco 49ers will NOT select Mac Jones at No. 3
This one was… TRUE! Mac Jones at No. 3 was probably a closer call than most of us anticipated; however, I had a gut feeling that it didn’t make any sense for the 49ers to draft him at No. 3. They could’ve waited until their original No. 12 pick if they wanted to draft Mac Jones, when he was still on the draft board. I’m not sure if Trey Lance was the right call either, but their plan to develop him behind Jimmy Garoppolo for a year or two makes sense.
4. No defensive players will be selected in the top 10
This one was…. FALSE! There were 2 defensive players (CB Joe Horn at No. 8 & CB Patrick Surtain II at No. 9) selected by the Panthers & Broncos respectively. That being said, there was a run of 7 straight offensive players selected at the top of the draft this year (an NFL record). I was most surprised by QB Justin Fields, QB Mac Jones, & OT Rashawn Slater falling out of the top-10, although none of them made it past the top-15 players.
5. The Dallas Cowboys will trade up to select TE Kyle Pitts
This one was…. FALSE! Look, anything is possible with Jerry Jones at the helm for the Cowboys. There were late rumors coming out that Jones really loved TE Kyle Pitts, and he would’ve added a dynamic element to their offense. They also recently lost legendary TE Jason Witten to the Raiders last offseason, so this made sense for them to gauge interest in a possible trade up in the draft to get Pitts. The Cowboys instead selected LB Micah Parsons at No. 11 instead.