NFL Draft Winners And Losers

Winners

QB Jared Goff – Lions

“I’m just excited to be somewhere that I know wants me and appreciates me.” That’s what QB Jared Goff told NFL.com the day after his trade to Detroit, and now Goff knows for a fact the Lions appreciate him. Not only did Detroit pass on QB Justin Fields, but they grabbed the best offensive lineman in the draft to protect him. In 2020, Goff’s pressured completion percentage ranked 23rd at 38%. When given a clean pocket, Goff’s completion percentage skyrocketed to 75.1%. Detroit then grabbed USC standout WR Amon-Ra St. Brown in the 4th round. St. Brown will fit well in the slot, and he’s the dynamic playmaker that Goff needs to thrive. – @CharlieFriar

The Chicago Bears

What a steal at Pick 11!! As much as it pains me to say it, the Bears won huge by trading up and drafting Justin Fields. Fields has the arm strength, versatility, and footwork to be the franchise quarterback and be the starter easily by Week 10 or sooner. I hope they let him get comfortable in his new role under Dalton. However, Dalton will not end the 2021 season as the Bears starter. Fields went 20-2 in the last two seasons at Ohio State.

He is a playmaker who has accuracy on deep balls and short passes alike. Fields has grit and determination that will take him far. That is what Chicago is known for, raw, gusty, unwavering players who are aggressive and bold. Fields hits all those marks and will flourish as a Bear, unlike Trubisky. Fans are bitter, but I know this pick has put energy back into the city of Chicago. I look forward to watching him connect with Robinson and Kmet this season. Should make for exciting matches in the NFC North. – @luvtractor3

The New York Football Giants

The giants moved back in round one, picking up a 2022 first-round pick in the process, and were still able to grab a first-round talent in Kadarius Toney. Toney is polarizing but the value David Gettleman received was a slam dunk. Acquiring another player who scouts had with a first-round grade, Defense End/Outside Linebacker Azeez Ojulari, in round 2 solidified this draft as a huge win for the Giants. – @socratictheory

The Minnesota Vikings

The Vikings picked Offensive Tackle Christian Darrisaw at 23 overall (the same player I expected at pick number 14). The Vikings received two third-round picks for moving back, a huge win for them. They also selected Texas A&M QB Kellen Mond which is a low-key great addition. Sean Mannion is the worst backup QB in the NFL and Kirk Cousins is only under contract through this year. – @TheYetiExpress 

QB Lamar Jackson – Ravens

“Lamar Jackson needs more playmakers” was the common refrain from sports analysts since the end of the 2020 season. Baltimore selected WR Rashod Bateman at 27 and WR Tylan Wallace at 131. Bateman has all the traits to be the possession receiver Baltimore desperately needs. Wallace is a consistent separator who was a steal in the fourth-round. Jackson now has TE Mark Andrews, WR Hollywood Brown, Tylan Wallace, Rashod Bateman, and RB J.K. Dobbins at his disposal. Jackson’s fantasy relevance comes from his legs, but this is the best group of playmakers he has had in his NFL career. I expect big things from him in 2021. – @FantasyBBQ

The New York Jets

The real winner here is value FF drafters. New York Jets are vastly improved at QB (Zach Wilson), WR (Elijah Moore), and RB (Michael Carter). In addition, they added to their OL which should help their pass/run game. The best part is Adam Gase trauma has resulted in all three rookies being vastly undervalued at their current ADP, relative to what their production could be. Add WR Denzel Mims, WR Corey Davis, and TE Chris Herndon and you have a lot of value that will likely out produce ADP. This is a great team to zig when everyone is zagging. – @ProFootballPSI

Ryan Pace / Chicago Bears GM

I am a lifelong Chicago Bears fan and let me tell you there is no bigger winner from the 2021 NFL Draft weekend than Ryan Pace. If I’m being honest, Pace has been a solid GM over the course of his tenure. He won the NFL Executive of the Year award in 2018 and has found some key contributors in later rounds. However the wheels completely fell off, starting with some questionable signings in the 2020 offseason, a season of lackluster offensive play, and ultimately culminating with an early exit in the playoffs.

Bears fans from around the globe were calling for Pace and the coaching staff to be fired. The drums got even louder when the Bears signed Andy Dalton after weeks of speculation they were trying to make a blockbuster trade for a quarterback. All of the animosity toward Pace and staff was washed away in a way I have never seen before when they traded up to select Justin Fields. Then as a cherry on top, when most fans expected the Bears would trade back in the 2nd round they traded up and selected Offensive Tackle Teven Jenkins. Jenkins was the player that most experts around the league had the Bears taking in the first round.

Needless to say, Pace has won back favor with the vast majority of Bears fans and his time on the hot seat appears to be over. -@DevinDeal

QB Tua Tagovailoa – Dolphins

Miami drafted WR Jaylen Waddle and TE Hunter Long to give their QB more weapons for the 2021 season. Tua is now projected to be throwing the ball to WR DeVante Parker, WR Will Fuller, WR Preston Williams, TE Mike Gesicki, RB Myles Gaskin, RB Malcolm Brown, and WR Jaylen Waddle. The team also opted not to bring in additional help at the quarterback position, thus securing Tua’s role at least for the next season. They also drafted Liam Eichenberg, one of the nation’s top offenive tackles this year. I will be making moves for Tua in dynasty formats and as long as the value is there, I will be drafting in redraft leagues.  – @shawn_sulli5

Losers

RB James Robinson – Jags

Following NFL free agency, it appeared that James Robinson’s role as lead back in Jacksonville might hold. NFL mock drafts consistently placed the classes “big three” running backs to teams like Pittsburgh, Atalanta, Miami, New York, and Buffalo. However, that all changed on night one of the draft when the Jaguars selected Clemson standout RB Travis Etienne, with the 25th overall pick of the draft.

Etienne reunites with college quarterback Trevor Lawrence under the new Urban Meyer regime. Robinson, an undrafted free agent in 2020, was one of the biggest surprises and best stories last year. Robinson seized the lead role, in an open Jaguar’s backfield, during the pre-season last year and never looked back, riding that to 1414 all-purpose yards and 10 touchdowns. Robinson’s role should change dramatically next season with the addition of Etienne as the presumed lead back. Expect the biggest change to come in Robinson’s role in the passing game, where he excelled last year with 49 total receptions.

Etienne developed into an above-average pass catcher during his career at Clemson, and with Lawrence under center should see a healthy dose of targets. That doesn’t mean I believe Urban Meyer’s quote describing Etienne as a third-down back, he should have a role on early downs as well. Further complicating things is Meyer’s former Ohio State running back Carlos Hyde, who could see some work as well. Robinson’s path to a more significant snap share may rely on displaying superiority in pass protection, a noted area of weakness for Etienne in college. If those struggles continue in the pros it could be Robinson’s ticket to more playing time. – @JayC_DFF

The Green Bay Packers

The Packers are big losers once again, in NFL history never has an MVP been traded we could see that here with Rodgers. They waited late again to draft a WR and of all receivers took Amari Rodgers, which almost seemed like a troll attempt. – @TheYetiExpress 

The Running Backs

The RB landing spots were not great for an already weak class, not looking for anyone outside of the top 5 RB’s and am drafting none as a RB1 long term – @JoePuersch22

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