The 2021 NFL Draft is set to begin and you can track each pick here. This year's draft offers one of the most anticipated first rounds in years. If you like offense, this is the draft to watch as the top three players taken are projected to be quarterbacks for the first time since 1999 and this NFL draft will attempt to break the record for consecutive offensive players taken to start a draft (six, set in 1999).
The 2021 NFL Draft has the potential of having three wide receivers taken in the top 10 for the first time since 2017 and just the second time since 2005. There are plenty of storylines and records set to be made in this year's NFL Draft, and we got you covered here at CBS Sports.
Below you'll find everything you need to know on this weekend's draft, from prospect rankings to picks -- and all the mock drafts and insider information you can get.
First round draft order
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- New York Jets
- San Francisco 49ers (from Miami via Houston)
- Atlanta Falcons
- Cincinnati Bengals
- Miami Dolphins (from Philadelphia)
- Detroit Lions
- Carolina Panthers
- Denver Broncos
- Dallas Cowboys
- New York Giants
- Philadelphia Eagles (from Miami via San Francisco)
- Los Angeles Chargers
- Minnesota Vikings
- New England Patriots
- Arizona Cardinals
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Miami Dolphins
- Washington Football Team
- Chicago Bears
- Indianapolis Colts
- Tennessee Titans
- New York Jets (from Seattle)
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Jacksonville Jaguars (from Rams)
- Cleveland Browns
- Baltimore Ravens
- New Orleans Saints
- Green Bay Packers
- Buffalo Bills
- Baltimore Ravens (from Kansas City)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Here's the entire draft order -- all 259 picks
Prospect rankings (overall)
- Trevor Lawrence (QB) -- Clemson
- Penei Sewell (OL) -- Oregon
- Kyle Pitts (TE) -- Florida
- Zach Wilson (QB) -- BYU
- Justin Fields (QB) -- Ohio State
- Ja'Marr Chase (WR) -- LSU
- Jaylen Waddle (WR) -- Alabama
- Micah Parsons (LB) -- Penn State
- Trey Lance (QB) -- North Dakota State
- DeVonta Smith (WR) -- Alabama
- Rashawn Slater (OL) -- Northwestern
- Caleb Farley (CB) -- Virginia Tech
- Kwity Paye (EDGE) -- Michigan
- Christian Darrisaw (OL) -- Virginia Tech
- Patrick Surtain II (CB) -- Alabama
- Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (LB) -- Notre Dame
- Trevon Moehrig (S) -- TCU
- Azeez Ojulari (LB) -- Georgia
- Alijah Vera-Tucker (OL) -- USC
- Rondale Moore (WR) -- Purdue
- Jaelan Phillips (EDGE) -- Miami (Fla.)
- Mac Jones (QB) -- Alabama
- Teven Jenkins (OL) -- Oklahoma State
- Asante Samuel Jr. (CB) -- Florida State
- Rashod Bateman (WR) -- Minnesota
- Christian Barmore (DL) -- Alabama
- Jaycee Horn (CB) -- South Carolina
- Levi Onwuzurike (DL) -- Washington
- Joseph Ossai (EDGE) -- Texas
- Zaven Collins (LB) -- Tulsa
- Greg Newsome II (CB) -- Northwestern
- Kadarius Toney (WR) -- Florida
Click here for the full position-by-position rankings provided by CBS Sports.
When and where is the draft?
The 2021 NFL Draft will take place in Cleveland, one year after the annual selection meeting was virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Here is the list of the 13 prospects that will be attending:
The draft will be on a variety of networks. NFL Network, ESPN and ABC will provide the coverage and you can stream live on FuboTV. Here are the start times for each round:
- Thursday, April 29, at 8 p.m. ET
- Friday, April 30, at 7 p.m. ET
- Saturday, May 1, at noon ET
Mock draft central
Trevor Lawrence is expected to be the first pick in the draft (Jacksonville Jaguars) and Zach Wilson is projected to go second (New York Jets). The San Francisco 49ers and Atlanta Falcons are the teams that will make the draft interesting for the rest of the night.
To find out who the 49ers and Falcons are projected to take, check out who our NFL writers picked here!
- Ryan Wilson (full mock draft)
- Chris Trapasso (full mock draft)
- Josh Edwards (full mock draft)
- Jason La Canfora (full mock draft)
- Pete Prisco (full mock draft)
- Will Brinson (full mock draft)
- Jonathan Jones (full mock draft)
- Jared Dubin (full mock draft)
- Cody Benjamin (full mock draft)
- Patrik Walker (full mock draft)
- Tyler Sullivan (full mock draft)
- Jeff Kerr (full mock draft)
- Jordan Dajani (full mock draft)
- Bryan DeArdo (full mock draft)
Here are some other draft articles leading up to Round 1:
- 32 surprise picks that could shake up Round 1, including Justin Fields going No. 2 to the Jets -- Chris Trapasso
Breaking down likely first-round picks at each position reveals locks and uncertainties -- Jason La Canfora
Top-10 QBs in draft -- Tom Fornelli
Answering draft's biggest questions -- Edwards, Wilson, and Trapasso
Bold predictions for Round 1 -- Benjamin
Both times QBs went 1-2-3 in draft and how they fared -- Kerr
Insider information
Or NFL insiders Jason La Canfora and Jonathan Jones have you covered leading up to the draft. Here's the latest from each:
From a fantasy standpoint
It's never too early to get prepared for your fantasy football season (let's face it, rookies can win you a championship in a dynasty league). Our CBS fantasy expert Chris Towers took a look at the biggest fantasy questions in the first round.
Dave Richard took a look at the best and worst case scenario for each player in Round 1.
For a list of individual profiles on the top prospects click here.
For the bettors out there
Want to make some money this weekend? Our Jordan Dajani took a look at the five best bets to consider, along with the player prop bets by William Hill Sportsbook. Tyler Sullivan took a look at long shot value plays he would make and some great position props.
Some fun facts about this year's draft
This year's draft has some history to be made. Here are some notes leading into the draft:
-- If Trevor Lawrence goes to the Jaguars with the first overall pick, he'd be the first player in Clemson history to be drafted No. 1 and the first to be drafted in the top-3.
-- If three quarterbacks are drafted in the top six, this will be the third time in the common-draft era (since 1967) that's happened:
- 2020: Joe Burrow (1st), Tua Tagovailoa (5th), Justin Herbert (6th)
- 1999: Tim Couch (1st), Donovan McNabb (2nd), Akili Smith (3rd)
- 1971: Jim Plunkett (1st), Archie Manning (2nd), Dan Pastorini (3rd)
-- If Mac Jones, DeVonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle all get drafted in the first round, Alabama would be the first school ever to have a quarterback and two wide receivers drafted in the first round of the same draft in multiple drafts.
-- If six quarterbacks are taken in the first round, it would be the first time that's happened since 1983 (when Hall of Famers Jim Kelly, John Elway, and Dan Marino were drafted). Five quarterbacks were taken in the first round in 1999 and 2018 -- and is expected in 2021.
