The 2020 NFL Draft class was one of the deepest in recent memory, and several interesting quarterbacks were selected. Three were taken in the top six picks -- including former LSU signal-caller Joe Burrow at No. 1 overall -- and four were taken in the first round. In all, 13 quarterbacks were drafted last weekend.
It's possible that the 2021 draft class has even more potential when it comes to the quarterback position. While the 2021 draft may be known as the "Trevor Lawrence sweepstakes," it's always possible other quarterbacks emerge into stars -- just like Burrow did. There is one who has the potential to surpass Lawrence.
Ohio State's Justin Fields was the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year in 2019 and came in third place in the Heisman Trophy voting. In his first season in Columbus, he threw for 3,273 yards, 41 touchdowns and three interceptions.
While Lawrence is considered the likely No. 1 pick, things can change. Pick Six Podcast host Will Brinson sat down with Chip Patterson, Tom Fornelli and Ryan Wilson of CBS Sports to discuss the 2021 draft, and they had some interesting thoughts about whether Fields could potentially overtake Lawrence and go No. 1 (fire up Friday's episode below and be sure to subscribe for daily NFL goodness).
"I think that at this time last year, we didn't think there would be any way that Tua (Tagovailoa) wasn't the top pick in the draft and we saw how that went with Burrow coming out of 'nowhere' to have a huge season," Fornelli said. "But if you look at Fields, if you look at how they both played last year, there really wasn't a major difference between them on the whole and Fields is the more mobile of the two, whereas Lawrence kind of busted out the run more last season -- he's not Justin Fields when it comes to running -- but if you look at their overall numbers last year, Fields had a higher touchdown rate, he had a lower interception rate and he had a higher completion rate."
Fornelli still believes that Lawrence will be taken first come next April barring injury -- but he's not ruling out Fields overtaking him. In addition to his passing prowess, Fields also was effective on the ground last season, and rushed for 484 yards and 10 touchdowns while Ohio State went 13-1.
It's hard to forget that Lawrence defeated Fields in the Fiesta Bowl, however, as Clemson beat Ohio State 29-23 to advance to the National Championship game. Lawrence threw for a career-high 3,365 yards, 36 touchdowns and eight interceptions in 2019.
Clemson went undefeated in the regular season, but ran into the buzzsaw that was Burrow and the LSU Tigers in the National Championship game.
Another thing to consider in the Fields vs. Lawrence debate is that Lawrence wasn't always the focal point of Clemson's offense.
"There are games where Trevor Lawrence is not the best Clemson player, and some of that is by design," Patterson said. "Travis Etienne is the two-time ACC player of the year, he is at times within the flow of the offense the alpha, and this is sort of what we are using to be able to establish what we want to do, lean on the defense a little bit. Trevor Lawrence -- top NFL draft prospect, top quarterback talent -- but Justin Fields is the alpha for Ohio State -- he is the passing game, he is the running game.
"They have a thin running back room right now and I think that Justin Fields -- with as much offensive responsibility as he's going to carry for Ohio State -- is probably going to end up having a better college football season. More likely to win the Heisman, maybe edge out Lawrence for some of the All-America stuff, but I definitely understand why when you just sort of pick apart all the different pieces of Trevor Lawrence, you're like, 'Yep, he was cooked up to be an NFL quarterback.' I still think he goes No. 1."
Lawrence and Clemson as a whole found more success when Etienne was on, so he could emerge as the "alpha" for Clemson in his senior season. There is also something which Brinson dubbed the "boredom factor" when it comes to Lawrence. The Tigers ran the table on the entire ACC and won every regular season game except one by double digits. At the very least, this opens the door for Fields if he puts up monster numbers next season.
It's also possible that neither player goes first overall. We know how unpredictable college football is -- but it seems likely either Lawrence or Fields will hear their name first come next April.
