Like most analysts, ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. has Trevor Lawrence as his top quarterback in the 2021 NFL Draft. It’s the No. 2 quarterback where his takes start getting controversial.
In a recent appearance on SportsCenter, Kiper doubled-down on his stance that Justin Fields is the No. 2 quarterback in the draft. He made it clear that he isn’t going to discount Fields’ entire body of work off his two worst performances.
“I’m going to stick with Justin Fields from Ohio State,” Kiper said, via 247Sports. “I know he had those two sub-par games this year against Indiana and Northwestern but he bounced back so strong in that semifinal game against Clemson, outplaying Trevor Lawrence. Back in 2019, he was spectacular with 41 touchdown passes, only three picks. I’m not going to discount what he did in 2019 and what he did in a season interrupted with COVID. I’m going to stick with Justin Fields as the second-best quarterback in the draft. I know there’s going to be some critics out there, but I’m not one of them.”
Mel Kiper stands firm on Justin Fields being No. 2 quarterback prospect in the 2021 NFL Draft:https://t.co/6Pbu3wvu3I pic.twitter.com/plNEQL078X
— 247Sports (@247Sports) March 8, 2021
The Indiana and Northwestern games that Kiper mentioned are two of only three multi-interception performances of Justin Fields’ career. Outside of those two games, he has a 64-4 touchdown-interception ratio.
Fields finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting in 2019 and seventh in 2020, leading Ohio State to the Big Ten title and the College Football Playoff in both years.
By all accounts, he’ll be taken in the first round of the NFL Draft. Most believe he’ll go top 10 and many believe he’ll go top five.
But like most quarterback prospects, Fields has some question marks – Mel Kiper just doesn’t believe that they’re worth dropping him.
The post Mel Kiper Confirms His No. 2 Quarterback Prospect In 2021 Class appeared first on The Spun.
Leave a Reply