NFL Draft 2021: Updated Predictions for Penei Sewell and Top Non-QB Prospects

The 2021 NFL draft is the best part of a year away, but it's already shaping up to be intriguing. High-end quarterback prospects like Clemson's Trevor Lawrence and North Dakota State's Trey Lance highlight next year's class and should make things interesting for quarterback-needy teams.

But what about teams that have entrenched signal-callers or that drafted one recently? A franchise like the Cincinnati Bengals—who took LSU's Joe Burrow first overall in April—isn't going to take a quarterback if it lands the No. 1 pick in the draft.

Fortunately for them, there will be plenty of elite draft-eligible prospects who don't play quarterback. Here we will examine some of the best and where they might land in April 2021. First, though, an updated Round 1 mock.

2021 NFL Mock Draft

1. Jacksonville Jaguars: Trevor Lawrence, QB, Clemson

2. Washington Redskins: Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State

3. Carolina Panthers: Penei Sewell, OT, Oregon

4. Cincinnati Bengals: Gregory Rousseau, Edge, Miami

5. Miami Dolphins: Ja'Marr Chase, WR, LSU

6. New York Jets: Marvin Wilson, DT, Florida State

7. Detroit Lions: Trey Lance, QB, North Dakota State

8. Arizona Cardinals: Samuel Cosmi, OT, Texas

9. Atlanta Falcons: Dylan Moses, LB, Alabama

10. Miami Dolphins (from Houston): Micah Parsons, LB, Penn State

11. Denver Broncos: Patrick Surtain II, CB, Alabama

12. New York Giants: Jaylen Waddle, WR, Alabama

13. Chicago Bears: Devonta Smith, WR, Alabama

14. Los Angeles Chargers: Shaun Wade, CB, Ohio State

15. Cleveland Browns: Tyler Shelvin, DL, LSU

16. Jacksonville Jaguars (from L.A. Rams): Alex Leatherwood, OT, Alabama

17. Las Vegas Raiders: Richard LeCounte, S, Georgia

18. Tennessee Titans: Rondale Moore, WR, Purdue

19. Pittsburgh Steelers: Travis Etienne, RB, Clemson

20. Minnesota Vikings: Paulson Adebo, CB, Stanford

21. New England Patriots: Jay Tufele, DT, USC 

22. Indianapolis Colts: JaCoby Stevens, S, LSU

23. Buffalo Bills: Eric Stokes, CB, Georgia

24. Philadelphia Eagles: LaBryan Ray, DL, Alabama

25. Green Bay Packers: Terrace Marshall Jr., WR, LSU

26. Seattle Seahawks: Wyatt Davis, OL, Ohio State

27. Dallas Cowboys: Pat Freiermuth, TE, Penn State

28. New Orleans Saints: Jamie Newman, QB, Georgia

29. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Chuba Hubbard, RB, Oklahoma State

30. San Francisco 49ers: Liam Eichenberg, OT, Notre Dame

31. Baltimore Ravens: Creed Humphrey, IOL, Oklahoma

32. Kansas City Chiefs: Caden Sterns, S, Texas

3. Carolina Panthers: Penei Sewell, OT, Oregon

While it's impossible to rule out a quarterback for the Carolina Panthers next season, they only recently signed veteran Teddy Bridgewater to a three-year, $63 million deal. If Bridgewater continues the high level of play he showcased in 2019 with the New Orleans Saints, Carolina will instead look for supporting talent.

Perhaps no player in the draft would better support an established quarterback than Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell. The Ducks standout is a high-end tackle prospect, one whom NFL Media's Daniel Jeremiah recently compared to Pro Bowler Taylor Lewan.

"Sewell plays with more power, while Lewan was a little more athletic adjusting in space," Jeremiah wrote. "Lewan has proven to be one of the league's best offensive tackles when he's dialed in and focused, making the Pro Bowl in three of his six seasons. I see the same potential for Sewell."

While the Panthers traded for left tackle Russell Okung this offseason, he is in the final year of his contract. Sewell would be an ideal replacement.

4. Cincinnati Bengals: Gregory Rousseau, Edge, Miami

Sewell is enticing enough of a prospect that the Bengals could be interested despite taking Jonah Williams a little more than a year ago. If he's off the board, though, Cincinnati could go in a couple of different directions.

A wideout like LSU's Ja'Marr Chase would make sense if veteran receiver A.J. Green proves not to be healthy in 2020 or departs in free agency—he is scheduled to play on the franchise tag. It would doubly make sense with Chase's former quarterback under center in Cincinnati.

However, the Bengals do have a 1,000-yard receiver in Tyler Boyd and just used the 33rd overall pick on Tee Higgins. So it could make even more sense to address the other side of the ball. Miami pass-rusher Gregory Rousseau could be the perfect target.

Cincinnati only produced 31 sacks as a team in 2019. The pass rush has to improve if the Bengals hope to compete in the AFC North. Rousseau, who had 15.5 sacks last season, could immediately improve it.

Pass-rushers are always in high demand—one has gone second overall in each of the past two drafts—and if Rousseau has another strong campaign in 2020, he will be a near lock for the top five.

5. Miami Dolphins: Ja'Marr Chase, WR, LSU

This brings us to Chase, who may be the consensus No. 1 receiver prospect with Clemson wideout Justyn Ross likely to miss the season after undergoing spinal surgery. Chase is a premium receiver prospect who matches up with anyone from the vaunted 2020 receiver class.

Jeremiah recently described Chase as a mixture of JuJu Smith-Schuster, Anquan Boldin and Steve Smith Sr.

"In my opinion, Smith and Boldin are both future Hall of Famers and Smith-Schuster is one of the best young talents in the NFL," he wrote. "Chase has that type of upside."

Chase, who racked up 1,780 receiving yards and 20 touchdowns in 2019, is a future No. 1 wideout in the NFL. For the Miami Dolphins, he would be a perfect complement to DeVante Parker and would aid the development of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.