2021 NFL Draft: Who Do Kiper and McShay Mock to the Jaguars at 2?

While we continue to march through the 2020 season, we will take looks at mock drafts from throughout the football industry to reflect on what outside projections for the Jacksonville Jaguars look like.

The Jaguars currently hold the No. 2 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, along with the Los Angeles Rams first-round pick as a result of the Jalen Ramsey trade. As of this writing, the Jaguars have 11 picks in the upcoming draft.

If Week 13 taught the Jacksonville Jaguars anything, it is likely that Trevor Lawrence just isn't meant to be. They still have a chance, of course, to finish with a worse record than the New York Jets over the next month, but last Sunday seemed like a seismic shift that would send Lawrence to the Garden State.

With the Jaguars (1-11) driving down the field to tie with the Minnesota Vikings, the Jets (0-12) were on the verge of finding their first win of the year against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Jaguars would go on to lose, so any Jets win would have propelled the Jaguars into the No. 1 spot in the 2021 NFL Draft unless they won another game this season.

But the Jets didn't comply, with now-fired defensive coordinator Gregg Williams calling one of the worst blitzes in recent football memory and leaving undrafted free agent cornerback Lamar Jackson one-on-one with no safety help against Henry Ruggs.

Ruggs would score on the 46-yard pass with only a few seconds remaining, keeping the Jets from their most likely victory of the year and likely keeping Lawrence away from starting his career inside TIAA Bank Field.

With this in mind, it appears most mock drafters have fully pivoted and put their energy behind locking Lawrence in at No. 1 and then trying to find a new answer for the Jaguars at No. 2. This is now the likely scenario that will play out in April, of course, so it is only reasonable to project who the Jaguars can or should grab with the second pick.

In a mini-mock of the 2021 NFL Draft, ESPN draft experts Mel Kiper and Todd McShay projected the first 10 picks of this year's draft and predictably had Lawrence going to the Jets at No. 1.

But what about the Jaguars at No. 2? Who did the draft insiders slot as Jacksonville's next top draft pick? We break it down here.

No. 2: Ohio State QB Justin Fields

If this seems like an obvious pick, that is because is essentially is at this point. While BYU's Zach Wilson is a fantastic talent who will undoubtedly be picked within the first 10 selections, it is hard to see the Jaguars starting a new regime and a new era with any quarterback other than Fields.

This is the consensus that both Kiper and McShay reached, with the two pointing out what has become increasingly clear over the last several months: the Jaguars do not have their franchise quarterback on the roster and finding that player must become a priority.

"The Jaguars have a lot of needs, but the biggest hole is at quarterback," Kiper said. "It's not going to be Gardner Minshew. It's not Jake Luton or Mike Glennon. They really have to get their guy. It has to be Fields if they get this pick."

Why did the pair mock Fields to the Jaguars over Wilson, who has become the darling of the 2020 season up to this point? As Kiper put it, they think Fields hasn't caught up to Lawrence like some thought he may, but he has distanced himself as the second-best quarterback behind him.

In a lot of ways, this makes sense. Fields has had a terrific season aside from a three-interception game against Indiana, but we have extensive evidence of him performing well against high competition level. He will likely get even more chances to do so in the Big 10 championship and potentially the College Football Playoffs as well.

Wilson, meanwhile, is a bit of a one-year wonder. He started in 2019 but his production was nowhere near where it is now. While Fields has built upon an incredibly strong 2019, 2020 has been a breakout year for Wilson.

The difference, though, is that Wilson's schedule has been filled with teams with either losing records or bottom-tier defenses. He put on a show on the road against a solid Boise State team, but BYU put up just 17 points against Coastal Carolina in the biggest game of Wilson's career. Fields, meanwhile, had a down game a few weeks ago but has otherwise excelled against everything thrown at him as a Buckeye.

"After Lawrence and Fields, Lance, Wilson and Mac Jones (Alabama) have a good chance to be Day 1 selections. Kyle Trask (Florida) could even slide in there. But Fields is the clear No. 2 guy, thanks to his downfield accuracy and ability to throw off-schedule. Jacksonville can build around him," McShay said.

It has become increasingly obvious that the Jaguars won't have to debate Fields vs. Lawrence because, well, Lawrence won't be there when they pick. But over the next few months they will debate Fields vs. Wilson, Trey Lance, and others.

As of now, it sure seems like Fields is the logical pick among the group -- a take that ESPN's draft insiders agree with.