Gerald Herbert/Associated Press
If you need any indication how heavily the NFL has leaned into the run-and-gun, throw-it-all-over style of offense that originated at the college level, No. 1 picks are a good place to start. With Joe Burrow’s selection by the Bengals, the last three players taken first in the draft—and nine of the past 12—have been quarterbacks.
As teams try to find the next Patrick Mahomes, Deshaun Watson or Aaron Rodgers to helm their offense for the next decade, college signal-callers have become even further scrutinized. In the 2021 draft—much like the 2020 one—two elite quarterbacks stand above the rest.