2021 NFL Draft: Green Bay Packers select wide receiver Amari Rodgers; Tampa Bay Buccaneers take quarterback Kyle Trask

In a week where the future of quarterback Aaron Rodgers was thrust into the spotlight, it seemed only too fitting that the Green Bay Packers would turn to his namesake Amari Rodgers as their eagerly-awaited wide receiver pickup at the 2021 NFL Draft.

Green Bay acquired the No. 85 overall pick from the Tennessee Titans in exchange for the No. 92 and No. 135 selections to move up and make Clemson’s Rodgers their fourth-highest drafted receiver since Aaron Rodgers was named starter in 2008.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Minnesota Vikings and Houston Texans were among those to cast an eye towards the future as all three selected quarterbacks, the Chicago Bears recruited immediate protection for Justin Fields, the New York Jets supplied Zach Wilson with a new weapon, and the Denver Broncos claimed one of the top running backs on the board.

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A message from new #Packers WR @arodgers_3! #PackersDraft | @SiriusXMNFL pic.twitter.com/wF18FYnMBe

Having officially unveiled quarterback Trevor Lawrence as the No. 1 overall pick on day one, the Jacksonville Jaguars opened Friday night by taking Georgia cornerback Tyson Campbell with the first pick of round two, during which they also welcomed Stanford offensive tackle Walker Little (No. 45) and Syracuse safety Andre Cisco (No. 65).

With the third pick of the evening, the Denver Broncos sought a replacement for Phillip Lindsay and a new backfield partner for Melvin Gordon by snapping up North Carolina’s bruising running back Javonte Williams.

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Two of the nastiest offensive linemen on the board fell shortly after as the Philadelphia Eagles invested the 37th overall selection in Alabama’s interior bulldozer Landon Dickerson, before the Bears snapped up Oklahoma State tackle Teven Jenkins at No 39.

The Miami Dolphins and Cincinnati Bengals also made sure to strengthen the protection for their young quarterbacks Tua Tagovailoa and Joe Burrow by clinching Notre Dame tackle Liam Eichenberg and Clemson guard Jackson Carman at No. 42 and No. 46 overall, respectively.

Defensive tackle Christian Barmore became the latest member of Alabama’s National Championship-winning side to fall when the New England Patriots traded up to secure his services at No. 38, before Florida State cornerback Asante Samuel Jr., son of the former two-time Super Bowl champion, was made a Los Angeles Charger at No. 47.

After trading back for the first time in nine Drafts on Thursday, New York Giants general manager Dave Gettleman evidently got a taste for it as he moved back to No. 50 to lock in Georgia edge rusher Azeez Ojulari.

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Notre Dame linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, who many touted as an early first-rounder, finally found a suitor in the Cleveland Browns at No. 52 in one of the potential steals of the night, and the Pittsburgh Steelers made Penn State’s Pat Freiermuth the second tight end off the board at No. 55.

Among other notable moves, the Bengals added Texas pass rusher Joseph Ossai at No. 69, the San Francisco 49ers grabbed Ohio State running back Trey Sermon at No. 88, and the Tennessee Titans rounded off the top 100 with intelligent Washington safety Elijah Molden.

Receivers fly

Joe Douglas and the Jets showed no hesitation in arming No 2 pick Wilson with another target as they turned to gifted Ole Miss technician Elijah Moore at 34th overall, before the Arizona Cardinals recruited Purdue’s explosive do-it-all Rondale Moore with the 49th pick.

Rondale Moore can FLY. pic.twitter.com/fQfVTcX3K2

The Seattle Seahawks evidenced their need to speed with the No. 56 selection by complementing DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett with Western Michigan’s chunk-play merchant D’Wayne Eskridge, who interestingly played at cornerback in 2019, and the Los Angeles Rams followed a similar route immediately after by turning to the services of Louisville’s Tutu Atwell.

Panthers second-year head coach Matt Rhule ended a run of eight straight defensive Draft picks dating back to 2020 when Carolina responded to the offseason loss of Curtis Samuel by introducing the versatility of LSU’s rangy Terrace Marshall late in the second round.

Tennessee’s Josh Palmer was next off the board when he landed with the Los Angeles Chargers at 77th overall in the third round, followed by Dyami Brown to Washington at 82nd overall, with many having projected the North Carolina deep-threat as a round two talent.

It’s already been written.. ?? pic.twitter.com/VpgU417sEV

Then came the Packers’ big moment, general manager Brian Gutekunst trading up to take Clemson’s Rodgers, a day after it was reported his reigning MVP quarterback did not wish to return to Green Bay this offseason.

There was still time for two more, Michigan’s Nico Collins heading to the Houston Texans and Auburn’s speedster Anthony Schwartz, who ran an unofficial 4.26 40-yard dash at his Pro Day, joining up with the Cleveland Browns.

Three more QBs fall

Quarterbacks had dominated round one as three were taken in the first three picks, before the Bears traded up for Fields and the Patriots put their faith in Alabama’s Mac Jones. It raised the question heading into Friday: who would be next?

The Super Bowl champion Bucs provided an answer with the final pick of round two when they selected Florida’s Kyle Trask, who finished the 2020 season 301 of 437 passing for 4,283 yards, 43 touchdowns and eight interceptions while throwing to the likes of Kyle Pitts. His job? Proving himself as an eventual successor to Tom Brady.

A special moment ? pic.twitter.com/ecQOW161xi

A flicker of uncertainty loomed over the future of Kirk Cousins upon the second pick of the third round in light of the Minnesota Vikings making the call to Texas A&M quarterback Kellen Mond. He marked the first of four third-round picks for the Vikings, followed by North Carolina linebacker Chazz Surratt (No. 78), Ohio State guard Wyatt Davis (No. 86) and Pittsburgh defensive end Patrick Jones II (No. 90).

Mond recorded 2,282 yards passing for 19 touchdowns and three interceptions in 10 games in 2020, as well as 294 rushing yards for four scores from 74 carries.

The Houston Texans also got in on the act with the next pick, welcoming Stanford signal-caller Davis Mills, who played just 13 games in college.

Round Two selections:

No. 33 – Tyson Campbell, CB (Georgia) – Jacksonville Jaguars

No. 34 – Elijah Moore, WR (Ole Miss) – New York Jets

No. 35 – Javonte Williams, RB (North Carolina) – Denver Broncos (trade with Atlanta Falcons)

No. 36 – Jevon Holland, S (Oregon) – Miami Dolphins

No. 37 – Landon Dickerson, OG (Alabama) – Philadelphia Eagles

No. 38 – Christian Barmore, DT (Alabama) – New England Patriots (trade with Cincinnati Bengals)

No. 39 – Teven Jenkins, OT (Oklahoma St.) – Chicago Bears (trade with Carolina Panthers)

No. 40 – Richie Grant, S (UCF) – Atlanta Falcons

No. 41 – Levi Onwuzurike, DT (Washington) – Detroit Lions

No. 42 – Liam Eichenberg, OT (Notre Dame) – Miami Dolphins (trade with New York Giants)

No. 43 – Trevon Moehrig, S (TCU) – Las Vegas Raiders (trade with San Francisco 49ers)

No. 44 – Kelvin Joseph, CB (Kentucky) – Dallas Cowboys

No. 45 – Walker Little, OT (Stanford) – Jacksonville Jaguars

No. 46 – Jackson Carman, OT (Clemson) – Cincinnati Bengals

No. 47 – Asante Samuel Jr., CB (Florida St.) – Los Angeles Chargers

No. 48 – Aaron Banks, OG (Notre Dame) – San Francisco 49ers

No. 49 – Rondale Moore, WR (Purdue) – Arizona Cardinals

No. 50 – Azeez Ojulari, EDGE (Georgia) – New York Giants

No. 51 – Samuel Cosmi, OT (Texas) – Washington Football Team

No. 52 – Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, LB (Notre Dame) – Cleveland Browns (trade with Carolina Panthers)

No. 53 – Dillon Radunz, OT (North Dakota St.) – Tennessee Titans

No. 54 -Dayo Odeyingbo, DE (Vanderbilt) – Indianapolis Colts

No. 55 – Pat Freiermuth, TE (Penn St.) – Pittsburgh Steelers

No. 56 -D’Wayne Eskridge, WR (Western Michigan) – Seattle Seahawks

No. 57 – Tutu Atwell, WR (Louisville) – Los Angeles Rams

No. 58 – Nick Bolton, LB (Missouri) – Kansas City Chiefs

No. 59 – Terrace Marshall Jr., (LSU) – Carolina Panthers

No. 60 – Pete Werner, LB (Ohio St.) – New Orleans Saints

No. 61 – Carlos Basham Jr., EDGE (Wake Forest) – Buffalo Bills

No. 62 – Josh Myers, C (Ohio St.) – Green Bay Packers

No. 63 – Creed Humphrey, C (Oklahoma) – Kansas City Chiefs

No. 64 – Kyle Trask, QB (Florida) – Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Round Three selections:

No. 65 – Andre Cisco, S (Syracuse) – Jacksonville Jaguars

No. 66 – Kellen Mond, QB (Texas A&M) – Minnesota Vikings

No. 67 – Davis Mills, QB (Stanford) – Houston Texans

No. 68 – Jalen Mayfield, OT (Michigan) – Atlanta Falcons

No. 69 – Joseph Ossai, EDGE (Texas) – Cincinnati Bengals

No. 70 – Brady Christensen, OT (BYU) – Carolina Panthers (trade with Philadelphia Eagles)

No. 71 – Aaron Robinson, CB (UCF) – New York Giants

No. 72 – Alim McNeil, DT (NC State) – Detroit Lions

No. 73 – Milton Williams, DT (Louisiana Tech) – Philadelphia Eagles

No. 74 – Benjamin St-Juste, CB (Minnesota) – Washington Football Team

No. 75 – Osa Odighizuwa, DT (UCLA) – Dallas Cowboys

No. 76 – Paulson Adebo, CB (Stanford) – New Orleans Saints (trade with Denver Broncos)

No. 77 – Josh Palmer, WR (Tennessee) – Los Angeles Chargers

No. 78 – Chazz Surratt, LB (North Carolina) – Minnesota Vikings

No. 79 – Malcolm Koonce, LB (Buffalo) – Las Vegas Raiders

No. 80 – Divine Deablo, S (Virginia Tech) -Oakland Raiders

No. 81 – Hunter Long, TE (Boston College) – Miami Dolphins

No. 82 – Dyami Brown, WR (North Carolina) – Washington Football Team

No. 83 – Tommy Tremble, TE (Notre Dame) – Carolina Panthers

No. 84 – Chauncey Golston, DE (Iowa) – Dallas Cowboys

No. 85 – Amari Rodgers, WR (Clemson) – Green Bay Packers (trade with Tennessee Titans)

No. 86 – Wyatt Davis, OG (Ohio St.) – Minnesota Vikings

No. 87 – Kendrick Green, OG (Illinois) – Pittsburgh Steelers

No. 88 – Trey Sermon, RB (Ohio St.) – San Francisco 49ers (trade with Los Angeles Rams)

No. 89 – Nico Collins, WR (Michigan) – Houston Texans (trade with Carolina Panthers)

No. 90 – Patrick Jones, EDGE (Pitt) – Minnesota Vikings

No. 91 – Anthony Schwartz, WR (Auburn) – Cleveland Browns

No. 92 – Monty Rice, LB (Georgia) – Tennessee Titans

No. 93 – Spencer Brown, OT (Northern Iowa) – Buffalo Bills

No. 94 – Ben Cleveland, OG (Georgia) – Baltimore Ravens

No. 95 – Robert Hainsey, OG (Notre Dame) – Tampa Bay Buccaneers

No. 96 – Ronnie Perkins, EDGE (Oklahoma) – New England Patriots

No. 97 – Tre’ McKitty, TE (Georgia) – Los Angeles Chargers

No. 98 – Quinn Meinerz, OG (Wisconsin-Whitewater) – Denver Broncos

No. 99 – Nashon Wright, CB (Oregon St.) – Dallas Cowboys

No. 100 – Elijah Molden, CB (Washington) – Tennessee Titans

No. 101 – Ifeatu Melifonwu, CB (Syracuse) – Detroit Lions

No. 102 – Ambry Thomas, CB (Michigan ) – San Francisco 49ers

No. 103 – Ernest Jones, LB (South Carolina) – Los Angeles Rams

No. 104 – Brandon Stephens, CB (Southern Methodist) – Baltimore Ravens

No. 105 – Baron Browning, LB (Ohio St.) – Denver Broncos

Coverage of the NFL Draft continues on Sky Sports NFL on Saturday with rounds four to seven.

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