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'Slim' chance no defensive players get drafted in top 10 for first time in history?

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Steve DelVecchio | Last updated 4/25/21

This year’s NFL Draft features five quarterbacks who could be taken in the first 10 picks, which means we are not likely to see many defensive players come off the board during that time. History would tell us there will be at least one, but is there a chance history won’t repeat itself?

Andrew Siciliano noted on Sunday that there is a chance — albeit a slim one — that not a single defensive player is taken in the first 10 picks of the 2021 NFL Draft. If that happened, it would be the first time in the history of the event.

I’m tell you there’s a chance (slim) that no deffensive players are taken in the top-10 of the @NFLDraft Thursday night.

It would be a first.

There has NEVER been an @NFL Draft (common era, since 1967) without a defensive player in the top-10.

— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) April 25, 2021

Many analysts are predicting that Trevor Lawrence, Zach Wilson, Mac Jones, Justin Fields and Trey Lance will all be taken within the first 10 picks. Florida tight end Kyle Pitts and Oregon offensive lineman Penei Sewell also seem like locks. Other offensive players who could be drafted early include LSU wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase and Alabama receiver Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith. Some are projecting that Northwestern tackle Rashawn Slater could be an even better prospect than Sewell, so he could be a top-10 pick as well.

When you look at the draft board, the idea of the top 10 picks all being offensive players doesn’t sound that weird. We even know of at least one team that might be interested in trading into the top 10 for a QB.

In short, it could happen.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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