CLEVELAND (AP) — The worst-kept secret in the NFL is now public.
The Jacksonville Jaguars have used the first overall pick in the draft to select Trevor Lawrence. The Clemson quarterback was outstanding in his three college seasons, completing 67% of his passes for 10,098 yards, 90 touchdowns and just 17 interceptions while also rushing for 943 yards. Lawrence is widely considered the best college QB prospect since Andrew Luck nearly a decade ago and will pair with new head coach Urban Meyer as the faces of the franchise.
Lawrence won a national championship as a freshman, taking game MVP honors as the Tigers hammered Alabama, 44-16. He finished second in the Heisman Trophy balloting as a junior last season before entering the draft.
Quarterbacks also were taken with the next two picks as BYU’s Zach Wilson went second to the Jets and North Dakota State’s Trey Lance headed to the 49ers at No. 3.
It marks just the third time quarterbacks were taken with each of the first three picks in a draft.
The Minnesota Vikings have selected Virginia Tech offensive tackle Christian Darrisaw with the 23rd overall pick in the NFL draft. They moved down nine spots with a familiar draft-night trade to stockpile more picks. Darrisaw is a late-blooming, athletic blocker at 6-foot-5 and 322 pounds. He was a second team All-American in 2020 who can fill a significant need at left tackle after Riley Reiff was released. The Vikings had the No. 14 spot on the board, which would have been their highest in six years. They sent it to the New York Jets with one of their four choices in the fourth round.
The Denver Broncos bypassed quarterbacks Justin Fields and Mac Jones to select Alabama cornerback Pat Surtain II in the first round of the NFL draft. The surprising move comes one day after new general manager George Paton acquired veteran quarterback Teddy Bridgewater from the Carolina Panthers in exchange for a sixth-round draft pick this weekend. Surtain is the second consecutive Alabama alum selected in the first round by the Broncos, who drafted wide receiver Jerry Jeudy with the 15th overall pick last year.
