Vikings select a quarterback with first pick in 2021 mock draft

A recent 2021 mock draft has the Minnesota Vikings picking a top quarterback prospect.

To say that Kirk Cousins hasn’t had the best of starts to his third season as the starting quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings would be quite the understatement.

After three games, Cousins is completing less than 60 percent of his passes, he’s throwing for less than 210 yards per contest, he’s tossed an NFL-worst six interceptions, and his 73.8 quarterback rating is lower than other guys around the league like Dwayne Haskins, Mitchell Trubisky, and Ryan Fitzpatrick.

Minnesota decided to reward Cousins with a two-year extension this past offseason, so he’s likely going to be sticking around for at least one more season following the conclusion of the 2020 campaign. Even with his extension though, the Vikings could still look to land their quarterback of the future during next year’s NFL Draft.

Minnesota Vikings use their top-five pick on a QB in 2021 mock draft

Thanks to Minnesota starting the season with three-straight losses, some members of the team’s fan base have already started to think about the prospects that will be available during the 2021 NFL Draft. This group of Vikings fans is particularly interested in the quarterback prospects that will be up for grabs.

The consensus among draft experts is that current Clemson passer Trevor Lawrence is the top quarterback prospect heading into next year’s draft and he will likely be the first signal-caller to come off of the board. Well, that’s exactly what happened during a recent 2021 mock draft that was posted by FanSided’s Brad Weiss.

With the top selection in the 2021 NFL Draft, Weiss has the Atlanta Falcons picking Lawrence. He then has the New York Giants selecting linebacker Micah Parsons right before Minnesota gets their turn to make their first pick with the third overall selection.

For the Vikings, Weiss believes current Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields will be the choice. To explain his decision, Weiss says that Fields is just too good of a prospect for Minnesota to pass up if he’s still on the board when it comes time for them to make their first pick in 2021.

Fields hasn’t played a game yet this season, as the teams in the Big Ten conference won’t play their first contest until late October. But the Ohio State quarterback is coming off of a 2019 campaign that saw him throw for 3,273 yards, 41 touchdowns, and just three interceptions. In addition to his passing numbers in 2019, Fields also rushed for 484 yards and 10 touchdowns.

If the Vikings end up drafting this Ohio State passer, there’s a good chance that the team will have him sit for most of the 2021 season and then look to transition him into becoming their starter for 2022.

Of course, this could all depend on how Cousins performs for the remainder of the current season as he and Minnesota could still turn things around. But if things continue to go poorly for the Vikings, it shouldn’t surprise anyone if they actually do end up selecting Fields in the 2021 NFL Draft.