4 best-value first-round picks in the 2021 NFL Draft

2. OT Christian Darrisaw, Vikings

As a prospect, I like Rashawn Slater better than Christian Darrisaw, as I have a lot fewer questions about the Northwestern product. However, considering draft position, Darrisaw was my second-favorite pick of the entire first round. It’s not often that a 21-year-old offensive tackle who graded out as one of the best players in the country falls outside of the top ten picks, let alone to the back-half of their first. At such an important position, these players typically don’t make it outside of the top 15 on a normal year.

Fortunately for the Minnesota Vikings, Darrisaw was ripe for the picking with the 23rd overall selection after a trade-back with the Jets. Perhaps they had an idea that he would fall this far, but the media certainly didn’t. The big Virginia Tech offensive tackle was slated to go anywhere as high as inside the top 10 picks in the draft. In a typical year for offensive linemen, perhaps this would have been the case, but the 2021 draft class was particularly loaded at the position, and perhaps this caused him to slip.

I did hear that there were some concerns about Darrisaw’s work ethic, and it’s possible that this could have been enough to scare a few tackle-needy teams away. Still, landing a future left tackle with zero holes in his game with the 23rd pick is remarkable, and I would bet on Darrisaw proving himself as one of the best-value picks of the first round in the 2021 NFL Draft.