By Jack Follman, SuperWest Sports

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With Pro Days in the books and the 2021 NFL Draft approaching, there’s been some shuffling of Pac-12 player projections.

It’s a good time to start taking a look again at how Conference prospects are faring as we head into the final stretch before the Draft.

Here are some of the top storylines for the Pac-12 to watch, followed by my updated two-round mock NFL Draft.

● Can Oregon’s Penei Sewell hold off Rashawn Slater and stay in the Top 10?

The overwhelming consensus for a long time was Sewell that would easily be the first non-QB off the board, but over the past few months, Northwestern offensive lineman, Slater, has exploded and is moving ahead of Sewell in some mocks behind fantastic testing numbers and a good performance against Chase Young.

If Sewell slips it probably has more to do with teams needing QBs and WRs early and the level of talent at those positions, along with Slater’s surge, than any evaluation of him. Nonetheless, it will certainly be interesting to watch.

● The emergence of Davis Mills—Stanford’s 2020 starter and quietly the highest-rated QB in the Pac-12 last season—has started to climb up boards to the point of being the top QB after the first round shoe-ins of Lawrence-Wilson-Fiels-Jones-Lance.

I’ve liked Mills for a long time and think he put together a lot of the talent that made him a blue chip recruit coming out of high school and could go as high as the Second Round now.

● Who sneaks into the second round? The Pac-12 has a handful of players who seem right on the edge of making it into that Group of 32.

Oregon’s Jevon Holland, Stanford’s Paulson Adebo and Walker Little and Washington’s Elijah Molden and Joe Tryon, are all likely candidates to keep an eye on.

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—First Round—

1. Jacksonville – Trevor Lawrence, Quarterback, Clemson

2. Jets – Zach Wilson, Quarterback, BYU

3. San Francisco – Mac Jones, Quarterback, Alabama

4. Denver (trade) – Justin Fields, Quarterback, Ohio State

5. Cincinnati – Ja’Marr Chase, Wide Receiver, LSU

6. Miami – Jaylen Waddle, Wide Receiver, Alabama

7. Detroit – DeVonta Smith, Wide Receiver, Alabama

8. Carolina – Penei Sewell, Tackle, Oregon

The elite talent and need at QB and WR pushes Sewell down as a huge score for the Panthers, who get what they anticipate to be a long-time franchise left tackle with the eighth pick. I think Sewell goes before Slater as his proven ability to dominate at left tackle and potential at age 20 shine through.

9. Atlanta (trade) – Kyle Pitts, Tight End, Florida

10. Dallas – Rashawn Slater, Guard, Northwestern

11. Giants – Micah Parsons, Linebacker, Penn State

12. Philadelphia – Patrick Surtain II, Cornerback, Alabama

13. Chargers – Alijah Vera-Tucker, Tackle, USC

The Chargers stay local to get Justin Herbert’s protection. AVT was superb in 2020 and it paid off, pushing him into the middle of the first round. His versatility will also be a huge value as he can play anywhere on the line, though a franchise left tackle is probably where the Chargers would like to have him most.

14. Minnesota – Christian Barmore, Defensive Tackle, Alabama

15. New England – Trey Lane, Quarterback, North Dakota State

16. Arizona – Jaycee Horn, Cornerback, South Carolina

17. Las Vegas – Teven Jenkins, Tackle, Oklahoma State

18. Miami – Jaelan Phillips, Defensive End, Miami

19. Washington – Sam Cosmi, Tackle, Texas

20. Chicago – Alex Leatherwood, Tackle, Alabama

21. Indianapolis – Greg Newsome II, Cornerback, Northwestern

22. Tennessee – Terrace Marshall, Wide Receiver, LSU

23. Jets – Travis Etienne, Running Back, Clemson

24. Pittsburgh – Caleb Farley, Cornerback, Virginia Tech

25. Jacksonville – Jalen Mayfield, Tackle, Michigan

26. Cleveland – Kwity Paye, Defensive End, Michigan

27. Baltimore – Carlos Basham, Defensive End, Wake Forest

28. New Orleans – Tyson Campbell, Cornerback, Georgia

29. Green Bay – Rashod Bateman, Wide Receiver, Minnesota

30. Buffalo – Asante Samuel Jr., Cornerback, Florida State

31. Kansas City – Rondale Moore, Wide Receiver, Purdue

32. Tampa Bay – Christian Barmore, Defensive Tackle, Alabama

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—Second Round—

33. Jacksonville – Kadarius Toney, Wide Receiver, Florida

34. Jets – Jayson Oweh, Defensive End, Penn State

35. Atlanta – Greg Rousseau, Defensive End, Miami

36. Miami – Javante Williams, Running Back, North Carolina

37. Philadelphia – Elijah Moore, Wide Receiver, Mississippi

38. Cincinnati – Jackson Carman, Tackle, Clemson

39. Carolina – Kelvin Joseph, Cornerback, Kentucky

40. Denver – Zaven Collins, Linebacker, Tulsa

41. Detroit – Ifeatu Melifonwu, Cornerback, Syracuse

42. Giants – Ronnie Perkins, Defensive End, Oklahoma

43. San Francisco – Wyatt Davis, Guard, Ohio State

44. Dallas – Levi Onwuzurike, Defensive Tackle, Washington

Onwuzurike has impressed enough in the offseason that he’s drawing major First Round interest as a versatile DT. The only problem is, value on DTs is low, and not many teams need them this year, so I think Barmore gets that final first round slot. This will be a good landing spot for him, though, as the second DT off the board.

45. Jacksonville – Trevon Moehrig, Safety, TCU

46. New England – Azeez Ojulari, Linebacker, Georgia

47. Chargers – Jamin Davis, Linebacker, Kentucky

48. Las Vegas – Nick Bolton, Linebacker, Missouri

49. Arizona – Najee Harris, Running Back, Alabama

50. Miami – Pat Freiermuth, Tight End, Penn State

51. Washington – Andre Cisco, Safety, Syracuse

 

52. Chicago – Davis Mills, Quarterback, Stanford

I think Mills has overtaken Kyle Trask as the best QB after those that go in the First Round, and I think a team that isn’t able to take one of them goes after Mills in the Second. Mills is big, polished, efficient and throws a nice ball with some solid mobility and pocket presence, a decent option if you can’t get one of the big names early.

53. Tennessee – Aaron Robinson, Cornerback, UCF

54. Indianapolis – Trey Smith, Tackle, Tennessee

55. Pittsburgh – Creed Humphrey, Center, Oklahoma

56. Seattle – Milton Williams, Defensive End, Louisiana Tech

57. Rams – Dillon Radunz, Tackle, North Dakota State

58. Baltimore – Jevon Holland, Safety, Oregon

I think Holland pushed himself back into the Second Round with his Pro Day. His ability to play cornerback and/or safety makes him a very nice asset and a super good value at this point in the Draft as a guy who was mocked in the First Round sometimes earlier in the cycle.

59. Cleveland – Daviyon Nixon, Defensive Tackle, Iowa

60. New Orleans – D’Wayne Eskridge, Wide Receiver, Western Michigan

61. Buffalo – Joe Tryon, Defensive End, Washington

Tryon is another guy who I think solidified himself as a Second Rounder with his Pro Day. He was super fast while checking in with good size. He’s definitely one of those prospects whose tools and body are pushing him higher than his college production, but that also means he has tons of room to grow as a player. He would be a great steal for a team looking for a pass rusher like Buffalo at this point.

62. Green Bay – Eric Stokes, Cornerback, Georgia

63. Kansas City – Walker Little, Tackle, Stanford

Injuries and uncertainty have pushed Little further and further down the board. He seems like exactly the kind of player Andy Reid and the Chiefs could rejuvenate and turn into a great NFL player. The tools are all there for him to be a Pro Bowl tackle.

64. Tampa Bay – Tylan Wallace, Wide Receiver, Oklahoma State