The Washington Football Team desperately needs a playmaker at linebacker. Fortunately for the Football Team, the 2021 NFL draft offers them some strong options.
There is no better option than Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons.
At one point, it seemed inevitable that Parsons would be the first defensive player selected and somewhere in the latter half of the top 10. However, some maturity issues from his past lingered, which questioned how high he would go.
In Doug Farrar’s final mock draft for Touchdown Wire, he has Parsons falling to No. 19 and landing with the Washington Football Team. This would be a home run for the WFT.
With five former first-round picks on their defensive line, and the brilliant acquisition of cornerback William Jackson III in free agency, the Football Team is setting itself up to have perhaps the NFL’s best defense in 2021. They ranked third last season behind only the Steelers and Saints in Football Outsiders’ opponent-adjusted metrics, so it’s not a far-fetched claim. The one thing that could push Ron Rivera’s defense over the top is the addition of a true table-setting linebacker who can blitz, blow up run fits, and has the agility to cover all over the field. Parsons qualifies on all counts. Built like a terrifying strong safety at 6-foot-3 and 246 pounds, Parsons has a rare combination of blitz ability, run-stopping and coverage potential that would give Rivera a taste of the linebacker talent he had with the Panthers in Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis.
Parsons is a plug-and-play linebacker for Rivera and defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio.
If he is available at No. 19, it’s difficult to see Washington passing on a phenomenal talent at a position of need.