2021 NFL Mock Draft: Todd McShay gives Washington more help on defense from Alabama

As we wait for the helmets to go on at this year's modified training camp for the Washington Football Team, here is the latest mock draft from E$PN's Todd McShay.

Washington took a break from picking Alabama players after taking 5 of them from 2017-2019. Four of them played defense, and two of them were 1st round defensive linemen. A position Washington hasn't addressed with a first round pick since Carlos Rogers in 2005 is CB, and that's what McShay has in mind for them here.

Washington's secondary has a lot of questions going into this year and beyond. The team made their biggest signing of the offseason by bring Kendall Fuller back after he was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs two years ago. Last year’s Week 1 starters were either released (Josh Norman) or traded (Quinton Dunbar). Fabian Moreau returns for the final year of his rookie contract, and the team added Ronald Darby on a 1-year deal in free agency. They also have a handful of young, mostly inexperienced corners like Jimmy Moreland on the roster to develop.

The only long-term solution there is Fuller, with Moreland having potential to stick around. Should Washington use next year’s top spot on the top corner in the draft? This year will be a lot different due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis in the country. College football is likely not going to be played in the fall, and teams will be going off of what’s already on tape.

Patrick Surtain II is considered the top corner in next year’s draft by a lot of people, and has been described as a shut down corner. McShay says he could be the best defensive player in the entire draft class, which along with this year’s pick (Chase Young), would be a huge boost to a defense that got abused last year. Surtain played two years at Alabama, and his father was a Pro Bowl corner. He’s got the skills and the pedigree to get drafted in the first round, but is that the right pick for Ron Rivera’s team?

#2 Patrick Surtain II, CB, Alabama

Washington went out and got Kendall Fuller in free agency, but with Fabian Moreau and Ronald Darby set to be free agents next spring, this CB group needs a punch. And Surtain — the son of former Pro Bowl corner Patrick Surtain — is a real shutdown corner. I love his instincts, ball skills and ability to wrap up and make a tackle, but what stands out is how well he diagnoses routes and funnels receivers to where he wants them to go. He might just end up the best defensive player in the entire 2021 class, and along with 2020 No. 2 overall pick Chase Young, he’d help revamp a Washington defense that was No. 27 in yards allowed per game in 2019 (though it’d be hard for Washington to leave a guy like LSU receiver Ja’Marr Chase on the board with its issues at receiver).

More Recent 2021 NFL Mock Drafts:

Touchdown Wire - #2 Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State

With the First Pick - #2 Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State

24/7 Sports - #2 Trey Lance, QB, North Dakota State

Pro Football Network - #2 Trey Lance, QB, North Dakota State

The Draft Network - #2 Penei Sewell, OT, Oregon