Instant Reaction: 2021 NFL Draft Rounds 2-3 Winners/Losers

Rishi Patel provides instant reaction to the second and third round of the 2021 NFL Draft from a fantasy football viewpoint. Which players were among the biggest winners and losers after Rounds Two and Three?

The NFL Draft continued with its second and third rounds on Friday and many talented players who were left were selected by teams. Some could even make an impact right away.

Fantasy football is all about players that can make an impact on your team. You need guys who can be consistent and provide solid numbers each week. Which of these second or third-round draft picks landed in ideal fantasy situations and which didn’t? What other players benefitted or didn’t in terms of fantasy? Let’s break it down.

Be sure to also check out the rest of our NFL Draft coverage and analysis, including the fantasy winners/losers for all other rounds of the draft.

• 2025 fantasy football rankings
• Running back (RB) fantasy football rankings
• Wide receiver (WR) fantasy football rankings
• Tight end (TE) fantasy football rankings
• Quarterback (QB) fantasy football rankings
• FLEX fantasy football rankings
• Defense (D/ST) fantasy football rankings
• Kicker (K) fantasy football rankings
• Dynasty fantasy football rankings

NFL Draft Rounds 2-3: Winners

Zach Wilson, QB, New York Jets

The Jets did what they could for their new hopeful franchise QB, getting a solid offensive lineman in Alijah-Vera Tucker in the first round and getting another solid WR at the start of the second round in Elijah Moore out of Ole Miss.

Moore will join second-year player Denzel Mims and former Titans wideout Corey Davis as one of the top three receivers for New York. Wilson will now have a solid trio to throw to as he sets out to prove he’s the guy for the Jets.

Moore certainly helps Wilson out a lot. The Ole Miss receiver is coming off his best college season in 2020 where he posted 86 receptions for 1,193 yards and eight receiving touchdowns along with 14 carries for 64 yards in only eight games. Moore finished second in the FBS in receptions and reception yards among WRs and is a huge steal for the Jets while giving Wilson even more opportunities to succeed in his rookie year.

Sam Darnold, QB, Carolina Panthers

First thing is that Carolina didn’t draft a QB, meaning they have trust in Darnold. The second thing is the team went out and got him another weapon in Terrace Marshall Jr. out of LSU to play alongside D.J. Moore and Robby Anderson. This arguably gives Darnold the most talented trio of wideouts to work with in his short career. Marshall is coming off his best college season where he posted 48 receptions for 731 yards and 10 touchdowns, all in seven games. He should provide another great presence on the field for Darnold as the QB looks to solidify his reputation in the NFL.

Dyami Brown, WR, Washington Football Team

On a team devoid of many proven pass-catchers, Brown enters a situation where he can immediately make an impact as he will likely be behind Terry McLaurin and Curtis Samuel on the Washington WR depth chart heading into 2021. Therefore, Brown can be the WR3 on the squad and try to carve out a solid role for himself this upcoming season. He certainly has the talent as he posted 1,034 yards with North Carolina in 2019 and 1,099 in 2020. He also had 20 total touchdowns combined in those two seasons. Brown finished sixth in reception yards among FBS WRs in 2020 and could be a decent option for fantasy managers this upcoming season if things go in his favor.

NFL Draft Rounds 2-3: Losers

Kyle Trask, QB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Though he may not have been one of the most publicized QBs heading into the draft, Trask is certainly no joke in terms of his production. The QB posted the second-most passing yards in the FBS in 2020 with 4,283, only coming in behind Mac Jones. He also had the most passing touchdowns with 43.

That could easily put him in the starting conversation on another team, but he landed with the Bucs, who have the GOAT. Because Tom Brady seemingly plans to play for more seasons, Trask will likely not see the field any time soon. There is no competition or chance he outduels Brady for the starting position and that means he could be warming the bench for a while. While he does get a chance to be groomed by the best, his fantasy value is non-existent for now barring injuries.

Allen Lazard and Marquez Valdes-Scantling, WR, Green Bay Packers

Regardless of who will be throwing the ball this season, both these WRs could see their playing time decrease if they do not perform well as the Packers finally realized it was time to draft a WR and selected Amari Rodgers out of Clemson in the third round.

None of these two receivers have proven they are a legitimate option in the passing game and the fantasy value they have tried to build may dwindle down to nothing if Rodgers comes in and steals targets and production.

In three seasons, Lazard hasn’t posted more than 477 yards in a single season while Valdes-Scantling does have 690 in a single season but still hasn’t carved himself out as an elite option in fantasy.

Meanwhile, Rodgers is coming off a season at Clemson where he posted 77 receptions for 1,020 yards and seven scores. He finished with the fourth-most receptions and 10^th-most receiving yards among FBS WRs. Rodgers will likely try to fight for the WR2 or WR3 spot on the team, meaning one or both guys could be affected in fantasy.

Melvin Gordon III, RB, Denver Broncos

With Philip Lindsay now in Houston, it seemed Melvin Gordon would be the true workhorse back for the Broncos heading into 2021. Nevertheless, the team drafted an RB in the second round, Javonte Williams out of North Carolina.

Williams is coming off his best college season in 2020, getting 1,140 rushing yards and 19 rush touchdowns along with 25 receptions for 305 yards and three receiving touchdowns. The youngster finished with the sixth-most rushing yards in the FBS among RBs and tied for the third-most rush touchdowns. Williams could certainly cut into Gordon’s production and lessen his fantasy value as the season progresses.

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