When Micah Parsons opted out of the 2020 Big Ten Football season, he knew he would be a first-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.

Since then NFL analysts have projected Parsons to go as high as top-five or as low as the mid-20’s. While most agree on his potential and raw ability at linebacker, some draft experts have circulated concerns over the Harrisburg native’s character.

The unique run on quarterbacks has also impacted how the first round will shake out with potentially all of the first 4 picks being QBs.

With all the uncertainty surrounding how high Parsons will be draft, The Sports Extra Podcast team weighs in.

Producer Dave Shiner

PICK: Eagles at No. 12 (Shiner is an Eagles fan, clearly)
REASON: “Obviously my homer pick is at No. 12. We [the Eagles] end up picking up a Micah Parsons who dropped lower than we thought. It’s crazy. You hear all these different reports. Some people are saying he’s going to drop as low as No. 17. I just don’t see that. Talent’s too high up there. Ultimately, I would love to see the Eagles make a play for him, whether its moving up maybe making another draft trade to get a receiver in a later round.”

NIGHTMARE SCENARIO: Having to watch another Penn State LB play for the Cowboys
REASON: “Dallas at 10 really scares me. Everyone knows how much I hated watching Sean Lee in a different blue and white. There’s no way that if he even makes it past the top ten that Pittsburgh who is hurting for linebackers (just lost [Bud] Dupree) that they don’t make a play on it. [Steelers Head Coach Mike] Tomlin is a defensive coach so they’re not known for making a lot of first round moves.”

Logan Reever

PICK: Somewhere between Pick No. 8-10
REASON: “I think he’s definitely going to go top 10. In that 8-10 range. I don’t see a scenario where he goes past that. I think, yes, Carolina is taking calls on that pick, as are a lot of people. Carolina—the fact that they just got Darnold, just got their quarterback in a sense. Now, it appears that they’ll go defense because they still need that facet. Then you have No. 9 with the Broncos, and we know they love linebackers. Von Miller basically being done for and getting out of town. [Micah’s] the guy they could bring in, to bring in the new regime. If it’s not them and its 10 at the cowboys, I don’t see where he doesn’t go there.”

FOCUS: Everything hinges on Falcons at Pick No. 4
REASON: “I think the No. 4 pick is going to decide everything. If the Falcons decide to go with [Florida TE Kyle] Pitts—or if they even decide to go with a quarterback, which I don’t really find as likely—if they decide to go with a QB ,then I think that opens up a whole new door for Micah because then he becomes the best available player.”

Allie Berube

PICK: Cowboys at Pick No. 10
REASON: “I’d be very curious if he fell all the way to the Eagles. Yes, he grew up a Cowboys fan; his dad is still a Cowboys fan. He played his last college game the Cotton Bowl inside Cowboys Stadium. He has posted on Twitter and Instagram saying ‘I would love to play where I ended my college career.’ So I think that’s definitely in the conversation. I do think he’s going to go to the Cowboys because I think Jerry Jones can create such a buzz around Micah’s personality. The dude is hysterical. The Cowboys aren’t afraid of stars. You know they’re not afraid of guys who make headlines who people latch on to.”

SIDE NOTE: Broncos/Penn State connection with KJ Hamler
REASON: “I am interested in the Broncos. Obviously Penn State’s KJ Hamler is there right now, and they’re buddies. I think there’s probably some conversations that KJ has had with coaches about who Micah is behind closed doors.”

Producer Tyler Galaskas

PICK: Anything after Pick No. 7 is an insult
REMEMBER: Micah was a monster since midgets
REASON: “My first career experience really was watching Micah in high school. If some of you have never seen his highlights from high school, let me tell you. Every single time Micah touched the ball, he scored a touchdown. That’s not an exaggeration. He was just a monster and you just knew, as soon as you saw him play that he was going to be this kind of star.”

“I think him not playing last season is what’s causing this kind of slide. People are forgetting how good he actually is. So I’m going to go less from a mock draft perspective and I’m going to go from a personal perspective because I saw him play. I’m going to say he should not fall past top seven.”

The 2021 NFL Draft begins on Thursday, April 29, and will be broadcast live on abc27.

You can catch The Sports Extra Podcast presented by abc27 starting April 22nd. The team drops new episodes every Thursday. Listen wherever you get your podcasts or right here on abc27.com.

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