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Re-drafting the top 15 picks of the 2021 NFL draft: Who goes No. 1?

Illustration by ESPN

It has been almost two years since the 2021 NFL draft, heralded as a top-tier quarterback class that saw five go in the first 15 picks. On Thursday night, two of them -- the top two draft picks that April -- will face off. Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars visit Zach Wilson and the New York Jets (8:15 p.m. ET, Prime Video). But would they have still been the top two picks if we re-picked that class?

With the benefit of hindsight, NFL draft analysts Matt Miller and Jordan Reid re-drafted the top 15 picks from 2021, starting with the Jags at No. 1. They explained each pick by looking at team need and player performances through nearly two full seasons. We reset the draft order to what it was entering draft day and didn't allow for new trades in the projections. That means the San Francisco 49ers are still picking at No. 3 (they traded up in March of that year), but the New York Giants' flip with the Chicago Bears at No. 11 gets voided.

What would each team do if they could do it all over again? How many quarterbacks would still land in the top 15? And how high would stars such as Micah Parsons and Ja'Marr Chase go?

Let's start with Jacksonville, with Miller winning the coin flip in our alternating re-draft and going first:

1. Jacksonville Jaguars