We’re just over four weeks to the day of the start of the 2024 NFL Draft, and weirdly enough, it’s been rather quiet on the intel front.
But, with the primary waves of free agency now over, and before the wave of pre-Draft lying season and fake news really starts to gain traction, let’s go around the league review the latest scuttlebutt on what teams are thinking and where they’re leaning, as far as the first round of the Draft.
1. Chicago (from Carolina) — Caleb Williams, QB, USC
There's little more to say with this pairing after Chicago traded away Justin Fields for a ham sandwich. You can write this pick down in Sharpie.
2. Washington — Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
I’m pretty well on the record as saying this is not the quarterback option I personally would prefer for Washington, but some of the early signs are pointing in this direction.
3. New England — Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
Everything you hear out of New England is that they want to stay in this spot (meaning they're not interested in trading down) and grab a QB.
4. Arizona — Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
It still feels like Marvin Harrison Jr. will be the pick here… but don't be surprised if this ends up being Malik Nabers.
5. LA Chargers — Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame
Assuming no trade action at #4 overall (more on that shortly), the Chargers are in this year’s “the Draft really starts here” spot—mostly because there's just too much smoke around the idea of them trading down for it not to be a thing1.
6. NY Giants — Malik Nabers, WR, LSU
All signs continue to point towards the Giants using this pick to add a #1 receiver after striking out on their (desperate) efforts to get into position to grab a quarterback2.
7. Tennessee — Taliese Fuaga, OT, Oregon State
Goes back to chalk (at least for the position) after Tennessee signed Calvin Ridley — otherwise this could've very easily been a WR pick3.
8. Atlanta — Terrion Arnold, CB, Alabama
A wildcard based on a few educated guesses: 1) I think the Falcons view cornerback as a higher need than an edge rusher; 2) I think they might be content to roll with Zach Harrison (day two selections made in each of the past two Drafts) as their starting DE duo; and 3) new defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake is a defensive backs coach at heart.
9. Chicago — Rome Odunze, WR, Washington
Walking away with one of the top three WR’s in this Draft would be a home run scenario for Chicago. Although, if the Draft did unfold this way, edge rusher also remains a very strong possibility here.
10. NY Jets — Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
As crazy as this sounds, the Jets really don’t have any glaring needs remaining after the work they’ve done in free agency this offseason. So, it wouldn’t be totally out of the question for them to get their quarterback arguably one of the most intriguing offensive weapons in the Draft.4
11. Minnesota — JJ McCarthy, QB, Michigan
It wouldn't surprise anyone if Minnesota ended up with JJ McCarthy in the first round of this year’s Draft. It would surprise a lot of people if they were able to stay at #11 and get him. Translation: the Vikings are preparing for trade up in the Draft5; at this point, it’s just a matter of “when.”
12. Denver — Bo Nix, QB, Oregon
In an ideal world, Denver would trade back in the first round and take Nix later in the first round. But it’s not completely out of the question that they went ahead and took him here.
13. Las Vegas — Olu Fashanu, OT, Penn State
By their own admission, the Raiders aspire to "build through the trenches." Fashanu could slide in to their vacancy at right tackle from day one.
14. New Orleans — Dallas Turner, DE, Alabama
Even after throwing prime Draft assets at Payton Turner and Isaiah Foskey in recent Drafts, the Saints could very well use this pick to bolster a pass rush that was otherwise lackluster6.
15. Indianapolis — Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo
Cornerback seems to be the direction for the Colts’ pick here, and Mitchell fits the Chris Ballard prototype for the position.
16. Seattle — Jared Verse, DE, Florida State
If either Turner or Verse or even Laiatu Latu (the top edge rushers in this Draft) were to fall to one of these picks, it would line up with Seattle's need for a "high-ceiling" player at the position7.
17. Jacksonville — Nate Wiggins, CB, Clemson
Finding a “long” cornerback who fits new defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen’s scheme still remains a key need for the Jaguars.
18. Cincinnati — Byron Murphy II, DT, Texas
Even after signing Sheldon Rankins, defensive tackle still remains an area of need for the Bengals, given the defection of DJ Reader.
19. LA Rams — Laiatu Latu, DE/OLB, UCLA
Even with Aaron Donald’s retirement, the Rams could use their top pick to address their need at edge rusher8… because who the hell would want to be the guy who has to step into Donald’s shoes?
20. Pittsburgh — Jackson Powers-Johnson, iOL, Oregon
Center has emerged as arguably the biggest position of need for Pittsburgh, and ‘JPJ’ is exactly the type of bar room-brawler that fits the MO of the guys who fit what the Steelers look for9.
21. Miami — Chop Robinson, DE/OLB, Penn State
Jaelan Phillips (Achilles) and Bradley Chubb (ACL) are both dicey to be healthy when the season starts, and they lost Andrew Van Ginkel in free agency10.
22. Philadelphia — JC Latham, OT, Alabama
Expect Howie Roseman to use this pick on a “trenches” guy, because that’s what he does. Latham could come in immediately and contribute at right guard and be the Eagles' long-term succession plan for Lane Johnson.
23. Minnesota (from Cleveland via Houston) — Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB, Alabama
Let’s be honest: this pick feels rather pointless to project because of the seeming inevitability this pick is traded. We’ll leave it at that.
24. Dallas — Troy Fautanu, OT/OL, Washington
This pick gives Dallas options to figure out the left tackle and left guard spot, between him and Tyler Smith, now that Tyron Smith is gone.
25. Green Bay — Amarius Mims, OT, Georgia
The Packers lost both David Bakhtiari and Yosh Nijman at the left tackle spot. Rasheed Walker played well in spurts, but tackle still shoots up their needs list.
26. Tampa Bay — Graham Barton, iOL, Duke
Lots of internet mocks have paired Graham Barton with the Buccaneers, given that they still have a rather obvious need at left guard.11
27. Arizona (from Houston) — Cooper DeJean, CB, Iowa
Another purely speculative pick; the Cardinals could go in so many directions here. But even after signing Sean Murphy-Bunting, cornerback still remains a position.
28. Buffalo — Jer'Zhan Newton, DT, Illinois
Even after bringing back DaQuan Jones, the interior of Buffalo's defensive line is still quite thin on personnel. This might be the position the Bills look to address earlier on in the Draft, especially given how Newton fits the athletic profile of defensive linemen preferred by GM Brandon Beane12.
29. Detroit — Brian Thomas Jr., WR, LSU
After upgrades at cornerback, edge rusher, defensive tackle, and offensive guard, the only substantive "to do" left on Detroit’s list is bolstering the wide receiver position13.
30. Baltimore — Tyler Guyton, OT, Oklahoma
The Ravens still have legitimate needs at three of their starting offensive line positions, including both guard spots and right tackle.
31. San Francisco — Jordan Morgan, OT/OL, Arizona
The 49ers could use long-term upgrades at both spots on the right side of their offensive line; Morgan would offer such flexibility plus scheme fit.
32. Kansas City — Kingsley Suamataia, OT, BYU
It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Chiefs find a stop-gap solution (again) to fill the void at left tackle, and then use a Draft pick like this one for a longer-term solution.
Do the Chargers want to draft an offensive lineman with their top pick? Most probably yes. I just don’t think they’ll be doing so at #5 overall.
It was reportedly one of the "Worst kept secrets at the Combine" that the Giants were trying to put themselves in position to secure a replacement for quarterback Daniel Jones—whom they are already allegedly "absolutely done" with. Personally, as someone who vehemently roots for the demise of the Giants, I was hoping they would anoint Jones to a Caesar-esque "quarterback for life" title.
Don't discount the Titans taking an edge rusher here though, especially with Harold Landry counting for $24M+ against the cap in 2025 and 2026.
It feels all but certain that the Vikings are going to make a move up into the top 5 picks — swapping with the Chargers at #5 or even the Cardinals at #4.
I know the Saints recently signed Chase Young. But, it’s a one-year deal and he already needs surgery on his neck.
Two thoughts about Seattle’s pick:
the Seahawks didn’t make any substantive moves in free agency to shore of an offensive line that needed the shoring up. So, one other name to keep an eye on with this pick: OT/OL Troy Fautanu, who was coached at the University of Washington by Ryan Grubb (who’s now the Seahawks’ offensive coordinator).
Knowing John Schneider, and the fact that the Seahawks only have two picks in the top 100, there's a strong likelihood for a trade back here as well.
I'm not the only one who thinks Laiatu Latu to the Rams would be a good pairing.
I apologize for the mindlessly inane “doesn’t he fit the [insert team name here] perfectly?”-type analysis. You deserve better. I just couldn’t think of anything else to say besides “the Steelers really need/want a center.”
Full disclosure: I don’t feel confident in this pick whatsoever. It’s just really hard to find any credible intel on what the Dolphins truly need or what position they want to upgrade via the Draft; basically all you hear/read is “Mike McDaniels likes players who are fast.”
For what it's worth: edge rusher Chop Robinson is a name that continues to be mentioned for Tampa Bay by some who follow the team closely.
Yes, I’m still sticking with this pick (for now), even after listening to Robert Mays & Nate Tice discuss how Jer’Zhan Newton’s fit in Buffalo would be redundant given Ed Oliver’s presence. Again, Draft intel is sparse right now, so expect to see something different in my Mock 3.0.
The Lions have been incredibly methodical in free agency, strategically addressing most of their top/major positions of need. ■