It's that time of year folks - the 2024 NFL Draft is upon us! And with that, mock draft season is in full swing. We've spent all NFL offseason writing team needs articles for all 32 teams and tracking free agent signings across the league. We've also broken down the top offensive weapon prospects for the fantasy gamers of the world:

It's time to use all of that research and knowledge, as well as the recent odds, rumors, and trends, to finalize our 2024 NFL mock draft. As always, the draft will be full of drama and surprises, happiness and heartbreak, but we'll do our best to predict who will trade up, who will trade down, and which superstars will land with which team. 

 

 

 

NFL Mock Draft 2024: First Round Predictions

Are Caleb Williams and Marvin Harrison Jr. locked in as the top QB and WR prospects? Will the Commanders take Drake Maye or Jayden Daniels (or maybe J.J. McCarthy?) Do the Patriots take a QB at three? Find out our 2024 NFL mock draft predictions below for the first round with analysis on each pick!

There is only one Patrick Mahomes. But, when you watch Caleb Williams, you can see that he is capable of "Patrick Mahomes-esque" plays. Like Mahomes, he has a unique ability to extend the play without losing sight of the top goal – taking big chunk plays down field. And, if that's not there, he can hurt you with his legs as well.

The Commanders made their draft intentions clear with the Sam Howell trade. They are going quarterback at two. And, even if I personally have Drake Maye as my second ranked QB, the sentiment around the league is that Jayden Daniels is the pick here for the Commanders. He's viewed as the riskier option but there's no doubt that his rushing ability offers the highest upside in the modern NFL.

Maye might be more of a "mobile" QB than a true "rushing" QB. But his combination of elite arm talent and escapability puts his upside in the category of guys like Joe Burrow, Trevor Lawrence, and Justin Herbert. Even though he CAN make all the throws, he still has some work to do on the fundamentals to make them accurately and consistently. But that's what coaches are for right?

Sometimes the right thing and the easy thing are the same thing. The Cardinals lost Marquise Brown in free agency and traded Rondale Moore away. They have a split end in Michael Wilson, a tight end in Trey McBride, and Greg Dortch can play slot. Marvin Harrison Jr is a generational talent with Hall of Fame pedigree, and he can start at flanker for Kyler Murray from day one.

New regimes often have a lot of work to do that you can't fix with just one pick. And Joe Hortiz, Jim Harbaugh, Greg Roman, and company know how much work this team needs. The Vikings have an offense loaded with pass-catching talent in Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson - they just need someone to deliver the football. 

Jim Harbaugh already has his quarterback in Justin Herbert, but he can still help his college QB J.J. McCarthy land in a good situation. The Vikings give up Pick 11, Pick 23, and more to move up.

There is an argument to be made that Rome Odunze would be the better fit for the Giants as he's more of a true split end so I would not rule him out here. The Giants have a field stretcher in Jalin Hyatt and a slot/flanker in Wandale Robinson. But Darius Slayton, at 6'1" 194, led this team in snaps last year and Nabers is an immediate upgrade over him. 

He's my WR2 in this class and the Giants should draft the best available player, so Nabers is the guy. They'll give Drew Lock and Daniel Jones one last chance before addressing QB next year if need be.

The Titans showed us that they believe in Will Levis as they loaded up on weapons like Calvin Ridley and Tony Pollard already this off-season. They might as well take this opportunity to beef up the offensive live. And when the best tackle is on the board at pick seven, you take him.

The Saints finally moved on from embattled star Michael Thomas this offseason. And Rome Odunze is the perfect big-bodied replacement for him on the outside. Trading up to add Odunze will allow Chris Olave to move around as the slot/flanker with Rashid Shaheed coming in as the speedy field stretching third wide receiver.

There are some great pass rushers in this class. But there are questions in the run game for Dallas Turner and health concerns for Laiatu Latu. Matt Eberflus' 4-3 needs a combination of run-stopping and pressure opposite Montez Sweat. Jared Verse offers exactly that.

The Jets are playing it fast and loose with the injuries - Aaron Rodgers is coming back from an achilles, Mike Williams from an ACL, and Tyron Smith is perpetually hurt. The versatile Alijah Vera-Tucker worked out for them in the past so the Jets play it safe here with an offensive lineman that will find a spot in the NFL at tackle or guard. 

In an ideal world, Tyron Smith stays healthy and both players the Jets acquired from the Ravens, John Simpson and Morgan Moses, play great so Fuaga may not even need to play right away. But that's an ideal world. And, even then, we all know that your swing-lineman finds his way onto the field at some point more often than not.

The Chargers move back and luck into a perfect scheme fit for their offense. Jim Harbaugh wants to run the ball and Bowers is essentially a wide receiver who blocks better than every wide receiver. They just lost their top four pass-catchers this offseason and Greg Roman has orchestrated a top five tight end season OF ALL TIME with Mark Andrews before, so it's the perfect spot. The fantasy football world would certainly be fired up.

There's been a lot of talk of Bo Nix to the Broncos. And a lot of that talk suggests they trade back then take him. If he's their guy though, you don't want to get cute with the most important position in football. Drew Brees for years under Sean Payton was a master of pre-snap reads, short passes, and great accuracy. That's the skill set that Bo Nix brings to the table. The stage is set for Bo Nix vs. Zach Wilson camp battle.

The Raiders have Jack Jones and they took Jakorian Bennett in the fourth last year but they are still shallow at CB. Arnold can play both outside and in the slot so they'd have no trouble finding a job for him right from the rip. He's also met with the Raiders multiple times throughout this process and he and Antonio Pierce have both been gushing to the media about how well their interactions have gone, for what that's worth.

Last year the Patriots were set on Christian Gonzalez but traded back a couple spots with the Steelers as they knew the Jets weren't taking a CB. They picked up value and got their guy. This is a little more risky but there are a couple EDGE rushers that would fit the bill for the Falcons. 

Dallas Turner just so happens to be the perfect outside linebacker for the 3-4 base that Raheem Morris and Jimmy Lake plan to deploy. The same health issues that led Laiatu Latu to leave Jimmy Lake's Washington team are enough for Lake and company to pass on him here.

Cooper DeJean is a popular option but, with guys like Nick Cross and Julian Blackmon, the Colts secondary has enough versatile "do it all" guys. They need a true number one corner and Quinyon Mitchell out of Toledo brings exactly that.

Fautanu is your classic "played tackle in college but will play guard or center in the NFL" type. Guys like Alijah Vera-Tucker or Kenyon Green fit this description in recent drafts. The Seahawks have a couple solid tackles so Fautanu could start at guard right away with the idea that he could slide to tackle if there's an injury. Which is why we routinely see polished linemen like this go in the first.

 

 

 

THIS is where the versatile DeJean ends up. He's got the size to be a number one outside corner in the NFL but he could start out contributing in the slot or even at free safety if need be. The Jaguars have a lot of holes in the secondary and this player gives them a lot of flexibility on how to build. Most books also have the Jags as heavy favorites to select a corner in the first.

It's a copycat league and one recent trend has been an emphasis on pass rush from the interior. We saw it last year with FOUR interior defenders going off the board in the first round, starting with Jalen Carter at 9. Newton has been comped to Javon Hargrave who has wreaked havoc for the Eagles and 49ers in recent years. This could be the Bengals replacement for DJ Reader.

The Falcons may pass up on Latu due to medicals but Tony Pauline of Sportskeeda has reported that the Rams are one of the teams that have already supposedly cleared the medicals on Latu. 

Players that either live locally or went to school locally don't count against your 30 visits so Latu, as a California native who went to UCLA, was a fairly obvious player for the Los Angeles Rams to have swing by the facility. No one can fill the void left by Aaron Donald, but Latu can do his best to pitch in.

The Steelers traded up last year to take Broderick Jones ahead of the Jets but this year they hang tight. They seem to like Amarius Mims as well so no need to trade up but they could get lucky if JC Latham is on the board at 20. Some have him as their top offensive linemen.

The Cardinals have a massive stockpile of draft capital - almost too much to use in one draft. So many, including Lance Zierlein, expect them to trade up at some point to make a luxury pick. With the pass rushers going off the board early, the Cardinals move up to get some help for Jonathan Gannon's defense.

With the top three corners off the board, the Eagles trade back with the Packers here. The Packers are loaded up on young offensive talent so they need disruptive playmakers. And the idea of getting the explosive Murphy in the middle might be good enough for them to move up a few spots to lock him down.

If the Chargers are sitting here in this situation, fans will be clamoring for them to take a wide receiver. And those fans will be disappointed when Jim Harbaugh, who gave a passionate impromptu speech this offseason on the importance of offensive line, selects an offensive linemen. Harbaugh and Greg Roman want a ground and pound approach and the big brawler would make a great right tackle opposite Rashawn Slater.

Sometimes a great wide receiver class means a lot of them off the board early – sometimes it pushes them down. The Cowboys get a steal here with the 6'4" split end out of LSU. CeeDee Lamb primarily operates as a slot/flanker so the big WR will help free Lamb up and allow him to slide into the slot for three WR sets when Brandin Cooks is on the field.

The Eagles pick up some extra value and still get their cornerback, knowing that the Chargers and Cowboys have needs elsewhere at picks 23 and 24. Wiggins has the height to play outside and is fun to watch with his athleticism but may need to bulk up at the next level to not get pushed around.

Like the Cardinals, the Commanders have a wealth of draft capital to use. They also have a number of serious holes to fill. With Nate Wiggins coming off the board one pick before, they don't leave anything to chance by moving up to get the last top tier corner available.

With Armstead and Austin Jackson locked in as starters at tackle for the short term, the Dolphins trade back rather than taking the "best player available" at O-line in Amarius Mims. At his size, Mims really doesn't have the versatility to play anything other than tackle. With Robert Hunt leaving for the Panthers in free agency, Barton could slot in at guard day one for Miami and they pick up some extra capital along the way.

There are some "high risk, high reward" options like Adonai Mitchell and Xavier Worthy that could be on the table here. But the Bills are competing to win now and they just moved on from Stefon Diggs so they need someone with a decent floor that can contribute right away. Franklin will offer some of the speed on the outside that they've been missing since John Brown and Emmanuel Sanders.

This is where it happens - the historic sixth QB in the first round. The Raiders pull a page out of the Baltimore Ravens playbook and trade back into the first round to draft a quarterback. That way they can take advantage of the valuable fifth round option at the tail end of the rookie contract. There are some injury concerns with Penix, but the upside is there.

The Ravens lost some pieces along the offensive line this offseason. So it makes sense for them to take a "best player available" approach at offensive line and let the chips fall where they may. Morgan likely needs to bulk up to be a tackle at the NFL level but, at the very least, he should be an NFL caliber guard.

Many want to see a wide receiver here but, barring a Brandon Aiyuk trade, it's not an immediate need for the Niners. With the amount of snaps the fullback plays, any WR3 on the team is a part time player at best. Instead, they do the prudent thing here and take the best available offensive linemen on the board who hails from one of college football's most prestigious organizations.

There have been some classic "white slot receiver" comps to Ladd McConkey like Julian Edelman. And many are doing so believing McConkey will play slot without realizing that Julian Edelman played just as many snaps out wide with New England as he did in the slot. 

That's the profile McConkey brings to the table which should be huge for Patrick Mahomes as Travis Kelce continues to get older and Rashee Rice deals with some potential legal trouble. Marquise Brown is on a one-year deal, but he likely signs elsewhere in 2025 after a one year "prove it" deal.

 

 

 

When Is The NFL Draft In 2024?

The 2024 NFL Draft is set to occur from Thursday, April 25 at 8 PM ET to Saturday, April 27 at 12 PM ET. This exciting event will be hosted in Detroit, Michigan, specifically around Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza.

Make sure to fully take in and digest my 2024 NFL mock draft before the festivities kick off!