NFL Draft 2024: Projections for Hottest Prospects After Updated Selection Order
The 2023 NFL postseason is underway, and two teams advanced to the Divisional Round on Saturday. The Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs won, meaning they'll continue their push for Super Bowl LVIII.
The Cleveland Browns and Miami Dolphins, meanwhile, will join the league's 18 teams who have already started planning for the offseason, free agency and the 2024 NFL draft.
Four games have yet to unfold on Super Wild Card Weekend, but we have a slightly clearer picture of what the 2024 draft will look like. Below, you'll find the updated draft order, an early Round 1 mock and a look at a few of the 2024 class' most intriguing prospects.
2024 Mock Draft, Round 1
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1. Chicago Bears (from Panthers): Caleb Williams, QB, USC
2. Washington Commanders: Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
3. New England Patriots: Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
4. Arizona Cardinals: Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame
5. Los Angeles Chargers: Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
6. New York Giants: Malik Nabers, WR, LSU
7. Tennessee Titans: Olumuyiwa Fashanu, OT, Penn State
8. Atlanta Falcons: Dallas Turner, Edge, Alabama
9. Chicago Bears: Rome Odunze, WR, Washington
10. New York Jets: Amarius Mims, OT, Georgia
11. Minnesota Vikings: Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
12. Denver Broncos: Jared Verse, Edge, Florida State
13. Las Vegas Raiders: Jer'Zhan Newton, DL, Illinois
14. New Orleans Saints: Laiatu Latu, Edge, UCLA
15. Indianapolis Colts: Keon Coleman, WR, Florida State
16. Seattle Seahawks: Troy Fautanu, OL, Washington
17. Jacksonville Jaguars: Brian Thomas Jr., WR, LSU
18. Cincinnati Bengals: Jackson Powers-Johnson, OL, Oregon
19. Green Bay Packers: Kingsley Suamataia, OT, BYU
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Chop Robinson, Edge, Penn State
21. Los Angeles Rams: Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB, Alabama
22. Pittsburgh Steelers: Denzel Burke, CB, Ohio State
23. Miami Dolphins: Taliese Fuaga, OL, Oregon State
24. Houston Texans (from Browns): Leonard Taylor III, DL, Miami
25 Arizona Cardinals (from Texans): Khyree Jackson, CB, Oregon
26. Philadelphia Eagles: Kamren Kinchens, S, Miami
27. Kansas City Chiefs: Emeka Egbuka, WR, Ohio State
28. Detroit Lions: Bralen Trice, Edge, Washington
29. Buffalo Bills: Troy Franklin, WR, Oregon
30. Dallas Cowboys: Graham Barton, OL, Duke
31. San Francisco 49ers: Tyler Guyton, OT, Oklahoma
30. Baltimore Ravens: Dominick Puni, OL, Kansas
Right now, only the first 18 draft slots are set. The final 14 will be determined by the postseason, with picks No. 19-24 going to losers in the Wild Card Round, picks No. 25-28 going to losers of the Divisional Round and picks No. 29 and 30 going to losers of the conference championship round.
Each of these sections will be ordered according to regular-season records.
The Super Bowl loser will obtain pick No. 31, while the Super Bowl winner will have the final selection in Round 1.
For this mock, the final 14 picks were ordered by record, with the Browns and Dolphins slotting into the wild-card range.
Caleb Williams, QB, USC
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USC quarterback Caleb Williams has long been considered the prize of this draft class. The question for the Chicago Bears—who acquired the top pick from the Carolina Panthers in last year's draft trade—is whether to draft a quarterback or stick with Justin Fields.
Fields showed a lot of growth in 2023, but Williams is an elite prospect. The other factor to consider is that moving to a rookie quarterback would be resetting the clock with a rookie contract.
Fields will be extension-eligible this offseason and would be due a second contract sooner than later. That's problematic when Chicago isn't entirely sure that he can be "the guy."
Handing out a lucrative contract after only one promising season is exactly how the New York Giants got into their current situation with Daniel Jones. That reality could push the Bears to move off Fields.
"I have talked to some people in and around the program who believe they will eventually land on a Caleb Williams or a quarterback at No. 1," ESPN's Jeremy Fowler said on SportsCenter (h/t Bleacher Report's Mike Chiari).
The other part of the equation is the fact that a team could offer Chicago an enticing haul for the No. 1 pick, as the Panthers did a year ago. The Bears could be very willing to stick with Fields if it means adding several high selections to their draft cache.
Until we know what offers are on the table, though, Williams and Chicago is a logical pairing at No. 1.
Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
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The Washington Commanders will have a new head coach in 2024, and new coaches often look to bring in their own quarterbacks. Even if Ron Rivera was still employed by Washington, the Commanders would have to think long and hard about replacing incumbent starter Sam Howell.
Howell did plenty of good things in his first full season as the starter. He started all 17 games and threw for 3,946 yards and 21 touchdowns. However, he also led the league with 21 interceptions and won a mere four games.
Targeting a new franchise signal-caller at No. 2 is more than logical for Washington, and with Williams off the board, North Carolina's Drake Maye is the obvious choice. He's another top-tier prospect and, in fact, was ranked higher than Williams by the Bleacher Report Scouting Department—which has Maye as the third overall prospect and Williams as the fourth.
"He has the athleticism, arm talent and baseline processing skills to become a weapon at the next level," Derrik Klassen of the B/R Scouting Department wrote. "All he needs to do is cut out some of the 'doing too much' plays. Maye has the skill set to fit in any system and develop into a star."
With a league-high $86.3 million in projected cap space—according to Spotrac—the Commanders can reload their roster in a hurry. They can then add their biggest missing piece in the draft.
Whether Williams or Maye is on the board at No. 2, it would be a significant shock if Washington doesn't use the pick on a quarterback.
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Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
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While such a thing doesn't actually exist, Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. is the closest thing to a "can't miss" prospect as there is in this draft class. He's the Scouting Department's top overall prospect, and he should immediately boost whichever team he joins.
"Harrison is a slam-dunk prospect. He is a twitched-up athlete with polished route-running ability and elite ball skills," Klassen wrote. "It's so easy to see how his game translates right away. Harrison would be an instant No. 1 WR for most offenses."
The New England Patriots may or may not be looking to move off Mac Jones this offseason. The 2021 first-round pick has regressed since his Pro Bowl rookie campaign, and he was benched for Bailey Zappe toward the end of the year.
With Bill Belichick out as head coach and Jerod Mayo in, however, Jones could get another opportunity. Even if he doesn't, it would be hard to pass on Harrison here with Williams and Maye off the board.
New England's biggest offensive issue over the past two seasons has been a lack of reliable receiving weapons. Harrison would immediately address that problem and would help elevate Jones, Zappe or whoever else the Patriots put under center in 2024.
The Patriots could trade down a few spots and take a quarterback like LSU's Jayden Daniels, but that would be risky. Harrison has the potential to immediately challenge the likes of Justin Jefferson and Ja'Marr Chase as the best young wideout in the NFL.
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