2024 NFL Mock Draft: Post-Pro Bowl Projections for 1st-Round Prospects

The 2024 NFL Draft cycle can officially begin now that all of the coaching vacancies have been filled across the league.

The most intriguing dynamic that affects the top of the draft comes from Washington.

The Commanders have hired Dan Quinn as head coach and are bringing in Kliff Kingsbury as offensive coordinator.

Kingsbury spent time as an offensive analyst at USC last season, which is where top draft prospect Caleb Williams finished his collegiate career.

There could be a connection between the two that somehow leads the Commanders to the 22-year-old, but that may require jumping the Chicago Bears in the draft order.

Chicago has not announced its plans with the top pick yet. The assumption is the Bears would draft a quarterback and trade Justin Fields if they keep the No. 1 pick.

Quarterbacks could be the first three selections in April because of the needs in Chicago, Washington and New England.

After that, no signal-callers could be chosen in the next 29 picks, and we may have to wait to see J.J. McCarthy, Bo Nix and Michael Penix Jr. on Day 2.

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2024 NFL 1st-Round Mock Draft

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CLEMSON, SC - NOVEMBER 18: North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Drake Maye (10) looks to throw a pass during a college football game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Clemson Tigers on November 18, 2023 at Clemson Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. (Photo by John Byrum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

1. Chicago (via Carolina) - Caleb Williams, QB, USC

2. Washington - Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina

3. New England - Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU

4. Arizona - Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State

5. Los Angeles Chargers - Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame

6. New York Giants - Malik Nabers, WR, LSU

7. Tennessee - Olu Fashanu, OT, Penn State

8. Atlanta - Dallas Turner, Edge, Alabama

9. Chicago - Rome Odunze, WR, Washington

10. New York Jets - Laiatu Latu, Edge, UCLA

11. Minnesota - Terrion Arnold, CB, Alabama

12. Denver - Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia

13. Las Vegas - Nate Wiggins, CB, Clemson

14. New Orleans - Jared Verse, Edge, Florida State

15. Indianapolis - Cooper DeJean, CB, Iowa

16. Seattle - JC Latham, OT, Alabama

17. Jacksonville - Amarius Mims, OT, Georgia

18. Cincinnati - Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB, Alabama

19. Los Angeles Rams - Jer'Zhan Newton, DT, Illinois

20. Pittsburgh - Taliese Fuaga, OT, Oregon State

21. Miami - Troy Fautanu, OL, Washington

22. Philadelphia - Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo

23. Houston (via Cleveland) - Chop Robinson, Edge, Penn State

24. Dallas - Jordan Morgan, OT, Arizona

25. Green Bay - Kamari Lassiter, CB, Georgia

26. Tampa Bay - Brian Thomas Jr., WR, LSU

27. Arizona (via Houston) - Graham Barton, OL, Duke

28. Buffalo - Keon Coleman, WR, Florida State

29. Detroit - Byron Murphy II, DL, Texas

30. Baltimore - Bralen Trice, Edge, Washington

31. Kansas City - Tyler Guyton, OT, Oklahoma

32. San Francisco - T'Vondre Sweat, DT, Texas

Top of Draft Dependent on Chicago's Decision

Quinn Harris/Getty Images

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - DECEMBER 10: General Manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus walk off the field after a win over the Detroit Lions at Soldier Field on December 10, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)

The Chicago Bears control how the top few picks will go.

They could trade out of the top selection, as they did last year, to collect more draft assets and add key players to their roster, or they could land a new quarterback.

The Bears are in the process of figuring out if Justin Fields should be their franchise signal-caller, and if that is the case, the trade market for the No. 1 pick should heat up.

Washington could be aggressive to move up to No. 1 so that it could find the perfect QB for Kliff Kingsbury to work with.

Caleb Williams seems like the obvious answer because of his USC connection with Kingsbury, but a move up to No. 1 may be required for that to happen.

Washington may not want to pay the significant price that comes with a deal for the top pick. It could be happy with landing Drake Maye at No. 2.

A Chicago selection of Williams would make the decision-making process fairly easy for both the Commanders and the New England Patriots. They could each grab a quarterback at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, and help reset their franchises with new head coaches.

Anything other than a quarterback selection in the top two would be stunning at this moment in time.

How Many Quarterbacks Will Be Chosen in 1st Round?

Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images

BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA - NOVEMBER 25: Jayden Daniels #5 of the LSU Tigers reacts against the Texas A&M Aggies during a game at Tiger Stadium on November 25, 2023 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)

The consensus is that Williams, Maye and Daniels will be taken early in the first round.

Mel Kiper Jr. of ESPN.com mocked Williams, Daniels and Maye in that order in the top three, while Eric Edholm of NFL.com switched the positions of Maye and Daniels in his latest draft projection.

After that, it's difficult to pinpoint a good landing spot for a young quarterback in the first round.

Kiper projected J.J. McCarthy would go at No. 16 to Seattle, while Edholm had the Michigan quarterback going to the Los Angeles Rams at No. 19.

McCarthy is the only other quarterback in either mock draft, which means Bo Nix and Michael Penix Jr. would have to wait until Day 2 to hear their names called.

McCarthy may not be a first-round lock either depending on how teams evaluate him. He was a solid quarterback at Michigan, but he was not the focal point of the offense like the other top quarterback prospects.

Additionally, the need just may not be there in the first round. Some teams may draft a quarterback to start a succession plan, but there aren't many spots where McCarthy would start right away.