1. Bears – USC QB Caleb Williams
Third-year GM Ryan Poles resets his franchise’s timeclock by drafting quick-twitch improvisor Williams after bailing on slow-processor Justin Fields. Across three college seasons, Williams banked a 93:13 TD-to-INT ratio as a passer in addition to 27 rushing scores. He’s a born playmaker.
2. Commanders – North Carolina QB Drake Maye
Loosely comparable to Bills QB Josh Allen, Maye is an aggressive dropback thrower and high-production scrambler who averaged 8.4 yards per pass attempt and scored 16 rushing TDs over his final two seasons as a Tar Heel. The Commanders allegedly sent Sam Howell to Seattle for virtually nothing because Howell and Maye are tight (UNC), and Washington didn’t want that dynamic in its quarterback room.
3. Patriots – LSU QB Jayden Daniels
2023’s Heisman winner, Daniels led the nation in both yards per pass attempt (11.7) and yards per rushing attempt (8.4). 31-year-old fifth-team journeyman Jacoby Brissett would be New England’s starter if the season began today. Daniels is rumored to be intent on playing for New England after Daniels’ meetings with Washington didn’t go as smoothly.
4. Cardinals – Ohio State WR Marvin Harrison Jr.
I think second-year GM Monti Ossenfort would prefer to trade down. Yet if Ossenfort can’t find serious suitors, college football’s premier wideout would represent an ideal consolation prize at a glaring position of need.
5. Chargers – Notre Dame OT Joe Alt
First-year HC Jim Harbaugh and OC Greg Roman vehemently believe in controlling the line of scrimmage. Alt is this draft’s consensus top offensive tackle.
6. Giants – LSU WR Malik Nabers
An explosive-play machine at LSU, Nabers blazed 4.35 with a silly 42-inch vertical and 10-foot-9 broad jump at the Tigers’ Pro Day. Nabers recorded at least one gain of 20+ yards in all 13 games last season. The G-Men are desperate for playmakers.
7. Titans – Penn State OT Olu Fashanu
An elite pass protector, Fashanu didn’t allow a sack over his final two seasons in Happy Valley. The post-Derrick Henry Titans profile as a pass-first team under rookie HC Brian Callahan.
8. Falcons – Alabama EDGE Dallas Turner
Atlanta is almost completely devoid of pass-rush talent. Turner rang up 10 sacks during his final season in the SEC, bending the edge à la Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware.
9. Bears – Washington WR Rome Odunze
Hyper productive in the Washington Huskies’ downfield-focused passing attack, Odunze projects as an ideal complement to D.J. Moore and Keenan Allen for a Bears team that should be hellbent on ensuring Caleb Williams succeeds.
10. Jets – Georgia TE Brock Bowers
A two-time Mackey Award winner, Bowers is a generational tight end prospect with elite post-catch ability. The Jets are in full win-now position; Bowers can contribute right away.
11. Vikings – Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy
I’m skeptical a GM as intelligent as Kwesi Adofo-Mensah would surrender premium draft capital to move up for a talent of McCarthy’s modest caliber. I do buy QB whisperer HC Kevin O’Connell viewing McCarthy as a system fit should he last to No. 11.
12. Broncos – Oregon QB Bo Nix
The Broncos’ glaring quarterback need plus Nix’s skill-set compatibility in Sean Payton’s offense could tempt Denver into this first-round “reach”.
13. Raiders – Washington QB Michael Penix
An elite deep-ball deliverer, Penix satisfies the Al Davis quarterback mold for a team presently sporting Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell under center.
14. Saints – Alabama OT J.C. Latham
Trevor Penning’s failure plus RT Ryan Ramczyk’s career-threatening knee situation forces the Saints into a first-round O-Line investment. Latham is a people mover at 6-foot-6, 342.
15. Colts – LSU WR Brian Thomas Jr.
GM Chris Ballard is a fool for measurable athleticism; Thomas ruined the Combine with a 4.33 forty at 6-foot-3, 209. The Colts must prioritize Anthony Richardson’s surroundings.
16. Seahawks – Duke G/C Graham Barton
Interior offensive line is Seattle’s biggest roster weakness. Barton is an easy Day 1 starter at center or guard.
17. Jaguars – Alabama CB Terrion Arnold
Jacksonville needs playmakers in the secondary. Arnold is a ballhawk and plus tackler who shined at a Power Five school, important for Jags GM Trent Baalke.
18. Bengals – Florida State EDGE Jared Verse
Verse logged 27.5 sacks over his final three college seasons, then obliterated the Combine. This year’s draft class is especially thin on EDGE rushers.
19. Rams – UCLA EDGE Laiatu Latu
Latu rang up 23.5 sacks over his final two college seasons, then banked a 93rd-percentile Relative Athletic Score in Indy. The Rams need multiple pass-rush reinforcements to help replace Aaron Donald.
20. Steelers – Oregon State OT Taliese Fuaga
Fuaga and Broderick Jones would form a pile-pushing tackle tandem in new OC Arthur Smith’s run-first scheme.
21. Dolphins – Washington T/G Troy Fautanu
Short (6-foot-3 3/4″) but long armed (34 1/2″) with tackle-guard versatility, Fautanu’s addition would immensely bolster a position group that lost RG Robert Hunt (Panthers) and C Connor Williams (TBD) in free agency.
22. Eagles – Toledo CB Quinyon Mitchell
Mitchell is arguably this draft’s top perimeter cornerback prospect after shining in both man and zone coverage in the MAC. Darius Slay, 33, and James Bradberry, 31 in August, are currently Philly’s first-team corners.
23. Vikings – Clemson CB Nate Wiggins
A lanky (6-foot-1/173) corner with elite speed (4.28), Wiggins allowed just one touchdown pass into his coverage across 10 games in 2023.
24. Cowboys – Arizona LT Jordan Morgan
Dak Prescott’s blindside is unaccounted for with Tyron Smith gone to the Jets and Dallas committed to Tyler Smith at left guard. Morgan made 37 starts at left tackle for Arizona, bouncing back from a 2022 ACL tear to deliver a rock-solid senior campaign.
25. Packers – Georgia OT Amarius Mims
Mims made just eight college starts but stands 6-foot-8, 340, with arms longer than 36 inches. The Packers’ tackle situation is in a state of flux.
26. Bucs – Alabama CB Kool-Aid McKinstry
PFF College’s highest-graded press corner since the 2022 season, McKinstry dips to the twenties after being diagnosed with a Jones fracture in his right foot. He underwent surgery in early March. The Bucs are needy at cornerback after trading Carlton Davis to Detroit.
27. Cardinals – Texas DT Byron Murphy
Murphy is a gap-shooting three technique at 6-foot-1, 297 with top-tier athletic traits. The Cardinals need help at nearly every position on both sides of the ball.
28. Bills – Texas WR Adonai Mitchell
A big-play perimeter receiver at 6-foot-2, 205, with 4.34 jets, Mitchell averaged 15.4 yards per catch and scored 11 TDs on 55 receptions in his final college season. The Bills are desperate for vertical weaponry after parting with Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis.
29. Lions – Iowa DB Cooper DeJean
Arguably college football’s premier corner in 2023, DeJean fractured his fibula during a November practice and missed the season’s final four games. At 6-foot-1, 202, DeJean bounced back to bank a mid-4.4s forty time, 38 1/2-inch vertical, and 10-foot-4 broad jump at the Hawkeyes’ early-April Pro Day.
30. Ravens – Oklahoma OT Tyler Guyton
Long and athletic at 6-foot-8, 322, with 34 1/8-inch arms, Guyton would be a natural replacement for Morgan Moses as the Ravens’ right tackle. Baltimore lost O-Line starters Moses, LG John Simpson, and RG Kevin Zeitler this offseason.
31. 49ers – Oregon C/G Jackson Powers-Johnson
Center and right guard are the biggest weaknesses on San Francisco’s roster. Albeit unrefined, Powers-Johnson is capable of excelling from a movement standpoint in HC Kyle Shanahan’s outside-zone scheme while standing 6-foot-3, 328.
32. Chiefs – Oregon WR Troy Franklin
Kansas City’s preexisting wideout need was exacerbated by Rashee Rice’s street-racing incident. 4.41 deep threat Franklin averaged over 16 yards per catch and scored 23 TDs over his final two college seasons.
