2024 NFL Mock Draft: J.J. McCarthy #2, Jayden Daniels #6

Part of the allure of the 2024 NFL Draft - and every year, really - is that there are so many possibilities. The coverage that follows and mocks the draft allows the many permutations that we'll never get to see come to life. This year feels special and different.

There's usually a defensive end or defensive tackle in the mix at the top, but every year, the quarterback position further dominates the first few picks of the draft. Many have forgotten that it wasn't always that way in years past.

In 2000, the year Tom Brady was made the 199th overall pick by the New England Patriots, three quarterbacks were drafted in the first 162 picks. That could never happen now, even in a down year for quarterback prospects.

This year, four quarterbacks could hear their names called in the first five picks: USC's Caleb Williams, LSU's Jayden Daniels, UNC's Drake Maye and Michigan's J.J. McCarthy.

Let's stop talking about it and get to the mock.

2024 NFL Mock Draft: Round 1

Pick	Team	Player	Pos	School
1	Chicago	Caleb Williams	QB	USC
2	Washington	J.J. McCarthy	QB	Michigan
3	New England	Drake Maye	QB	UNC
4	Arizona	Marvin Harrison Jr.	WR	Ohio State
5	LA Chargers	Malik Nabers	WR	LSU
6	Minnesota (via NYG)	Jayden Daniels	QB	LSU
7	Tennessee	Joe Alt	OT	Notre Dame
8	Atlanta	Dallas Turner	EDGE	Alabama
9	Chicago	Rome Odunze	WR	Washington
10	NY Jets	Brock Bowers	TE	Georgia
11	NY Giants	Byron Murphy II	DT	Texas
12	Denver	Quinyon Mitchell	CB	Toledo
13	Las Vegas	Olumuyiwa Fashanu	OT	Penn State
14	New Orleans	Troy Fautanu	IOL	Washington
15	Indianapolis	Terrion Arnold	CB	Alabama
16	Seattle	JC Latham	OT	Alabama
17	Jacksonville	Jared Verse	EDGE	Florida State
18	Cincinnati	Jer'Zhan Newton	DT	Texas
19	LA Rams	Laiatu Latu	EDGE	UCLA
20	Pittsburgh	Taliese Fuaga	OT	Oregon State
21	Miami	Jackson Powers-Johnson	IOL	Oregon
22	Philadelphia	Cooper DeJean	CB	Iowa
23	Minnesota	Jordan Morgan	OT	Arizona
24	Dallas	Amarius Mims	OT	Georgia
25	Green Bay	Nate Wiggins	CB	Clemson
26	Tampa Bay	Kool-Aid McKinstry	CB	Alabama
27	Arizona	Kris Jenkins	DT	Michigan
28	Buffalo	Adonai Mitchell	WR	Texas
29	Detroit	Kamari Lassiter	CB	Georgia
30	Baltimore	Brian Thomas Jr.	WR	LSU
31	San Francisco	Graham Barton	OG	Duke
32	Kansas City	Ladd McConkey	WR	Georgia

 

2024 NFL Mock Draft Round 1: Picks 1-10

1. Chicago Bears (via CAR): Caleb Williams, QB, USC
2. Washington Commanders: J.J. McCarthy, QB, Michigan
3. New England Patriots: Drake Maye, QB, UNC
4. Arizona Cardinals: Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
5. Los Angeles Chargers: Malik Nabers, WR, LSU

The hype may have calmed down. Maybe not. It only takes one team to like a player, and in this case, it's the Washington Commanders who opt to pass on Maye and Daniels to select McCarthy.

Does this mock mean that I like McCarthy more? No. From the information I've gathered, Washington is going in this direction. McCarthy has question marks, and so does every other NFL prospect of the last 20 years. 

Also, this is a fantasy football fan's dream top-five in today's NFL: three quarterbacks and two wide receivers!

6. Minnesota Vikings: Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
7. Tennessee Titans: Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame
8. Atlanta Falcons: Dallas Turner, EDGE, Alabama
9. Chicago Bears: Rome Odunze, WR, Washington
10. New York Jets: Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia

With Daniels falling, the Vikings have to take him. I wouldn't be surprised if a king's ransom is paid for the No. 4 or 5 pick if Daniels or Maye is available at those spots since McCarthy going at No. 2 would shake up the top of the draft.

I prefer Odunze as a prospect to Nabers, but all three of these receivers are in the same tier, and I'm not knocking Nabers at all. It boils down to scheme and opportunity to which one will outperform the other.

Also, Bowers to the Jets would be a great pickup for Aaron Rodgers; however, they still need upgrades to the offensive line.

2024 NFL Mock Draft Round 1: Picks 11-20

11. New York Giants: Byron Murphy II, DT, Texas
12. Denver Broncos: Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo
13. Las Vegas Raiders: Olumuyiwa Fashanu, OT, Penn State
14. New Orleans Saints: Troy Fautanu, IOL, Washington
15. Indianapolis Colts: Terrion Arnold, CB, Alabama

Now, we move on to the draft's meat and potatoes: cornerbacks, offensive linemen, and a defensive tackle.

I'm sorry, Giants fans. You'll have to deal with another year of Daniel Jones. While these are mostly team needs, and everything has to make perfect sense when constructing a mock, the best player available approach has always made sense to me when picking in the teens.

So often, mock draft writers are so worried about fit that we fail to accept that most teams have needs everywhere except for the two or three positions where they have a ton of money committed.

16. Seattle Seahawks: JC Latham, OT, Alabama
17. Jacksonville Jaguars: Jared Verse, EDGE, Florida State
18. Cincinnati Bengals: Jer'Zhan Newton, DT, Illinois
19. Los Angeles Rams: Laiatu Latu, EDGE, UCLA
20. Pittsburgh Steelers: Tailese Fuaga, OT, Oregon State

More monsters for the trenches. 

One of my favorite prospects in this class is Jer'Zhan Newton. A big-bodied difference maker on the interior that can disrupt. There's a suddenness to his game that will challenge blockers every down. 

Jared Verse and Laiatu Latu are both guys who could go 8 to 10 picks higher. Pass rushers don't have quite the same premium in the draft, not because they're any less important to the game, but because there have been quite a few big misses at the position over the years, as it seems the position requires more coaching.

2024 NFL Mock Draft Round 1: Picks 21-32

21. Miami Dolphins (via Texans): Jackson Powers-Johnson, IOL, Oregon
22. Philadelphia Eagles: Cooper DeJean, CB, Iowa
23. Minnesota Vikings: Jordan Morgan, OT, Arizona
24. Dallas Cowboys: Amarius Mims, OT, Georgia
25. Green Bay Packers: Nate Wiggins, CB, Clemson
26. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB, Alabama

There are a ton of first-round potential cornerbacks in this draft, and we'll see a narrative shift about the position after the Chiefs win another Super Bowl. As the game fully embraces two-high safety looks, we see the importance of coverage underneath.

Corners who can maximize press coverage and quickly force quarterbacks into their second and third reads are becoming more important.

DeJean is a safety in my eyes, but his versatility will only add to his appeal. Wiggins and McKinstry have different games, and it all depends on what the defense is really looking for in a corner. Wiggins is speedy and long, while McKinstry is crafty and selectively aggressive.

27. Arizona Cardinals (via Browns): Kris Jenkins, DL, Michigan
28. Buffalo Bills: Adonai Mitchell, WR, Texas
29. Detroit Lions: Kamari Lassiter, CB, Georgia
30. Baltimore Ravens: Brian Thomas Jr., WR, LSU
31. San Francisco 49ers: Graham Barton, IOL, Duke
32. Kansas City Chiefs: Ladd McConkey, WR, Georgia

I'm expecting at least two wide receivers in this group. What's crazy is that Brian Thomas Jr. and Adonai Mitchell could've been the top prospects at their position in any other year. It just so happens that this year is stacked with elite receivers.

These are the toughest picks to mock as the teams have fewer needs and pick late leads to scoop up great players who've fallen in the draft. Do the 49ers need a guard? Absolutely. But they may have somebody else higher on their board. Same with Ladd McConkey to Kansas City on the heels of the latest Rashee Rice news.