We are under three weeks away from the 2024 NFL Draft. Yes, that reads like the "It Is Your Birthday" banner hung by Dwight Schrute at Dunder Mifflin, but I felt compelled to toss aside my normal aversion to writing a calendar lede out of sheer excitement that the draft is that darn close!
While we got more clarity on what the Bills will almost assuredly do in the first round -- DRAFT A RECEIVER -- we still don't know which club(s) will ascend the board for a quarterback inside the top 10 or the order of the quarterback selections after Caleb Williams at No. 1 overall. As each day passes, it feels like we won't get any movement via trade until the actual draft begins. And I like that. Let the anticipation build.
Before I begin with today's newsletter, this paragraph will be your daily reminder to tell all your buddies and that one friend who's adamant your team NEEDS to trade up in the first round to sign up for the With the First Pick newsletter. All you have to do is click here and then share this link with them.
If you're new here, I got you covered. We're rebranding the Pick Six newsletter through the end of April. I, CBS Sports NFL Draft analyst Chris Trapasso, will be with you every step of the way. Honored.
All you have to do is click here and then share this link with them.
1. Today's NFL mock draft 🔮: Hot fire flames from Fornelli
I love when we get mock drafts into the cycle from the college football writers. We're all treated to such a unique perspective from those who covered and analyzed all these prospects during their collegiate careers. Seems like an important perspective to tap into this time of year, doesn't it?
And the theme from Tom Fornelli in his mock -- what if we're all wrong?
1. Chicago Bears -- Caleb Williams, QB, USC
2. Washington Commanders -- Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
3. New England Patriots -- Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame
4. Arizona Cardinals -- Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
5. Los Angeles Chargers -- Taliese Fuaga, OT, Oregon State
9. Chicago Bears -- Malik Nabers, WR, LSU
11. Minnesota Vikings -- J.J. McCarthy, QB, Michigan
20. Pittsburgh Steelers -- Jason Powers-Johnson, OC, Oregon
24. Dallas Cowboys -- Amarius Mims, OT, Georgia
27. Tampa Bay Buccaneers -- Max Melton, CB, Rutgers
This is the most unique mock you'll see on the internet. And it's totally insane for clickbait purposes. Melton had a freaky combine and no one is exactly sure how the cornerback position will shake out even at the top of this draft.
And I didn't inadvertently omit Jayden Daniels. While he doesn't fall incredibly far in this stupendous Fornelli mock, you'll love to see where he lands, and I'll spoil it slightly -- he's drafted after a trade up to get him. Lastly, at this point, it'd feel like awesome value for the Vikings to be able to stay put at No. 11 and still land McCarthy. He's aced the pre-draft process.
2. 'With the First Pick' podcast 🎧: Potential trades special
In the latest episode of the podcast, our resident GM Rick Spielman and fellow draft analyst Ryan Wilson lay out eight conceivable trades that would shake up the 2024 NFL Draft, and there are some doozies mentioned. Speaking of trades, Rick and Ryan start the show giving their opinions on the Stefon Diggs trades before diving into scenarios in chronological order by draft position -- first Vikings, then Broncos, then Raiders, before finishing with a few other ideas for swaps that could happen later in the first round.
3. Prospect of the day 📈: Ladd McConkey, WR, Georgia
Getting this out of the way at the jump -- Mr. McConkey is not an underneath slot receiver! In fact, at Georgia, 70.3% of his routes were run on the perimeter! And he's a vertical 4.39 type with nasty run-after-the-catch ability. He's almost completely different from the likes of Wes Welker, Danny Amendola, Cole Beasley and Hunter Renfrow.
He does have short arms and tiny hands, but his 7.8% career drop rate is not overly concerning and is one of the better in-traffic receivers in this class. McConkey is so fun on film and said film indicates he'll make a rapid transition to the NFL because, despite his plus athletic traits, he is incredibly nuanced as a route runner. Speed changes, head fakes, shoulder fakes, all of that, and he understands how to get into the blind spot of cornerbacks to really drive them crazy.
I'll be surprised if he's not a first-round pick, and nearly as surprised if he isn't a productive professional receiver for the next decade.
- Notable combine results: 4.39 40-yard dash (86th percentile), 36-inch vertical (55th percentile), 10-foot-4 broad (69th percentile)
- Combine measurements: 5-foot-11 and 5/8", 186 pounds, 72-inch wingspan, 8 5/8" hands
- Current CBS Sports prospect ranking: No. 26 overall
4. RB tiers, pro comparisons and draft ranges 👀
Spielman recently ran through everything in detail about his top-five running backs in the 2024 class, and staffer Garrett Podell put all of Rick's evaluations together nice and neat in this article. He compares his No. 5 back Blake Corum to former Syracuse and current Buccaneers runner Sean Tucker, and feels like his best fit would be a reunion with his Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh with the Chargers, somewhere in the middle of the draft.
Check out the article for the full list.
5. News & Notes 📝
- Bills banned one team from trying to trade for Stefon Diggs. This report, from Chris Simms of NBC Sports, states that the Bills allowed Diggs to look for a trade partner under one condition -- the Chiefs couldn't be one of them.
- Falcons sending large contingent to work out Michael Penix Jr. There's starting to be some late steam on the Penix train, and while we've mostly mocked an edge rusher to the Falcons at No. 8 overall after the Kirk Cousins signing, this development is fascinating.
- Bills sign former Cowboys, Bengals blocker. Buffalo can't stop, won't stop being in the news this week. The blocker they've reportedly signed is La'el Collins, who actually didn't play in 2023 due to injury.
- Steelers signing red-zone target with Arthur Smith ties. Tight end MyCole Pruitt, who has 12 touchdowns on 71 career interceptions has agreed to a deal with Pittsburgh. He's been with the Steelers OC from 2018 on with the Titans and Falcons.
