2024 NFL Mock Draft: Six quarterbacks go in first round; Steelers make big splash with trade into top 12

It's officially draft week. 

The biggest event of the NFL offseason will be kicking off on Thursday with the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Between now and then, you can expect to hear a lot of rumors and only about 5% of those rumors are going to be true, but you won't know which 5%, which is why it's so hard to figure out what's actually going to happen in the draft. 

Every year, the draft gets turned upside down with a big trade or a surprise pick and this year will certainly be no different. It's impossible to predict EVERYTHING that's going to happen in the first round, but I'm going to try and do that anyway with my one and only mock draft of the year. 

That's right, you get one mock draft from me and we're doing it now. 

For more draft coverage, you can hear in-depth analysis twice a week on "With the First Pick" -- our year-round NFL Draft podcast with NFL Draft analyst Ryan Wilson and former Vikings general manager Rick Spielman. You can find "With the First Pick" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, etc.

Round 1

2024 NFL Mock Draft

From Carolina Panthers Round 1, Pick 1 Caleb Williams QB USC • 6'1" / 215 lbs Projected Team Chicago PROSPECT RNK 1st POSITION RNK 1st PAYDS 3633 RUYDS 121 INTS 5 TDS 41 This is the one pick in the draft that won't shock anyone. If the Bears don't take Williams, they should fire everyone and fold the franchise.

Round 1, Pick 2 Jayden Daniels QB LSU • 6'4" / 210 lbs Projected Team Washington PROSPECT RNK 6th POSITION RNK 3rd PAYDS 3812 RUYDS 1134 INTS 4 TDS 50 The Commanders will have a huge decision to make at second overall between Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels. The team decides that Daniels has the higher upside, so they roll the dice on the Heisman-winning quarterback out of LSU.

Round 1, Pick 3 Drake Maye QB North Carolina • 6'4" / 225 lbs Projected Team New England PROSPECT RNK 5th POSITION RNK 2nd PAYDS 3608 RUYDS 449 INTS 9 TDS 33 The Patriots could trade this pick away, but when a possible franchise quarterback is sitting there for the taking, you take him and don't overthink things, which is what New England ends up doing here.

Round 1, Pick 4 Marvin Harrison Jr. WR Ohio State • 6'4" / 205 lbs Projected Team Arizona PROSPECT RNK 2nd POSITION RNK 1st REC 67 REYDS 1211 YDS/REC 18.1 TDS 15 The Cardinals got pretty crazy in the first round last year with multiple trades, but this year, no one is able to blow them away with an offer, so they stick at fourth overall and take Harrison.

Mock Trade from Los Angeles Chargers Round 1, Pick 5 J.J. McCarthy QB Michigan • 6'3" / 219 lbs Projected Team Minnesota PROSPECT RNK 20th POSITION RNK 4th PAYDS 2991 RUYDS 202 INTS 4 TDS 25 The Vikings are desperate for a quarterback and after failing to make a trade with either the Patriots or Cardinals, they finally find a willing partner in the Chargers. To make the deal happen, the Vikings send the 11th overall pick and the 23rd overall pick to Los Angeles.

Round 1, Pick 6 Malik Nabers WR LSU • 6'0" / 200 lbs Projected Team N.Y. Giants PROSPECT RNK 3rd POSITION RNK 2nd REC 89 REYDS 1569 YDS/REC 17.6 TDS 14 The Giants might have taken a QB here if one of the top four had fallen into their lap, but since that doesn't happen, they decide to bring in something they've been lacking over the past few years: A star receiver.

Mock Trade from Tennessee Titans Round 1, Pick 7 Rome Odunze WR Washington • 6'3" / 215 lbs Projected Team Indianapolis PROSPECT RNK 9th POSITION RNK 3rd REC 92 REYDS 1640 YDS/REC 17.8 TDS 15 SURPRISE! The Colts need some receiving help and they get that in a major way by making a trade to land Odunze. To make the deal happen, Indy sends the 15th, 46th and 234th overall picks to Tennessee.

Round 1, Pick 8 Dallas Turner EDGE Alabama • 6'3" / 247 lbs Projected Team Atlanta PROSPECT RNK 10th POSITION RNK 1st REC 92 REYDS 1640 YDS/REC 17.8 TDS 15 After loading up their offense in free agency, the Falcons finally add a potential defensive star in Turner.

Round 1, Pick 9 Jared Verse EDGE Florida State • 6'4" / 260 lbs Projected Team Chicago PROSPECT RNK 11th POSITION RNK 2nd The Bears decide to steal the Texans' strategy from last season: After watching Houston draft a star QB (C.J. Stroud) and a star defensive player (Will Anderson Jr.), the Bears make the decision to add Verse to their Caleb Williams haul.

Round 1, Pick 10 Brock Bowers TE Georgia • 6'4" / 230 lbs Projected Team N.Y. Jets PROSPECT RNK 14th POSITION RNK 1st REC 56 REYDS 714 YDS/REC 12.8 TDS 7 Aaron Rodgers offers to personally turn the card in himself for this pick. The Jets would have loved one of the top three receivers, but with all of them off the board, they give Rodgers the best tight end in the draft.

Mock Trade from Minnesota Vikings Round 1, Pick 11 Terrion Arnold CB Alabama • 6'0" / 199 lbs Projected Team L.A. Chargers PROSPECT RNK 13th POSITION RNK 2nd The Chargers give some serious thought to taking Joe Alt here, but then they realize they have a bigger need at cornerback and with Patrick Mahomes in your division, that's a need that you need to fill.

Mock Trade from Denver Broncos Round 1, Pick 12 Joe Alt OT Notre Dame • 6'8" / 322 lbs Projected Team Pittsburgh PROSPECT RNK 7th POSITION RNK 2nd After watching Alt tumble down the draft board, the Steelers decide to make a move for the Notre Dame tackle. The addition of Alt will help ensure that Russell Wilson doesn't spend his first season in Pittsburgh running for his life. To make this trade happen, the Steelers send the 20th and 51st overall picks to Denver.

Round 1, Pick 13 Quinyon Mitchell CB Toledo • 6'0" / 193 lbs Projected Team Las Vegas PROSPECT RNK 8th POSITION RNK 1st The Raiders would have loved to trade up for a quarterback, but since they couldn't make that happen, they settle on Mitchell, who some people have ranked as the top corner in the draft.

Round 1, Pick 14 Olumuyiwa Fashanu OT Penn State • 6'6" / 312 lbs Projected Team New Orleans PROSPECT RNK 4th POSITION RNK 1st The Saints desperately need help at tackle and they get that help by selecting Fashanu.

Mock Trade from Indianapolis Colts Round 1, Pick 15 JC Latham OT Alabama • 6'6" / 342 lbs Projected Team Tennessee PROSPECT RNK 19th POSITION RNK 5th REC 56 REYDS 714 YDS/REC 12.8 TDS 7 The Titans could have stayed at seventh overall and drafted Joe Alt, but instead, they added two more picks in a trade down with the Colts AND they still managed to get a tackle that they're high on in Latham.

Round 1, Pick 16 Troy Fautanu IOL Washington • 6'4" / 317 lbs Projected Team Seattle PROSPECT RNK 23rd POSITION RNK 1st The University of Washington star won't have to travel far to start his NFL career because the Seahawks decide to keep him in Seattle with this pick.

Round 1, Pick 17 Taliese Fuaga OT Oregon State • 6'6" / 324 lbs Projected Team Jacksonville PROSPECT RNK 12th POSITION RNK 3rd Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke loves to draft guys who can play in the trenches, so no one should be surprised when the Jags use their first-round pick on Fuaga.

Round 1, Pick 18 Byron Murphy II DL Texas • 6'0" / 306 lbs Projected Team Cincinnati PROSPECT RNK 15th POSITION RNK 1st The Bengals could certainly go with a receiver or an offensive lineman here, but after watching the draft's top defensive tackle fall to them at 18, they decide to pull the trigger on this pick.

Round 1, Pick 19 Laiatu Latu EDGE UCLA • 6'5" / 265 lbs Projected Team L.A. Rams PROSPECT RNK 16th POSITION RNK 3rd With Aaron Donald now retired, this becomes an easy pick for the Rams, who keep Latu in Los Angeles by taking him with the 19th overall pick.

Mock Trade from Pittsburgh Steelers Round 1, Pick 20 Bo Nix QB Oregon • 6'2" / 217 lbs Projected Team Denver PROSPECT RNK 38th POSITION RNK 6th PAYDS 4508 RUYDS 234 INTS 3 TDS 51 There's nothing Sean Payton loves more than an accurate quarterback and during the 2023 college season, there was no one more accurate than Nix, who led all FBS quarterbacks in completion percentage.

Round 1, Pick 21 Amarius Mims OT Georgia • 6'8" / 350 lbs Projected Team Miami PROSPECT RNK 18th POSITION RNK 4th The Dolphins need help on the offensive line and Mims will give that to them.

Round 1, Pick 22 Cooper DeJean CB Iowa • 6'0" / 198 lbs Projected Team Philadelphia PROSPECT RNK 25th POSITION RNK 4th The Eagles are known to wheel and deal in the first round, but this year, they decide to sit tight and take DeJean. The versatile defensive back should be able to instantly help a Philadelphia secondary that struggled some in 2023.

Mock Trade from Minnesota Vikings Round 1, Pick 23 Brian Thomas Jr. WR LSU • 6'2" / 209 lbs Projected Team L.A. Chargers PROSPECT RNK 17th POSITION RNK 4th REC 68 REYDS 1177 YDS/REC 17.3 TDS 17 After cutting Mike Williams and trading away Keenan Allen, the Chargers finally bring in a weapon for Justin Herbert in the form of Thomas.

Mock Trade from Dallas Cowboys Round 1, Pick 24 Ladd McConkey WR Georgia • 6'0" / 185 lbs Projected Team Buffalo PROSPECT RNK 24th POSITION RNK 5th REC 30 REYDS 478 YDS/REC 15.9 TDS 3 The Bills badly need a receiver and although they probably would have loved to make a trade to the top of the draft to grab one of the top-three guys, they quickly learn that's not practical, so they settle on a small trade-up for McConkey. The Cowboys get the 28th, 128th and 133rd picks in return to make this trade happen.

Round 1, Pick 25 Johnny Newton DL Illinois • 6'2" / 295 lbs Projected Team Green Bay PROSPECT RNK 26th POSITION RNK 2nd There are a lot of ways the Packers could go here, but one of their biggest needs is at defensive tackle, so they decide to fill that with Newton, who falls down to them at 25 due to questions about his injured foot.

Round 1, Pick 26 Chop Robinson EDGE Penn State • 6'3" / 254 lbs Projected Team Tampa Bay PROSPECT RNK 22nd POSITION RNK 4th If there is one need the Buccaneers absolutely have to address early in the draft, it's at pass rusher and with Robinson falling down to them at 26th overall, this ends up being an easy pick for Tampa Bay.

From Houston Texans Round 1, Pick 27 Kool-Aid McKinstry CB Alabama • 5'11" / 199 lbs Projected Team Arizona PROSPECT RNK 29th POSITION RNK 5th If the Cardinals get out of the first round with one of the top receivers and one of the top corners, they will be thrilled, which means they'll be thrilled here, because they're going to end up with Marvin Harrison Jr. and McKinstry.

Mock Trade from Buffalo Bills Round 1, Pick 28 Jackson Powers-Johnson IOL Oregon • 6'3" / 328 lbs Projected Team Dallas PROSPECT RNK 34th POSITION RNK 2nd REC 55 REYDS 845 YDS/REC 15.4 TDS 11 The Cowboys need help all over the place right now, but they decide to prioritize the offensive line, which is how they end up with Powers-Johnson.

Round 1, Pick 29 Nate Wiggins CB Clemson • 6'1" / 182 lbs Projected Team Detroit PROSPECT RNK 21st POSITION RNK 3rd The Lions already added some corner help this offseason by trading for Carlton Davis, but after cutting Cam Sutton, Detroit decides that it still needs some corner help, so the Lions grab Wiggins.

Round 1, Pick 30 Graham Barton OT Duke • 6'5" / 314 lbs Projected Team Baltimore PROSPECT RNK 35th POSITION RNK 6th PAYDS 4508 RUYDS 234 INTS 3 TDS 51 The Ravens are in the process of totally revamping their offensive line, so it won't be any surprise if they take an offensive lineman in the first round. In the end, the Ravens end up going with Barton because of his versatility on the interior of the O-line.

From San Francisco 49ers Round 1, Pick 31 Michael Penix Jr. QB Washington • 6'3" / 215 lbs Projected Team Las Vegas PROSPECT RNK 30th POSITION RNK 5th PAYDS 4903 RUYDS 8 INTS 11 TDS 39 The Raiders decided not to go with a QB at 13th overall, but they make up for that by trading back into the first round to grab Penix. To make this deal happen, they send the 44th overall pick and the 77th overall pick to the 49ers.

Round 1, Pick 32 Tyler Guyton OT Oklahoma • 6'7" / 322 lbs Projected Team Kansas City PROSPECT RNK 36th POSITION RNK 7th REC 30 REYDS 478 YDS/REC 15.9 TDS 3 It won't be surprising if the Chiefs look to go receiver here, but if they don't love the options they have when they're on the clock, taking an offensive lineman would make a lot of sense.