NFL Draft 2024: All you need to know
It’s felt like an eternity since the Kansas City Chiefs defended their Super Bowl thrown back in February, but we’re now just days away from the second biggest event in the NFL’s calendar.
After months of scouting, teams will gather in Detroit to pick the next set of players they hope will be the future of their franchise, and all of us will finally get to see whether our predictions come true.
Thousands of college graduates are available in this weekend’s NFL draft and over three days, but only 257 of them will see their dreams of becoming an NFL player come true.
Who has the first pick?
In 2023, the Chicago Bears traded away their first overall pick to the Carolina Panthers, who traded up to select quarterback Bryce Young, a deal which included the Panthers’ first-round selection for 2024.
But after Carolina struggled from the off and finished with the league’s worst record, it means Chicago have the first overall pick for this year.
Having traded quarterback Justin Fields to the Pittsburgh Steelers last month, their expected to select elite prospect Caleb Williams to be the guy to lead their franchise long term. The 22-year-old is a special talent and a threat with both his arm and his legs. From 33 starts across three seasons in college, he racked up 9,782 passing yards, 93 passing touchdowns and 27 rushing touchdowns.
Who are the other players to look out for?
The Washington Commanders and New England Patriots have the second and third picks, respectively, and have also traded away their starting quarterbacks from last season.
They are set to choose between last year’s Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye.
That trio are the only quarterbacks among the 13 prospects who accepted invitations to this year’s draft, so will be in attendance when teams expectedly pick them early on Day One. Others include four wide receivers – Marvin Harrison Jr, Rome Odunze, Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr, with the WR class one of the most exciting in recent draft history.
Infact, we’re expecting a record number of offense players to be taken in the first round of this year’s event, particularly considering a deep selection of offensive linemen, and a generational tight end talent in Brock Bowers.
The first defensive players expected to be called include cornerback Quinyon Mitchell and edge rushers Dallas Turner, Laiatu Latu, and Bryon Murphy II.
When does the event start?
The NFL Draft begins on Thursday, 25 April, with the Chicago Bears ‘on the clock’ from 20:00 ET (01:00 BST, Friday). Each team has 10 minutes to get their pick in during the first round, which is held entirely on day one.
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