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How many first-round prospects are there in the 2024 NFL draft class?
You might be thinking the answer is 32, since there will be 32 selections in Round 1 come April 25 in Detroit. But we aren't talking about how many players will be drafted in Round 1, we're talking about how many carry a true Round 1 grade.
NFL teams don't typically deem many prospects in a given class as a Round 1-caliber talent, and it's never 32 of them. More realistically, around 15 per class earn a real first-round grade, though the number varies by team and scouting department. These sacred evaluations are reserved for prospects who would be a Day 1 selection regardless of year, and my own rule of thumb is deciding whether the player would have been one in each of the past five classes.
Confusing? Welcome to the world of scouting.
I tackled my list for the 2024 class with a strict grading scale after handing out 20 first-round scores in 2023, and I ended up with 14 names at this point in the process -- an offense-heavy group. I'll update this list periodically until draft time, so the number will change with bowl games, all-star events, the combine and further tape study. But for now, here are the players who deserve a first-round grade on my board. (Players' overall rankings are in parentheses after their names.)
The top overall player in the 2024 draft class, Williams combines excellent arm strength, mobility and field vision with a knack for making creative plays when defenses close in on the pocket. At 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds, he is responsible for 93 touchdowns over the past two seasons at USC (72 passing, 21 rushing).
Sure, he will need to clean up the fumbles (eight in 2023) and get the ball out faster (3.14 seconds to throw on average), but the NFL-style playmaking and jaw-dropping passing ability has scouts calling him a rare prospect. What he's able to do on second-effort plays is impressive, and Williams would have been my top-rated quarterback in each of the past five draft classes. He looks like a lock to go No. 1 right now.
Former NFL quarterback Chris Simms used to tell me "size is a trait," and if you subscribe to that philosophy, you'll love the 6-foot-4, 230-pound redshirt sophomore from North Carolina. Maye is poised in the pocket but also mobile when necessary, and he has proven the past two seasons that he's capable of putting a team on his back with awesome arm talent and the toughness to pick up difficult yards as a runner. He has to work on footwork mechanics and cut down on interceptions -- he threw 16 in the past two years combined -- but there is a lot to like in his game. Maye threw for 3,608 yards and 24 touchdown passes this season.
The Heisman Trophy winner was the most improved player in college football in 2023. He entered the season with a Day 3 grade from NFL scouts but put together a 50-touchdown campaign (40 passing, 10 rushing) with just four interceptions. Daniels is not only the draft's best deep-ball thrower -- he had a 99.6 QBR targeting vertical routes -- he's also the most dangerous runner among the quarterbacks. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder had 3,812 passing yards and 1,134 rushing yards this season. With a strong pre-draft process, QB2 status is not out of the question.
Harrison -- the son of NFL Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison Sr. -- has rare traits, including great size (6-foot-4, 205 pounds), body control, agility and flexibility, along with the fastest hands this side of Tyreek Hill. You don't often see big wide receivers show the flexibility and body control that Harrison does in order to get low to snag ground balls. And he's consistently making plays that show off an elite catch radius. He has accumulated nearly 2,500 receiving yards and 28 TDs over the past two seasons, despite defenses knowing the ball is going his way.
Odunze has charged up my board, jumping to WR2 and inside the top 10 overall. He's a physical, aggressive player when the ball is in his hands, and he sheds defenders with his 6-foot-3, 215-pound frame. Odunze has combined for 156 catches, over 2,500 yards and 20 touchdowns over the past two seasons while making a name for himself as a back-shoulder fade specialist. His toughness pre- and post-catch is fantastic, and his ability to consistently beat man coverage and dominate on 50-50 balls is why he gets the Chase comp.
He's the best after-the-catch receiver in the draft class, as the 6-foot, 200-pound Nabers averaged 18 yards per catch on 86 grabs this season, with 6.8 of those coming after the catch. He also turned in 14 touchdowns and 1,546 yards in a big breakout season. Nabers' start-stop quicks are high-end, and his field vision to find running lanes with the ball in his hands is special. I also love that over the past two seasons he has had a drop rate of just 3.1%. Nabers is sure-handed, fast, explosive and ready to be an NFL WR1.
Coleman, a transfer from Michigan State, was red-hot to start the season before cooling down slightly after FSU lost quarterback Jordan Travis. The 6-foot-4, 215-pounder shows off his former basketball player skills on 50-50 balls, but he's also explosive and elusive enough that the Seminoles used him as their primary punt returner. Coleman put together 108 catches and 18 touchdowns in the past two seasons, and his jump ball and post-up ability have scouts excited.
Bowers is not just a tight end; he's an offensive playmaker. The 6-foot-4, 240-pounder is rough and ready, and unlike so many smooth-moving tight ends of this day and age, he'll simply run over you. Bowers is physical but fast; he's as elusive as he is powerful. And it's why he has scored 31 touchdowns in the past three seasons while being used as a tight end, H-back, slot receiver and sometimes tailback. Some may say he's undersized, but Bowers' effort and strength as a blocker are underrated. He can be a focal point for an NFL passing game from Day 1.
A long-armed, easy-moving left tackle, Fashanu is a massive man at 6-foot-6 and 320 pounds. The 20-year-old has started 20 games over the past two seasons, allowing one sack in that time while being flagged only four times. He's powerful and agile, and he is still getting better with more reps. Fashanu has the tools to become a top-five NFL left tackle.
The son of Chiefs' Hall of Famer John Alt, the younger Alt is a masterful technician with just two sacks allowed in his past 25 games. At 6-foot-8 and 315 pounds, he dominates defenders with his length and grip strength. Once he's locked on, defenders are best to just wait for the whistle. Alt doesn't have the flashy agility of other tackle prospects, but his power and technique are NFL-ready.
Watching Guyton -- a former defensive lineman -- glide across the field in pass protection and run blocking makes it hard to not see Johnson, a former Sooner. Guyton is 6-foot-7 and 315 pounds with beautiful agility and length. He's still developing his full toolbox at right tackle but has the lower-body traits to play the left or right side in the pros. In 29 college games (15 starts), Guyton allowed one sack.
Turner broke out in 2023 after replacing Will Anderson Jr. as the primary pass-rusher at Alabama. He leads the Crimson Tide in sacks (nine) and has emerged as an elite force coming off the edge, adding two forced fumbles along the way. Turner has a slim build at 6-foot-4 and 242 pounds, which is where the comparison to Allen (6-foot-5, 255 pounds) comes from. Both are smooth, fast, long-armed pass-rushers. And like Allen, Turner has the upside and traits to develop into a special edge defender.
Latu does not boast the all-around burst and agility of Turner, but he's head and shoulders above every pass-rusher in the 2024 draft class when it comes to technique. Latu (6-foot-5, 265 pounds) understands leverage and hand usage, and he brings a nasty speed-to-power conversion to the game. Latu medically retired from football in 2020 before transferring from Washington to UCLA before the 2022 season. If his medicals come back with good news, he has top-10 potential after 23.5 sacks over the past two seasons. I see Sunday-ready pass-rush tools.
Newton has been a dominant interior pass-rush force the past two seasons with 13 sacks and 80 pressures. The 6-foot-2, 295-pounder has experience playing various alignments, even taking snaps at defensive end this season. And he has a nonstop motor when chasing down ball carriers or quarterbacks. Newton projects as a 3-technique defensive tackle at the next level, as his first-step quickness and natural leverage are major contributors to his top-15 overall ranking.
Keep an eye on Alabama duo Terrion Arnold (No. 15) and Kool-Aid McKinstry (No. 21) in the College Football Playoff; a good performance could help boost them. Joining them in the top 33 are Clemson's Nate Wiggins (No. 16), Iowa's Cooper DeJean (No. 20), Missouri's Ennis Rakestraw Jr. (No. 30) and Georgia's Kamari Lassiter (No. 33).
www.espn.com
You might be thinking the answer is 32, since there will be 32 selections in Round 1 come April 25 in Detroit. But we aren't talking about how many players will be drafted in Round 1, we're talking about how many carry a true Round 1 grade.
NFL teams don't typically deem many prospects in a given class as a Round 1-caliber talent, and it's never 32 of them. More realistically, around 15 per class earn a real first-round grade, though the number varies by team and scouting department. These sacred evaluations are reserved for prospects who would be a Day 1 selection regardless of year, and my own rule of thumb is deciding whether the player would have been one in each of the past five classes.
Confusing? Welcome to the world of scouting.
I tackled my list for the 2024 class with a strict grading scale after handing out 20 first-round scores in 2023, and I ended up with 14 names at this point in the process -- an offense-heavy group. I'll update this list periodically until draft time, so the number will change with bowl games, all-star events, the combine and further tape study. But for now, here are the players who deserve a first-round grade on my board. (Players' overall rankings are in parentheses after their names.)
Quarterback (3)
Caleb Williams, USC (No. 1)
Comp: Aaron RodgersThe top overall player in the 2024 draft class, Williams combines excellent arm strength, mobility and field vision with a knack for making creative plays when defenses close in on the pocket. At 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds, he is responsible for 93 touchdowns over the past two seasons at USC (72 passing, 21 rushing).
Sure, he will need to clean up the fumbles (eight in 2023) and get the ball out faster (3.14 seconds to throw on average), but the NFL-style playmaking and jaw-dropping passing ability has scouts calling him a rare prospect. What he's able to do on second-effort plays is impressive, and Williams would have been my top-rated quarterback in each of the past five draft classes. He looks like a lock to go No. 1 right now.
Drake Maye, North Carolina (No. 7)
Comp: Justin HerbertFormer NFL quarterback Chris Simms used to tell me "size is a trait," and if you subscribe to that philosophy, you'll love the 6-foot-4, 230-pound redshirt sophomore from North Carolina. Maye is poised in the pocket but also mobile when necessary, and he has proven the past two seasons that he's capable of putting a team on his back with awesome arm talent and the toughness to pick up difficult yards as a runner. He has to work on footwork mechanics and cut down on interceptions -- he threw 16 in the past two years combined -- but there is a lot to like in his game. Maye threw for 3,608 yards and 24 touchdown passes this season.
Jayden Daniels, LSU (No. 8)
Comp: Lamar JacksonThe Heisman Trophy winner was the most improved player in college football in 2023. He entered the season with a Day 3 grade from NFL scouts but put together a 50-touchdown campaign (40 passing, 10 rushing) with just four interceptions. Daniels is not only the draft's best deep-ball thrower -- he had a 99.6 QBR targeting vertical routes -- he's also the most dangerous runner among the quarterbacks. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder had 3,812 passing yards and 1,134 rushing yards this season. With a strong pre-draft process, QB2 status is not out of the question.
Running back (0)
After seeing Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs drafted in the top 12 selections in 2023, it was fair to wonder if the running back position was seeing a comeback in draft priority. But we aren't quite there, at least not yet. The 2024 class doesn't feature a player ranked inside my top 65. There are solid backs capable of helping NFL teams immediately -- Jonathon Brooks(Texas), Audric Estime (Notre Dame) and Blake Corum (Michigan) have Day 2 grades -- but none have the right mix of traits to qualify here.Wide receiver (4)
Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State (No. 2)
Comp: A.J. GreenHarrison -- the son of NFL Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison Sr. -- has rare traits, including great size (6-foot-4, 205 pounds), body control, agility and flexibility, along with the fastest hands this side of Tyreek Hill. You don't often see big wide receivers show the flexibility and body control that Harrison does in order to get low to snag ground balls. And he's consistently making plays that show off an elite catch radius. He has accumulated nearly 2,500 receiving yards and 28 TDs over the past two seasons, despite defenses knowing the ball is going his way.
Rome Odunze, Washington (No. 9)
Comp: Ja'Marr ChaseOdunze has charged up my board, jumping to WR2 and inside the top 10 overall. He's a physical, aggressive player when the ball is in his hands, and he sheds defenders with his 6-foot-3, 215-pound frame. Odunze has combined for 156 catches, over 2,500 yards and 20 touchdowns over the past two seasons while making a name for himself as a back-shoulder fade specialist. His toughness pre- and post-catch is fantastic, and his ability to consistently beat man coverage and dominate on 50-50 balls is why he gets the Chase comp.
Malik Nabers, LSU (No. 10)
Comp: Stefon DiggsHe's the best after-the-catch receiver in the draft class, as the 6-foot, 200-pound Nabers averaged 18 yards per catch on 86 grabs this season, with 6.8 of those coming after the catch. He also turned in 14 touchdowns and 1,546 yards in a big breakout season. Nabers' start-stop quicks are high-end, and his field vision to find running lanes with the ball in his hands is special. I also love that over the past two seasons he has had a drop rate of just 3.1%. Nabers is sure-handed, fast, explosive and ready to be an NFL WR1.
Keon Coleman, Florida State (No. 11)
Comp: Drake LondonColeman, a transfer from Michigan State, was red-hot to start the season before cooling down slightly after FSU lost quarterback Jordan Travis. The 6-foot-4, 215-pounder shows off his former basketball player skills on 50-50 balls, but he's also explosive and elusive enough that the Seminoles used him as their primary punt returner. Coleman put together 108 catches and 18 touchdowns in the past two seasons, and his jump ball and post-up ability have scouts excited.
Tight end (1)
Brock Bowers, Georgia (No. 6)
Comp: George KittleBowers is not just a tight end; he's an offensive playmaker. The 6-foot-4, 240-pounder is rough and ready, and unlike so many smooth-moving tight ends of this day and age, he'll simply run over you. Bowers is physical but fast; he's as elusive as he is powerful. And it's why he has scored 31 touchdowns in the past three seasons while being used as a tight end, H-back, slot receiver and sometimes tailback. Some may say he's undersized, but Bowers' effort and strength as a blocker are underrated. He can be a focal point for an NFL passing game from Day 1.
Offensive tackle (3)
Olumuyiwa Fashanu, Penn State (No. 3)
Comp: Terron ArmsteadA long-armed, easy-moving left tackle, Fashanu is a massive man at 6-foot-6 and 320 pounds. The 20-year-old has started 20 games over the past two seasons, allowing one sack in that time while being flagged only four times. He's powerful and agile, and he is still getting better with more reps. Fashanu has the tools to become a top-five NFL left tackle.
Joe Alt, Notre Dame (No. 4)
Comp: Mitchell SchwartzThe son of Chiefs' Hall of Famer John Alt, the younger Alt is a masterful technician with just two sacks allowed in his past 25 games. At 6-foot-8 and 315 pounds, he dominates defenders with his length and grip strength. Once he's locked on, defenders are best to just wait for the whistle. Alt doesn't have the flashy agility of other tackle prospects, but his power and technique are NFL-ready.
Tyler Guyton, Oklahoma (No. 14)
Comp: Lane JohnsonWatching Guyton -- a former defensive lineman -- glide across the field in pass protection and run blocking makes it hard to not see Johnson, a former Sooner. Guyton is 6-foot-7 and 315 pounds with beautiful agility and length. He's still developing his full toolbox at right tackle but has the lower-body traits to play the left or right side in the pros. In 29 college games (15 starts), Guyton allowed one sack.
Interior offensive line (0)
Edge rusher (2)
Dallas Turner, Alabama (No. 5)
Comp: Josh AllenTurner broke out in 2023 after replacing Will Anderson Jr. as the primary pass-rusher at Alabama. He leads the Crimson Tide in sacks (nine) and has emerged as an elite force coming off the edge, adding two forced fumbles along the way. Turner has a slim build at 6-foot-4 and 242 pounds, which is where the comparison to Allen (6-foot-5, 255 pounds) comes from. Both are smooth, fast, long-armed pass-rushers. And like Allen, Turner has the upside and traits to develop into a special edge defender.
Laiatu Latu, UCLA (No. 12)
Comp: Matthew JudonLatu does not boast the all-around burst and agility of Turner, but he's head and shoulders above every pass-rusher in the 2024 draft class when it comes to technique. Latu (6-foot-5, 265 pounds) understands leverage and hand usage, and he brings a nasty speed-to-power conversion to the game. Latu medically retired from football in 2020 before transferring from Washington to UCLA before the 2022 season. If his medicals come back with good news, he has top-10 potential after 23.5 sacks over the past two seasons. I see Sunday-ready pass-rush tools.
Defensive tackle (1)
Jer'Zhan Newton, Illinois (No. 13)
Comp: Justin MadubuikeNewton has been a dominant interior pass-rush force the past two seasons with 13 sacks and 80 pressures. The 6-foot-2, 295-pounder has experience playing various alignments, even taking snaps at defensive end this season. And he has a nonstop motor when chasing down ball carriers or quarterbacks. Newton projects as a 3-technique defensive tackle at the next level, as his first-step quickness and natural leverage are major contributors to his top-15 overall ranking.
Linebacker (0
Cornerback (0)
We saw four cornerbacks come off the board in Round 1 in 2023, including Devon Witherspoon at No. 5, but there are no corners with actual first-round grades in this class. That doesn't mean the group isn't talented, though -- six CBs are ranked between No. 15 and No. 33 on my board.Keep an eye on Alabama duo Terrion Arnold (No. 15) and Kool-Aid McKinstry (No. 21) in the College Football Playoff; a good performance could help boost them. Joining them in the top 33 are Clemson's Nate Wiggins (No. 16), Iowa's Cooper DeJean (No. 20), Missouri's Ennis Rakestraw Jr. (No. 30) and Georgia's Kamari Lassiter (No. 33).
Safety (0)
The 18 NFL draft prospects with a true Round 1 grade: What makes them 2024 first-rounders, plus comps
We'll see 32 picks in Round 1 in April, but which prospects are actually graded as first-rounders? We named 18 and made pro comps for each standout.
www.espn.com
