Top 10 Winners in the First Round of the 2024 NFL Draft
The 2024 NFL Draft started on Thursday night. There were a few surprises, but it was mostly a draft session that went as expected.
Still, there were winners from the NFL Draft's first round. Here are 10 of them.
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Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team in Chicago, Illinois. The Bears compete in the National Football League as a member club of the league's National Football Conference North division. Founded in 1919, the team has won nine NFL championships, including one Super Bowl.
The Chicago Bears were able to grab their potential franchise quarterback in Caleb Williams with the first overall pick, which they acquired from Carolina last year. They also used their second first-round pick to draft wide receiver Roman Odunze. Already, the Bears have a potential QB-WR tandem along with new receiver Keenan Allen that should give Chicago fans something to cheer about after years of waiting for a great quarterback.
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Daniel Jones
There was speculation that the Giants were going to maybe get a quarterback at the No. 6 spot to replace Daniel Jones, who had his up and down moments with the team. But the Giants instead gave him a wide receiver in LSU's Malik Nabers, hoping to take a load off. For Jones, while this is confirming the Giants' belief in him, he's still on the hot seat.
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Quarterbacks
For the first time in NFL history, six quarterbacks were taken in the first 12 picks. Caleb Williams was selected first to the Bears. Jayden Daniels was taken by the Commanders at two. Drake Maye was taken third overall to the Patriots.
The most surprising pick was Michael Penix to the Atlanta Falcons, despite the fact they already had Kirk Cousins. JJ McCarthy was picked 10th to the Minnesota Vikings, and Bo Nix was selected by the Broncos at 12.
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Offensive Players
While six quarterbacks were taken first overall, they were part of an NFL record 14 straight offensive players selected to start an NFL Draft. Along with those six, three wide receivers (Marvin Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers, and Roman Odunze), one tight end (Brock Bowers), and four offensive tackles were picked in that stretch before the defense got one on the board.
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Kyler Murray
Kyler Cole Murray is an American football quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals in the National Football League. He was selected first overall in the 2019 NFL Draft after a standout college career at the University of Oklahoma. Murray is also notable for being drafted in the first round of both the NFL... read more
Fans wondered if the Arizona Cardinals were willing to move on from Kyler Murray, who hasn't been able to elevate his play despite having great receivers like Fitzgerald and DeAndre Hopkins. Instead, the Cardinals made Murray's life easier when they drafted Marvin Harrison Jr. with the fourth pick in the NFL draft. Harrison will look to be the perfect fit for an Arizona squad looking for a spark and to be a threat in the NFC West.
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Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are an American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960 and first took the field for the 1961 season. They have made four Super Bowl appearances but have not yet secured a championship.
The Vikings pulled JJ McCarthy, who was the quarterback for the Michigan Wolverines when they won the College Football Playoff National Championship the year before.
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Trevor Lawrence
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Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League as a member club of the league's American Football Conference West division. They have won four league championships, including Super Bowl titles in 1970... read more
The two-time defending Super Bowl Champions had a lot of pressure to strive for a three-peat. With their history of drafting fast wide receivers, it was no surprise when the Chiefs drafted Texas wideout Xavier Worthy, who produced the fastest 40 time in combine history. Now paired with the best quarterback in the league, Patrick Mahomes, Worthy is hopeful to spark a Chiefs' renaissance at the receiver position, which had been a struggle for them last year.
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Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. The Lions compete in the National Football League as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division.
The Detroit Lions are one of the four teams to have never appeared in... read more
Detroit made a big trade with the Cowboys from 29 to 24 to draft Terrion Arnold, who is expected to help make the Lions' secondary one of the best in the game. Fresh off an NFC Championship appearance, the Lions hope that this will spark them to a level never before experienced in Motown.
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Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina, that competes in the National Football League. They are part of the NFC South division and began play in 1995 as an expansion team. The Panthers have appeared in two Super Bowls, in 2003 and 2015.
Carolina moved back in the first round after trading with Buffalo, and they drafted South Carolina wide receiver Xavier Leggette. After suffering a 2-14 season last year, the Panthers hope that their first-round pick can be of good use to Bryce Young. He strives to have his way for this upcoming season and avoid having a bust label on him.
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Najee Harris
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Washington Commanders
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.
In 2020, Washington retired the Redskins name and logo after 87 years due to its controversial depiction of Native American culture. The team was temporarily known as the Washington... read more
Commanders fan here. This draft class was stacked and I can't wait for the future! We're well set up to succeed in the coming years.
I've never been this excited for a season yet!
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Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional football franchise based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Eagles compete in the National Football League as a member club of the league's National Football Conference East division. They were established in 1933 and have won five NFL Championships, including... read more
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Las Vegas Raiders
The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football franchise based in Las Vegas. The team began playing in 1960 as a member of the American Football League and joined the National Football League following the 1970 AFL - NFL merger. In 2020, the Raiders relocated from Oakland, California to Las... read more
Las Vegas made a selection of Brock Bowers, who is by far the best tight end prospect in the draft. This prevented any of the other teams needing a tight end in the draft, especially helpful for their divisional opponents.
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Houston Texans
The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston, Texas. The team competes in the National Football League as a member club of the American Football Conference South division. Founded in 1999 and beginning play in 2002, the Texans are the league's youngest franchise.
Houston didn't have a first-round pick in the draft, but they were engaged in seeing any potential move-ups with other teams. However, as the landscape went the way it did, the Texans decided not to draft a player and will make their first selection in the second round. This decision could perhaps be a wise move as they still have leverage and opportunities to improve a now contending team.
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Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football franchise based in Seattle, Washington. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West division. ... read more