2024 NFL draft Mel Kiper s Round 1 winners losers values

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How about that Round 1? The 2024 NFL draft began with quarterbacks going in the top three -- Caleb Williams to the Bears, Jayden Daniels to the Commanders and Drake Maye to the Patriots -- and there were several intriguing picks after that, along with a handful of trades. It was an amazing night in Detroit.

Which fan bases should be thrilled after what their favorite team did on Day 1? Which should be scratching their heads? It's time to break down what happened with my annual review of the best and worst of what I saw from the top 32 picks.

Let's get into the selections I liked and didn't like from Round 1. There were a few I loved, a few that shocked me (you might be able to guess which ones) and a few more where I would have gone a different direction. My thoughts are based on my Big Board rankings and grades for each prospect, along with whether teams got value with their selections. I'm also going to scrutinize trades -- both up and down -- to see which teams gave up too much and which picked up valuable capital, in this draft and in 2025.

As usual, come back late Saturday night for my post-draft grades for all 32 teams. That's where I'll review as many of the 257 picks as I can. We'll be back for Rounds 2 and 3 on Friday (7 p.m. ET on ESPN, ABC and the ESPN App).

Here are my best available prospects heading into Round 2, based on my Big Board: CB Cooper DeJean (No. 14 overall), LB Edgerrin Cooper (26), WR Keon Coleman (33), CB Kool-Aid McKinstry (35), WR Adonai Mitchell (36).

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Biggest winners from Round 1 Chicago Bears

The picks: QB Caleb Williams (No. 1) and WR Rome Odunze (No. 9)

How could the Bears not be in the "winners" section? They ended up with the No. 1 overall pick via their trade with the Panthers last year, and they used it on the No. 1 prospect on my Big Board. Williams will be an upgrade on Justin Fields as a passer from day one. He's so smooth, so savvy, so talented. And he has playmakers around him -- Chicago added Keenan Allen in a trade and has DJ Moore and Cole Kmet -- to elevate his game. I love this pick.

Then the Bears landed Odunze, the No. 4 player on my board, at No. 9, to add to their explosive offense. While you could argue they still have major issues on defense -- and they have just two picks the rest of this draft -- their offense is really fun. They're going to be feisty in the NFC North this season. They nailed these early picks.

Minnesota Vikings

The picks: QB J.J. McCarthy (No. 10) and OLB Dallas Turner (No. 17)

All along, McCarthy was linked to the Vikings. And all along, we thought they might have to give up their other first-round pick -- No. 23 -- to get him. Instead, though, they patiently waited. They traded up one spot with the Jets, got their guy and kept the No. 23 pick. That's a huge win.

McCarthy, who finished No. 15 in my rankings, is going to a great spot. Coach Kevin O'Connell and the Vikings will put him in position to succeed. Plus, he's going to be throwing passes to Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson. This is a great fit for a young signal-caller.

Minnesota was able to use that pick at 23 to move up six spots to land Turner, my top-ranked edge rusher and the No. 9 player on my Big Board. While the franchise had to give up quite a bit -- it also surrendered No. 167 and 2025 third- and fourth-rounders -- Turner is a great player who fills a position of need. Like the Bears, the Vikings landed two players in my top 15. This is a really solid haul.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The pick: G Troy Fautanu (No. 20)

What a steal by Pittsburgh. I wrote Thursday morning that I thought the Steelers were targeting Graham Barton to be their new center, but I didn't think Fautanu would be available. This is a no-brainer. I had Fautanu at No. 10 and Barton at No. 19 in my rankings, and both were the top players at their position.

Fautanu played left tackle in college, and I wouldn't be shocked if the Steelers thought he could stick there and compete with Dan Moore Jr. in 2024 while they find their center somewhere else.

Arizona Cardinals

The picks: WR Marvin Harrison Jr. (No. 4) and DL Darius Robinson (No. 27)

Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray has to be one of the league's happiest players after what happened in Round 1. That's because he now has a true No. 1 wideout in Harrison, something he lacked last season. Harrison has all the tools -- size, speed, hands, route-running, contested-catch ability -- to be an All-Pro at the position, and he should be the early favorite for Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Credit GM Monti Ossenfort for staying at No. 4 and landing one of the best wideouts I've graded in the past decade. With his other first-rounder -- the one acquired during the 2023 draft via the Texans -- he landed a tweener defensive lineman who destroyed blockers at the Senior Bowl two months ago. Robinson could end up as a 3-technique tackle, where he has some interior pass-rush juice, or defensive end, helping Arizona fill a void in the front seven.

Jacksonville Jaguars

The pick: WR Brian Thomas Jr. (No. 23)

This is how to maneuver the draft board. I mentioned the Vikings trading with the Jaguars, and to move down six spots from No. 17 to No. 23, Jacksonville was able to add No. 167 and third- and fourth-round picks in next year's draft. What did GM Trent Baalke do when he moved down? He took the player he would have picked at No. 17.

Thomas could fill the void left by Calvin Ridley, who signed with the Titans in free agency. Thomas is a tremendous deep threat who can run under rainbow throws from Trevor Lawrence. I love this fit.

More picks I liked It should go without saying that I liked the Commanders and Patriots getting their quarterbacks of the future at Nos. 2 and 3, respectively. Jayden Daniels will give a jolt to the entire Washington franchise, and he's in a good spot to play well early. Drake Maye won't have as good of pass-catchers around him in New England, but he's the type of talent to build around. I have higher grades on Maye and Daniels than I did on Mac Jones in 2021. I was surprised the Bills made a deal with the Chiefs to allow Kansas City to take wideout Xavier Worthy, who is more than just a record-breaking speedster. Worthy is not going to be the next Tyreek Hill, but he can fly after the catch and has some route-running ability. Kansas City got Nos. 28, 133 and 248, while Buffalo acquired Nos. 32, 95 and 221. The Raiders got good value on Brock Bowers at No. 13, and I think he's more than a tight end. I've long called him an "offensive entity." He can play out wide or inline or as an H-back. Sure, they missed out on the quarterbacks, but Bowers will be a stellar player for Gardner Minshew in 2024. How about all of the corners dropping? The Eagles were able to take the first one, and they went with Quinyon Mitchell at No. 22. While I had Cooper DeJean slightly higher in my rankings, Mitchell is a really good player at a position of need. This is a good pick for GM Howie Roseman. Dallas was able to acquire an additional third-rounder when it moved down five spots with the Lions, from No. 24 to No. 29. And the Cowboys got a really talented tackle in Tyler Guyton, who played mostly on the right side in college. While he's still raw, he has top-tier physical tools. The Bucs have been looking for an upgrade at center after Ryan Jensen was forced to retire, and they were able to snag my top-ranked pivot in Graham Barton at No. 26. That's a potential steal. Teams that made head-scratching moves in Round 1 Atlanta Falcons

The pick: QB Michael Penix Jr. (No. 8)

This is a shocking pick. The Falcons just gave free agent Kirk Cousins $100 million guaranteed in March. They're locked in to the veteran for at least two seasons. And they reached for a quarterback who turns 24 years old next month? I don't get it. The reality is Penix is No. 24 overall on my Big Board, and I had him rated a tier behind J.J. McCarthy, who was still on the board.

The other part of this is Atlanta has a huge need on defense, and it passed up the opportunity to take the first defender in the class. The Falcons ranked last in the league in pass rush win rate (30.9%) and 29th in takeaways (16). They went 7-10 last season in large part because of their porous defense. Edge rusher Dallas Turner or defensive tackle Byron Murphy II would have been huge upgrades on their depth chart.

The Falcons addressing their defense would have helped them compete for the NFC South title, but instead they took a quarterback who will sit behind Cousins and wait his turn. I understand that if they wanted Penix, they probably had to take him before the Raiders at No. 13, but this is a tough one to stomach this early.

Denver Broncos

The pick: QB Bo Nix (No. 12)

This is a fit I thought might work after free agency last month. Here's what I wrote then: "Nix isn't going to be for every team, but [coach Sean] Payton might see a little Drew Brees in him. ... Taking Nix in Round 1 would be a way for the Broncos to try to snag a franchise quarterback, and if they moved down a few spots, they could regain valuable capital. But again, they have to really believe in his potential to do it."

The problem now? This is too high for Nix, who I gave a Round 2 grade. I get that Denver saw five other quarterbacks go before its pick and maybe the front office thought it faced losing Nix if it traded down. But this is a reach. The fear with Nix is that he already has reached his ceiling; he started 61 college games at Auburn and Oregon. He was extremely productive the past two seasons for the Ducks -- he threw 45 touchdown passes and just three picks in 2023 -- but he was asked to get the ball out quickly and throw short. That won't work at the next level. He's going to have to go through full-field reads.

Payton is going to have to coach him up and turn him into an above-average starter, and I'm just not convinced Nix will get there. Then again, we can't count out Payton, who now has his guy after Russell Wilson was released.

Tennessee Titans

The pick: OT JC Latham (No. 7)

Let's be clear: I like Latham as a prospect, and he'll be a plug-and-play starter at tackle for the Titans. The problem here is something I talk about a lot -- value. Is this really where Tennessee should take a starting right tackle? Because that's all he played at Alabama. They could have taken an edge rusher or the No. 4 player on my board, wideout Rome Odunze, or they could have traded down a few spots and likely still taken Latham.

Yes, offensive line was their biggest need, but this isn't great value. In back-to-back drafts, Tennessee now has taken a right tackle and guard in the top 11. It still has a void at left tackle, too. Now, it sounds like the Titans are going to try Latham there, but it's not lock that he's an above-average blindside protector.

San Francisco 49ers

The pick: WR Ricky Pearsall (No. 31)

This one makes you wonder what's going on with Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel, right? Could the 49ers have more moves coming? In the end, though, I had Pearsall ranked below both Xavier Legette, Keon Coleman and Adonai Mitchell, all of whom were still available at the end of Round 1. Pearsall lit up the combine with his testing numbers, and he could be a better pro than college player. He's my No. 10 wideout.