Re-Drafting The First Round Of The Stacked 2024 NFL Draft
This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.
The 2024 NFL Draft was supposed to be one of the best in recent memory loaded with quarterback talent, elite receivers, and game-changing defenders. And now, a year and a half later, we finally have enough data to judge which teams got it right.
Some of these picks look even better than they did on draft night. Others? Let’s just say a few front offices are probably wishing they could have a do-over or maybe even a different job entirely.
So today, we’re completely re-drafting the first round based on what we know now. Same teams, same draft order but the players slotted where they SHOULD have gone based on their actual production. We’re going in reverse order from pick 32 to pick 1. Let’s get into it!
Which NFL players drafted in 2024 went higher or lower?
Pick 32: Carolina Panthers — Xavier Legette (32, Panthers)
Charlotte, we need to talk. Legette has been an absolute disaster.
The Panthers traded up and gave away a second-round pick to grab this guy in the 2024 NFL Draft, and what did they get? A receiver so disappointing they had to draft another one in the top 10 this year, who, by the way, has been outpacing Legette in every meaningful category.
If we had the option to drop him out of the first round entirely, we would… But for the purposes of this redraft, Legette stays last because there’s nowhere else to put him.
Pick 31: San Francisco 49ers — J.J. McCarthy (10, Vikings)
McCarthy has been brutal since getting slotted in as the starter… There is no two ways about it.
But if anyone can fix McCarthy, it’s Kyle Shanahan. The 49ers stash him as a developmental project behind Brock Purdy and hope the system can unlock something. At 31, that’s a reasonable gamble. At 10, Minnesota scored badly.
Pick 30: Baltimore Ravens — Jordan Morgan (25, Packers)
Jordan Morgan has been… okay… for the Packers so far. Part of the problem is that they continue to move him around the line, and he hasn’t really gotten a chance to settle into playing at the NFL level.
Perhaps, John Harbaugh and co. can take a swing at getting Morgan up to speed; blocking in their run-heavy scheme would at least simplify things for the big man.
Pick 29: Dallas Cowboys — Ricky Pearsall (31, 49ers)
Pearsall has been a reliable complementary piece when healthy. Dallas has two studs at receiver already in CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, but Pearsall would give Dak Prescott a steady option in the slot that would make this offense even scarier.
Pick 28: Kansas City Chiefs — Marvin Harrison Jr. (4, Cardinals)
Through a season and a half, it has been about as ugly as it can get for the Ohio State star and the 4th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft. Both production-wise and in terms of the vibes around Harrison Jr. and the way he fits into that Cardinals locker room.
Kansas City, however, gives him a chance to restart his career catching passes from Patrick Mahomes and to blend into a mature, unified locker room. Maybe that’s what he needs—because what he’s doing in Arizona isn’t working.
Pick 27: Arizona Cardinals — Graham Barton (26, Buccaneers)
Barton has been reliable, consistent, and durable up front for Tampa. The Cardinals could really benefit from his skill set, as their offensive line has been woefully inconsistent all season.
Pick 26: Tampa Bay Buccaneers — Darius Robinson (27, Cardinals)
Solid rotational piece on the defensive line and could help solidify the Bucs run D. Exactly what you want from a late first-rounder—nothing more, nothing less.
Pick 25: Green Bay Packers — Nate Wiggins (30, Ravens)
Green Bay has been a force to be reckoned with on the defensive side of the ball, following the blockbuster Micah Parsons trade. Now imagine this group with a stud like Nate Wiggins locking down opposing wide receivers.
Pick 24: Detroit Lions — Tyler Guyton (29, Cowboys)
Guyton has been a starting-caliber tackle who keeps improving each week. Detroit’s offensive line is already strong, but adding depth only protects their championship window, especially with some of the injuries they have endured.
Pick 23: Jacksonville Jaguars — Michael Penix Jr. (8, Falcons)
At 23, Jacksonville can take a swing on a developmental quarterback behind Trevor Lawrence. To be honest, there isn’t a great space for Penix, who probably should fall out of the first round entirely based on performance and injury concerns, but Jacksonville is the best bet.
Pick 22: Philadelphia Eagles — Dallas Turner (17, Vikings)
Turner has been fine as a linebacker—nothing spectacular, nothing awful for the 17th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft. Philly’s defense could use his athleticism, and 22 is an appropriate value for what he’s produced. Plus, based on the way we’ve seen Vic Fangio and the Eagles defense set up young players for success, this one feels like a high-upside, no-brainer.
Pick 21: Miami Dolphins — Chop Robinson (21, Dolphins)
Miami’s pass rush has benefited from Robinson’s development. He’s getting better every month, and the Dolphins got this one right.
Pick 20: Pittsburgh Steelers — Amarius Mims (18, Bengals)
Opening up opportunities for the running game and protecting the quarterback have long been priority one in Pittsburgh. Mims slides here and gives the Steelers another quality offensive line piece.
Pick 19: Los Angeles Rams — Terrion Arnold (24, Lions)
It was touch-and-go early in 2024 for the young corner, but Arnold showed real talent down the stretch and early this season before a shoulder injury ended his year. The Rams need secondary help, and Sean McVay can develop him into a high-end starter. At 19, the upside is worth the injury risk.
Pick 18: Cincinnati Bengals — Troy Fautanu (20, Steelers)
Protecting Joe Burrow is everything in Cincinnati. At least it should be! Fautanu has been solid, and taking him might’ve helped the Bengals keep Burrow upright and healthy.
Pick 17: Minnesota Vikings — Xavier Worthy (28, Chiefs)
Worthy has been exactly what you want from a late first-rounder—a speed element who stretches defenses and opens up everything underneath. The man ran the fastest 40-yard dash in NFL Combine history, and he’s put that speed to good use catching passes from Patrick Mahomes. Minnesota pairs him with Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, and suddenly, the Vikings have one of the most dynamic receiver trios in football.
Pick 16: Seattle Seahawks — Laiatu Latu (15, Colts)
The Seahawks defense has been a revelation this year under Mike Macdonald, and while Byron Murphy II has been a big part of it, the reality is he’d be snaked sooner in a re-draft.
Coming into the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seahawks needed pass-rush help desperately, and Latu has delivered that for the Colts and looks to be continually improving. He would be a great piece on this talented, angry Seattle D.
Pick 15: Indianapolis Colts — Byron Murphy II (16, Seahawks)
Byron Murphy has come alive during his sophomore campaign in the Pacific Northwest. By jumping the Seahawks to take the forceful d-tackle, Indy gets a quality interior defender who’s been disruptive against the run and the pass and can really solidify their defense.
Pick 14: New Orleans Saints — Taliese Fuaga (14, Saints)
New Orleans’ offensive line has been a mess over the past few seasons, but Fuaga has been one of the few bright spots. New Orleans catches a break, and one of its better picks in recent memory falls to them here, and Fugal stays put.
Pick 13: Las Vegas Raiders — Brian Thomas Jr. (23, Jaguars)
Sin City desperately needs weapons, and while they were fortunate to luck into Brock Bowers, their peers in the redraft are a little more savvy.
Either way, the Raiders end up with a top-class pass catcher in the 2024 NFL Draft. BTJ had a phenomenal rookie year—1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns with Trevor Lawrence throwing him the ball. Even if 2025 hasn’t been as kind with a sophomore slump, the talent is legit, and the Raiders get a true number one receiver to build around, and at 13, that’s tremendous value.
Pick 12: Denver Broncos — Rome Odunze (9, Bears)
Odunze has been a reliable complementary piece—exactly what a contending team with a young quarterback and an offense genius for a coach needs to bolster its offense. Solid floor, decent ceiling, no drama.
Denver pairs him with Bo Nix and gets a guy who can develop into a true wide receiver 1 for the future. Mile High would be a fun landing spot for a player this explosive.
Pick 11: New York Jets — Malik Nabers (6, Giants)
While Garrett Wilson is a stud, he can’t do it alone, and the Jets have needed receiver help desperately.
Enter Malik Nabers, who was sensational as a rookie—1,204 yards, franchise records, and looked like he was on his way to another Pro Bowl selection—before tearing his ACL early in 2025. That’s not a draft evaluation issue; that’s just terrible luck, but his talent is undeniable.
That’s more than the Jets can say about most of their roster.
Pick 10: Minnesota Vikings — Olu Fashanu (11, Jets)
Instead of reaching for McCarthy in the 2024 NFL Draft, Minnesota takes a rock-solid offensive tackle.
What should really excite Vikings fans is that this is the alternate timeline where Minnesota doesn’t let Sam Darnold walk for a project quarterback who wasn’t ready.
They keep Darnold, draft Fashanu here, and probably have a much better record… Imagine that!
Pick 9: Chicago Bears — JC Latham (7, Titans)
Chicago’s second first-round pick goes toward protecting their franchise quarterback. Latham has been a fine starting tackle, and building a wall around a young signal caller is the right call. You can never have too much offensive line help, especially with how that unit was looking for the 2 or 3 years leading up to this draft.
Pick 8: Atlanta Falcons — Bo Nix (12, Broncos)
Forget the Penix disaster—instead, Atlanta takes a quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft who’s actually winning games. Nix has the Broncos sitting atop the AFC West with clutch fourth-quarter performances and ice in his veins when the game is on the line.
His numbers aren’t always world-class, and there have been some inconsistent stretches—but the man delivers when it matters most… Something the Falcons would kill to have under center.
Pick 7: Tennessee Titans — Jared Verse (19, Rams)
Here is a changeup for the Titans… Instead of throwing a dart at their positional needs and taking JC Latham, Tennessee builds its defense around a game-wrecker.
Verse won Defensive Rookie of the Year and led the entire NFL in pressures as a rookie with 89.
He’s continued that dominance into Year 2, and opposing offensive coordinators are game-planning around him every single week.
Pick 6: New York Giants — Quinyon Mitchell (22, Eagles)
Quinyon Mitchell has been arguably the best cornerback in football over the past year and a half. The Toledo product finished second in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting, made the NFL’s Top 100 list as a sophomore, and has opposing quarterbacks terrified to throw his way.
Nabers has been great, but the Giants weren’t a receiver away… By making the move to get Mitchell, New York gets an elite shutdown corner to anchor the back end of their defense for the next decade.
Pick 5: Los Angeles Chargers — Joe Alt (5, Chargers)
Alt has been rock-solid protecting Justin Herbert whenever he’s healthy. The Chargers got this one exactly right, and Jim Harbaugh’s ground-heavy offense has benefited greatly from his presence up front. While there are plenty of teams that would’ve loved to jump up and steal Alt, the Chargers were fortunate that positional demands kept them slotted in to take their talented tackle in our 2024 NFL re-draft.
Pick 4: Arizona Cardinals — Brock Bowers (13, Raiders)
The Cardinals had Kyler Murray—they didn’t need a quarterback… What they really needed was an offensive weapon to get this group back on track… And that’s what they thought they were getting with Marvin Harrison Jr.
Of course, that hasn’t been the case… But by taking Bowers instead, they get the most productive offensive player in the entire class. Bowers didn’t just have a good rookie season—he had a historically great one. He broke Mike Ditka’s 63-year-old record for receiving yards by a rookie tight end with 1,194 yards and Puka Nacua’s record for most receptions by any rookie with 112 catches.
Who knows, maybe if the Cardinals make this move Murray to Bowers becomes one of the most dangerous connections in football and both Kyler’s and Arizona’s trajectories are drastically different.
Pick 3: New England Patriots — Caleb Williams (1, Bears)
Caleb Williams has been good this season—and the arm talent is undeniable.
He is one of the better pure athletes at the position in the game. Better yet, Williams has the Bears fighting for the NFC North crown. He may still be chasing Daniels and Maye, but Williams is still a franchise quarterback with a bright future—he’s just not the best player in this class, but in our re-draft, New England still gets a signal-caller of the future, just not the one they might’ve wanted in hindsight.
Pick 2: Washington Commanders — Jayden Daniels (2, Commanders)
Daniels was electric as a rookie—Offensive Rookie of the Year, led Washington to the NFC Championship Game, and had the entire league buzzing about the Commanders for the first time in years. The 2025 injuries are concerning—he’s missed six games with a dislocated elbow, and the Commanders have fallen without him. But the talent is absolutely undeniable.
Washington got their guy in the 2024 NFL Draft and kept him right here at 2.
Pick 1: Chicago Bears — Drake Maye (3, Patriots)
This is the new number one overall pick. No question about it.
He was solid in Year 1, despite all of the dysfunction of the Jerod Mayo era and the challenges with being a rookie starter in the NFL… but Maye has been absolutely sensational in Year 2.
Taking New England from one of the worst teams in football post-Brady to the top seed in the AFC has been something to behold. There were many sharp moves the front office made this offseason, but Maye is the single biggest reason they have reached a new level.
Caleb has also improved, but smart money says if Chicago had another swing at it, they’d go with Maye and get the best player in the draft—the one who’s actually proven he can transform a franchise overnight.
