Ranking the top 10 picks in the 2024 NFL Draft class: Jayden Daniels, Malik Nabers and Joe Alt lead the way

Since we’re already four games into the 2024 NFL season, it’s instructive to also take a look at the performance of the rookies just a month into their pro careers.

So let’s evaluate the top 10 picks from the 2024 NFL Draft class, a group that includes five (!) quarterbacks, three wide receivers and two offensive linemen (and, of course, zero defensive players). I looked at every NFL snapshot for eight of the ten players (Michael Penix Jr. and JJ McCarthy didn’t play), and their rankings below reflect both their performance but also take positional value into account. In other words: quarterbacks are important!

But remember: all of the active players on this list are off to a good to great start. So there’s a lot of reason for optimism if your team was picked in the top 10, because these guys have been impressive in a month of professional football.

In case it’s not obvious, Drake Maye, Michael Penix Jr. and JJ McCarthy are ranked 8th, 9th and 10th, respectively, because Maye only played one series and neither Penix Jr. nor McCarthy played at all (and McCarthy is sidelined for the season must). after knee surgery). This is not a comment on anything other than they didn’t see the field.

10. JJ McCarthy, QB, Vikings (10th overall)

McCarthy’s preseason knee injury required surgery and ended his rookie season not long after it began. That definitely stinks. But it also means he can learn without pressure, as Sam Darnold is having a career year. McCarthy wasn’t ready to start as a rookie anyway, and that takes the pressure off everyone involved; the rookie, the veteran and the coaching staff. McCarthy will be better for it in the long run.

LEVEL: INCOMPLETE

9. Michael Penix, QB, Falcons (8th overall)

I loved Penix Jr. coming from Washington and he became my QB4 after Williams, Daniels and Maye. Unfortunately, he ended up on a team that currently has a franchise quarterback, although one is coming off an Achilles injury. We’ll see how long it takes Penix Jr. to find his way on the field.

LEVEL: INCOMPLETE

8. Drake Maye, QB, Patriots (third overall)

The Patriots’ offensive line is battling injuries, and it’s been chaos before. Here’s hoping Maye, who is just 21 years old, doesn’t see the field in 2024. We live in a time where rookie QBs, especially first-rounders, are expected to play, but that feels like setting him up for failure. He played the final series against the Jets in a huge loss and conceded more hits in those snaps than Jayden Daniels did all season.

LEVEL: INCOMPLETE

Odunze had his first big day against the Colts in Week 3 (11 catches, 112 yards, one TD), but he’s not even close to scratching the surface of what he’ll become (in the other three games, Odunze has 4 catches for 54). yards).

Part of that is the natural adjustment period that receivers not named Malik Nabers need when moving from college to the NFL. Odunze isn’t 100% healthy either; He battled a knee injury suffered in the preseason and is playing more than twice as many snaps in the slot (35 percent) as he did last season for the Huskies (16 percent). I mention this because at times it seems like he isn’t playing with the same confidence that we saw in Washington. But he’ll get there and we’ve gotten glimpses of how good he can be.

Grade: B-

6. JC Latham, OT, Titans (drafted 7th overall)

JC Latham, like Joe Alt, has a new position in the NFL. He was the right tackle for the Crimson Tide last season and previously played guard. But in Tennessee, where first-year head coach Brian Callahan wisely brought his father, Bill Callahan, who also happens to be one of the best offensive coaches in history. While I expected some growing pains from Latham, he was solid. Rick and I talked about him in the preseason as he showed what we saw at Alabama: that he can be a dominant run blocker who continues to develop in pass protection. It helps that he blocks out the sun while moving like a man who weighs half his listed weight of 360 pounds. However, Latham has only allowed one sack in 139 pass-rush snaps. The Titans selected him not only to protect their young quarterback, but also to boost the running game. He lines up alongside the team’s 2023 first-rounder Peter Skoronski, and I think this group has a chance to be really good sooner than later.

One of the lessons here: Never doubt anyone who calls themselves Trench King!

Grade: B+

Harrison Jr. didn’t play a role in Week 1 against the Bills, where he dropped one pass and was targeted just three times. But a week later, with 130 yards and 2 touchdowns on four catches, he seemed every bit the No. 4 overall prospect, showcasing his high speed, contested-catch prowess, and body control (and he had a chance to to improve these statistics). but he and Kyler Murray couldn’t get on the same page on some targets in the red zone). In the next two games he only recorded 10 carries for 109 yards, but when you look at his reps, whether he lines up outside or in the slot, and his movement skills, his running routes and how he lines up the defensive back, it’s clear he will be special.

I’m giving him an “S+” here because he’s not yet the focal point of the passing game. If that happens he will take over the games, but after four weeks and given the way Malik Nabers has played, B+ feels right.

Grade: B+

4. Caleb Williams, QB, Bears (Drafted No. 1 overall)

Like a season ago, the problem for the No. 1 quarterback in the draft class could be being the No. 2 quarterback in the draft class. However, unlike a year ago, Caleb Williams has gotten better every week of the regular season, and if it weren’t for Jayden Daniels, we’d probably all be saying that Williams is right where he needs to be and on the right track, really to be good. The recurring theme through four games is that Williams is successful when he plays on time. If he plays hero ball – and this was the biggest concern that emerged from USC – he will be in trouble. He had some uncharacteristic accuracy issues on some of his downfield throws, but I attribute that to him growing into this offense more than anything else.

Rick Spielman and I talk to the rookie QBs every week With the First Pick Podcastand those two shots from the win over the Rams in Week 4 show to me that the game is slowing down and this is a preview of things to come.

And the touchdown to DJ Moore, who is covered but the linebacker has his back turned and Williams trusts his receiver to play the ball.

Grade: B+

3. Joe Alt, OT, Chargers (No. 5 overall draft)

Joe Alt played left tackle at Notre Dame in 2023 and he looks exactly like the NFL left tackle, both getting off the bus and turning on the tape. But the Chargers have Rashawn Slater, the former first-rounder who is a very good LT in his own right. So the team moved Alt to the right side, which brings with it a lot more concern than “Hey, stand over there instead of over here.” But you wouldn’t know it by seeing Alt, who has more Maxx in Week 1 Crosby and Christian Wilkins looked better than any offensive lineman would ever want. But in this match, Alt played like a grizzled veteran on his way to the Hall of Fame. In fact, according to NextGen Stats, Alt “allowed zero pressure on quarterbacks in 11 matchups against Maxx Crosby, all in 1-on-1 situations.” Since Week 9, 2022, Crosby has not faced zero pressure in a matchup against an offensive lineman been set.”

Alt suffered an MCL injury in Week 3 against the Steelers and TJ Watt, but he has already answered all the questions about whether first-year coach Jim Harbaugh made the right decision to a) sign an offensive lineman and b) to move that offensive lineman to a new position.

Grade: A

2. Malik Nabers, WR, Giants (Drafted No. 6 overall)

Among first- and second-year players, Malik Nabers leads the league in team target percentage (38%), receptions (35), receiving yards (386) and plays that gain at least 16 yards (8). Nabers was so good that he made Daniel Jones a backup passer (that’s a good thing!); Through four games, he has an expected points gain (EPA) per dropback of…0.00. That puts him between Kirk Cousins ​​​​and Dak Prescott. (For further perspective, among starting QBs, Jayden Daniels is No. 1 (0.32, essentially an All-Pro performer) and Will Levis brings up the rear (-0.34).

In other words, it definitely helps the quarterback, whoever he is, if your number 1 receiver can do the following:

Just throw it near Nabers and he will take care of the rest. I give Nabers an “A.” It would have been an A+ if Jayden Daniels hadn’t played like the best player in the galaxy.

Grade: A

1. Jayden Daniels, QB, Commanders (Drafted No. 2 overall)

“Jayden Daniels is playing better at this point than CJ Stroud was a year ago.” Those aren’t my words – they’re from Rick on Tuesday’s podcast – but I agree with them.

No player made greater strides during his college journey than Daniels, who left Arizona State with many questions, arrived at LSU with no guarantees and two seasons later won the Heisman and was the No. 2 overall pick in the NFL Draft. And after the debacle that was Bryce Young in Carolina, I constantly remind myself that fit matters. While Daniels deserves the lion’s share of the credit (the man completes a whopping 82 percent of his throws!), new offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury has done a great job of putting Daniels in a position to succeed, be it by emphasizing the RPO and whether he’s starting played a fast game during the season or allowed him to push the ball down the field in the weeks that followed, the marriage was good. Daniels, one of the best athletes on the field, always paid attention to when to run, and when he did, he generally avoided big shots. What’s more impressive, however, is that he doesn’t seek escape. Instead, he stands in the pocket (thanks to an offensive line that was better than expected in the first month) and gets through his reads.

This throw against the Cardinals was one of my favorites from Week 4.

Grade: A+