With college basketball winding down, MLB Opening Day in the rearview mirror and The Masters still days away, attention is heating up on the NFL’s marquee offseason event. Let’s make our turn toward the NFL Draft. (Taylar Sievert/Yahoo Sports)
The NFL Draft is officially less than three weeks away, the large waves of free agency are over and everyone has way too much time on their hands. Outside of the Stefon Diggs trade, there hasn’t been much actionable news to discuss, which leads the mind to wander on the looming draft and how it could play out.
A few teams have the potential to be major players, with multiple scenarios in play and a decision on their preferred team-building path ahead. Here are some that have been discussed as movers and shakers in the draft and what they could be mapping out.
Vikings have a looming trade-up decision
The Vikings have already acquired a second first-round pick from the Texans to help facilitate (we assume) a trade up to the top of the draft. After losing Kirk Cousins in free agency, they’re likely not wasting any time to find their successor. It’s really the only reason to make that move to the 23rd while also retaining the 11th pick.
Minnesota would likely have to move into the top five and potentially as high as the third overall pick, currently owned by New England, to secure their quarterback of the future. Caleb Williams won’t be an option considering the Bears are positioned to take him with the first pick, so they’ll likely be choosing from Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye and J.J. McCarthy. Considering where their quarterback situation currently is, that’s probably the prudent move.
Here’s what the Vikings skill group could look like with an executed trade up for a quarterback.
QB: Drake Maye/Jayden Daniels/J.J. McCarthySam Darnold
RB: Aaron Jones, Ty Chandler
WR: Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, Trent Sherfield
TE: T.J. Hockenson, Josh Oliver
What will Kevin O’Connell and the Vikings do in the first round of the NFL Draft? (Photo by Mike Mulholland/Getty Images)
That’s not a bad core to build around, considering the rest of the NFC North already has quarterback situations they feel comfortable with for the future. It will likely cost the Vikings at least the 11th and 23rd pick in this year’s draft and their 2025 first-round pick (and maybe some smaller picks) to get the Patriots to pass on a franchise quarterback.
On the off chance that the Vikings don’t see a quarterback worth trading up for after the first couple of picks play out, they still would have two first-round picks to bolster their defense or roll the dice on Michael Penix Jr. Given the fact that they’ve already acquired that second first-rounder, that scenario seems incredibly unlikely. The Vikings look ready to bounce and maximize the prime of their incredibly talented core of pass catchers.
Chargers a wild card in the top five
The Chargers can go in any number of directions with the fifth pick that would be sound reasoning from a roster-building perspective. Wide receiver seems like the obvious play, considering they moved on from Mike Williams and Keenan Allen this offseason, but they have a handful of options to consider as the clock ticks down toward draft day. Jim Harbaugh has spoken this offseason about the importance of the offensive line, which is a need for the Chargers in a draft class with a lot of offensive line help at the top.
If the Chargers stay put, their most realistic option is to either pick a wide receiver or pick a tackle. No matter which way their depth chart shakes out, at least they don’t have to worry about a quarterback for several years with Justin Herbert in the fold.
If they take a wide receiver:
QB: Justin Herbert, Easton Stick
RB: Gus Edwards, Isaiah Spiller
WR: Marvin Harrison Jr./Malik Nabers/Rome OdunzeQuentin Johnston, Josh Palmer
OL: Rashawn Slater, Zion Johnson, Corey Linsley, Jamaree Salyer, Trey Pipkins/Patrick Paul
If they take an offensive lineman:
QB: Justin Herbert, Easton Stick
RB: Gus Edwards, Isaiah Spiller
WR: Quentin Johnston, Josh Palmer, Keon Coleman/Ladd McConkey/Xavier Legette
OL: Rashawn Slater, Zion Johnson, Corey Linsley, Jamaree Salyer, Joe Alt/Olu Fashanu
No matter which way you slice it, the Chargers really need an infusion of young talent into their offense. There’s a reason why this team currently has the fifth pick in the draft and it’s not just because Herbert missed time last year. There’s a long way to go and it’s unlikely that a singular draft class will get them back to where they want to be.
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That might also be why the Chargers consider trading down from the fifth pick. They don’t need a quarterback, but they do need a whole lot of everything else. If they flip with the Vikings, Broncos or Raiders they’ll be in the 11-13 range where they can still grab a top offensive lineman or reach for the second tier of wide receiver talent.
That would likely include getting future extra picks, which the Chargers could use to start filling the back end of their roster.
Denver is pondering another withdrawal at the draft pick bank
Oh, Denver. The Broncos have to decide if they’re going to make one more trip to the ATM to secure another quarterback. With the 12th pick in the first round, it’s unlikely that the quarterback prospect they’ve fallen in love with makes it to their pick. The Broncos certainly need a quarterback, especially with Patrick Mahomes and a rejuvenated Herbert in the division, but they also have found themselves in a spot where they’ve spent a lot of draft capital to be in no man’s land.
Two first-round picks on Russell Wilson. Another first-rounder and a second on Sean Payton. All to be in the position where they felt the need to blow up their chances to really compete in 2024 by releasing Wilson and taking on a record dead cap figure. One thing is undoubtedly true about the 2024 Broncos: They desperately need to figure out their plan at quarterback. They have no long-term prospects currently, which would warrant a trade up for a player. They also have so many needs that they might not want to pull the trigger on a trade up and use the limited amount of assets they have to build out their roster.
Denver only has two picks in the top-100 (Nos. 12 and 76), meaning they’ll have to dip into another year’s reserves worth of picks to make a trade-up worth it for the team moving down. Does a team that’s in the middle of a teardown really want to give up future picks? How they feel about the 2025 quarterback class would likely have a lot to do with that.
For the purpose of this exercise, let’s say that the Broncos send a package centered around picks 12, 76, a 2025 first and a 2025 second-round pick to the Chargers (who might not trade in division anyway) for the fifth pick. It would be a thin offense for a rookie quarterback to work with, but at least they would have one.
QB: Drake Maye/Jayden Daniels/J.J. McCarthyJarrett Stidham
RB: Javonte Williams, Samaje Perine
WR: Courtland Sutton, Josh Reynolds, Marvin Mims Jr.
TE: Adam Trautman, Greg Dulcich
That group might have just enough juice to make sure that a rookie quarterback can stay afloat in Year 1, but they wouldn’t have much by the way of draft picks to add more talent until 2026. Payton might not even be the head coach by 2026 with the way things have gone for him so far. The Broncos’ best bet might just be to pick at 12 or trade down to accumulate more picks.
On the other hand, they’re at the sweet spot in the draft to grab a high-impact defender to pair with Patrick Surtain for the long term if that’s the path they choose to go. Edge defenders Dallas Turner, Chop Robinson and Laiatu Latu are options at that point. The cornerback prospects should start flying off the board around 12 as well with Toledo’s Quinyon Mitchell and Alabama’s Terrion Arnold being options. That would keep their 2025 first-round pick in their back pocket, which is likely going to be near the top of the draft whether they pick a quarterback this year or not.
The Carolina Panthers are a cautionary tale for where the Broncos are right now. They ended up trading the first overall pick to the Bears for the right to draft Bryce Young and now have a host of needs to fill over the next couple of drafts. There’s a risk in trading up with a poor roster, although hitting on quarterback would make this level of hasty team-building worth it in the long run. At the same time, walking into the season with Jarrett Stidham and Ben DiNucci as quarterbacks on the roster will make for a long season.
This is a lost year for the Broncos. How long the drought continues will be decided with this draft and their decisions during it.
Could Buffalo make a Julio Jones-level trade?
The Bills have immediately become a wild card for the upcoming draft after trading Stefon Diggs to the Texans. They currently have a wide receiver room where Khalil Shakir and his three career touchdowns will be their best option. They undoubtedly need to add talent to this room and most likely will. The question everyone is asking is, will they do what the Falcons did back in 2011 and pay the draft-day haul to go get their Julio Jones-level player at the cost of future draft picks?
Josh Allen will be the quarterback for the Bills until his arm falls off, which gives them some flexibility to still compete while they figure out the next phase of this era. The overall plan has to be a lot bigger than Allen, but it’s easy to fall in love with the idea of being aggressive and getting to the top of this wide receiver class given the fact they already have a quarterback most teams would want.
Imagine the world where the Bills move up from the 28th pick into the top five.
QB: Josh Allen, Mitchell Trubisky
RB: James Cook, Ty Johnson
WR: Marvin Harrison Jr./Malik Nabers/Rome OdunzeKhalil Shakir, Curtis Samuel
TE: Dalton Kincaid, Dawson Knox
The long-term health of the defense would take a hit, but getting a talent like one of the top three wide receivers might be worth the draft pick investment to make it happen. They really do need a credible body to add to that group, but the problem is that it might cost them as many as three first-round picks to get up there.
That trade up to the top could cause the Bills to miss out on other players they could add to their roster. They still have needs along the defensive line, cornerback and safety after churning through some roster transactions and need bodies there too. Even with the state of their wide receiver room, spending a first-round pick on a pass rusher or a cornerback makes a lot of sense for the Bills.
It really just depends how frisky they’re feeling regarding a trade up. It’s difficult to say that the trade up for Julio Jones was a failure for the Falcons considering he was a Hall of Fame-caliber player, but trading for him did undoubtedly cost them some key depth that caused them to struggle in their playoff runs immediately after the trade. That’s the cost that the Bills have to play out in their head — and it just might be worth making the trade and pairing Allen with a true No. 1 wide receiver for the next decade.
2024-04-08 21:39:11
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