The 2024 NFL Draft is just about here. It’s a glorious day where all of our mock drafts are completely obliterated, and all of our preconceived notions flipped on their heads. The draft is unpredictable, and one of the main reasons it’s unpredictable is because of the movement that will take place in the first round.
There will be trades in the first round. We just don’t know where and who will be involved. Many teams see the Minnesota Vikings trading up to draft a quarterback since they swung a trade with the Houston Texans last month to acquire an extra first-round pick, but what teams could be looking to move down the draft board? Let’s take a look at the five teams most likely to move down in the first round when the draft kicks off April 25 from Detroit.
I have been saying for a month now that the Chargers are the most fascinating team in the draft. You have to respect what Jim Harbaugh has been doing throughout the pre-draft process. He’s been talking up his former quarterback J.J. McCathy to everyone, declaring him the best signal-caller in this class. He also riffed on the value of the offensive line at the league’s annual meeting, pointing to the fact that it’s the one position group that depends on no other position group to be good, while every other position group relies on it to be successful. In my mind, Harbaugh and the Chargers would like to trade down from No. 5 overall.
It’s always difficult to decipher what’s true and what’s not when it comes to the draft rumor mill, but maybe McCarthy’s stock really is soaring. If so, his college head coach could help facilitate his eventual landing spot.
The Chargers are the team most “mocked” to trade down, but it could be the Cardinals who make the first trade of the night at No. 4 overall. Arizona could select a wideout to pair with Kyler Murray, but remember the Cards did trade down last year from No. 3 overall. During a recent appearance on Arizona Sports‘ “Bickley & Marotta,” ESPN’s Matt Miller said Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort is looking for a “Trey Lance” package to move down. There’s zero guarantee Ossenfort receives that offer, but it would be ideal.
“No. 4 is probably the pivot point because you want to get ahead of the New York Giants (No. 6) and you have to worry about the Denver Broncos (No. 12) and the Las Vegas Raiders (No. 13),” Miller said, via Arizona Sports. “You’re not just trading up to get ahead of the Giants, you’re trading up to make sure no one gets ahead of you in the draft.”
The Bears have the top pick in the draft, which they will surely use on USC quarterback Caleb Williams, but they also hold the No. 9 overall selection. Take into account that Chicago only has FOUR selections in the entire draft, which means trading down from No. 9 overall to acquire extra ammunition would be smart. Still, it could come down to how the draft board falls. If one or two of the Bears’ prime targets are gone by No. 9 overall, and Chicago views that No. 9 selection as too high to select one of the available offensive linemen, a trade down could happen.
Here’s an interesting one. The Titans are certainly in the market for a left tackle, but if Joe Alt is selected before their No. 7 selection, could Tennessee trade down? The Titans don’t have a third-round pick, and already traded one of their seventh-round selections to the Cleveland Browns for offensive tackle Leroy Watson. They currently hold just two selections in the first 105 picks. The Titans could be a potential destination for Alabama pass rusher Dallas Turner, but depending on how the board falls early, Tennessee could look to trade down.
The Seahawks are slated to pick right in the middle of the first round at No. 16 overall. Depending on how the draft goes with the offensive and defensive linemen available at that point, Seattle could trade down. The Seahawks have just two selections in the first 100 picks, so general manager John Schneider could be mulling the possibility of acquiring more.
