For The Win

The books have closed on the 2023 NFL Draft. Seeds for playoff runs were planted. Franchise quarterbacks were selected. The Detroit Lions, uh, took a unique tack and swam upstream against current trends with a running back-inside linebacker combination in the first 20 picks. But now that 2023’s roster building has been limited to undrafted free agents and a handful of under appreciated veterans, we’re free to set our sights on next year’s draft. We’ve only got a vague idea of who’ll be at the top of 2024’s proceedings, though it’s a safe bet reigning Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams will be somewhere up there. After that, all we have is some game tape, college stats and a general idea of who’ll show out at the combine and make themselves undeniable on Day 1. So, after thoroughly biffing this year’s mock draft — I, sadly, did not have two running backs in the first dozen picks or a Houston Texans trade-up — I’ve set my sights toward 2024. Here’s my entirely-too-early, sure-to-be-extremely-wrong look at next year’s draft. The draft order is based on our similarly too-early power rankings post-free agency.