2024 - Way too early draft thread

[Bulldog]

I agree. I think both McCarthy and Penix will be taken in Round 1 as well.

That's in essence what I am looking for a in a trade down if that happens - the chance to trade down and pick up BOTH a quarterback in that mid to late teens range AND a franchise left tackle to go with him.

Then we can talk about filling in a host of other roster spots with those later picks in the top 110.

It's a good year for both depth at quarterback and depth at tackle.

 

[Neophyte]

Getting two 1s in return is going to be tough this year.

Only the Bears and Cardinals have 2 first-round picks. The Bears do not need to trade with us and the only reason the Cardinals would want to move up might be to get Harrison but right now it looks like he could drop to them where they are.

 

[Bulldog]

If we trade with Atlanta we could get the #8 pick and then use a package of the supplemental pick(s) we get from Atlanta (and from our existing grouping) to move back into the first round to snag a quarterback.

One thing that needs to be explained to me. The ESPN talking heads are talking about 10 teams being interested in Justin Fields, yet why would Chicago be so eager to trade him if he is the clear 'answer'?

The fact is Fields has been nothing but inconsistent so far. He really only has ONE year to convince a new team he has what it takes before you have to start fleshing out the parameters of a second contract for him.

I would rather take McCarthy or Penix late in Round 1 and develop them then trade for Fields and give up a boatload of compensation and/or be pressured to commit major dollars to him after 2024.

Not saying that Peters is looking at Fields, but at least some of those other teams evidently are and that is a move I wouldn't make.

 

[Neophyte]

The only positive I can see, BD? Compensation for Fields will be significantly less than compensation to move up into one of the Top 3 positions on the board.

If you consider Fields to be superior to any of the guys outside of Williams, Maye, and Daniels, and you value that he has shown he can play in this league, that might be appealing.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Boone]

If Fields were going to be anything close to the guy, we'd already know that. NFL franchises spend years trying to convince themselves the guy they thought was the guy, who clearly isn't the guy, maybe could be the guy. We don't need to piggyback onto that effort.

Sam Howell is better than Justin Fields. Period. And we don't have to trade anything for Sam Howell.

 

[tomwvr]

Getting two 1s in return is going to be tough this year.

Only the Bears and Cardinals have 2 first-round picks. The Bears do not need to trade with us and the only reason the Cardinals would want to move up might be to get Harrison but right now it looks like he could drop to them where they are.

If we know they want him we tell them we are going to take him unless they trade with us both first picks

 

[Utah]

Fields has shown flashes of being THAT guy. Just flashes though.

The QB position is so important that no matter how small the hope, people will grasp at it especially if there is no future possibility of getting ahold of such talent. And Fields has the talent. However, as we have figured out over the past couple of years when it comes to QB's, the majority of them need specific talent around them but more importantly, a coach who is in line with that talent. Every Coach has an ego the size of the sun and can make the case that they will be the one to get that talent to the next level. Get enough people in the decision making process on the same page and you have a transaction to make.

I am of the belief that Sam Howell has shown more than enough that I am not willing to close the door on him. I see a better future by bringing in a QB, Drake Maye for now, to turn the heat up in the competition at the spot and see what ceiling these kids can reach. Let the battle field remove the weak and only the strong survive kinda thing.

Of course, now you have to determine if the QB selection is the right move or does another position (For me, the 2nd most important spot on the offensive side of the ball is the LT, but that is another conversation) warrant consideration based on the draft class and your evaluation of that individual.

Lots to work out here....again, this is going to fun to watch and critique from a far.

 

[Neophyte]

If we know they want him we tell them we are going to take him unless they trade with us both first picks

That is only a good move if you are going to take Harrison without the trade. If you make that threat, and then don't go through with it, you have just dropped your pants in front of the whole league. No other GM will ever trust you to deal in good faith

 

[Solitary Man]

Very comprehensive review imo. He actually ranks the top 6 which he has all going in the first round.

 

[Bulldog]

I would rather draft McCarthy or Penix late than give up considerable comp for Fields.

You bring him in and have one year to basically decide whether to give him a $40M AVG second contract.

No thanks.

Cap space and management is as important as making the picks.
I would rather have no quarterback right now then owe Daniel Jones or Kyler Murray tens of millions to come.

 

[burgold]

I’d rather go with Howell for free than Fields for draft picks. We have three years of evidence that Fields isn’t ready to be the guy. Howell is at least more of an unknown in terms of his upside.

 

[Voice_of_Reason]

I’d rather go with Howell for free than Fields for draft picks. We have three years of evidence that Fields isn’t ready to be the guy. Howell is at least more of an unknown in terms of his upside.

I'd rather go with Howell too between the choices. Mostly because they would have to re-do a contract on Fields and he's going to become expensive soon, and we'd have to trade for him. No thank you. In that "either/or" scenario I'd take Howell also.

 

[Voice_of_Reason]

I would rather draft McCarthy or Penix late than give up considerable comp for Fields.

You bring him in and have one year to basically decide whether to give him a $40M AVG second contract.

No thanks.

Cap space and management is as important as making the picks.
I would rather have no quarterback right now then owe Daniel Jones or Kyler Murray tens of millions to come.

I wouldn't entertain moving back and picking a second tier QB UNLESS the FO deems all the draftnik idiots are wrong, and there actually isn't a difference between the #2 and #4 QBs in the class. If you say Caleb is #1, if Peters thinks the difference between Maye, Daniels and McCarthy is non-existent, and Quinn/Kliff are find with any of them, then sure, trade back.

But if there is a tier drop-off after the #3 guy, which it looks like there is, then you stick and pick your guy at 2. Whoever that is.

And there's no way I'm trading assets for Fields. You give up picks AND then you've got to pay the guy AND he doesn't have the track record to say he's going to be great. That's 3 strikes and you're out.

 

[Solitary Man]

Have I mentioned lately that I want Drake Maye🤔(as do many of you).

Are there BGO bucks I can put up? Let’s say if I have accumulated 100 BGO bucks with my posts through the years(regardless of how good or bad), I would wager 95 of them that we are drafting Drake Maye.

If I end up with 5 BGO B’s after we trade up or we draft RG4 then I will be on the corner tryna scrounge up coins again. 😉

 

[Chris]

 

[Bulldog]

One of the Big 3 is going to be a bust. Them's the percentages.

As I watch these 3 in review from last season, to me Jayden Daniels looks like the guy whose playing style and pinball statistics are most likely to NOT translate to the next level.

He throws to mostly open receivers. He doesn't protect his body. And while he makes plays on the edge, I am not certain he continues to do that in a league where there are linebackers and defensive backs that run a 4.4 or 4.3 and can close fast.

Both Williams and Maye seem to have better vision in the pocket. Both look a lot more durable in taking their games to the next level.

 

[Voice_of_Reason]

One of the Big 3 is going to be a bust. Them's the percentages.

As I watch these 3 in review from last season, to me Jayden Daniels looks like the guy whose playing style and pinball statistics are most likely to NOT translate to the next level.

He throws to mostly open receivers. He doesn't protect his body. And while he makes plays on the edge, I am not certain he continues to do that in a league where there are linebackers and defensive backs that run a 4.4 or 4.3 and can close fast.

Both Williams and Maye seem to have better vision in the pocket. Both look a lot more durable in taking their games to the next level.

100%. And while we can guess as to which one, it's impossible to predict.

It is possible all of them end up being good QBs. Burrow, Herbert and Tua are all from the same draft class. Not first 3 picks, but all top 6. That would also be a statistical anomoly. So it can happen.

Or you could get the debacle of a few years ago with Lawrence, Wilson and Lance.

The other thing to note is good GMs pick bad QBs all the time. The prime example of this is Bobby Beathard (yes, THAT Bobby Beathard) trading up for Ryan Leaf.

 

[Chris]

Drafting an elite franchise QB (unicorn) is like getting struck by lightening. The hope is that happens but the goal should be getting one that can become a Top 10 one.

 

[SkinsNumberOne]

QB is the most important position on the field, undeniably, but the secret sauce is important too. So, when people say things that consider QB in a vacuum, I think we have to consider that Peters and others may NOT do that. They may consider the effective supporting cast as necessary to make a consistent winner. In fact, Harris himself said the goal is to have a consistent winner and NOT a perennial 8-8 team. I am not saying he is dictating anything to Peters (hope not!), but...
It was Harris' 76ers who had "the process" and that was indeed all about patience. It was all about getting a team built without ANY regard on immediate record, and putting the main pieces in play at the END, so you get those high draft pieces EARLY, until you wanted to start your actual run.

If that plays out here, I would expect him to not draft a QB. A QB, the most important player on the field, without a supporting cast? That may give us the biggest 1-year uptick, but that may not be the goal after our last season's record. Harris may prefer a longer view. It's going to be interesting to try to see how they proceed with the rebuilding of this team from where Snyder and Rivera brought it. I feel somewhat sorry that Rivera gets labeled that way, but he took the "coach-centric" position with his eyes open, even if he wants to complain after the fact.

 

[burgold]

Just to continue that thought, RGIII was amazing in his rookie year. Before his injury, he was reading defenses, hitting plays with great accuracy, and making defenses very afraid. One hit effectively ended his career as a starter. Right now, that one hit is extremely likely to happen again because we can not protect any prized QB. It's mind blowing that Howell survived the year. Now, some argue that mentally he may not have, but his body didn't wind up on IR.

So, if we can not rebuild the line to our satisfaction in free agency then we better be sure we can do it in the draft. If that means taking a QB at number 2 and then using both second rounders on the line so be it, but hopefully we strike gold twice. Hopefully we get Jon Jansen and Tre Johnson. If we're not confident we can do that I'd really rather trade down and get one of the super blue chip tackles, a boatload of extra draft picks, and build the team. We can start Howell, we can grab a QB in the late 1st round or second round, but a QB without a support system is going to get Ramseyed or Howelled... though for his sake, I hope Howell has not gotten Howelled.