5 Bold Predictions for 2024 NFL Draft: Texas DT Byron Murphy a top-10 pick

The 2024 NFL Draft is a few days away, and scouts are buzzing over the 2024 class. Evaluators have finished their scouting reports as teams finalized their draft boards earlier in the week. After exchanging a few texts with scouts and coaches around the league, here are some bold draft predictions to keep an eye on:

The top three quarterbacks come off the board within the first three picks

Since the beginning of the pre-draft process, nearly every mock draft has featured USC's Caleb Williams, LSU's Jayden Daniels, and North Carolina's Drake Maye coming off the board 1-2-3 in some order. While the jury is still out on whether the Commanders pick Daniels at No. 2, the "Big Three" are in a different class than their peers (Michigan's J.J. McCarthy, Washington's Michael Penix Jr., and Oregon's Bo Nix), and the draft will reflect the league's view on their talent disparity.

As evaluators select prospects based on performance projections at the next level, it is essential for blue-chip quarterbacks to possess a "superpower" that sets them apart from the pack. Williams (improvisational playmaking ability), Daniels (elite passing and running skills), and Maye (prototypical size, athleticism and arm talent) are traditional first-round talents who would earn top-10 grades in any draft class. Though I believe Penix Jr. (arm talent) should be included in the discussion, the Washington standout's injury history overshadows his potential as a QB1 in meeting rooms.

UCLA's Laiatu Latu will be the most dominant defender from the 2024 class

The UCLA standout might not come off the board as the first pass rusher selected in this year's draft, but Latu will be the unanimous selection for the best defender in the draft when we review