We're here. NFL Draft Eve, a real thing in my household, and hopefully in yours too.
My college jersey of choice today -- a white Boise State Khalil Shakir No. 2 jersey, with blue letters and numbers and diagonal blue and orange stripes on the sleeves and the Broncos logo in the middle front of the collar. It's cleeeeeaaan.
Shakir, too, was quite clean catching the football last season for the Bills, with a league-high 86.7% catch rate among all qualifying receivers. For those worried their team won't get one of the premier receiver prospects in Round 1, let Shakir serve as a reminder -- he was the 20th receiver (!) in the 2022 class and was picked in the fifth round.
Calling it now -- there will be at least one fifth-rounder wideout from this class who eventually stars on his respective team.
You probably know by now, but if you don't, we've rebranded the Pick Six newsletter through the end this week. I, CBS Sports NFL Draft analyst Chris Trapasso, will be with you every step of the way. Honored.
Before I begin with today's newsletter, this paragraph will be your daily reminder to tell all your buddies and that one friend who's adamant your team better add to the offensive line in the middle rounds to sign up for the With the First Pick newsletter. All you have to do is click here and then share this link with them.
1. Today's NFL mock draft 🔮: Giants make small trade up for J.J. McCarthy
This is my final mock before the draft, although I am reserving the right to make a few subtle changes tomorrow as "real" news starts to trickle in 12 hours or so before the draft -- I'm citing Bill Belichick here.
1. Chicago Bears: Caleb Williams, CB, USC
2. Washington Commanders: Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
3. New England Patriots: Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
4. Arizona Cardinals: Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
5. New York Giants (via mock trade with Chargers): J.J. McCarthy, QB, Michigan
19. Los Angeles Rams: Troy Fautanu, OL, Washington
20. Pittsburgh Steelers: Brian Thomas Jr., WR, LSU
25. Green Bay Packers: Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB, Alabama
27. Arizona Cardinals: Graham Barton, OL, Duke
32. Kansas City Chiefs: Xavier Legette, WR, South Carolina
In this final mock of what feels like 58,4085,053 I've done since September, I couldn't find as many trades that made sense as I expected. Now, I've certainly embraced chaos in the past and I understand how adamant coaches and GMs can be about specific prospects. Here, though, cooler heads prevail because of the depth of the offensive tackle and wide receiver classes.
I realized too -- unless the Broncos trade into the Top 10, how in the world are they trading "back" into the the first round? They don't have a second-round pick. And unless they move Patrick Surtain in the process, no team is going to just punt on the first-round altogether without getting a second-round pick in return.
I also don't see how the Giants leave Round 1 without a quarterback.
2. 'With the First Pick' podcast 🎧: Final mock -- 'What teams should do'
In what is Mock 15.0 and the final of draft season for Rick and Ryan, the dynamic duo called upon Shrine Bowl director and CBS Sports contributor Eric Galko and fellow draft analyst Josh Edwards for a "what teams should do" mock before the real thing tomorrow night. I won't spoil any of the picks for you. But, yes, there are many surprises.
3. Prospect of the day 📈: Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
Going with a heavy hitter today on the eve of the draft. In my evaluations, Maye is the second-best quarterback in the class, and there's not a huge gulf between he and Caleb Williams. Seriously.
This is a monster recruit -- only two spots lower than Williams on the 247 Sports rankings in the high school class of 2020 -- who thrived from his redshirt freshman season onward for the Tar Heels. Big. Strong. Very athletic. Tough. And, he's willing to make all the throws, whether he's inside the pocket or being chased by a 260-pound defensive end.
Sure, there are some wayward misses and ill-advised tossed into coverage. But Maye plays with quarterback amnesia, often leading long touchdown drives with ridiculous throws immediately afterward. His talent is through the roof and should be one of the first three quarterbacks off the board tomorrow.
- Notable combine results: N/A
- Combine measurements: 6-foot-4 3/8", 223 pounds with 9 1/8" hands
- Current CBS Sports prospect ranking: No. 5
4. Teams most likely to trade up or down in Round 1 👀
CBS Sports staffer Jared Dubin wrote an article that should serve as a tremendous resource for you in the lead up to Round 1 tomorrow night -- in a neat and tidy format, he categorized the clubs most likely to move up and trade down on Thursday. Among them, the Eagles, of course. Howie Roseman loves wheeling and dealing. And how about the Panthers, sitting at No. 33 without a first-round pick, trade up to get Bryce Young some help?!
5. News & Notes 📝
- Lions lock up Amon-Ra St. Brown: The Lions give their star receiver a four-year deal worth more than $120 million, including a record $77 million guaranteed for a wide receiver.
- Steelers not expected to pick up Justin Fields' $25 million fifth-year option. While this report isn't totally surprising, it's not as easy of decision for Pittsburgh as expected because if Fields wins the jobs and plays well in 2024, that $25M cap hit would be considered a bargain for a quarterback in 2025.
- Cowboys say they want to "address the attrition" on the offensive line. That line came via team COO Stephen Jones via our very own Garrett Podell. Jones also mentioned the club is "all in" on that endeavor during the draft. Interesting choice of words.
- Jayden Daniels has "dream" scenario for where he'd land in Round 1. And it's not with the Commanders. Awkward. Well, he did mention in this report that he'd be "cool" with Washington but the dream scenario would be reuniting with one of his Arizona State coaches, Antonio Pierce, with the Raiders.
