We're already approaching the midway mark of the 2023 NFL season, college football conference title games kick off in just a few weeks and the 2024 NFL draft is now six short months away. Scouts are digging in on this talented class, and some NFL teams -- nine have two or fewer wins -- have at least one eye to the future.
With that in mind, we wanted to take a midseason run through the first 32 picks of next April's draft, projecting top prospects to each spot. How many quarterbacks will go in Round 1, and who will land Caleb Williams and Drake Maye? Who is the top defensive player in the class, and will we see a Day 1 running back? Which positions are deepest in the first round, and which risers could sneak into the final few picks?
To fill out the draft order, we leaned on ESPN's Football Power Index (FPI), which projected when each team might be picking based on simulations of the rest of the NFL season. Bears fans, rejoice -- Chicago has the No. 1 pick in this mock draft, thanks to the March 2023 trade with 0-6 Carolina. That is one of three picks that has already been traded, with Houston (to Arizona) and Cleveland (to Houston) joining that list. The Jets' first-rounder sticks in New York since Aaron Rodgers will not be playing 65% of the team's offensive snaps this season.
Here are my full predictions for all 32 picks in Round 1 at this point in the season.
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