The 2024 NFL Draft is over. We now know where the Class of 2024 will start their NFL careers. Some of the landing spots were better than others. In today’s Stock Watch, I’ll take stock of the Class of 2024 as we head into the rookie draft season.
Quarterbacks
Stock Up: Bo Nix, Denver Broncos
About: Nix was the sixth quarterback taken, but he went in the first round as the twelfth pick to the Broncos. That is good draft capital, but it was also a decent landing spot. Sean Payton said Nix was the quarterback he wanted that best fit his system. In addition, the Broncos have a wide-open quarterback room. Nix is competing with Jarrett Stidham, Zach Wilson, and Ben DiNucci. He should have a shot to start from Week 1. Either way, he solidified his position as a First-Round pick in rookie drafts.
Stock Down: Michael Penix, Jr., Atlanta Falcons
About: Penix also got First Round draft capital, going No. 8 to the Falcons. But draft capital alone doesn’t determine your value, especially when there’s not a clear path to playing time. The Falcons just signed Kirk Cousins to a massive four-year, $180 million deal in March. The team has said he’s the starter. That leaves the immediate future for Penix murky at best. He had been profiled as a potential first-round pick in Superflex drafts, but with this landing spot, I’m not paying that much for a player who likely won’t produce anything for a few years.
Running Backs
Stock Up: Jonathon Brooks, Carolina Panthers
About: Brooks became the first running back taken, going in the second round to the Panthers. It’s good draft capital and a good landing spot for the back, who now becomes a fringe first-round selection in rookie drafts. There’s potential he could even have an impact in year one with the Panthers, competing with Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders, neither of whom dominated last season. Additionally, it’s a new coaching regime in Carolina, and Brooks is their guy at running back. He could be part of a revitalized offense that added veteran receiver Diontae Johnson, rookie receiver Xavier Legette, and rookie tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders, too.
Stock Down: MarShawn Lloyd, Green Bay Packers
About: Lloyd has some talent and was an intriguing pre-draft prospect. But his landing spot isn’t ideal. Lloyd was taken by the Packers; a team that just splashed out a four-year, $48 million contract on Josh Jacobs in March. The team also brought back A.J. Dillon, but I suspect Lloyd can leapfrog him. Still, much like Penix with Atlanta, it’s hard to see a clear path to a majority snap share with Jacobs sitting in front of him, especially as Jacobs showed prowess as a three-down workhorse. Adding Lloyd is a good NFL move for the Packers, but it feels like the Zach Charbonnet landing last year. It drops him to more of a Third-Round consideration for me in rookie drafts.
Wide Receivers
Stock Up: Xavier Worthy, Kansas City Chiefs
About: When you go to the Chiefs, you always see your draft stock shoot up. But Worthy is fast—record-setting fast—and goes to a good offense with a good quarterback. I am not over-drafting, as we’ve seen that before with Chiefs prospects. But I like Worthy as the WR4 in the post-draft landscape. That should have him solidly in the first round in all rookie draft formats, and he could have a good upside, even in year one.
Stock Down: Adonai Mitchell, Indianapolis Colts
About: Mitchell was an interesting pre-draft prospect, but he fell out of the first round of the NFL Draft. When he was finally selected—in the second round by the Colts—it wasn’t to a great landing spot. The Colts, with Anthony Richardson entering his second season, have an unclear passing volume. The team has Michael Pittman as a clear WR1, with a glut of receivers behind him, including Josh Downs, Alec Pierce, and now Mitchell. That pushes Mitchell down a few tiers for me, making him a player I’d target in the late second or early third round of rookie drafts.
Tight Ends
Stock Up: Ben Sinnott, Washington Commanders
About: We didn’t see many tight ends go early. In fact, only three went in the first three rounds of the draft. Sinnott was the lone selection in the second round, which gives him good draft capital. He also goes to an offense that’s growing and changing. Veteran Zach Ertz is on the roster right now, but Sinnott has a great chance to quickly move to the top of the depth chart, possibly even by the end of his rookie season.
Stock Down: Brock Bowers, Las Vegas Raiders
About: Relax, Bowers is still clearly the best tight end from this class. He was taken in the first round at No. 13 overall, so he got decent draft capital, too. I just wasn’t fond of his landing spot with the Raiders. That’s an offense that’s in flux. The quarterback situation—likely a competition between Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew—remains unsettled. The backfield is unsettled, too. And the Raiders took a young tight end—Michael Mayer—with a high pick in last year’s draft and proceeded to mostly not use him. Bowers was a consensus Top 8 pick in Superflex pre-draft. Now, for me, I’d rather look at taking him in the second round.
Matthew Fox is a die-hard NFL fan and Broncos’ homer. He’s a member of the FSWA. You can find more from him on Twitter @knighthawk7734 or as co-host of the Fantasy Football Roundtable Podcast, a part of the Campus2Canton Network.
