In the unpredictable world of the NFL, chaos reigns supreme.
Every year as the draft approaches, fans and analysts alike attempt to predict the future, only to be blindsided by unexpected trades, shocking selections, and dramatic turns of events.
Most mock drafts try to be perfectly accurate and strive for realism, but they always fall short. But there’s always a bit of fun to be had in imagining a scenario where the highly unlikely becomes the reality.
That’s why I created my 2024 Chaos Mock Draft.
What is a Chaos Mock Draft?
A chaos mock draft is all about embracing the unlikely possibilities in the NFL Draft. Instead of making the picks you think are most likely to happen, you make chaotic selections and trades that probably won’t happen, but technically could happen.
I could easily mock undrafted-caliber players in the 1st round and call it a day, but it’s more fun when everything (or most everything at least) is technically possible, no matter how unlikely. It’s all about pushing the limits of what’s possible.
A few realistic picks are sprinkled in to give readers a break from the wild picks.
In this chaos mock draft you’ll see a lot of picks that will make you say “no chance that happens.” Well, that’s kind of the point. As long as I can rationalize it, it’s fair game. Even if it’s far from the most likely situation.
Final reminder: I don’t genuinely expect this mock draft to be accurate. At all.
2024 Chaos Mock Draft – Round 1
Pick 1: Chicago Bears > Los Angeles Chargers
Selection: JJ McCarthy, QB, Michigan
The Chicago Bears TRADE the 1st and 9th overall picks, plus future picks to the Los Angeles Chargers for QB Justin Herbert.
Jim Harbaugh gets his wish. The Chargers select JJ McCarthy #1 overall, just like coach Harbaugh said he wanted to do while he was still at Michigan.
Will there be riots from Chargers fans for trading away Herbert? Yes. Will ownership be happy? No. But Jim Harbaugh would have made his mark.
From the Bears’ perspective, that’s an easy decision.
Pick 2: Washington Commanders
Selection: Caleb Williams, QB, USC
The Washington Commanders select Caleb Williams, who surprisingly fell out of the 1st overall spot. Easy pick for them, but not his preferred landing spot.
Pick 3: New England Patriots > Minnesota Vikings
Selection: Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
The New England Patriots TRADE the 3rd overall pick to the Minnesota Vikings for the 11th and 23rd overall picks, plus future picks.
The Vikings select Drake Maye, who was previously coached by new Vikings QB Coach Josh McCown.
Pick 4: Arizona Cardinals
Selection: Malik Nabers, WR, LSU
The Arizona Cardinals stay put and select a wide receiver, but they pass on Marvin Harrison Jr. because the Cardinals aren’t known for making easy smart decisions.
Pick 5: Los Angeles Chargers
Selection: Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
The Chargers don’t mess it up this time. One big mistake is enough. Marvin Harrison Jr is an easy pick for them.
Pick 6: New York Giants
Selection: NONE
The New York Giants are so deep in trade discussions that they fail to submit their pick in time. This will be the first missed early round pick since the Minnesota Vikings failed to draft a player in 2003.
Pick 7: Tennessee Titans
Selection: Amarius Mims, OT, Georgia
The Tennessee Titans desperately need offensive line help, so they grab a big man. Instead of going the safe route with Joe Alt, they try again at a super big tackle with limited playing time in Amarius Mims.
Pick 8: Atlanta Falcons > Denver Broncos
Selection: Bo Nix, QB, Oregon
The Atlanta Falcons TRADE the 8th overall pick to the Denver Broncos for the 12th overall pick plus future picks.
Everyone in Denver gets excited about Jayden Daniels joining their team… but they draft Bo Nix instead. Sean Payton said he reminded him of Drew Brees, while clutching his super bowl ring and holding back tears.
Pick 9: Los Angeles Chargers
Selection: Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
This pick was previously traded to LA from Chicago.
The Chargers are picking for the third time. They grab Brock Bowers to further solidify their receiving groups for their now-young QB.
Pick 10: New York Jets
Selection: Xavier Worthy, WR, Texas
The Jets are so tantalized about the opportunity of adding the fastest player in the history of the NFL combine that they forget there are better receivers still on the board.
XAVIER WORTHY TIES THE NFL COMBINE RECORD WITH A 4.22u 40-YARD DASH 🤯 pic.twitter.com/DnBGRLjFb8
— PFF (@PFF) March 2, 2024
Pick 11: New England Patriots
Selection: Jared Verse, DE, Florida State
This pick was previously traded to New England from Minnesota.
The Patriots could have selected a QB 3rd overall, but decided to trade down because Minnesota was offering a massive return. Jayden Daniels has fallen into their lap.
They decide it’s time to grab Jared Verse instead. That defensive front 7 is a bit old.
Pick 12: Atlanta Falcons > Buffalo Bills
Selection: Brian Thomas Jr., WR, LSU
This pick was previously traded to Atlanta from the Broncos.
The Atlanta Falcons TRADE the 12th overall pick to the Buffalo Bills for the 28th overall pick plus MANY future picks. Basically all the Bills picks actually.
The Bills decide to go the high upside route and grab Brian Thomas instead of a big name receiver in Rome Odunze. Either way, this will be an upgrade on Gabe Davis who recently left for Jacksonville.
Pick 13: Las Vegas Raiders
Selection: Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
The Raiders surprise everyone by NOT messing it up. They grab Jayden Daniels who slid from his expected spot at #2 or #3, all the way to #13 despite all the QB needy teams.
Pick 14: New Orleans Saints > Dallas Cowboys
Selection: Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame
The New Orleans Saints TRADE the 12th overall pick to the Dallas Cowboys for the 24th overall pick plus future picks.
The Cowboys replace Tyron Smith with their top tackle on the board, Joe Alt. Really a can’t miss pick if they’re considering a tackle.
Pick 15: Indianapolis Colts > Kansas City Chiefs
Selection: Rome Odunze, WR, Washington
The Indianapolis Colts TRADE the 15th overall pick to the Kansas City Chiefs for the 32nd overall pick plus future picks.
The Chiefs make a similar trade to the Bills, but they don’t skip on the big name. Rome Odunze is on his way to play with Patrick Mahomes.
Pick 16: Seattle Seahawks
Selection: Troy Fautanu, G/T, Washington
The Seahawks stay put and select Fautanu with the expectation of him playing left guard. They solidify their o-line for the future.
Pick 17: Jacksonville Jaguars
Selection: Chop Robinson, DE, Penn State
The Jaguars love physical traits, even when players didn’t produce too much in college. Instead of taking the better player in Dallas Turner or Laiatu Latu, they want raw talent that they can potentially mold into a player of that caliber a few years down the road. Chop is their guy.
Pick 18: Cincinnati Bengals > Los Angeles Rams
Selection: Terrion Arnold, CB, Alabama
The Cincinnati Bengals TRADE the 18th overall pick to the Los Angeles Rams for the 19th overall pick plus the rights to Aaron Donald.
The Rams trade away Aaron Donald, who just retired, in order to move up 1 pick in the draft. The Bengals figure if he changed his mind before filing any paperwork, they’ve lucked out. The Rams do it because they were worried the Bengals might look cornerback and take their guy.
After moving all the way up 1 spot, the Rams take Terrion Arnold.
Pick 19: Cincinnati Bengals
Selection: JC Latham, OT, Alabama
This pick was previously traded to the Bengals from the Rams.
The Bengals solidify their offensive line with a true big man. Coming off an injury-riddled season, protecting Burrow should be priority #1, and they prefer Latham.
Pick 20: Pittsburgh Steelers
Selection: Jackson Powers-Johnson, C, Oregon
The Steelers still need offensive line help, and have done a decent job filling some defensive hole in free agency. They decide to address offensive line again this year with the top interior player available, Jackson Powers-Johnson.
Pick 21: Miami Dolphins
Selection: Byron Murphy II, DT, Texas
The Dolphins solidified their edge rusher unit in free agency, but could still use help along the defensive line. Murphy provides an interior pass rush that they didn’t otherwise have after losing Wilkins.
Pick 22: Philadelphia Eagles
Selection: Olu Fashanu, OT, Penn State
The Eagles can’t resist a big time talent at offensive tackle. Olu Fashanu was the best value on the board, and exactly the type of player that their o-line coach Jeff Stoutland does well with. He stops his slide.
Pick 23: New England Patriots > Carolina Panthers
Selection: Adonai Mitchell, WR, Texas
This pick was previously traded to the Patriots from the Vikings.
The New England Patriots TRADE the 23rd overall pick to the Carolina Panthers for the 33rd overall pick plus future picks.
The Panthers grab a big, athletic receiver with a massive ceiling to try to help out Bryce Young.
Pick 24: New Orleans Saints
Selection: Dallas Turner, EDGE, Alabama
This pick was previously traded to the Saints from the Cowboys.
The Saints moved back earlier since they have a fair number of needs. They end up having one of their top targets available for them still while picking 10 picks later. Turner will sure up an old edge rusher group.
Pick 25: Green Bay Packers
Selection: Jer’Zhan Newton, DT, Illinois
The Packers love neglecting their top needs and instead choosing players at positions they already have filled. They currently need help at right guard, inside linebacker, and defensive back.
Instead of filling a need they choose interior defensive line because they love the value. At least he’s a good player, even if there’s no need there.
Pick 26: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Selection: Taliese Fuaga, OT, Oregon State
The Bucs grab Fuaga, who slid pretty far, to improve the right tackle spot. They like Goedeke better as an interior offensive lineman anyway.
Pick 27: Arizona Cardinals > New York Giants
Selection: Michael Penix Jr., QB, Washington
The Arizona Cardinals TRADE the 27th overall pick to the New York Giants for the 39th overall pick plus future picks.
After missing their last pick, the Giants take it down to the final seconds before making a splash and grabbing an intriguing QB to compete with Daniel Jones.
Pick 28: Atlanta Falcons > Washington Commanders
Selection: Kingsley Eguakun, C, Florida
The Atlanta Falcons TRADE the 28th overall pick to the Washington Commanders for the 36th overall pick and future picks.
The Falcons have now traded back from 8 to 12 to 28 to 36.
The Commanders try to draft Kingsley Suamataia, the offensive tackle from BYU, but the team partied too hard after landing Caleb Williams so they end up drafting the wrong Kingsley.
Pick 29: Detroit Lions
Selection: Laiatu Latu, EDGE, UCLA
Latu falls down the board due to medicals, but the Lions end his slide and form one of the scariest pass rush groups in the NFL.
Pick 30: Baltimore Ravens
Selection: Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB, Alabama
The Ravens wind up with a nice upgrade to their defensive backfield, who also adds some punch in special teams.
Pick 31: San Francisco 49ers
Selection: Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo
Mitchell makes it to 31, and it’s an obvious choice for the 49ers who usually make decent picks in the draft.
Pick 32: Indianapolis Colts > Green Bay Packers
Selection: Kiran Amegadjie, G/T, Yale
This pick was previously traded to the Colts from the Chiefs.
The Indianapolis Colts TRADE the 32nd overall pick to the Green Bay Packers for the 41st overall pick and future picks.
The Packers somewhat take a position of need here, surprising people with a reach for the raw talent out of Yale, Kiran Amegadjie. Most fans don’t think he’ll be anywhere near the 1st round, but NFL GMs think more highly of him. The Packers get a versatile lineman to start at RG to open his career.
Closing Thoughts on the Chaos Mock Draft
There you have it, a sneak peak into the chaotic possibilities of the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Everything in this mock draft outside of one or two picks is entirely possible, but entirely unlikely at the same time. Remember that no matter how much consensus there may be in mock drafts, the draft never plays out how you expect it.
I encourage you all to make your own chaos mock drafts. Be creative about the possibilities of what teams might do, even if it doesn’t seem to be what’s best for them.
If you have any ideas of chaotic trades or draft picks that might happen, please leave a comment below!
