By Jason Alwang
Another year, and another coveted NFL Draft. The NFL held its first round of this year’s draft this past Thursday, April 25, where the league’s newest upcoming players look to bring their skills to the big leagues in the National Football League.
The first three picks of this draft went as expected, with all three teams drafting what they hope to be their franchise quarterbacks. The first pick of the draft was Caleb Willams of UNC by the Chicago Bears. Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye followed, landing with the Washington Commanders and New England Patriots, respectively. All three are expected to be their respective team’s starting quarterback in the coming season.
The Bears’ offense in particular has changed significantly. Williams gives them a quarterback with a skill set the team has never had, and the Bears gave Williams some new weapons in their receiving corps by drafting Rome Odunze with the ninth overall pick and adding Kennan Allen during the offseason. Chicago now has a dynamic offense that can score against anyone, giving the Bears hope that they can finally advance deep into the playoffs.
The early run on quarterbacks was unprecedented, as six quarterbacks were taken in the first 12 picks for the first time in league history. The most surprising pick of the first round was the same for everyone: the Atlanta Falcons selected Michael Penix Jr., who was the 8th overall pick in the draft. What made this pick so surprising to many was that the Falcons had just signed Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $150 million deal in the offseason to be their next quarterback. Now, normally, people would say something along the lines of that it’s a great way to get Penix some veteran insight from one of the league’s veterans. However, Penix is already 24 years of age, and Cousins is lined up to be the quarterback for at least the next two seasons, provided he doesn’t get any injuries.
J.J McCarthy and Bo Nix were the other two signal callers taken in the first 12 picks. The Vikings traded up a spot with the Jets to take McCarthy, while the Broncos drafted Nix. It’s expected that McCarthy will be the starter for Minnesota, while Nix will have to compete for the starting gig with recently acquired quarterback Zach Wilson.
The draft’s first round went virtually as most expected, with a couple of surprises, but many teams got significantly better after Thursday’s draft. Gears will now shift towards the rest of the offseason and training camp in July.
