The Joel Klatt Show: A College Football Podcast - BEST BITE: Joel Klatt predicts 4 QBs taken in top 5 picks of 2024 NFL Draft

Episode Date: April 24, 2024

Joel Klatt reveals his final 2024 NFL mock draft. He explains why the Washington Commanders have a tough decision with the No. 2 pick deciding between UNC Tar Heels QB Drake Maye and LSU Tigers QB Jayden Daniels. Joel also predicts a trade in the Top 5, expecting teams to trade up for an elite QB. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Let's get into it. Mock draft 3.0. This is my final one. This is my final answer, if you will. Mock draft 3.0. Let's start with the Bears. At number one, we all know where they're going, put it in there, Caleb Williams. And Caleb Williams is going to a place now where they are so much better suited to

have success with Caleb Williams than they were when they drafted Justin Fields. So I think that Caleb Williams can have a lot of success there in Chicago. I hope that he does. That's not quite the case with all of these places that are going to be drafting quarterbacks. I am not envious of these guys. Now, listen, would you love to be a top pick in the NFL dress? Obviously, yes. But remember, fit and location have a lot to do with your success than your own ability.

I think that we could see that in spades last year with Bryce Young. Carolina was in no position to succeed around Bryce Young. And look what happened. And by the way, look to the foreseeable future there. I don't exactly know what their answers are around Bryce Young. So we get into these areas where there are questions around the quarterback position. Bears, I think they're set up pretty well for Caleb Williams to succeed. Then you go to Washington.

What is it going to be? I've been hearing a lot of things about Washington. And I personally would draft Jake May. He's got the higher upside. I just hear way too much in the NFL circles about Jaden Daniels. and how much these guys love Jaden Daniels. And part of that is that he's a bit of a safer pick. He might not have the overall ceiling that Drake May does,

but he is a safer pick. And I know that Cliff Kingsbury-Berry loves Jaden Daniels, and I think that Washington goes with Jaden Daniels. He's obviously got the ability to run, and that's going to be a huge feather in his cap, because defenses and defensive coordinators hate seeing that. It's the one thing that they cannot stand. He obviously throws the ball well, and that's the thing.

He's not just a runner. He throws the ball beautifully from the pocket, outside of the pocket. He reads defenses. He's very smart. He's mature. He's got arm strength. He's got it all. Love Jaden Daniels.

And I think Washington takes Jaden Daniels at number two. And number three with New England. Now, this is what's interesting is I think New England, depending on how much they love J.J. McCarthy, they could be willing to, to deal with deal this pick. And I think that that's an interesting little, you know, insight there. Now, if they stay Pat, see what I did there. I think it's Drake May.

Drake May for me again, he's got a ridiculously high ceiling. Now, of all the places to draft quarterbacks, New England, I would say, has the least around the young quarterback to succeed early in his career. I don't know what they're doing on the offensive line. they don't seem to have a ton of weapons. So this might not be the most advantageous place to go for one of these guys, but still you would want to get drafted as high as you possibly can.

And I think it's Drake May. Again, Drake May, high ceiling. When you watch his tape, I understand some of the criticism. Does he play loosely at times? Yes, I believe that's because he's hyper competitive. He had a team around him that wasn't the best, and he was trying to do everything in his power to win. This guy has, he has all the tools that you would possibly

need to succeed at the next level, and I hope that he does. That leaves Arizona. And now we start thinking about, okay, when are the trades coming? Because at this point, the three quarterbacks are gone, which creates urgency for J.J. McCarthy. Now, Arizona doesn't have to move because the player that they need and want is there, and that's Marvin Harrison, Jr. I think that they sit in that spot at number four, and they take Marvin Harrison Jr. He, to me, in so many ways, is outside.

of Caleb Williams, the best player available on the draft. He's so good, in particular on third downs, his body control, his ability to get open. He's a hard worker. I think that he is the type of guy that can be a number one wide receiver for a long time in the National Football League. And he's a guy that I would be shocked if he's not an all pro at some point. I just really would. And now the draft gets really interesting because a lot of people are going to have this top four. You know, and maybe Jaden Daniels and Drake May in the opposite order. I know I've had Drake May at two and so on and so forth. But when the Chargers come on the clock at number five, that's when it's interesting.

Let me just paint the scenario really quickly. Minnesota is calling. Maybe, heck, maybe Vegas is calling. J.J. McCarthy is on the board. Minnesota has the ammunition. They've got both of their first round picks sitting there. They can trade with the charge. Chargers, which means, which means, think about it, Jim Harbaugh holds the keys to where his college

quarterback is going to play. I would be shocked if they aren't in communication. I think that Jim Harbaugh in a lot of ways wishes he could take JJ McCarthy. Now, they won't do that. They're not going to trade Justin Herbert. I don't think it's because they don't, let's just say, I think that they've kicked the tires on that. The problem is that the money doesn't work. You would owe Herbert too much and he would count against your cap too much in the next couple of years

in order to trade him and move on and go with a younger quarterback. But I don't think that they have totally abandoned that type of thinking because Jim Harbaugh loves J.J. McCarthy for obvious reasons. And now he

holds the keys to J.J.'s future. Who does he? trade with. It's Minnesota. It's Minnesota, because if you're any of these quarterbacks, Minnesota is the best place to go for any of the young quarterbacks, even Caleb Williams, J. Daniels, Drake May, J.J. McCarthy, Ineum, Bo Nix, Michael Pinnock's. You ask them, what would be the best place to go? Well, they're going to say, like, well, Chicago, because it's number one. But really, the best place to succeed,

the best place to have a C.J. Stroud-esque rookie season is Minnesota. Minnesota does the deal with Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers, they select J.J. McCarthy. And because Jim loves him, he does that trade. And he sets him up in a position to succeed, a spot with Jefferson, Jordan Addison, play caller that is offensive-minded. And Kevin O'Connell is going to put his quarterback in position to succeed. And so that's where Jay-J-J-McCarthy goes.

And that's where the draft to me is so interesting, is that five-spot.