Ranking every NFL team's 2024 draft class from the Panthers (ugh) to surging Bears (hellllo, Caleb Williams)
You can build a Super Bowl team in free agency. You can build a dynasty at the NFL Draft.
The Kansas City Chiefs became a juggernaut behind home grown stars like Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Chris Jones. The New England Patriots may have earned a reputation for finding bargain veterans on the open market who could contribute to championship teams, but those teams would have fallen short of the Lombardi Trophy without Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski, Richard Seymour or Vince Wilfork.
That means acing a draft can be the difference between sustained success and years of wandering a desert of lonely Januaries and occasional Wild Card berths. While we won’t know which teams truly crushed their picks and who struck out until years later, we can make some educated guesses about which prospects are good fits, good values or both.
Here’s how all 32 franchises did, graded and ranked in snap judgments which will soon after be immortalized for their incorrectness when, say, Michael Penix Jr. wins his third MVP. And let’s keep in mind that “worst pick” is entirely subjective and graded on a curve, so while one team’s worst draftee may be a total disaster, the other could merely be a guy who was selected a few picks too early.