Andy Richardson reacts to the first round of the NFL Draft as it happens. Pick discussion below. Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions in the comments.

7:15 p.m. Eastern. NFL Draft 2024 let's gooo! Welcome to this year's coverage of the first round of the Draft. We're about an hour away from the first pick and probably an hour and 20 minutes away from the first surprise.

Here's the plan: after each pick, I'll be updating this post with the player picked and providing some brief initial comments on player, team fit, what I think of it, and what might come next.

As time allows between picks, I'll post and/or answer questions or debate picks in the comments, and I believe other Fantasy Index staff will weigh in. Reader comments welcome! More to come.

As I write this, there have been no trades. Apparently half the teams at the top of the round are open to trading down, and half the teams from about 1.06 on are looking to trade up. So there could be a whole bunch of trades, or it's a bunch of hype that won't come to fruition and each team will just dutifully make their pick.

We'll find out soon....

7:45. The Bears will be taking Caleb Williams at 1.01. That's known. And it sounds like 1.02 will be Jayden Daniels to Washington, and that 1.03 should be Drake Maye to New England. Let's hope it goes better than the last time QBs went 1-2-3: 2021, with Trevor Lawrence followed by Zach Wilson and Trey Lance.

8:12 p.m. Bears are on the clock.

1.01. Caleb Williams, Chicago. I like Williams. Strong arm, athletic, and a guy who will make sandlot plays at the level of Patrick Mahomes (the most frequent comparison) or Brett Favre. The Bears think they’ve got their first real franchise quarterback since… Jim McMahon? Perhaps Jay Cutler? I agree with them. When the worst thing you can say about a guy is he’s arrogant or maybe his Dad is too involved in his life, I’m in. Fantasy-wise, he starts out throwing to DJ Moore, Keenan Allen and Cole Kmet. As we stand right now, I've got the Bears with a bottom-10 offensive line; that's a concern. But things are seldom perfect right away for QBs going No. 1 overall; I think it's a better than average situation for him.

That was the known pick. The next 31 are where the uncertainty comes in. From here on out, we won’t be 100 percent certain what the pick is until it’s made.

1.02. Jayden Daniels, Washington. Washington hopes Daniels is better than Drake Maye; some aren’t so sure. But I think most teams would have gone this route. Fantasy-wise, he’ll run a lot more than the other top quarterbacks, so could be the superior option. But he’s a thin guy (and looks it, I think) who might not be able to run as much in the pros, and he also has just the one big year (after putting up really modest numbers at Arizona State). And as I’ve mentioned in recent weeks, some of Washington’s offseason moves seemed weird to me.

1.03. Drake Maye, New England. People who like Maye really like him. Apparently the Vikings and Giants tried hard to come up and get him. Ideal size and athletic (ran more than you’d expect in college), but looking to make plays downfield rather than running it. Although he did run for 1,209 yards and 16 TDs the last two seasons. Fantasy negatives: well the Patriots seem kind of thin on offensive talent around him. This is a rebuild of the likely fourth-place team in the AFC East.

1.04. Marvin Harrison, Arizona. Some brief discussion here early in the offseason over whether Harrison is actually the best wide receiver in this class, or if he’s helped by the name. Didn’t work out at the combine or Ohio State’s pro day, while Malik Nabers was running a 4.35 (at his pro day, not the combine). But I don’t see anything concerning with him – great routes, great hands, great body control and ball awareness. Maybe all three of these top wide receivers will be really really good. Great get for Kyler Murray.

Chalk so far. Now come some surprises, probably.

1.05. Joe Alt, L.A. Chargers. The favorite to be the first tackle drafted, Notre Dame’s Alt is an athletic guy (former tight end) who’s yet another son of a former NFL player. Huge (6-9), and the first thing I thought was, is he too tall? I’ve seen some discussion along those lines. But have to figure Jim Harbaugh knows what he’s doing.

Giants can now take either the 4th QB or the 2nd WR. Probably one of the two.

1.06. Malik Nabers, N.Y. Giants. Not as big as the other two Big 3 wideouts, but faster. Size similar and speed perhaps better (4.35 at his pro day) than two other guys who have done pretty well coming out of LSU recently, Chase and Jefferson. Awesome after the catch. Good for the Giants, this is what I was thinking they’d do (rather than select a QB), though I don't know if they really wanted to trade up for Maye.

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1.07. JC Latham, Tennessee. Another expected pick. Tennessee had one of the league’s worst lines last year and desperately needed to do something. Latham was viewed by some as the Draft’s best tackle, definitely comparable to Alt. Some recent linemen picks from Alabama have been a little underwhelming, but a need pick of a highly regarded player. Can’t really argue it.

1.08. Michael Penix, Atlanta. My planned Penix comments are kind of out the window here. I am very intrigued in his NFL prospects. Too bad he's going to ride the bench for the next year or two barring an injury to Kirk Cousins. I don't really know what the rationale is. Great, you've got your succession plan. Did you need to draft it at No. 8 overall? Penix is 24, after six (!) college seasons. He's ready to play now. On a lot of teams, he would. Just not Atlanta.

1.09. Rome Odunze, Chicago. Hey, the outlook just got even better for Caleb Williams. And Chicago is protected in case of a Keenan Allen injury. Slightly better numbers than the others, main wideouts, bigger than Nabers. Exploded in his two seasons with Michael Penix. Hard to argue with the pick, though the landing spot doesn’t seem ideal in the short term, as with Jaxon Smith-Njigba a year ago. But Keenan probably a one-year guy.

1,10, J.J. McCarthy, Minnesota. A trade, with the Vikings swapping with the Jets, presumably fearing someone else (Denver? I don't think those franchises get along) might move ahead of them. McCarthy was supposedly a consideration for the teams picking in the top 3, but that turned out, apparently, to be just hype or smoke screens or whatever you want to call it. In general, McCarthy was a game-manager of a team with a great defense and running game. BUT, he also threw for big numbers when necessary, like the Fiesta Bowl shootout with TCU. Threw 3 TDs and led a huge drive in the win over Alabama, too. Vikings believe, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt.

1.11. Olu Fashanu, N.Y. Jets. One of the top 3 tackles in the draft going to one of the teams that really, really needs to protect its creaky old quarterback. Seems like a wise decision.

1.12. Bo Nix, Denver. 12 picks in, 6 quarterbacks. I was not expecting Penix or Nix to go this early. I can only assume the feeding frenzy forced Denver's hand a bit. We'll never know for sure if they liked him more than say McCarthy, but he was popularly mocked to Denver. Like Penix, he ran a high-powered passing game in college. I like Penix more, but Nix's landing spot (Sean Payton, and no $100M Kirk Cousins in front of him) is a whole lot better. He'll beat out Denver's other quarterbacks -- sorry, check that, he already has. Not a runner. Kurt Warner compared him to Drew Brees on NFL Network. Denver can only hope. Week 1 starter.

1.13. Brock Bowers, Las Vegas. A year ago they drafted Michael Mayer. Now, supposedly hoping to draft a quarterback but seeing six go in the first 12 picks ahead of them, they select the top tight end. I wrote about Bowers for the site here yesterday, I'm a big fan. Not a fan of him going to a team with another good tight end, but presumably they have a plan that involves putting both on the field a ton. If so, Mayer will be the one doing more blocking, Bowers more receiving.

1.14. Taliese Fuaga, New Orleans. Saints really needed offensive line help, and while everyone was talking about the QBs and WRs in this draft, there was also some less-publicized talk about it being a really good draft for offensive tackles. That's 4 in 14 picks. Big need for New Orleans even before James Hurst, retired the other day. Fuaga could potentially start out at guard.

1.15. Laiatu Latu, Indianapolis. Colts going defense seemed pretty likely, and they got the first defensive player selected -- don't have time to look it up, but I won't be surprised if it's the first time in history it's been this late. Latu one of the best pass rushers in the draft and he goes to a team that was pretty good in that regard a year ago (51 sacks). Colts going to be an interesting defense in fantasy, I think. And fun to watch on offense with a healthy Anthony Richardson, of course.

1.16. Byron Murphy, Seattle. Pete Carroll would have liked this pick. Some thought the Texas DT would go in the top 10, but with all the quarterbacks going, it worked out well for the Seahawks. Seattle's new coach comes over from Baltimore, so he knows something about defense.

Vikings trade up with Jacksonville. Interesting.

1.17. Dallas Turner, Minnesota. In recent years, wide receivers, running backs and quarterbacks have been early selections out of Alabama. A little different this year, with linemen and defenders getting the most interest. Turner is the third straight defender off the board, and Minnesota needs a lot of defensive help, so it makes sense.

1.18. Amarius Mims, Cincinnati. Another offensive lineman for a team that needs to keep its quarterback on the field. I've seen Mims graded as high as the 3rd tackle in this draft, and I have the Bengals' OL a little below average in my initial rankings.

1.19. Jared Verse, L.A. Rams. Talk of the Rams wanting to trade up into the top 10, perhaps for a wide receiver, didn't make much sense to me. A year after picking Nacua late they're gonna trade up for another wideout? Instead they get a big time pass rusher out of Florida State, with 9 sacks each of the last two years.

1.20. Troy Fautano, Pittsburgh. Steelers with an offensive lineman. I'm not sure they had any above-average starters (I have them as a bottom-10 line), so a good move for them, and required if you've seen Russell Wilson play the last couple of years.

1.21. Chop Robinson, Miami. Working on the defense story last week, I noticed Miami has completely overhauled last year's defense. And two of their best players, Bradley Chubb and Jaelen Phillips, are coming off major injury. So a big need, and Penn State's Robinson is one of more explosive pass rushers in the draft.

1.22. Quinyon Mitchell, Philadelphia. Probably one of the latest first cornerback selection. Eagles defense needs help in the secondary. I saw Mitchell mocked as high as Denver at 12.

1.23. Brian Thomas, Jacksonville. Jaguars reportedly wanted to move up for a wide receiver. They get the 4th best one after moving down. Apparently there are medical concerns; there was a report yesterday that he may need shoulder surgery. But a really talented guy for LSU. Last year, a quarter of his receptions (17 of 68) went for touchdowns – remarkable.

1.24. Terrion Arnold, Detroit. Cowboys trade down with the Lions, who need secondary help and get it with the Alabama corner. Nice suit!

1.25. Jordan Morgan, Green Bay. Packers know the value of offensive linemen, and they said goodbye to David Bakhtiari earlier in the offseason. Morgan will start somewhere for them...at the moment, I'm not sure where they'll put him. It won't necessarily be at tackle right away.

Getting a little bleary eyed here, but only eight picks left, we can do it!

1.26. Graham Barton, Tampa Bay. Ian Rapoport, for whatever it's worth, apparently felt the Cowboys wanted this interior lineman, and might regret trading back and not getting him. Whatever. Tampa Bay was going to be starting (I think) below-average players at left guard and center, and Barton will probably start in one of those spots.

1.27. Darius Robinson, Arizona. Cardinals don't waste much time grabbing a defensive player, last of the players invited to attend the draft. They've turned over a lot of their roster in the front seven, so he'll be a nice addition, I think.

1.28. Xavier Worthy, Kansas City. So the Bills, annually bounced from the playoffs by Kansas City, traded this pick to them so they could draft the best wideout left on the board. Interesting. Worthy just set a record with a 4.21 40 at the combine, but he's more than a fast guy (also top 5 performance in vertical and broad jump). Texas' leading receiver the last three years is small and caught only 5 TDs last year. But I think he at least might be closer to Tyreek Hill than what they've had the last couple of years, and they're probably not going to have Rashee Rice for multiple games, either.

1.29. Tyler Guyton, Dallas. Cowboys sure do like drafting offensive tackles whose names begin with Ty. Good pick for them though, with that line desperately needing some young talent.

1.30. Nate Wiggins, Baltimore. Ravens take a corner. I have to think they were eyeing one of the offensive linemen who've been selected, since they have a couple of holes they need to fill before the start of the season. But a lot of top guys are gone.

1.31. Ricky Pearsall, San Francisco. This won't quiet the Aiyuk / Deebo trade rumors. Pearsall wasn't nearly this high in any of the predraft rankings I saw, so we'll see if they know what they're doing. Didn't put up big numbers at Florida, most notably catching only 4-5 TDs each of the last three seasons. Surprised by this pick.

And by the Bills trading down again, with Carolina. One spot. Not sure who the Panthers had to have here to give up the first pick of Day 2....

32. Xavier Legette, Carolina. So my son goes to South Carolina and Legette was pretty awesome to watch this season (granted his only big season). Needless to say, I'm not terribly excited to see him go to work in a passing game as awful as the Panthers, but hey, he can only help and it can only get better. Good pick for the Panthers, not a great landing spot for Legette (though he'll have some fans in Charlotte). As a for instance, I'd have liked Buffalo a lot more. Oh well.

And that's a wrap. Thanks to those who followed along, I hope you enjoyed and found it useful and/or entertaining. Please feel free to post questions or comments below, and I'll do my best to answer them in the morning. G'night.

--Andy Richardson