NFL draft 2024: Chicago Bears select Caleb Williams with No 1 pick – live | NFL

Caleb Williams is the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft

And the Chicago Bears are now officially on the clock! The only lingering question: will they run the pick up to the podium or will they take their full ten minutes?

Roger Goodell walks out to a rousing chorus of boos – thank you to Detroit for maintaining the league’s most delightful tradition. He brought out Eminem, Calvin Johnson, Aidan Hutchinson and Jared Goff with him, which helped a little.

Also: Calvin Johnson looks like he would still be the best receiver in the league.

Bill Belichick is not presiding over a draft for the first time since 2000. Instead, he’s holed up with a denim-clad Pat McAfee breaking down his draft board. Worth noting (maybe?) Belichick has the top QBs in this order: Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye. Will New England agree?

Predictions

Okay. Time for some last-minute predictions. Here’s how I see the top five playing out:

1) Chicago Bears, Caleb Williams, QB, USC

2) Washington Commanders, Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU

3) New England Patriots, Drake Maye, QB, UNC

4) Arizona Cardinals, Marvin Harrison Jr, WR, Ohio State

5) Los Angeles Chargers, JC Latham, OT, Alabama

(Note: The Chargers should auction this pick to the highest bidder looking to trade up for JJ McCarthy.)

Thoughts, questions, comments? You can email [email protected] or tweet @OllieConnolly

Here comes the pomp. We just had a delightful rendition of ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing’ from Angela Davis. A 9.5/10. There were tears, cheers and only a couple of people chugging beers (step it up, Detroit).

The drama is almost under way. Well, not exactly. The Bears will soon be on the clock and Caleb Williams will be on his way to Chicago.

Don’t tell this Vikings fan, but Minnesota’s bold strategy to deal for an extra first-round pick back in March, in hopes of giving them the ammunition needed to jump up for one of this year’s top quarterbacks, may come to … nothing.

Jeff Darlingon of ESPN reports that things are “tense” inside Minnesota’s war room as they try to engineer a move up the draft board.

Oops. It’s kind of peculiar that Minnesota felt the need to make the deal with the Texans so early in the process rather than waiting until draft night to see how the board played out.

It’s almost time to kick things off. One subplot to keep an eye on: will Roger Goodell be able to give his infamous bear hugs? ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the commissioner had back surgery three weeks ago, putting his typical ‘welcome to the NFL’ moment in jeopardy.

Remember when Goodell got to run the draft from a lounge chair in his basement? That was fun (and a little weird). He should be able to chill in a recliner and call out the picks every year.

This is Detroit’s first time hosting the league’s annual carnival. And they’re doing things in a typically Detroit style. How about Dan Campbell as a ‘Grit and Glory’ fortune teller?

If you can’t be in Detroit to hang out with Campbell, you can catch the draft here:

Caleb Williams will almost certainly be the first player off the board to the Bears with the No 1 overall pick. Who will be the No 2 pick? Here’s how our writers (myself included) view it:

Congrats to Kliff Kingsbury because the Washington offensive coordinator is going to have a blast with LSU’s Jayden Daniels, who is coming off a spectacular year with the Tigers. His explosive playmaking is evident, but his play in the pocket has vastly improved. This kid is just getting started. Melissa Jacobs

North Carolina’s Drake Maye has more upside, but Washington, riding 20-plus years of stink, need a quarterback with wins in his arm, now. Daniels is the fast track to respectability: a speedy, mobile, creative force at LSU, he ran for 10 touchdowns last season and threw with deadly accuracy. David Lengel

It feels like a lock that it will be Daniels, thought I wouldn’t put it past the Commanders to fall in love with Michigan’s JJ McCarthy. Daniels is a funky prospect; he was a starry duel threat at LSU, but it’s tough to see whether the best elements of his game – his running, his deep ball – will smoothly transition to the NFL. He doesn’t possess Lamar Jackson-esque breakaway speed and has a brittle frame. As a thrower from the pocket, he has a snappy delivery but struggles to shift to his second and third reads. There is some RGIII to his game. Do Washington want to tread that path again? Oliver Connolly

It’s Drake Maye. The buzz suggests Washington are in love with Jayden Daniels but when head coach Dan Quinn searches his feelings he will find Maye bears striking similarities to his former QB in Atlanta, Matt Ryan. The UNC star has a cannon for an arm (both a blessing and a curse, leading to accuracy issues) and is the unflappable franchise leader the Commanders need. Graham Searles

You can also catch up on more of our draft previews here:

Draft order for the first-round

Oliver will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s a look at our predictions for tonight and the days to come.