Winners and losers from Round 1 of 2024 NFL Draft

theScore's football editors evaluate the biggest winners and losers after the first 32 picks of the 2024 NFL Draft.

Winners: Quarterbacks

Roger Goodell stopped short of pulling an Oprah Winfrey and shouting on stage, "You get a quarterback, and you get a quarterback." But it would have been appropriate considering the insane run on passers in Thursday's first round. The opening three selections of Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, and Drake Maye were expected, but the Falcons' stunner with Penix at No. 8 started the fireworks. By the time the smoke cleared, McCarthy at No. 10 and Bo Nix at No. 12 made it a record six quarterbacks taken in the opening 12 selections. The five signal-callers in the top 10 surpassed the 1949 and 2018 drafts for the most ever.

Several factors likely contributed to the rush to grab a quarterback. More than 62 different signal-callers started a game last season. Getting quality depth at the position has never been more important, especially with the fifth-year option that a first-round pick brings. However, the main reason teams may have reached Thursday might hinge on next year's draft class. Carson Beck, Shedeur Sanders, and Quinn Ewers are projected as the early top quarterback prospects for the 2025 NFL Draft. While that trio may explode as Daniels did in his final collegiate season, the top-four passers in this draft all project as better prospects at this point.

Loser: Kirk Cousins NurPhoto / NurPhoto / Getty

We aren't really going to call someone who signed a four-year, $180-million contract six weeks ago a loser, right? You damn right we are. Despite guaranteeing $100 million in his bank account from the Atlanta Falcons, Kirk Cousins is a clear loser from Thursday because of the team's draft strategy. The Falcons' stunning pick of Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. blew up the draft's opening round and sent the football world into a tailspin.

Atlanta inked Cousins to the four-year deal on March 11, which appeared to solve its quarterback issues. However, Cousins is 35 years old and coming off an Achilles tear. The Falcons also gave themselves an out in the contract after the 2025 season, meaning Penix could serve as the backup for a campaign or two before taking over. But it would be an odd strategy since Penix will turn 24 in two weeks and threw 1,685 passes over six collegiate seasons. Still, Atlanta apparently thought Penix's elite arm talent was too good to pass up. What's even worse for Cousins is that it seems no one told him it was happening in advance.

As we all sit in shock over the Atlanta pick, a source tells me Kirk Cousins just as shocked" and disappointed" Never said anything to him or his reps about a QB in 1st round despite suggesting they would. Still it's a business"

- Jane Slater (@SlaterNFL) April 26, 2024

With Penix on the sideline, Cousins won't have much of a leash as he returns from his Achilles injury. Any struggles from the veteran passer will likely be met with an avalanche of calls from fans to have Penix replace him. While Cousins is almost unquestionably the starter to lead the Falcons' young offensive core in 2024, the light at the end of the career tunnel got a lot brighter for him Thursday.

Winner: Vikings Stacy Revere / Getty Images Sport / Getty

There's an argument to be made that nobody played the opening round of the NFL draft better than the Minnesota Vikings. Whether you agree that J.J. McCarthy is worthy of a top-10 pick or not, the Vikings clearly did and managed to secure his services by only moving up one spot and giving up a fourth and fifth-round pick. That was significantly less capital to trade than expected, with McCarthy projected to go earlier in the draft.

McCarthy lands in an excellent environment under the watch of coach Kevin O'Connell with an exceptional trio of young pass-catchers in Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson. The 21-year-old national champion can easily redshirt for a season while Sam Darnold takes the bulk of the snaps for Minnesota. That strategy worked brilliantly for the Kansas City Chiefs with Patrick Mahomes and the Green Bay Packers usage of Jordan Love.

The Vikings weren't done following the McCarthy selection, as general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah made another move later in the round to nab the No. 17 pick from the Jacksonville Jaguars. Minnesota immediately took Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner, who theScore listed second at his position in our predraft rankings.

Loser: Raiders Jeff Bottari / Getty Images Sport / Getty

With plenty of promising quarterbacks available, Day 1 of the 2024 NFL Draft offered a great opportunity for QB-needy teams like the Raiders to add fresh blood to the sport's most important position. A record six passers were selected in the top 12, yet Las Vegas left this year's first round without addressing its biggest issue. Granted, we knew moving up to the top five would have been hard for the Raiders, who reportedly contacted the Commanders about the No. 2 pick. Four quarterbacks were taken in the top eight, including Penix to the Falcons in the day's most stunning move.

But Antonio Pierce and Co. might regret not going after McCarthy, who wasn't called until the 10th pick by the Vikings. They could even end up kicking themselves for not reaching for Nix, who went to the Broncos at No. 12 and was regarded as the draft's sixth-best quarterback prospect. Instead, the Raiders left Round 1 of a record-breaking QB class with Brock Bowers, this year's top rookie tight end. As good as Bowers is, it's hard to see Las Vegas going to the next level and building around him. It'll be even harder to do with Gardner Minshew or Aidan O'Connell under center.

Winner: Daniel Jones

Even the Danny Dimes loyalists had to be worried about the quarterback's job security going into the draft. The Giants were reportedly scouring trade-up opportunities for a passer, while Jones is coming off an ineffective, injury-throttled season that undid much of the progress he made in 2022.

When all was said and done, though, Jones survived Round 1. Not only did the Giants pass on a quarterback at No. 6, but they gave Jones an electric new weapon in LSU receiver Malik Nabers. General manager Joe Schoen made smaller moves around the quarterback over the last two years, but Nabers represents the big swing Jones has patiently awaited.

Jones is heading into the second season of a four-year, $160-million deal but has no guaranteed money after 2024. Without a takeover threat in the locker room, he'll have a chance to get back on track and keep his job for more than just the next year.

Loser: Bills Jeff Zelevansky / Getty Images Sport / Getty

After Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis departed in the offseason, the goal for the Buffalo Bills on Thursday seemed simple - get wide receiver help to keep up with the back-to-back champion Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC. The Bills have been one of the most successful NFL teams over the past four seasons, only to see the Chiefs end their year three times.

Not only did Buffalo not make its pick at No. 28, but it actually moved back to No. 32 and allowed Kansas City to grab the electric Xavier Worthy out of Texas. You may recognize that name as the new combine record holder with an absurd 4.21-second time in the 40-yard dash. The Bills avoided taking Worthy and let the Chiefs add the speedster to Patrick Mahomes' list of options.

The decision would make sense if Buffalo added substantially to its draft haul. But the main difference in the trade was a swap of third and fourth-round picks. The Bills then made a further deal with the Carolina Panthers to move out of the first round to No. 33 - the first pick of the second. That allowed the Panthers to take Xavier Legette, another weapon in the passing attack who won't be available Friday.

Winners: 2023 playoff defenses Gregory Shamus / Getty Images Sport / Getty

While we were all freaking out about the ridiculous run on offensive players in the top half of the round, playoff teams in the bottom half licked their chops as the top defensive prospects fell into their laps.

The Los Angeles Rams landed edge rusher Jared Verse down at No. 19, adding upside to a unit that ranked in the bottom third of the league in sacks last year. It's not often a team scoops up a consensus top-three edge rusher (Laiatu Latu and Turner went in the mid-teens) that late without trading up.

The Philadelphia Eagles, Detroit Lions, and Baltimore Ravens bolstered their secondaries with the top three cornerbacks (Quinyon Mitchell, Terrion Arnold, and Nate Wiggins) in the 20s. Detroit was the only one from the trio to trade up. Even then, the Lions climbed a handful of spots and just needed to sacrifice a third-round pick.

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