The 2024 NFL Draft figures to be an intriguing quarterback class with star prospects like USC’s Caleb Williams, North Carolina’s Drake Maye and LSU’s Jayden Daniels. Since Williams’ 2022 Heisman-winning season, there have been a lot of comparisons of him to Chiefs quarterback Pat Mahomes in the media. Pro team sources say they see a bigger, thicker version of Kyler Murray with Williams. The comparisons for Maye and Daniels have not been hyped yet in the media, but when WalterFootball.com surveyed some team sources, a number of names came up. Maye was compared to Lions quarterback Jared Goff by a few sources, while with Daniels, the clear comparison was to Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson.
“We all love Jayden,” said an AFC director of player personnel. “He doesn’t have special arm talent and will some open receivers at times, but he is going to be special. He is a lot like Lamar as a runner and might be a more natural passer entering the league.”
Daniels showed off his dual-threat ability this past season en route to winning the Heisman Trophy. In 2023, Daniels completed 72 percent of his passes for 3,812 yards, 40 touchdowns and four interceptions. He also ran for 1,134 yards and another 10 scores.
Multiple team sources said Maye was similar to Goff as an accurate pocket passer with a quality arm. They all noted Maye was more mobile with more running ability than Goff. Some team sources likened Maye to others as well.
“I can see some of the Goff comparisons, but for me, Drake is a bigger C.J. Stroud,” said an AFC director of player personnel.
With team sources projecting these prospects to be similar to good NFL starting quarterbacks, they all figure to be highly sought after and high first-round picks in a few months during the 2024 NFL Draft.
