• The top cornerback is still on the board: Iowa’s Cooper DeJean is still available heading into Day 2 despite being a top-10 prospect on PFF’s big board.
• So is the top interior defensive lineman: Illinois’ Jer’Zhan Newton is also still available and is the No. 11 overall prospect.
• Draft and trade for yourself: Try PFF's Mock Draft Simulator — trade picks and players and mock for your favorite NFL team.
Estimated Reading Time: 9 minutes
Click here for more draft tools:
2024 Mock Draft Simulator | 2024 Big Board | 2024 Draft Guide
2024 Player Profiles | 2024 Mock Drafts | NCAA Premium Stats
Night one of the 2024 NFL Draft is in the books. Even with the top-32 picks being out of the way, there are still plenty of alluring prospects who still haven’t heard their names called.
Here are five prospects who can start for their next teams immediately.
CB Cooper DeJean, Iowa
DeJean is the top-ranked cornerback on PFF’s big board and the only top-10 prospect still available, making him an easy choice to be on this list. He’s an incredibly versatile athlete who’s capable of playing on the outside or in the slot. DeJean is the only FBS cornerback since 2022 with 90.0-plus grades both in coverage and as a run-defender.
DI Jer’Zhan Newton, Illinois
Newton is the next-best available player at No. 11 on our big board and is PFF’s top interior defensive lineman prospect. Since 2022, he leads all FBS interior defensive linemen in pressures (102) and run-defense stops (55). Newton was named to PFF’s All-American team in each of those years, second-team in 2022 and first-team this past season. What he lacks in size, he makes up for with elite tape and technique.
CB Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama
McKinstry isn’t an elite athlete like the cornerbacks who heard their names called, but nobody can deny his elite production. He’s been named a first-team PFF All-American in each of the last two seasons. In that span, his 26 forced incompletions in single coverage are tied for the most among all cornerbacks in the nation.
WR Adonai Mitchell, Texas
Mitchell is one of the biggest boom-or-bust prospects in the class ,and his floor is the reason he still hasn’t heard his name called. However, his ceiling is ridiculously high. He runs a 4.34-second 40-yard dash at 6-foot-2, 205 pounds while his 11-foot-4 broad jump is in the 98th percentile for wide receivers. He’s a fluid route-runner at that size as well and led the Big 12 with 11 receiving touchdowns this past season.
IOL Jackson Powers-Johnson, Oregon
Powers-Johnson was far and away the best center in college football this past season. His 87.5 PFF grade was over four points higher than the next-closest FBS center. He also led the nation with an 85.2 run-blocking grade while his 90.6 PFF pass-blocking grade paced all Power Five centers.
While JPJ will likely remain in the middle of the offensive line in the NFL, he’s more than capable of playing guard as well. In 2022, his 85.3 grade was tied for third among all guards in the country.
© 2024 PFF - all rights reserved.