We'll certainly be closely monitoring rookies and tracking the development of young NFL players here at CBS Sports, but it's also time to start digging into the 2024 draft class, a collection of prospects that, right now, at the top, appears to be better than the 2023 class, particularly at marquee positions.
Providing stylistic pro comparisons to young NFL stars feels like a proper introduction to premier, sparkly prospects in this class. I used NFL Mock Draft Database's "consensus Big Board" for the top five.
Let this serve as an early guide to the utmost marquee prospects ahead of the upcoming college football season.
Caleb Williams, QB, USC
NFL comparison: Patrick Mahomes
I'll get one disclaimer out of the way at the jump -- Williams does not have Mahomes' arm. It's decently close. But he doesn't have an absolute hose like the Chiefs quarterback. However, Williams' film looks a lot -- and I mean A LOT -- like Mahomes' did at Texas Tech. Wild improvisational brilliance, stunning placement on throws through tiny windows inside and outside the pocket, unfathomable scrambles away from what looked like a guaranteed sack and just enough athleticism to piece together long runs if the defense takes his athleticism for granted. He has the utmost trust in his arm and usually has the arm talent to genuinely make any throw, on or off structure, on the field.
He is much smaller (6-foot-1, 220 pounds) than Mahomes but he's not in Bryce Young territory. If Williams plays exactly like he did in 2022, he'll be the no-questions-asked No. 1 overall pick and will draw Mahomes comparisons across the board.
Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
NFL comparison: Justin Herbert
While Maye made a ridiculous amount of Herbertian throws in 2022, he doesn't have the type of explodes-out-of-his-hand arm strength of the Chargers quarterback. Everything else, from his stature (6-4) to his sneaky athleticism despite stellar pocket play, to his willingness to attempt throws 95% of quarterbacks wouldn't dare release was very Herbert-like from Maye in his first full season at the North Carolina starter.
Remember, many believed Herbert's sophomore season was actually his finest at Oregon. If we see more velocity on his fastball -- although it's not as if Maye struggles to push the football through the second level and down the field -- Maye will not only have a monster 2023 for the Tar Heels, he'll likely lock himself into the QB2 spot and be picked somewhere in the Top 10 of the 2024 draft. The Herbert comparisons will be plenty.
Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
NFL comparison: Julio Jones
Jones weighed in at 220 pounds at his combine, and Harrison is listed at 205 pounds. But there's time for Harrison to add more bulk to his frame for this comparison to be even more apt than it already is on the field. Jones was a freaky specimen and highly touted prospect because of his size and explosiveness combination that was coupled with nimble feet, and slot-receiver like flexibility. He also played above the rim, exactly how a 6-foot-3, 220-pounder should.
Harrison dominates in the same ways. He erupts off the snap, breaks off the top of his route stem violently, rebounds the football as well as any receiver in college football, and is a moose in the open field. The only thing possibly holding Harrison back in 2023 is the quarterback play at Ohio State. While it's unlikely to be as reliable as when C.J. Stroud was throwing Harrison the football, under Ryan Day, it's likely to be pretty darn good. Harrison has Top 5 overall pick type, rare talent. And teams will be likely be vying to trade up for him, just like the Falcons did in the 2011 draft.
Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
NFL comparison: George Kittle
Bowers looks like a Kittle clone on the field. Similarly sized. Plays with his hair on fire. Tracks the football like a veteran wideout, and is a YAC monster because of his dynamic athleticism, slippery quickness, contact balance, and pure power through tackling attempts.
Much of what has made Kittle the elite tight end he's been for about five years now is his unparalleled tenacity on the field in every aspect of playing the position. He really gets after it as a blocker, battles through contact from linebackers and safeties, and refuses to be taken to the turf on first contact. From the moment he stepped on the field at Georgia, Bowers has played with Kittle-like assertiveness. He's looked like a future Top 10 pick since his true freshman season.
Olumuyiwa Fashanu, OT, Penn State
NFL comparison: Trent Williams
At least by how he's listed, Fashanu is a touch taller and bigger than Williams as a prospect. But based on his 2022 film, Fashanu genuinely has the opportunity to be a Williams-esque prospect at left tackle. At 6-foot-6 and 320 pounds with tentacles for arms, Fashanu gets out of his stance like an undersized center and showcased tremendous power for a 20 year old in at Penn State. He effortlessly sinks into his anchor to erase just about every bull-rush attempt he faces. Fashanu deploys his length wonderfully too against attempts to soften his outside shoulder. His film wasn't perfect in 2022. Neither was Williams' film in his second-to-last season at Oklahoma. Fashanu really has the natural athleticism and power blend to deserve Williams comparisons next spring.
