2024 NFL Draft: Best Team Fits for Top QBs After Offseason Coaching Cycle

The NFL's offseason coaching merry-go-round is finally slowing down. As each reworked coaching staff plunges into draft preparation, they'll do so with different perspectives now within their ranks.

Eight new head coaches have taken over teams on a full-time basis, and there were 28 different coordinator changes across the board. Over half of those (not including the Buffalo Bills' Joe Brady, who took over the job midseason) are newly placed offensive coordinators.

Many of the teams that brought in new coaches this offseason also lack a long-term answer at quarterback. Luckily, the 2024 NFL draft features three prospects who could be top-five options and another three who profile as solid Day 1 or 2 targets.

Some teams would be better landing spots than others for each of those prospects. They should all hope to land on teams with the coaching staffs, schemes and supporting casts in place to maximize their respective talent.

The Chicago Bears have many avenues available to them with this year's No. 1 overall pick. But the optimal path is relatively clear.

The Bears should trade current starting quarterback Justin Fields and then select North Carolina's Drake Maye either at or near the top of the draft.

The latter part is important, because the Washington Commanders might become enamored with USC's Caleb Williams. The Bears could leverage that interest into a potential swap of picks to add even more assets and build the rest of the roster around a rookie quarterback.

If the Bears stand pat at No. 1, Maye remains the most logical choice. He's the Bleacher Report Scouting Department's highest-graded quarterback and third-ranked prospect overall.

"Overall, Maye is a supremely talented passer," B/R scout Derrik Klassen wrote in Maye's scouting report. "He has the athleticism, arm talent and baseline processing skills to become a weapon at the next level. All he needs to do is cut out some of the 'doing too much' plays. Maye has the skill set to fit in any system and develop into a star."

But let's drill down on one specific part of Maye's evaluation.

"[Maye] excels at playing on time, adhering to the structure of the play, and progressing all the way to his checkdowns if need be," Klassen added.

The last trait is particularly important after three years of a Fields-led offense. The 2021 No. 1 overall pick held the ball longer on average than any other quarterback in each of the past two seasons.

New offensive coordinator Shane Waldron brings a more rhythm-oriented passing game, helped by plenty of pre-snap movement, that will require his quarterback to be on-time with where the ball needs to be.

As naturally gifted as both Fields and Williams are, their greatest assets are their creativity. Maye has the size (6'4", 230 lbs), natural arm talent, mobility and processing to be a souped-up version of Geno Smith for Waldron and the Bears.

The connection between the Washington Commanders and USC's Caleb Williams continues to gain steam. But this pairing has nothing to do with rumors of Williams not wanting to play in Chicago or anything outside the realm of typical football decisions.

Instead, familiarity breeds comfortability. And Washington recently hired Kliff Kingsbury as its new offensive coordinator after he served in the same role with USC last season.

The Commanders already needed a new franchise quarterback. They're likely going to get one at or near the top of this year's class. It just comes down to who, along with what the organization is willing to do to ensure it gets its preferred choice.

In an attempt to make a splash, it's easy to envision Washington's new ownership group trading up to the No. 1 spot just to land Williams. To understand how monumental that move would be, no team has ever traded up from No. 2 to No. 1 in the Super Bowl era.

But a renewed relationship between Kingsbury and Williams has the potential to create smooth jazz, with the free-flowing capabilities found within the passing game to invite and encourage the quarterback's creativity with his wide receivers.

The 2022 Heisman Trophy winner can operate within offensive structure. But he's a modern NFL quarterback who thrives when chaos ensues around him.

Some may point to the Trojans' late-season failures as a reason why this pairing shouldn't happen. However, USC allowed 42.8 points per contest yet still managed 418.3 yards of offense during its final six regular-season games.

Despite concerns about a few decisions and his being asked to do too much, no one can deny Williams' ability.

"The arm talent oozes off the film, and he is a special playmaker when things break down," Klassen wrote in Williams' scouting report. "Williams is also more put together as a processor than his playing style suggests, even if he still needs work."

The New England Patriots are the natural pairing for LSU's Jayden Daniels since they have the third overall pick and are likewise in the quarterback market. But we're focusing on best fits here. Daniels landing in the Patriots' post-Bill Belichick transition phase wouldn't be ideal.

However, the Las Vegas Raiders found something in interim-turned-full time head coach Antonio Pierce. More importantly, Pierce has a history with Daniels, who previously attended Arizona State before transferring to LSU.

Who served as the Sun Devils' recruiting coordinator when the program landed Daniels? Pierce.

"Pierce is a big fan of Daniels from their days together at Arizona State, and word is that Pierce evaluated offensive coordinators with the loose possibility of Daniels in mind," ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported.

The Raiders would need to make a significant leap from the 13th overall pick, which largely depends on whether the Patriots even want to move their selection or plan to pass on Daniels. Las Vegas would still need to get ahead of the Tennessee Titans, Atlanta Falcons, Minnesota Vikings and Denver Broncos, all of whom could likewise be searching for a quarterback in the draft.

If the Raiders are able to surmount those obstacles, they'd be an ideal pairing for Daniels. That's particularly true with Luke Getsy coming in as their new offensive play-caller.

Getsy has worked with a pair of 1,000-yard dual-threat quarterbacks in Nick Fitzgerald at Mississippi State and then Justin Fields with the Chicago Bears. Daniels' dynamic running ability should be implemented as part of his NFL team's offense. According to Pro Football Focus, Daniels is the only quarterback during its time recording grades to simultaneously eclipse an overall score or 90 as a passer and runner in the same season.

The reigning Heisman Trophy winner developed into an outstanding vertical passer, with a nation-leading 63 adjusted completion percentage when targeting receivers 20 or more yards downfield. Getsy's history includes working as Aaron Rodgers' quarterbacks coach when the veteran signal-caller won back-to-back MVPs and was among the league's best deep-ball throwers.

The most logical fit for Michigan's J.J. McCarthy would be to rejoin Jim Harbaugh, his old collegiate coach. But the Los Angeles Chargers already have Justin Herbert on the roster.

That makes McCarthy's ideal landing spot not as clear. The Atlanta Falcons probably aren't the first team to come to mind, particularly since they have this year's eighth overall pick.

Some may see that slot as too rich for McCarthy's services. Maybe it is. But Atlanta could also be tempted to pull the trigger on a young, talented athlete with a big arm yet limited resume due to playing in a run-heavy scheme.

Over the last two seasons, McCarthy threw 654 total passes. For comparison, Washington's Michael Penix Jr. attempted at least 554 passes in each of those two seasons. Yet the correlation between opportunities and understanding isn't what a team should expect.

"NFL evaluators have described McCarthy's processing as 'elite' in my conversations with them," NFL Network's Lance Zierlein wrote.

That's the precursor to why the Falcons need to seriously consider McCarthy. Additionally, Zac Robinson left the confines of Sean McVay's system with the Los Angeles Rams to take over play-calling duties in Atlanta this offseason.

As The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrigue and Ted Nguyen noted, McVay's scheme used presnap motion among the highest percentage of any offense this season. Presnap motion is an identifier for the quarterback to provide a better understanding of the defense's approach. With McCarthy's ability to discern information, that would provide a significant advantage.

The variations found in the scheme despite similar looks are meant to confuse defenses and simplify the offense, particularly the run game. That ultimately feeds into the play-action passing attack.

"[McCarthy is] at his best when he's throwing routes coming into his vision across the middle, throws that he can lead into space," Klassen wrote in his scouting report for McCarthy. "Slants, glance routes, digs and intermediate crossers make up a majority of McCarthy's best throws on film. He also has the toughness and patience required to hang in the pocket on those play-action throws."

When running back Bijan Robinson, wide receiver Drake London, tight end Kyle Pitts and a good offensive line are thrown into the mix, McCarthy might be the perfect pilot for that offense.

Will Levis seems content with his spot on the Tennessee Titans' roster.

"I know I am part of the plan, and for [owner Amy Adams Strunk] to think of me and include me in it is really special and makes me want to work even harder," Levis told reporters on Thursday.

He shouldn't be.

Outside of an sparkling debut where the second-round draft pick threw four touchdowns against the Atlanta Falcons, Levis didn't put enough on tape to ensure he's the guy this fall, particularly after a coaching staff change.

Granted, general manager Ran Carthon remains in place. Carthon traded up to acquire Levis at the start of last year's second round. But it's hard to imagine the Kentucky product pulling the trigger in Brian Callahan's offense with anywhere near the same effectiveness as Joe Burrow did in Cincinnati.

The comparison between a No. 1 overall pick and a prospect who slid into Day 2 isn't fair, but that's the level of competition Tennessee faces every year in the AFC. The Titans don't know if they have an answer at the game's most important position. They can't simply hope it works out for the better.

Instead, they should bring in competition to make sure they start trending in the right direction.

Levis struggles to process quickly, get the ball out of his hand and consistently find the right targets. He was better suited to the previous offense, where he could lean on the run game and thrive with second- and third-level throws off the play-action passing game.

Washington's Michael Penix Jr. is the opposite. He has the experience in a spread and shotgun-heavy offense, with an emphasis on his live left arm.

Penix does have his faults. He struggles from a muddied pocket. His touch is also sporadic thanks to inconsistent mechanics. Those are reasons why the Titans can either invest a late first- or even second-round pick in Penix and let him compete for the starting job.

The Denver Broncos seemingly ended their Russell Wilson era when they benched him toward the end of the 2023 regular season. They must now navigate their next steps carefully.

First, the Broncos must decide how to move beyond Wilson. Regardless of whether they release or trade him, they'll be left with at least a $35.4 million dead cap hit this year. That's why they should pursue a relatively cheap investment in a rookie quarterback who can immediately play.

No quarterback started more games at the collegiate level than Oregon's Bo Nix. He handled the pressures of being the guy at two different stops, first as a legacy with the Auburn Tigers then a Heisman Trophy finalist for the the Ducks. His ability to adjust to different situations and five different play-callers in five years are a major selling points.

"His knowledge has accumulated over years and you can see it," Oregon center prospect Jackson Powers-Johnson told the Denver Post's Parker Gabriel. "He can teach the offensive line. He can teach the receivers. He can teach anybody. He's his own little offensive coordinator as it is."

Nix had a poor showing at this year's Senior Bowl, and questions still linger about how simplified the Oregon offense was at times. However, Nix showed the natural accuracy as the FBS's newly crowned all-time leader in completion percentage (77.4) for a single season and enough arm talent to potentially thrive in a Sean Payton offense.

Despite Wilson's experience, he's never had the quick trigger to consistently operate the type of offense that Payton prefers. Drew Brees will always be the archetype, even though that's an unattainable goal. Still, Nix showed at Oregon that he can operate a simplified scheme with quick reads at peak efficiency. Meanwhile, he can provide some of the athleticism and escapability that Wilson does.

The Broncos aren't likely to select Nix at No. 12. They should instead maneuver their way into making him a better-value selection while still getting their next starting option.