Daniels, Nabers projected as Top 10 NFL Draft picks

LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels has been red-hot during the 2023 season, and he joins Oregon quarterback Bo Nix as the frontrunners for the Heisman Trophy.

Daniels has put together a record-setting season in 2023 as he leads the nation in total offense (412.2), touchdown passes (40), touchdowns responsible for (50) and rushing yards by a quarterback (1,134).

At the same time, LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers leads the country in receiving yards (1,546) and is a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, given annually to college football’s best wide receiver.

On Wednesday, The Athletic’s Dane Brugler released his first 2024 NFL Mock Draft – and both Daniels and Nabers soared up the board in a major way.

Could LSU’s pair of stars be on the verge of becoming Top 10 picks?

Brugler thinks the answer is yes.

LSU QB Jayden Daniels projected as QB3

With the release of Dane Brugler’s first mock draft, the respected NFL Draft analyst from The Athletic led off with the following note.

“Plenty will change between now and April, but this is still an interesting exercise at this point in the draft calendar,” Brugler wrote. “The picks don’t reflect my personal rankings or what I would do, but rather this projection strictly goes by what I think teams would do if the draft was tomorrow.

“This mock reflects the updated draft order and does not include any trades. (I also included the first picks on Day 2 for teams that currently don’t have a first-round selection.)”

When it comes to Daniels, Brugler has the Heisman hopeful as the third quarterback taken after USC’s Caleb Williams (No. 1 to Chicago Bears) and UNC quarterback Drake Maye (No. 3 to New England Patriots).

With the No. 7 pick in the NFL Draft, Brugler is projecting the Tampa Bay Bucs to draft Daniels.

“Offensively and defensively, the Buccaneers are a middle-of-the-road team, and they’ll have several interesting roster decisions to make this offseason,” Brugler said. “For one, Tampa Bay will be in the mix to select this draft’s QB3, and Daniels could be it. He has a dynamic skill set to create explosive plays with his arm and legs.

“At the beginning of the season, I wouldn’t have guessed that Daniels would appear in the top 10 of my first mock draft. But in studying his tape and seeing his continual improvements, you start to run out of reasons why he doesn’t belong. I think several teams slotted in the top 10 will think the same way.”

The five-time SEC Offensive Player of the Week this year, Daniels is one of only two players in SEC history to pass for 3,500 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in a season, joining Johnny Manziel who did it in 2012 at Texas A&M.

Daniels is also one of only five players in SEC history to account for 50 touchdowns in a season, joining Heisman Trophy winners Joe Burrow (63), Tim Tebow (55), Cam Newton (51) and Bryce Young (50).

Nabers projected to be drafted one spot ahead of Daniels

LSU might have more than one Top 10 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

In Brugler’s Mock 1.0, he’s slotted Nabers to be the second wide receiver off the board after Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr. (No. 2 to the Arizona Cardinals).

With the No. 6 pick, Brugler projects the New York Giants to grab Nabers.

“Over the past month, I think Nabers separated himself for several teams as WR2 in this draft,” Brugler siad. “The only FBS pass catcher with 1,500-plus receiving yards in 2023, he also leads the country with 34 receptions of 20-plus yards. The only other college receiver with that many explosive catches over the last five years? Another LSU receiver, Ja’Marr Chase, who had 34 in 2019.

“The Giants obviously still have high hopes for Jalin Hyatt and Wan’Dale Robinson, but adding Nabers gives the offense a legitimate No. 1 threat.”

Nabers has had a record-setting year, leading the nation in receiving yards with 1,546 and ranked No. 2 nationally in receiving touchdowns with 14. He’s had nine games with at least 100-yards receiving, which includes a career-best 239 yards and two touchdowns on 13 catches in a win over Mississippi State.

Nabers has been the nation’s top receiver when it comes to big plays as he leads the country in plays of 20-plus yards (34) and 30-plus yards (34). He also has seven plays of 40-plus yards. 

Nabers capped the regular-season with five consecutive 100-yard games and he became LSU’s all-time leader for receptions against Texas A&M when he moved past Wendell Davis’ previous mark of 183.

Nabers has 186 receptions for 2,980 yards and 21 touchdowns in his three seasons with the Tigers.

This year, Nabers joined Reed as the only players in LSU history with multiple 1,000-yard seasons. Reed had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2000 and 2001, while Nabers had 1,017 yards last year as a sophomore.

Nabers concluded the regular-season just 20 yards shy of becoming only the second 3,000-yard career receiver in LSU history and he’s only 22 yards short of breaking Reed’s all-time LSU mark of 3,001 receiving yards.