Six QBs taken in first 12 picks of NFL draft

Caleb Williams swiftly walked on stage, looked out and screamed “Woooo! Yeah!”

Long-suffering Bears fans felt his joy.

Williams is heading to the Windy City, aiming to become the franchise quarterback Chicago has sought for decades.

The 2022 Heisman Trophy winner kicked off an historic NFL draft Thursday night that had five other teams selecting quarterbacks among the top 12 picks, setting a record with five in the top 10 and tying a record for the most in the first round.

Nearly the entire first half of the draft was offensive players.

A defensive player wasn’t selected until UCLA edge rusher Laiatu Latu went at No. 15 to Indianapolis. That’s the latest a first defensive player has ever gone.

The Bears opened with the easy choice, taking Williams at No. 1 after deciding weeks ago to bank on the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner from USC.

The Washington Commanders followed up by taking 2023 Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels from LSU and the New England Patriots took North Carolina’s Drake Maye at No. 3, making it the fourth draft with quarterbacks going with the first three picks.

At No. 8, the Atlanta Falcons made a stunning decision to choose Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. despite signing Kirk Cousins to a massive contract in free agency. The Minnesota Vikings traded up one spot and took J.J. McCarthy, who led Michigan to a national championship, to make it five QBs in the top 10 for the first time.

The Denver Broncos chose Oregon’s Bo Nix with the 12th pick, tying the 1983 draft with six QBs in the first round. Three of those became Hall of Famers — John Elway, Dan Marino and Jim Kelly.

The Arizona Cardinals snapped the early QB trend, choosing Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. with the fourth pick. The Los Angeles Chargers opened the Jim Harbaugh era by taking Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt instead of giving Justin Herbert a No. 1 wide receiver to replace Keenan Allen and Mike Williams.

The New York Giants then snatched up LSU receiver Malik Nabers at No. 6. The Tennessee Titans took Alabama offensive tackle J.C. Latham with the seventh pick and the Bears selected Washington wideout Rome Odunze at No. 9.




(AP Photo Jeff Roberson)