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This was far from a guarantee because of Horn’s injury history, but he is still only 24 years old and the cellar-dwelling Panthers can’t afford to be throwing in the towel on young talent. It is looking increasingly less likely Horn ever lives up to his No. 8 overall pedigree, but he continues to make a visible impact and earn strong Pro Football Focus coverage marks when on the field.

The smoke that the 49ers are preparing to deal one of Samuel or Brandon Aiyuk is thickening instead of dissipating, and the Bills have a key piece of trade ammunition after modestly trading down on Thursday and acquiring the No. 33 overall pick. The Pats select at No. 34. At this point, it is beginning to appear likely that Samuel has a new home in the next couple of hours, but the all-in 49ers could maintain trade discipline and hold onto both wideouts with an eye toward a “last dance"-style run with this skill group in 2024.

Ghelken noted that Dallas drafting a running back would not change the team’s interest in bringing back Zeke. The former and soon-to-be Cowboy has already visited Dallas this offseason. The Cowboys running back room is currently headlined by Rico Dowdle and Deuce Vaughn. Though all signs point to them drafting Texas running back Jonathon Brooks, Zeke may be viewed as a better option to back Brooks up based on his experience and pass-blocking abilities. Brooks would still be the top rookie back in dynasty circles if Dallas drafts him, though Zeke could vulture a few touchdowns at the goal line.

As of right now, the Cowboys’ top running backs are Rico Dowdle and Deuce Vaughn. Dallas will next take the podium at pick No. 56. Brooks is the favorite to be the first running back drafted and most analysts see him as a second-round talent. There isn’t much dot-connecting to do here because Jones is doing most of it for us. All signs point to the Cowboys drafting Brooks if he makes it to them. Brooks was an elite runner in his lone season as a starter at Texas but is coming off a torn ACL. Though it was late in the season, all reports indicate he will be ready by Week 1, if not earlier.

Both Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk have been the subject of trade discussions throughout the offseason. With the first round over, Aiyuk now seems less likely to be on the move, though Andeson didn’t say if the discussions were ongoing. With first-round rookie Ricky Pearsall now on the roster, the 49ers have some flexibility to move Samuel. The Patriots, on the other hand, are desperate at wide receiver. They are currently slated to pair rookie quarterback Drake Maye with Demario Douglas and Kendrick Bourne.

The Bills played the long game in the first round of the draft, trading down once from 28 to 32 and then again from 32 to 33. A receiver was drafted with the pick they gave up both times. The Bills, in need of a wideout themselves, reportedly have multiple players they “really like” at No. 33. If that’s the case, they could move down once again and still have a shot at landing one of their guys.

The 49ers were allegedly on the phone with a few teams before their first-round pick but were unable to complete a deal. Instead, the team took Florida wide receiver Ricky Pearsall with the 31st overall pick and appear to still be working the phones to find a taker for one of their veteran wide receivers. According to Silver, it seems more likely they will now be flipping Deebo than Aiyuk. Of course, this is all speculation at this point, and we have almost 20 hours to go until the draft kicks up for Day Two and we get some answers.

After entering the day without a first-round pick, the Panthers traded the No. 33 pick and No. 141 pick to the Bills in exchange for picks 32 and 200. With that move up, they selected Legette (6’1/221), who has ideal size for an outside receiver, which is where he took 73.6 percent of his snaps from during his five seasons at South Carolina. The former four-star recruit didn’t see much playing time early in his career, totaling just 423 years through his first four seasons. In 2023, Legette broke out for 71-1,255-7 while averaging an impressive 17.7 YPR and 3.15 YPRR – ranking in the top 10 amongst Power Five WRs (min. 60 targets) in both categories. Legette blazed a 4.39 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine and had the sixth-best vertical jump at 40 inches. He’s a late-career breakout who also struggled against press coverage in limited action, but some polishing at the professional level could be all that’s standing between Legette turning into a legitimate threat on the outside. The Panthers will hope Legette is more than just a one-year wonder and can provide help to second-year quarterback Bryce Young.

Pearsall (6’1/189) began his career at Arizona State but didn’t see the field much until his third and final season as a Sun Devil. He went for 580 yards and four scores that year. He then transferred to Florida ahead of the 2022 season. Pearsall’s target share dipped in his first season in Gainesville, but he more than made up for that with absurd gains in his efficiency numbers. He averaged 2.41 yards per route run in 2022 and held steady at 2.23 in the following season. Pearsall peaked at 65 catches for 963 yards in his second and final season at Florida. A sudden player off the line of scrimmage, Pearsall does most of his damage before the catch point. He doesn’t bring much to the table after the catch but gets open quickly with crisp routes and neat footwork. Pearsall will be a plug-and-play slot receiver for San Francisco as a rookie. His addition will also fuel the flames of a potential Brandon Aiyuk or Deebo Samuel trade. Both players have reportedly come up in talks, though the fact that neither was moved on the first night of the draft suggests they will both be on the roster for the 2024 season.

Wiggins (6’013/173) was a highly sought after recruit who enrolled early and earned 128 reps as a freshman while showing a glimpse of things to come by holding opponents to just one reception on seven targets. Sophomore year he assumed a starting role and proceeded to lead Clemson with 14 PBU to go with a 98-yard pick-six and 79th percentile PFF cover grade. Wiggins was ready to assume CB1 shutdown corner this year, and did so in impressive fashion. His 44% completion rate with a 44.4 NFL passer rating in 2023 was a noticeable improvement over his 51% comp rate and 74.8 NFLPR from his 2022 campaign. He also slashed his yards per catch allowed from 12.4-to-9.8 while drawing just one coverage penalty and allowing one reception of 20+ yards all season. Wiggins dazzled at the Combine by running a sensational 4.28s 40-yard dash that ranked in the 99.8th percentile and was the second-fastest 40-time from the 2024 class. He posted a 36” vertical (67th%) and 10’07” broad jump (88th%), but didn’t perform any agility drills or bench for a somewhat incomplete 9.44 relative athletic score. Wiggins will join a Baltimore secondary graded by PFF as last year’s second best coverage unit.