NFL Draft enthusiasts and others were treated to a platter of festivities this past weekend in Detroit. The Motor City hosted the 2024 NFL Draft, which, by all accounts, was a smash success.
Of the biggest storylines this weekend, six quarterbacks were taken by teams through the first 12 picks. That set a record, obviously, and drew headlines everywhere. For some, it became a guessing game on who would be picked next. Of course, that guessing game also played its way out in the betting world.
After the Chicago Bears unsurprisingly selected USC’s Caleb Williams, the Washington Commanders emerged front and center. Odds increased in favor of North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye. But according to ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter, the Commanders weren’t even considering Maye.
Schefter revealed on Monday’s episode of The Pat McAfee Show that the Commanders did have two quarterbacks on their board. But neither was Maye, Schefter says, as the NFL insider indicated they were looking to the further south and the north.
"The (betting) odds on Drake Maye got up. And the truth is, the Commanders, the two quarterbacks they had in consideration at 2 were Jayden Daniels and J.J. McCarthy. Drake Maye wasn't going 2. He just wasn't going 2." – Adam Schefter pic.twitter.com/FTPEtCLaEA
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 29, 2024
“You had me on from Ann Arbor two Fridays ago and the odds on Drake Maye got up, and the truth is the Commanders. The two quarterbacks they had in consideration at 2 were Jayden Daniels and J.J. McCarthy. So, Drake Maye wasn’t going 2. He just wasn’t going 2. He was going 3,” Schefter said.
Schefter explained before that there was a random commotion about McCarthy’s odds of being drafted by Jim Harbaugh, his former coach and now the Los Angeles Chargers head coach. He explained there was a “thought” that the Chargers could draft McCarthy and then deal with quarterback Justin Herbert. However, as Schefter explained, salary cap concerns intervened and prevented any deal from occurring. “They never even considered it,” Schefter said of the Chargers.
Despite odds shifts, these teams were pretty set in other ways. So, circling back, sometimes, conventional wisdom beats a chaotic betting market.
