2024 NFL Draft Betting picks: 3 Best bets for the first round

The NFL Draft begins Thursday night and there’s never been a better time to get in on the action from a betting perspective. With countless markets for bettors to explore, the NFL Draft is a hotbed for spicy picks and is always a fun event to test your ball-knowledge. Which position will your team draft? How many quarterbacks will be selected in round 1? You can bet on these markets and so many more this weekend, so to make things easier, we’ve listed our 5 best betting picks ahead of the Draft.

Over/Under 4.5 quarterbacks drafted in round 1

Let’s be logical about this. Caleb Williams is going first overall and we likely see Jayden Daniels second off the board. The remaining quarterbacks are Drake Maye, J.J McCarthy, Bo Nix, and Michael Penix Jr.

There is a chance that all go off the board in round 1, with teams like the Vikings and Giants needing quarterback help fairly urgently. Because of that desperation, it feels like if one of Penix/Nix go in the first round, then the other would shortly follow to prevent another team jumping up and snatching him away.

Betting over 4.5 is risky business, but I feel like if a team does take a flyer on one of the two remaining QBs not named Williams, Maye, or McCarthy, then the fifth will be drafted very promptly. Buy in to the notion of teams forever over leveraging on quarterbacks.

Betting pick: Over 4.5 +280

First running back selected: Trey Benson +225

As much as Jonathon Brooks is favored to be the first RB off the board, Trey Benson, in my opinion at least, is the safer bet.

NFL teams tend to grow weary when it comes to injury setbacks, and Brooks is coming off of a torn ACL, which can often mean bad news for running backs. Benson only really popped into the conversation this past year, but in a weak running back class, I feel like a team is going to take the safer bet all day long, and that gives us some value on the FSU running back.

First cornerback selected: Terrion Arnold +135

Quinyon Mitchell is currently favored to be the first corner off the board, but Terrion Arnold is arguably the better prospect despite being younger and having less than half of the coverage snaps under his belt that Mitchell does.

With some Alabama pedigree too, Arnold is a freak athlete who comes from a higher-profile school and has plenty of ‘meat on the bone’ when it comes to development.

It all comes down to what the team picking the first CB values. If they want an instant starter, Mitchell is the guy. But if a team like the Eagles want to develop their CB1 of the future, then Arnold going first in a trade-up makes way more sense.