Not everyone is happy with the Joe Burrow/Cam Newton comparison: Email from Nyles Glynn: Dude, Cam Newton is currently without a team! That is fair enough, but that has more to do with Newton’s injury history than his talent. 3. Detroit Lions: Jeff Okudah, CB, Ohio State Detroit takes Ohio State’s Jeff Okudah with the third pick. One of those players whose talent and potential makes him look better than what the numbers might tell you (he has three career interceptions, for one thing). He’s shown a gift at excelling in man-to-man coverage and has the flat-out speed that should make him an effective starter right out of the gate. One of those players who might find himself at the professional level. Chase Young is not just a great player but he’s not a bad singer either. 2. Washington: Chase Young, defensive end, Ohio State Washington, as expected, take Chase Young with the second overall pick. An elite pass rusher, Young is probably the most heralded defensive player in the draft. In his last two seasons Young has 27 sacks, including a record 16.5 in 2019. He was a Heisman finalist, just the ninth defensive player to become one since 1982. How good is Joe Burrow? Well... “There is only one Tiger King and its Joe Burrow.” That’s some nice SEO work there. There is absolutely no way it should have taken that long to announce that. Bengals pick Burrow at No. 1 1. Cincinnati Bengals: Joe Burrow, QB, LSU The LSU quarterback threw for seven touchdowns in the Tigers’ playoff win over Oklahoma. He ended up throwing for 60 touchdowns last year and just six interceptions. Theoretically, some of that success could partially be a product of LSU’s offense but it’s hard to see how a season this incredible could be a mirage The Cincinnati Bengals are on the clock and, you know, I’m going to make a wild guess and say that they will pick Joe Burrow. And here we have Dr. Fauci talking about social distancing. And Roger Goodell pops up and encourages us all to boo him from home, to keep up the tradition of booing the commissioner. Twitter is pointing something out that I completely missed: I don’t recall there ever being a national anthem in any of the previous drafts. Harry Connick Jr. plays piano and sings a quick jazzy run through the Star Spangled Banner. So far, the production values have been about as good as one could possibly expect under the circumstances. Roger Goodell, working from home, starts things off with a salute to all those combating the coronavirus pandemic. And asks us to observe a moment of silence. And we’re officially off! As a sign of this being a very special episode of the NFL Draft, they get Peyton Manning to recite some words on football and hope. It’s not entirely un-cheesy, but it’s well-done. Here’s what our current draft order looks like. It will almost certainly change as teams decide whether they want to make a trade or not. 1. Cincinnati Bengals 2. Washington 3. Detroit Lions 4. New York Giants 5. Miami Dolphins 6. Los Angeles Chargers 7. Carolina Panthers 8. Arizona Cardinals 9. Jacksonville Jaguars 10. Cleveland Browns 11 New York Jets 12. Las Vegas Raiders 13. San Francisco 49ers (from Indianapolis) 14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 15. Denver Broncos 16. Atlanta Falcons 17. Dallas Cowboys 18. Miami Dolphins (from Pittsburgh) 19. Las Vegas Raiders (from Chicago) 20. Jacksonville Jaguars (from Los Angeles Rams) 21. Philadelphia Eagles 22. Minnesota Vikings (from Buffalo) 23. New England Patriots 24. New Orleans Saints 25. Minnesota Vikings 26. Miami Dolphins (from Houston) 27. Seattle Seahawks 28. Baltimore Ravens 29. Tennessee Titans 30. Green Bay Packers 31. San Francisco 49ers 32. Kansas City Chiefs Meanwhile, ESPN’s coverage paused its football talk to give Jennifer Hudson a chance to sing the late, great Bill Withers’s “Lean On Me.” It’s the first of what promises to be many references to our current situation. Those are definitely the top two receivers in this draft class, we’ll see where they end up. Just in case you need any more evidence that we’re all going through the same things: This is not going to be one of the more fashionable drafts in sports history. While you’re waiting here, you might want to read Oliver Connolly’s take on Isaiah Simmons, who almost certainly be a Top 10 pick today, and the future of NFL defenses. Despite that, it’s very possible that this might be the most-watched NFL Draft ever since there literally hasn’t been any live sports for over a month. Last weekend, sports fans found themselves counting down the hours until ESPN aired the first two episodes of its Michael Jordan documentary series. It’s getting really rough and it will be nice to have something to watch where the outcomes aren’t predetermined. Preamble Just a note to start things off: this is going to be a strange one. Thanks to the worldwide pandemic we’re all dealing with, this year’s NFL Draft is being held remotely. What has traditionally been a slick, made-for-television spectacle will now be something of a chaotic jumble. The players themselves will be responsible for providing their own camerawork which, as we learned from ESPN’s Horse Tournament, could give this whole affair a DIY feel. Considering the restrictions imposed upon them by the COVID-19 outbreak, the NFL should consider itself relieved that they have found a way to hold the draft at all. To put things mildly, we’re in unchartered waters right now. If you’d like to join the conversation today, feel free to send us an email (to hunter.felt.freelance@theguardian.com) or Twitter (@HunterFelt), and we’ll include them in this liveblog as we go on. The 2020 NFL Draft is set to start around 8pm EST, but we’ll be back before then. Hunter will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s a look at Graham Searles’ projected picks for tonight’s first round. 1) Cincinnati Bengals Pick: Joe Burrow, quarterback, LSU. The Bengals have to take Burrow. He has the potential to lead them for the next 15 years and to finally get Cincinnati that playoff win Andy Dalton failed to provide. Burrow excelled in his final year at LSU leading the Tigers to an undefeated college championship. Burrow completed 76.3% of his passes for 5,671 yards, 60 touchdowns and six interceptions. Free agency showed a new era may be dawning in Cincinnati and Burrow is the man to make it concrete. 2) Washington Pick: Chase Young, edge rusher, Ohio State. Washington have a no-brainer of their own in Young. Ron Rivera can build a strong defensive identity with a player following in the footsteps of premium Ohio State edge defenders, Joey and Nick Bosa. A 6ft 5in wrecking-ball whose tremendous speed off the line allowed him to rack up 16.5 sacks, 21.5 tackles for a loss and seven forced fumbles across 12 games in 2019. Tua Tagovailoa could be an upgrade on Dwayne Haskins but the inability to assess the quarterback’s fitness up close makes Young the sensible pick. 3) Detroit Lions Pick: Jeffrey Okudah, cornerback, Ohio State. The Lions need a replacement for Darius Slay after trading him to Philadelphia. Okudah can slip straight into Slay’s role as Detroit’s leader in the backfield and make an impact as the best shutdown corner entering the league. 4) New York Giants Pick: Jedrick Wills, offensive tackle, Alabama. Offensive line is a must-upgrade for the Giants. Wills, Mekhi Becton and Tristan Wirfs all would do exactly that for head coach, Joe Judge, but Wills makes sense as Judge was once Nick Saban’s assistant in Alabama. Familiarity tips the scales in Wills’s favour without the ability to meet with prospects this year owing to lockdown. 5) Miami Dolphins Pick: Justin Herbert, quarterback, Oregon. The Dolphins can pick from the best of the rest with Burrow off the board. Herbert gets the nod over Tagovailoa due to the latter’s fitness problems. His 6ft 6in frame and huge arm pass the eye test. Three rushing touchdowns against Wisconsin in Oregon’s Rose Bowl victory showed he can shift when needed too.