Category: 2023 NFL draft

Texans select Alabama QB Bryce Young in way too early 2023 NFL mock draft

The Houston Texans pick Bryce Young No. 2 overall in the Touchdown Wire’s way too early 2023 NFL draft mock.

The Houston Texans give up on Davis Mills and get a first-round talent to lead the offense starting in 2023.

According to Doug Farrar from the Touchdown Wire, who released his admittedly way too early 2023 NFL mock draft, the Texans use the No. 2 overall pick to select Alabama quarterback Bryce Young.

It would make sense for the Texans to go with Young as general manager Nick Caserio took two Crimson Tide players in the 2022 NFL draft. Why not take another Alabama player to be the man under center?

Houston also addresses the edge defense with Clemson defensive end Myles Murphy.

The interesting bit about how Farrar arranges Houston’s selections in the first round is he has the Texans picking Young No. 2 overall, and Murphy — via the Cleveland Browns — with the No. 18 overall pick. That presumes that the Texans are, again, one of the worst teams in the NFL and that the Browns flirt with playoff qualification.

What if the scenario is flipped? What if the Texans’ proprietary pick is somewhere in the late teens and the Browns are one of the worst teams in the NFL. In such a case, Mills would have had to have had a good season and kept the talk of drafting a first-round quarterback away for at least one more season.

The No. 1 overall pick in Farrar’s draft was Alabama defensive end Will Anderson, who went to the Atlanta Falcons. Given that defensive end Jonathan Greenard will enter the final year of his rookie contract in 2023, regardless of what Houston does at quarterback, edge defender may be a target.

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Cardinals projected to select CB in super early 2023 mock draft

It is way too early for a 2023 mock draft, but here we are looking at the Cardinals’ projected pick in a year.

The Arizona Cardinals and the rest of the NFL completed the 2022 NFL draft last weekend. Some are already looking ahead to the 2023 draft.

In fact, ESPN’s Todd McShay already released a 2023 mock draft. It, of course, is way too early, but it gives us a peek as to who the top prospects of 2023 are expected to be.

The draft order was determined by betting odds and the Cardinals are slotted to have the 20th overall pick.

With the 20th pick, McShay has them taking Utah cornerback Clark Phillips III.

Phillips is already a two-year starter, and he broke up 12 passes last season. Arizona’s cornerback room has holes, and that’s before factoring in that Byron Murphy Jr. is entering the final year of his contract.

A cornerback is never a bad pick in the first round. It is a premium position. We don’t know if the position has holes. It could be quite solid with Murphy, Marco Wilson and Jeff Gladney. Murphy will likely see a contract extension sometime this year.

Of course, what this does is give a name to watch in the Pac 12 this coming college football season.

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Doug Farrar’s 2023 “Are you kidding me?” way-too-early NFL mock draft

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar has put together a 2023 NFL mock draft — just after the 2022 draft. Don’t worry, there’s a point to this exercise!

There are those who will tell you that doing mock drafts for 2023 right after the 2022 draft comes down is the ultimate example of wool-gathering/navel-gazing/clickbaiting, and just generally a useless exercise. After all, there’s so much we don’t yet know about how the boards will stack based on the 2022 NCAA season. Had the quarterbacks in the 2022 draft been available on their 2020 tape alone, Sam Howell (fifth round to the Washington Commanders) probably would have gone first, and Kenny Pickett (20th overall to the Steelers) — who had never thrown more than 13 touchdown passes in a season before 2021 — might not have been drafted at all. We also don’t know who will be this year’s Pickett, Zach Wilson, or Joe Burrow — the guy who comes out of nowhere to become a legitimate first-round talent.

You just never know how things are going to pop.

That said, working ahead to the next draft is an interesting and instructive if you take it from the point of view of what NFL teams did in 2022, and where things might need to be bolstered next year. The Giants and Eagles, for example, have created excuse-proof situations for Daniel Jones and Jalen Hurts, and we aren’t sure how that’s going to go.

(Spoiler: In this 2023 mock, both teams select quarterbacks in the first round. So, there you go).

There are other teams who are in the middle of full-on rebuilds, and looking ahead to 2023 brings about ideas of how those teams can fill in the remaining blanks.

So, with all that out of the way, here’s my 2023 mock draft. Positions are based on Pro Football Focus’ projections for the 2022 NFL season, and I used their awesome Mock Draft Simulator to keep everything straight.

2023 NFL draft film room: Alabama QB Bryce Young

See for yourself what makes Alabama’s Bryce Young one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2023 NFL draft

It’s never too early to look ahead to the next group of top prospects, so if you’re looking to get a head start on the 2023 NFL draft class, we’ve got you covered.

What makes Alabama’s Bryce Young one of next year’s top quarterback prospects?

Watch the tape and see for yourself:

Giants draft a Daniel Jones replacement in Todd McShay’s 2023 mock

In the first 2023 NFL mock draft from ESPN’s Todd McShay, the New York Giants, picking in the top 10, select Daniel Jones’ replacement.

The 2022 NFL draft just ended but already we’re seeing an influx of 2023 mock drafts.

Our friends over at Draft Wire released their never-too-soon 2023 mock this week and in it, the New York Giants selected Kentucky quarterback Will Levis. Coincidentally, that’s exactly who ESPN’s Todd McShay has Big Blue taking in his 2023 mock that was released on Thursday.

8. New York Giants

Will Levis, QB, Kentucky

The Giants didn’t pick up Daniel Jones’ fifth-year option, which leaves the QB seat up for grabs next season. Levis needs to find more consistency, but he has a live arm and a big 6-foot-3, 232-pound frame. He has thrived in the quick game at Kentucky, with a lot of run-pass options and screen-type stuff, but there are some Josh Allen-like traits here for new Giants coach Brian Daboll. Oh, and Levis connected with receiver Wan’Dale Robinson — whom the Giants drafted in Round 2 this year — 104 times last season.

The Giants are, of course, publicly committed to Daniel Jones at the moment, but that will change if he doesn’t perform well in 2022. And until he does, all early mocks will likely have the Giants targeting a quarterback.

That’s the easy assumption. But what if DJ does play well? Who do the Giants then target in that scenario? Those are the kind of mock drafts fans would love to see this early on because recycling quarterbacks in the top 10 is boring.

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Giants projected to receive two compensatory picks in 2023 NFL draft

The New York Giants are projected to receive two compensatory picks in the 2023 NFL draft, including a fifth-rounder.

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The New York Giants made 11 selections in the 2022 NFL draft but none of those were compensatory picks earned by the team. They were blanked out in that category this year, but next year promises to be different.

With the compensatory-pick formula no longer factoring into free agent signings, NFL Network draft analyst Lance Zierlein decided to project which picks will be handed out in 2023. And for the Giants, they are expected to receive two.

Projected compensatory picks: One in Round 5; one in Round 7.

Key free-agent losses: Evan Engram (Jaguars), Austin Johnson (Chargers), Lorenzo Carter (Falcons).

Key free-agent additions: Mark Glowinski, Tyrod Taylor.

Comp-pick analysis: Glowinski and Taylor’s contracts cross-cancel the deals signed by Johnson and Carter. Engram’s contract sits alone with a fifth-round compensation tied to it, but Keion Crossen’s departure is worth noting. The Giants traded a sixth-rounder to the Texans for Crossen last August, and his signing with the Dolphins should result in a seventh-round compensatory pick in 2023 — meaning, basically, the Giants rented the core special-teamer in exchange for several draft slots between the sixth and seventh rounds.

Will Hernandez, who signed with the Arizona Cardinals, did not factor in.

An additional fifth-round pick (and seventh-round pick) is something general manager Joe Schoen will take in a heartbeat. Of course, the former GM, Dave Gettleman, may have stood to gain more by trading Evan Engram but that’s obviously not what happened.

It’s important to note that the league does not disclose everything that goes into the compensatory pick formula, so these two picks are hardly set in stone. The actual picks will not be announced until next year.

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2023 NFL draft watch list: Quarterback

Take an early look at some of the top quarterback prospects eligible for the 2023 NFL draft

Now that the 2022 NFL draft is officially in the books, it’s time to turn the page and look ahead to next year’s class of top prospects.

The 2023 NFL draft already looks loaded with top talent on both sides of the ball, so let’s get you acquainted with some of the names you need to know at every position heading into the 2022 college football season.

Here are the top quarterback prospects to watch for next year’s draft:

2023 NFL draft film room: Ohio State QB C.J. Stroud

See for yourself what makes Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2023 NFL draft

It’s never too early to look ahead to the next group of top prospects, so if you’re looking to get a head start on the 2023 NFL draft class, we’ve got you covered.

What makes Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud one of next year’s top quarterback prospects?

Watch the tape and see for yourself:

Giants land a new QB in Draft Wire’s never-too-early 2023 mock

In Draft Wire’s never-too-early 2023 mock, the New York Giants take a quarterback with their top-10 pick.

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Is it too early to talk about the 2023 NFL draft? No, not when you’re a rebuilding team such as the New York Giants.

In Draft Wire’s latest 2023 mock from analyst Luke Easterling, the Giants will be drafting in the top 10 again next year and this time they will be taking a quarterback.

6. New York Giants | Kentucky QB Will Levis

The Giants didn’t pick up Daniel Jones’ fifth-year option, so if they end up with a top-10 pick next year, he’s clearly not the answer. Levis has the talent to rise up the draft board with a strong 2023 campaign.

Jones is in a make-or-break situation this season and it looks like Easterling doesn’t believe Jones will make the necessary progress for the Giants to retain him.

Levis, a solid 6-foot-3 and 232 pounds, transferred from Penn State to Kentucky in 2020 and started all 13 games last year for the Wildcats, completing 233 of 353 passes for 2,827 yards with 24 touchdown passes. He was also a threat on the ground, running for 376 yards and nine touchdowns on 107 attempts.

The Giants seem to be on a treadmill to nowhere but could be on the verge of ending that run. They need to either embrace Jones or get past him. If they do move on, Levis could be their guy.

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Look into the future with our way-too-early 2023 Saints mock draft

Who cares if we just finished the 2022 draft just days ago? Sickos, here is your first way-too-early 2023 Saints mock draft, via @DillySanders:

Alexa, play Sicko Mode.

Yes we are just days past the 2022 NFL draft ending, but for sickos like me, that just means it’s time to start paying attention to the class of 2023. Based off of my knowledge to the players to this point of the career, and how the New Orleans Saints like to scout prospects, here are some names to look for come this time next year.

Most of these guys will be high character leaders, multi-sport athletes, with impressive combine drills results ahead of them. The usual guys that you see the Saints target in the draft.

I didn’t assign a pick number to any of these rounds, as we can’t predict that much yet, but they are guys I expect to be available around the vicinity of where the Saints should be drafting. Ideally the later portions of these rounds with the Saints hopefully reaching the playoffs.

We do need to keep in mind, however, that if Sean Payton comes out of retirement and wants to coach again somewhere the Saints will indeed receive draft capital from whatever team he chooses. This will be at least a first round draft pick and potentially more. But that isn’t guaranteed, so we’re just keeping it on the back burner for now.

Here is your first Saints 2023 mock draft: