Saturday, February 27, 2021

2023 NFL Mock Draft

We are more than two years away for the 2023 NFL Draft, which will be held in Kansas City, MO.

While we have posted a 2021 NFL Mock Draft and 2022 NFL Mock Draft, we've decided to take a way-too-early look at how the top of the 2023 NFL Draft could play out.

For our 2021 (and 2022) mock draft(s), we know which prospects have declared early (or decided to return for another season). For the pool of players for our early top-10 mock draft for 2023, we've limited our pool of prospects to only players that will become draft-eligible beginning in 2023.

The draft order used is based on the inverse order of NFL wins over the past decade.

1. Jacksonville Jaguars: Will Anderson, EDGE, Alabama

As noted in our 2021 NFL mock draft, the Jaguars own the rights to their first-ever No. 1 overall pick, which they will undoubtedly use on Clemson's Trevor Lawrence. More than likely, the Jags won't be picking first again in 2023 given their treasure trove of draft picks and ability to spend in free agency.

Nonetheless, they have the first pick based on our criteria for determining the draft order and get a disruptive edge rusher in Anderson. Among SEC defenders, only Georgia's Azeez Ojulari and former teammate Christian Barmore had more sacks in 2020 than Anderson had as a true freshman. Only the Cincinnati Bengals (17) had fewer sacks than the Jaguars (18) in 2020.

2. Cleveland Browns: Bryan Bresee, IDL, Clemson

The No. 1 recruit in the 247Sports Composite (2020), Bresee enjoyed immediate success for the Tigers. The ACC Defensive Freshman of the Year and First-Team All-ACC performer finished his true freshman season with 6.5 tackles for loss including four sacks and 33 tackles. With a rare combination of first-step explosiveness for a man his size, Bresee has the versatility to line up at various alignments along the defensive line.

3. New York Jets: Myles Murphy, EDGE, Clemson

Murphy stepped onto the Clemson campus with NFL-ready size and athleticism. As a true freshman, Murphy led the Tigers in tackles for loss (12.5) and forced fumbles (three), had four sacks and was as good as it gets against the run.

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: D.J. Uiagalelei, QB, Clemson

Coming off a Super Bowl victory, Tom Brady is under contract for one more season. While the 43-year-old quarterback has defied the odds up to this point, we all know that Father Time is undefeated. With Trevor Lawrence off to the NFL, it will be time for Uiagalelei to take the reigns. With Lawrence (COVID-19) sidelined for a couple of games during the 2020 season, the true freshman quarterback threw for 342 and 439 yards against Boston College and Notre Dame, respectively.

Uiagalelei (6-4, 250) has tremendous size and the strongest arm in college football with excellent mobility for a quarterback his size.

5. Las Vegas Raiders: Eli Ricks, CB, LSU

LSU has the top cornerback duo in college football with Derek Stingley Jr. and Ricks. In fact, it was Ricks -- not Stingley -- that was a third-team AP All-American in 2020. In his true freshman season, Ricks (6-2, 196) led the Tigers with four interceptions, two of which he returned for scores.

6. Washington Football Team: Marvin Mims, WR, Oklahoma

In our 2022 NFL Mock Draft, Washington traded up a couple of spots to draft Oklahoma quarterback Spencer Rattler. In this 2023 top-10 mock, they reunite Rattler with his top pass-catcher.

7. New York Giants: Kayshon Boutte, WR, LSU

Daniel Jones will be a free agent in 2023 and the team could be looking for a new quarterback if he doesn't continue to develop. Regardless of who's under center, however, the team needs an upgrade to their receiving corps.

With Terrace Marshall shutting it down to prepare for the 2021 NFL Draft, Boutte stepped into the team's No. 1 receiver role and dominated in his final three games. Not only did the five-star recruit eclipse the 100-yard mark in those three games, he closed the season with an SEC record-setting performance with 308 receiving yards against Mississippi.

8. Detroit Lions: Noah Sewell, LB, Oregon

The younger brother of Penei Sewell, Noah was the Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year in his debut season. A prospect often connected to the Lions in 2021 mock drafts is Penn State's Micah Parsons. Linebacker is currently one of Detroit's biggest team needs and Sewell has the potential to become a difference-making linebacker at the next level.

9. Chicago Bears: Bryce Young, QB, Alabama

Regardless of whether quarterback will still be a position of need for the Bears in 2023, it's clear that they need better quarterback play. While Mac Jones beat out the talented freshman to start for the national champions this past season, the former five-star recruit is, as ESPN's Adam Rittenberg writes in his college football QB power rankings, "a natural playmaker with a big arm and excellent instincts" despite his lack of size (6-0, 194).

10. Miami Dolphins: Julian Fleming, WR, Ohio State

The top-ranked recruit in the ESPN 300, Fleming had a quiet freshman season (7/74/0). With Chris Olave (50/729/7) returning to join Garrett Wilson (43/723/6), the Buckeyes have the first two receivers off the board in my early 2022 NFL Mock Draft. With a talented duo in front of him and a roster full of elite receiver recruits, it may make it more difficult for Fleming to truly break out in 2021. By the time the 2023 draft rolls around, however, the physically-gifted wideout could earn his way into the top 10.

We will post future updates to this mock here: 2023 NFL Mock Draft

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