With the conclusion of the 2022 regular season, the draft order for the 2023 NFL Draft began to take shape with at least the first 10 picks of the first round finalized. There was plenty of drama in the final week as the battle for the top pick came down to the Chicago Bears and Houston Texans.
Ultimately it went to the Bears as they would lose to the Minnesota Vikings while the Houston Texans would have a come-from-behind win over the Indianapolis Colts. While there will certainly be plenty of changes between now and the end of April, it is worth looking at what the first 10 picks could look like (assuming there are no trades among these picks) in the latest mock draft for the 2023 NFL Draft.
Mock draft for first 10 picks of first round of the 2023 NFL Draft
The Chicago Bears have the first overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft and there is almost certainly going to be a trade, either of that pick or quarterback Justin Fields. However, general manager Ryan Poles recently seemed to indicate that it would be this pick.
Depending on how far down the Bears trade, they should have defensive tackle Jalen Carter at the top of their draft board. If the Bears want to improve their defensive front then the discussion is really between Carter and Alabama’s Will Anderson but I believe Carter is the better fit for the Bears.
He would help solidify the middle of this defense and not only be a force against the run but also create pressure on the quarterback.
While the Houston Texans end up with the second overall pick, they have the best quarterback still on the board in Bryce Young out of Alabama. He was the starter the past two years for the Crimson Tide and had 8,200 passing yards, 86 total touchdowns, and 12 interceptions during that stretch. He also won the Heisman Trophy in 2021.
Seemingly the biggest question for Young is his size as he is only 6’0″ and 194 pounds which raises the question of how he would handle the physicality at the NFL level. A comparable player to Young would be Kyler Murray, who is two inches shorter than Young, but about 10 pounds heavier.
The fact that Murray has struggled to avoid injuries the past two seasons will give some teams pause but the potential for Young is just so great. He is a dual threat quarterback, even though he didn’t run much at Alabama, and will be a challenge for opposing defenses to slow down.
The Houston Texans have struggled through their rebuild over the past two years but the selection of Bryce Young would be a big step in the right direction for this franchise.
The next team in the Top 10 is the Arizona Cardinals who should run to the podium with their ticket to select Will Anderson Jr. out of the University of Alabama. He has been a key part of the Crimson Tide defense the three years he was in college and finished his college career with 34.5 sacks, 58.5 tackles for a loss, and 204 total tackles.
He is without question the top pass rusher in this draft class and the Arizona Cardinals have a major need at this position heading into 2023. Last offseason, the Cardinals lost Chandler Jones in free agency and this offseason will lose J.J. Watt, who retired after the season.
The retirement of Watt, combined with the potential departure of Zach Allen in free agency, makes the defensive line a major concern. However, the addition of someone like Will Anderson Jr. to a defense with Zaven Collins, Isaiah Simmons, and Budda Baker can be the start of the foundation that they can build off on that side of the ball.
Over the past few years, the Indianapolis Colts have tried to go the veteran route to improve the quarterback position with players like Philip Rivers, Carson Wentz, and Matt Ryan. However, entering 2023 they are in a position to address the position with a long-term solution in C.J. Stroud out of Ohio State.
He has been the starter for the Buckeyes the past two seasons and during that stretch had 8,123 passing yards, 85 passing touchdowns, and only 12 interceptions. The other thing that is notable with Stroud, in comparison to Young, is he does have good size for the position at 6’3″ and 215 pounds.
However, unlike Young the former Buckeyes’ quarterback is much more of a pocket passer and doesn’t have the athleticism to make much happen with his legs.
For a team like the Indianapolis Colts, which has the talent to have a top offensive line the lack of mobility shouldn’t be much of a concern and Stroud would be the perfect fit for this offense.
The Seattle Seahawks are preparing for their playoff game this weekend against the San Francisco 49ers but regardless of the outcome, they know they will have the fifth overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. The reason is that this pick is from the Denver Broncos as part of the Russell Wilson trade from last offseason.
This will be the first of two first round picks for the Seattle Seahawks and they have a number of directions they could take. They could package both picks and move up for the chance to select Bryce Young or C.J. Stroud or try to bring back Geno Smith, after his impressive season, and continue to build the roster at other key areas.
One of those key areas is on the defensive line as the Seahawks could add one of the best pass rushers in this year’s class in Myles Murphy out of Clemson. He has been a consistent presence on their defense over the past two seasons and had 18.5 sacks over his three years at college.
By adding a player like Myles Muprhy alongside Darrel Taylor and Uchenna Nwosu would give this defense a good trio of pass rushers for the next few years.
The next pick is another first round pick that was part of a trade for a quarterback as the Detroit Lions got this pick as part of the Matthew Stafford trade from two years ago. Similar to Seahawks, they got surprisingly good play from their quarterback, Jared Goff, and this opens the door for the team to address other potential issues on the roster.
That is why the selection of defensive tackle Bryan Bresee would make a lot of sense for this defense. Last year, the Lions struggled against the run and were near the bottom of the league in terms of rushing yards allowed per game.
Bresee, who was teammates with Myles Murphy at Clemson, not only can help against the run but also pressure the quarterback as he has great quickness for the position. The biggest question for Bresee over the next few months will be the ACL injury he suffered in 2021. He was able to play 10 games last year but teams will want to know he is fully recovered if he is going to be a Top 10 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
The Las Vegas Raiders are going to have some decisions to make over the next few months that could really impact what this team does with the seventh overall pick. The most notable is whether or not they are able to trade Derek Carr, which discussions have reportedly already begun.
One position that probably is going to need to be addressed at some point this offseason is cornerback. Last season, the Raiders were giving up on average 242 passing yards per game and this was due in large part to below-average play from their cornerback duo of Nate Hobbs and Amik Robertson.
That is why a player like Christian Gonzalez would make a lot of sense for the Raiders. He spent last year with Oregon after two seasons at Colorado and this past year really showed the potential of being a lockdown corner. He finished the season with four interceptions and seven passes defended in 12 games compared to no interceptions and 10 passes defended in 18 games at Colorado.
The addition of Gonzalez in this year’s NFL Draft, along with last year’s draft pick Trevon Moehrig would give Las Vegas two good pieces to help strengthen their secondary.
The cornerback position isn’t as bad for the Atlanta Falcons as it is for the Las Vegas Raiders but they certainly could benefit from another player here. The Falcons draft A.J. Terrell in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft and he had an excellent season in Atlanta.
That is why the Falcons should consider pairing Joey Porter Jr. with Terrell and give them two young cornerbacks that can really solidify the position over the next few years. Joey Porter Jr. spent the past four years at Penn State and is the son of former NFL player Joey Porter.
During his time at Penn State, he didn’t show much in terms of turnovers with only one interception but he used his length to disrupt passes and had 20 pass breakups, including 11 just last year. He is one of the bigger cornerbacks in this year’s draft class and brings good physicality on the outside, both against receivers and supporting against the run.
After Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud, there is a big gap presently between these two and the next quarterback. However, Will Levis out of Kentucky has incredible potential that is going to have some team willing to take the chance in the top half of the first round.
I believe that team will be the Carolina Panthers who have really struggled to find a quarterback over the past few seasons. Over the past three seasons, the Panthers have had eight different starting quarterbacks, including two trades that brought them Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold.
Will Levis began at Penn State and after two seasons there transferred to Kentucky and unlike Bryce Young or C.J. Stroud, he didn’t have these incredible stat lines. He finished with just over 5,200 passing yards, 43 passing touchdowns, and 23 interceptions in his two seasons with Kentucky.
However, the physical skills Levis possess will stand out, particularly during testing at the Scouting Combine and Pro Days. He is 6’3″ and 222 pounds and has great arm strength but also some mobility that will challenge defenses and keep them guessing.
After years of struggling to find an answer at the position, the Carolina Panthers will buy into the potential and should select Will Levis with the ninth overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
The final pick in the Top 10 of the 2023 NFL Draft belongs to the Philadelphia Eagles, who acquired the pick from the New Orleans Saints last year. The Philadelphia Eagles finished the year with the best record in the NFL and the chance to add a Top 10 player should help the Eagles continue to remain near the top of their conference.
The Eagles really don’t have many glaring needs and this could be viewed as a luxury pick considering the position but Bijan Robinson is one of the best players in this year’s class and would make a good offense even better.
In three years at Texas, Robinson had 3,410 rushing yards and 33 rushing touchdowns along with 60 receptions, 805 receiving yards and eight receiving touchdowns. This offseason Miles Sanders is set to be a free agent and if he does leave in free agency, replacing him with Bijan Robinson in the NFL Draft would not be a bad move by any means.