Which prospects helped themselves the most in the 2023 NFL Draft at the East-West Shrine Bowl?
The East-West Shrine Bowl brought some of the most underrated senior talent in the 2023 NFL Draft together for a week in Las Vegas. With the East team being run by the Atlanta Falcons staff and the West by the New England Patriots staff, NFL front offices and coaches descended upon Sin City to put these prospects under the microscope.
Every Shrine Bowl produces NFL talent, but Eric Galko, the director of football operations and player personnel for the all-star game, has really given it some extra oomph in recent years. Not only has the Shrine Bowl relocated from St. Petersburg, Florida (where they played at Tropicana Field) to Vegas to play at Allegiant Stadium, but there’s also been an influx of talent.
Last year’s Shrine Bowl produced several top-150 picks and a couple of draft steals taken after the fifth-round in NFL rookie sensations like Kansas City Chiefs running back Isaiah Pacheco, Detroit Lions pass rusher James Houston, and San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy.
This year’s crop came into the week with even more hype than last years and it didn’t disappoint. Well over 10 prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft helped their stock, including Boston College’s Zay Flowers despite only participating in practice on Sunday, and it’s a shame to leave names like Stephen F. Austin’s BJ Thompson, Michigan’s Jake Moody, and Texas’ D’Shawn Jamison off the list, but these are the prospects who helped themselves the most in Vegas.