KANSAS CITY, MO — With the 2023 NFL Draft now in the books, and OTA’s and off-season workouts set to begin, now is the time to reflect back on draft night with my top takeaways from Kansas City.
Baltimore getting Zay Flowers to pair across from OBJ and Mark Andrews, resigning Lamar Jackson to new monster five year $260 million extension nearly stole the show. Hours before the 2023 NFL Draft, the Ravens and the 2019 NFL MVP agreed to terms, keeping the former 2018 Heisman Trophy winner in Charm City.
Resigning Jackson after landing OBJ and selecting arguably one of the best route runners in college football in Flowers is one of the reasons why the Ravens are one of the elite franchises in all the NFL.
Detroit Lions grabbing Jahmyr Gibbs, Jack Campbell and Sam Laporta is something to keep an eye on. While not a major need of theirs, Detroit reaching for the former Alabama Crimson Tide tailback at No.12, gives Goff a reliable weapon out of the backfield.
Thanks to trading former first-round pick D’Andre Swift to the Eagles for a seventh-round swap and a 2025 fourth-round pick on Day 3, Gibbs is fresher, younger and able to come in right away and contribute.
Grabbing Iowa LB Jack Campbell seven picks later at No.18 brings another big piece to a growing Lions defense that already has former No.2 overall pick, Aiden Hutchinson that is poses to wreak havoc and make a run at the playoffs.
In the second round, Detroit gave Goff another weapon in Iowa TE Sam Laporta at No.34 and some potential competition in former Tennessee QB Hendon Hooker at No.68
Stay tuned in the Motor City!
Houston drafting CJ Stroud and Will Anderson Jr. Leading up to the draft, there were whispers of the Texans taking either Stroud or Anderson, imagine the shock in the crowd on draft night when Houston took BOTH.
Yup! Houston did the near impossible. The Texans grabbed arguably the best QB and best defensive player back to back and added two huge building blocks for their franchise.
With all due respect to current starter, Davis Mills, but Stroud is a major upgrade over the former Stanford standout and adds various intangibles such as better accuracy and an ability to extend plays when necessary.
Stroud under center throwing to targets such as veteran Robert Woods, as well as playmakers such as John Metchie III, Nico Collins and fellow rookies Tank Dell and Xavier Hutchinson and look for Stroud to possibly challenge for Offensive Rookie of the Year.
On defense, Anderson will join a unit led by veterans such as Sheldon Rankins, Maliek Collins and a secondary led by last year’s first round pick in Derek Stingley Jr.
Look for the Texans to make some noise in 2023.
Tennessee grabbing a ticked-off Will Levis at No.33 could turn into a either a steal, or a possible bust. Thanks to one of the most humiliating and gut-wrenching draft night slides in NFL Draft history, Kentucky QB Will Levis managed somewhat of a soft landing in Tennessee with the Titans.
Likely to battle last year’s third round pick Malik Willis for the No.2 spot behind soon-to-be free agent, Ryan Tannehill, Levis has a chance to get some reps this coming season.
While Willis show some flashes last season, he doesn’t quite have the upside and skill set that the strong-armed Levis does. However, there are various things in Levis’ game such as becoming more confident in the pocket and staying healthy that the former Wildcat quarterback will need to improve on in 2023.
If Levis does either of these, don’t be shocked if he surpasses Willis and becomes the Titans QB1 by 2024.