The 2023 NFL Draft offensive sort out class is an enigma — if you happen to may even name it that. Early on, it appears as if there’s a transparent dearth of expertise on the prime of the board. However as we’ve seen earlier than, quite a bit can change over the course of the season. Already established prospects can elevate their recreation, and new stars can come out of nowhere. As we stand, forward of the 2022 season, how do the highest 10 OTs within the 2023 NFL Draft stack up?
Prime 10 OTs within the 2023 NFL Draft
The Energy 5 conferences dominate the early prime 10 offensive sort out rankings within the 2023 NFL Draft, however there’s a stunning quantity of variance within the colleges current. SEC, ACC, and Large Ten prospects all vie for the highest three spots, however just one can take the crown as OT1 within the 2023 NFL Draft.
10) Broderick Jones, Georgia
It appears as if the 2023 NFL Draft class is asking — begging — for a saving grace at offensive sort out. Outdoors of Ohio State’s Paris Johnson Jr., who himself is a little bit of a projection together with his transfer from guard, the 2023 OT class may be very unsure. However there’s at all times one or two breakouts we are able to depend on — prospects who enter bigger roles and explode onto the NFL draft scene. Broderick Jones is an effective guess to observe that arc in 2022.
Jones solely has 4 profession begins underneath his belt, all from 2021. He stuffed in for an injured Jamaree Salyer down the stretch in Georgia’s championship-winning season. Jones is brief on snaps however enormous on potential.
A former five-star recruit, Jones has eye-catching explosiveness and power off the snap. He’s an outstanding athlete who closes gaps and assaults blocks, and he brings palpable violence in his recreation. He can play extra managed and work on refining his hand utilization, however Jones has early-round potential with extra reps.
9) Connor Galvin, Baylor
It’s onerous to not be impressed when wanting again at Connor Galvin‘s 2021 marketing campaign. First-team All-Large 12. Large 12 Offensive Lineman of the Yr. And a vital cog on a Baylor offensive line that helped the Bears win their first Large 12 title in class historical past. Galvin already has an illustrious résumé as a collegiate blocker. However in 2022, he’ll be checked out as an NFL draft prospect, with purpose to consider he’ll be drafted.
Galvin suits an intriguing mould on the offensive sort out place. He’s a strong athlete and is tall at 6’7″, 310 kilos. However he lacks the elite size you’d anticipate at that peak, and he doesn’t have elite practical energy or energy.
Nevertheless, Galvin wins with the polish and composed play you’d anticipate from an achieved veteran. He makes use of unbiased arms and transfers his weight with regular footwork. Galvin has fluid hips for his measurement, and an NFL function of some sort may be very a lot in his future.
8) Blake Freeland, BYU
BYU offensive sort out Brady Christensen was drafted within the third spherical of the 2021 NFL Draft. There’s an opportunity Blake Freeland may go off the board even sooner in 2023.
To start out, Freeland is significantly youthful than Christensen was popping out, set to be 22 years outdated subsequent Could. But additionally Freeland possesses a excessive diploma of expertise and will have legit beginning potential on the subsequent degree.
At 6’8″, 307 kilos, Freeland is a taller, leaner OT prospect. There are some drawbacks that include that measurement, as Freeland typically strains to get correct leverage. However he’s extraordinarily athletic and possesses stunning energy for his lighter body. A former state champion within the shot put and javelin, Freeland’s monitor background visibly interprets on the sphere. And together with his athleticism, size, and left-right versatility, he’ll have his followers subsequent April.
7) Anton Harrison, Oklahoma
It’s necessary to not scout the helmet. There’s no denying Oklahoma has produced a bevy of NFL offensive line expertise lately. However Anton Harrison is on this checklist based mostly on his personal advantage.
As a real sophomore in 2021, Harrison lived as much as his four-star billing and began 12 video games at left sort out. There have been ups and downs, however the potential is clearly seen in Harrison’s recreation. It’s why he has eyes on him early on within the 2023 NFL Draft cycle.
Harrison is a bit unorthodox as a sort out prospect. His body is high-hipped and boxy, however he has all of the size, energy, and energy capability you want on the left aspect. He flashed environment friendly footwork in 2021, and even confirmed shiny glimpses of unbiased hand utilization, quickly stacking violent extensions and swipes.
For a participant who’s getting into solely his third 12 months, Harrison has already proven loads of promise. Likelihood is it’s solely up from right here.
6) Jaelyn Duncan, Maryland
In a method, the dominant duo of Michigan edge rushers Aidan Hutchinson and David Ojabo supplied a barometer for Large Ten tackles all through the 2021 season. Few may match up with their ruthless onslaught of stress, and virtually none did on a down-to-down foundation. However when Jaelyn Duncan a minimum of matched the pair out of his stance and mirrored them across the apex, it was price noting.
Duncan’s straightforward athleticism is one among his most interesting traits. He stands at 6’6″, with a dense body of over 300 kilos. But, he’s proven to glide out of his stance and carry rushers upfield with little pressure. At the same time as a fifth-year senior, there’s room for Duncan to enhance his timing and hand placement. However his bodily traits, particularly on this sort out class, make him troublesome to disregard.
5) Carter Warren, Pittsburgh
With the 2023 NFL Draft offensive sort out group being so unsure, there’s a particular chance that some groups defer to extra skilled, extra confirmed prospects on the place. That deference to safety bodes nicely for Pittsburgh’s Carter Warren, who’s a sixth-year senior with 22 profession begins underneath his belt. He could also be a 24-year-old rookie when he arrives, however Warren is coming off his greatest 12 months but, and he has legit NFL instruments.
Warren isn’t your normal tremendous senior. Some who exhaust their faculty eligibility lack true skilled potential. However Warren, had he declared for the 2022 NFL Draft, may have been a Day 2 choice. As a substitute, he selected to return and capitalize on his momentum from 2021. At 6’5″, 325 kilos, with arms over 35″ lengthy, Warren has immense energy capability, and his tenacious mauler mentality helps him impose his will at each sort out spots.
4) Peter Skoronski, Northwestern
It’d shock some to see Peter Skoronski are available at No. 4 on our checklist of the highest 2023 NFL Draft offensive tackles. Skoronski is without doubt one of the commonest first-round choices at OT up to now. His efficiency definitely backs up his billing, however he has a pair components working in his favor. The unsure OT class helps, as does the recency bias supplied by the success of fellow Northwestern product Rashawn Slater with the Chargers.
Half the time Skoronski is talked about, he’s talked about in the identical breath as Slater. A part of that’s warranted, as Northwestern’s workers feels simply as extremely about Skoronski. However when projecting to the NFL, there are some considerations to notice.
Whereas Skoronski is athletic and essentially sound, he may not weigh over 300 kilos, and his arm size is noticeably beneath common. However, whereas his future may not be at OT, Skoronski has the talent set to be an especially proficient inside blocker.
3) Matthew Bergeron, Syracuse
Transfer over, Patrice Bergeron, quickly to be the second-most-famous athlete together with his surname. We child, however Matthew Bergeron is legit, and there’s nonetheless a way that he’s slept on within the 2023 NFL Draft OT class. It’s why he headlines the OL unit on our preseason 2023 NFL Draft All-Sleeper Team. However Bergeron isn’t only a sleeper to jot down down and are available again to later. He’s already a prospect worthy of early-round consideration.
Bergeron is listed at 6’5″, 327 kilos, however he wears that weight extraordinarily nicely. He’s an athletic, low-cut lineman with spectacular size, energy, and energy capability. However much more spectacular is his easy model of athleticism. He’s a fleet-footed blindside blocker with nice mobility in shut quarters, and he already reveals loads of promise together with his method and handwork.
2) Darnell Wright, Tennessee
All soccer gamers, and athletes for that matter, are human. However there are some who push the boundaries of what one considers potential inside that mould. Enter Darnell Wright, a former five-star recruit who extra intently resembles the Pokémon Blastoise. Listed at 6’6″, 335 kilos, Wright is a strolling tree trunk, whose punches hit as onerous as you’d anticipate, and whose grip energy can render opponents into submission.
Wright is without doubt one of the most imposing gamers in college football. He provides scary energy capability and might legitimately fold gamers with extensions and hip torque. On prime of his energy and energy, Wright is a surprisingly short-area athlete for his measurement.
Whereas he doesn’t have elite vary as a transferring blocker, Wright has a probably dominant talent set in a telephone sales space, with sufficient restoration athleticism to carry his personal. His expertise at each sort out spots is a mere bonus for an already thrilling NFL draft prospect.
1) Paris Johnson Jr., Ohio State
It’s harmful to make foregone assumptions about the place prospects will find yourself. However with some, it’s a safer enterprise than others. Paris Johnson Jr. was a five-star offensive sort out in highschool and a top-10 recruit, signing with Ohio State out of the 2020 class.
Johnson broke out as a dominant proper guard in 2021. Now, he strikes again to sort out, the place he’s anticipated to affirm himself as the highest OT within the 2023 NFL Draft.
Johnson has all of it. He’s athletic, he’s lengthy, and he’s highly effective. He can match defenders effortlessly and drive by means of blocks with drive. Johnson is an absolute bulldozer within the floor recreation, however he additionally has the traits to lock rushers down as a move protector. There’s some uncertainty as Johnson makes one other place swap. However he’s performed sort out earlier than, and his traits challenge nicely there. Little is standing in the best way of him taking on the 2023 class.
Honorable mentions
Jordan Morgan, Arizona
Dawand Jones, Ohio State
Zion Nelson, Miami (FL)
Warren McClendon, Georgia
Jordan McFadden, Clemson
Robert Scott Jr., Florida State
Ryan Hayes, Michigan
Cody Mauch, North Dakota State
Garret Greenfield, South Dakota State
