The first round of the 2023 NFL Draft featured three quarterbacks in the first four picks, and that wasn't a surprise.
It was the quarterback who slipped down the board that did make an impression.
Carolina took Bryce Young with the No. 1 pick, and Houston followed with Ohio State's C.J. Stroud with the No. 2 pick. Indianapolis then grabbed Florida's Anthony Richardson with the No. 4 pick.
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That led to an uncomfortable night for Kentucky's Will Levis, who was not drafted in the first round. Tennessee's Hendon Hooker – who also was projected to be a first-round pick – also will have to wait until Day 2.
The quarterbacks weren't the only story in a first round that featured several draft-night trades. Neither the Packers nor the Jets drafted pass-catchers after the Aaron Rodgers' trade. Running backs were hot, and receivers and tight ends slipped down the board.
Who had the best night on Day 1? Who left a few questions?
Winners: Houston Texans
The Houston Texans are 11-38-1 since 2020 – the worst record in the NFL. Credit general manager Nick Caserio and new coach DeMeco Ryans for making the most-impactful statement of the first round, and for not over-thinking it.
Stroud gives the Texans a franchise quarterback who had a 69.3% completion percentage the last two seasons. There were smokescreens galore with Stroud heading into the draft, but Houston trusted the game tape and strong NFL Combine performance instead. That is a building block for the offense and puts the Deshaun Watson era to rest once and for all.
The Texans then traded up with Arizona for the No. 3 pick and took the most-productive defensive player on the board. Alabama edge rusher Will Anderson totaled 34.5 sacks and 58.5 tackles for loss the last two seasons and was the safest defensive player on the board.
This was a culture-changing move that landed two of college football's best players on and off the field. It cost Houston a first-round pick swap and three more picks, including a 2023 second-round pick and a 2024 first-round pick. It's worth it.
Loser: Will Levis
Levis was projected to go as high as No. 2 in the first round, but the Kentucky quarterback was the quarterback to have an uncomfortable night in the back-stage waiting area.
Levis dealt with toe, finger and shoulder injuries in 2022, but he appeared to answer those questions at the NFL Scouting Combine. Young, Stroud and Richardson were early picks, and there was no obvious spot for Levis after that early run.
Levis had 43 TD passes and 23 interceptions the last two seasons with the Wildcats after transferring from Penn State, but the slide was similar to Liberty’s Malik Willis last year.
Now the question is whether Levis will be selected ahead of Hooker on Day 2.
MORE: Watch the 2023 NFL Draft live with Fubo (free trial)
Winners: Cardinals, Bears protect their QBs
Kyler Murray is still rehabbing from a torn left ACL, but the Cardinals took steps toward protecting their quarterback by taking Ohio State tackle Paris Johnson Jr. with the No. 6 pick. Johnson is a 6-foot-6, 313-pound tackle who allowed just two sacks last season.
Murray has taken an average of 33 sacks the last four seasons. This should reduce that total.
Justin Fields has taken 91 sacks in two seasons. Chicago selected Tennessee tackle Darnell Wright – a 6-foot-5, 333-pound tackle – didn't allow a sack on 507 pass-block snaps for the Volunteers last season, according to Pro Football Focus.
That was part of a good night for tackles. Tennessee grabbed Northwestern tackle Peter Skoronski at No. 11, and Pittsburgh grabbed Georgia tackle Broderick Jones at No. 13. Jacksonville also took Oklahoma's Anton Harrison at No. 27.
Losers: Falcons, Lions reach for RBs
Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs are talented running backs. Nobody is disrupting that.
Did the Falcons and Lions reach for those running backs in the first round? That is where the dispute begins.
Alabama took Robinson with the No. 8 pick. Robinson is the fifth running back to be selected with a top-10 pick in the last 10 years; a list that includes Ezekiel Elliott, Leonard Fournette, Saquon Barkley and Christian McCaffrey. Barkley is the only one still with the team that drafted him.
Robinson rushed for 1,580 yards and 18 TDs as a junior with the Longhorns, and he is a talented pass-catcher out of the backfield. It's the third straight draft where Atlanta took a skill-position player in the first round, a list that includes tight end Kyle Pitts and Drake London. Atlanta already had a 1,000-yard rusher in second-year Tyler Allgeier.
Detroit followed by drafting Alabama running back Jahmyr Gibbs with the No. 12 pick. Will Gibbs be a three-down back or a committee member with David Montgomery and D'Andre Swift? The Lions have two second-round picks, so there is a luxury feel to it. Still, Gibbs is a reach for the Lions, who also took Iowa linebacker Jack Campbell with the No. 18 pick.
Winner: Ravens give Lamar Jackson a WR
The Lamar Jackson contract talk is over. Baltimore signed Jackson to a five-year, $260 million extension with $185 million in guaranteed money. That keeps him the franchise quarterback with the Ravens.
Baltimore added a bonus by taking Boston College receiver Zay Flowers with the No. 21 pick, and that made Jackson happy, too.
I’m smelling More good news🤭😅 dropping soon👀👀👀👀👀 pic.twitter.com/OmTSyPNGCn
— Lamar Jackson (@Lj_era8) April 28, 2023
Flowers was a high-riser through the NFL Combine who had 78 catches for 1,077 yards and 12 TDs in 2023. Flowers (5-9, 182) could emerge as a big-play target with Jackson and new offensive coordinator Todd Monken. Baltimore also added Odell Beckham Jr. in free agency. That beefs up a receiver room that didn’t have a player hit 500 yards last season.
Loser: Green Bay doesn't give Jordan Love a WR
The Packers traded Aaron Rodgers and were projected to grab either a receiver or tight end with the No. 13 pick. Instead, Green Bay went with Iowa defensive end Lukas Van Ness.
Van Ness tested well at the NFL Combine and should be an impact edge rusher for Green Bay. It's a solid pick given Van Ness could be a force opposite Rashan Gary.
This continued a trend that led to the Rodgers' trade in the first place.
The Packers have not drafted an offensive player in the first round since 2011, and it was a surprise that Green Bay passed on a tight end like Notre Dame's Michael Mayer or a receiver like Ohio State's Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who went No. 20 to Seattle. NFC North rival Minnesota also took USC's Jordan Addison at No. 23.
Winner: Eagles go back to Georgia (twice)
Defensive tackle Jalen Carter was a candidate to be a top-five pick before he was arrested on misdemeanor charges of reckless driving on Jan. 15. Carter pled no contest to those charges on March 16.
Carter slipped down the board, but he landed in the right spot. Philadelphia general manager Howie Roseman pulled off another shrewd trade by moving up to grab Carter, and he will be paired with college teammate Jordan Davis on the Eagles' interior defense.
The Eagles doubled down on Bulldogs by taking Nolan Smith with the No. 30 pick. Smith's final season was cut short by a pectoral injury, but he put on a show at the NFL Scouting Combine.
Philadelphia had a league-high 70 sacks in 2022. Carter and Smith will add to that rotational depth.
Loser: Michael Mayer
Mayer – the Notre Dame tight end – was expected to be the first tight end selected in the draft. That went to Utah’s Dalton Kincaid, who was selected by Buffalo with the No. 25 pick. Dallas and Cincinnati also passed on Mayer, which was surprising.
Mayer had 67 catches on 101 targets last season – and his pass-catching and blocking skills as an in-line tight end are a throwback set that should have been first-round worthy. Now, he falls to Day 2 along with Georgia's Darnell Washington and Oregon State's Luke Musgrave.
Winner: SEC and Big Ten
The SEC had the most first-round picks in the NFL Draft each of the last seven years and 11 out of the last 12 drafts.
The Big Ten tied the SEC with nine first-round picks. Ohio State tied Alabama and Georgia with the most first-round picks with three apiece. It was another showcase night for college football's two revenue-driving monsters.
Every first-round pick came from a Power 5 conference. The Big 12 had six first-round picks, followed by the ACC with four and Pac-12 with three. That is yet another indicator of the impact of NIL and transfer portal on the college football game. The elite players – more than ever – are coming from the major conferences.
