With the 2023 NFL draft behind us, it’s time to break down every team’s draft picks over the 3 day event, giving player projections and opinions on teams fits as we go division by division through the NFL.
First up, the AFC East
Buffalo Bills:
1(25) TE Dalton Kincaid Utah
2(59) OG O’Cyrus Torrence Florida
3(91) LB Dorian Williams Tulane
5(150) WR Justin Shorter Florida
7(230) OG Nick Broeker Ole Miss
7(252) CB Alex Austin Oregon St.
The Bills got significantly better on both sides of the ball, which is a scary thought. Trading up to steal Dalton Kincaid before the Cowboys got their chance gives the offense one of the best pure pass catchers in the draft. While he’s listed as a tight end, the Bills can utilize him as more of a slot receiver, keeping both him and Dawson Knox on the field and giving Josh Allen another weapon from the slot that the team has been lacking.
OG O’Cyrus Torrence should be able to step in and play guard for the Bills right away. But with proper coaching to help refine his technique, he has the size to potentially move out to tackle. The fact that Torrence weighed more than 420 lbs in high school before he changed his diet and focused more on football shows how committed he is to his career as a player, so the sky’s the limit for this talented yet raw blocker.
Dorian Williams simply should not have been available to the Bills in the 3rd round. He’s one of the most experienced linebackers in college football, has great speed, and is a strong tackler. He’s slightly undersized, but has all the tools to blossom into the replacement for Tremaine Edmunds, filling one of the few holes on a dominant Bills defense.
Justin Shorter is just a monster receiver at 6’4” 229 lbs, and it will be interesting to watch if he can take his rugged playstyle with him to the NFL. He can be taken out by press coverage despite his size, and needs long developing routes to create separation, but with Josh Allen eluding rushers in the backfield, there’s potential for Shorter to have an impact.
OG Nick Broeker is a good prospect with average size who punches above his weight class with his run blocking ability. While he would have a clear path to becoming a starter on a team that has a downhill run scheme, he can develop into a solid swing guard for the Bills.
The only knock on the Bills draft is not addressing the cornerback position until the 7th round, where they selected Alex Austin. Austin has good size and football IQ, but has been fairly inconsistent. His low end speed also limits his ability to be a factor in man coverage. His instincts and awareness help him in zone coverage, so the Bills could have done worse with their final pick of the draft.
Overall the Bills are walking away with some weapons and key rotational pieces that will keep this team in the upper echelon of the NFL.
Miami Dolphins:
2(51) CB Cam Smith South Carolina
3(84) RB Devon Achane Texas A&M
6(197) WR Elijah Higgins Stanford
7(238) OT Ryan Hayes Michigan
For better or for worse, the Dolphins have used the majority of their draft picks to target players that they want for their team through trades, on top of losing their 1st round pick due to tampering and tanking accusations.
With only 4 picks in the draft, the Dolphins got on the board at 51 and took CB Cam Smith who is coming off of a disappointing final college season. He’s a reach in the second round, and will need some solid coaching to bring out his potential at the NFL level. He’s a long outside cornerback that lacks fluidity and acceleration to be able to be a factor in press coverage, but has great anticipation and uses his timing and length to break up more passes than expected. While probably better suited for zone coverages, he has potential to be a decent CB2 if he develops properly.
Miami has been building their entire offense around speed, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they took RB Devon Achane after he ran a ridiculous 4.32 40 at the combine. He’s an All-American indoor track star with Olympic level 100 meter dash times, and posted impressive rushing numbers for one of the nation’s worst offenses.
Running back might not have been the Dolphins biggest need at this point, but it’s sure going to be fun watching how they get Achane involved in this high speed offense. Achane is a surprisingly adept inside rusher, but is small by NFL standards, which will limit his touches per game. His explosive playmaking ability will keep his usage above that of a gadget player, but he probably will not be a true 3 down back in the NFL.
WR/TE hybrid Elijah Higgins has potential to be a matchup problem working the middle of the field, and excels in the screen game as a catch and run threat. But he too will need some work before he can be considered a consistent NFLer.
OT Ryan Hayes is another project who probably lacks the length to succeed at tackle in the NFL. However, taking a flier on a 2 year starter for a unit that won consecutive awards for being the best line in college football isn’t a bad use of a 7th round pick.
With such limited draft picks, the Dolphins went for boom or bust potential, and will leave it to their coaching staff to get the new additions ready for the NFL.
With the No. 84 overall pick in the 2023 @NFLDraft, the @MiamiDolphins select Devon Achane!
📺: 2023 #NFLDraft on NFLN/ESPN/ABC
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/D3EqkrKdIw pic.twitter.com/63dL8dmJcW— NFL (@NFL) April 29, 2023
New England Patriots:
1(17) CB Christian Gonzalez Oregon
2(46) DE Keion White Georgia Tech
3(76) LB/S Marte Mapu Sacramento State
4(107) C Jake Andrews Troy
4(112) K Chad Ryland Maryland
4(117) OG Sidy Sow Eastern Michigan
5(144) OG Atonio Mafi UCLA
6(187) WR Kayshon Boutte LSU
6(192) P Bryce Baringer Michigan State
6(210) WR Demario Douglas Liberty
6(214) CB Ameer Speed Michigan State
7(245) CB Isaiah Bolden Jackson State
We would be foolish to expect anything different from a Bill Belichick draft at this point. 12 picks overall, littered with small school prospects, multiple interior offensive lineman, and actually drafting both a kicker and a punter.
Belichick’s piece de resistance came before he even made a selection, as he made a rare deal with the Steelers to move down in the draft, only to let the Steelers swoop in and take OT Broderick Jones one pick before his division rival Jets had the chance to take their tackle of the future.
The Patriots then used their first round pick to take CB Christian Gonzalez, who’s athleticism and man-coverage skills are an excellent fit for the Patriots defense. Gonzalez has top 5 talent, and working under Belichick has the potential to be a multi time Pro Bowler. This pick could be one of the best player/team matches in the entire draft.
Drafting DE Keion White in the second was great value, as the former tight end has a ton of potential to blossom into a pass rushing star as he learns the intricacies of playing defense. His pass rushing moves are sometimes predictable, but taking his raw athletic talent to learn the NFL in New England opens the door for White to find his true ceiling.
LB/S Marte Mapu is a versatile chess piece with the body of a linebacker who is a heavy hitter but can also cover like a safety. His performance at the Senior Bowl impressed more than a few scouts, and his skill set will be an exciting weapon for the Patriots, even if he has to sit out for a large part of the season as he recovers from a torn pec suffered during training.
C Jake Andrews was Belichick’s first reach, as Andrews lacks size and foot speed to play anywhere but center. Andrews has all world strength and excels lined up one on one against a nose tackle, but struggles with movement in pass blocking situations and is slow to recognize blitzes.
With the San Francisco 49ers getting the run on kickers started early, Belichick went out and got his man in the 4th round, taking Maryland’s Chad Ryland. Just another mind boggling pick, as while Ryland has the ability to hit 50 + yard kicks and was a 5-year starter, he will need to improve his overall accuracy, and had a worrying stretch in 2022, hitting just 4 of 9 field goals over a 4 day game stretch.
Canadian guard Sidy Sow is a high value pickup in the 4th round, and after playing as a backup in year one could become a long term fixture on the Patriots offensive line. He’s one of the most athletic guards entering the draft and is coming out of Eastern Michigan with plenty of starting experience, but still struggles with his angles in the run game.
Atonio Mafi has a wide frame and has good core strength which will help him improve in the power zone. However, his lack of foot quickness causes him to struggle in the ground game and he is slow to make reactive adjustments in pass protection.
Taking a flier on former 5 star recruit Kayson Buotte is also a smart move with so many late round picks. Buotte dominated as a freshman in 2020, but an ankle injury cut short his 2021 season. Amid coaching changes at LSU, Buotte rarely saw the field in 2022, and he fell in the draft because of character and immaturity concerns. Being humbled by falling to the 6th round, and being under the thumb of Belichick and offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien, there’s a chance that Buotte can put aside his off field issues and turn into one of the biggest steals of the draft.
P Bryce Baringer has the kicking strength to flip the field, but he tends to focus too much on hammering the ball causing him to lose accuracy. Would anyone other than the Patriots bother taking a punter in the 6th round of the draft?
Demario Douglas is a shifty slot receiver with adequate speed and quickness, but needs to get better at the finer points of playing the position. He won’t win many contested balls, and has a history of muffed punts, limiting his ability as a return man on special teams.
Both Ameer Speed and Isaiah Bolden are project CBs that have size and speed, but lack refinement in their games, and project to be special teamers at best.
There are many parts of this draft class that should be criticized, but you have to respect a franchise that sets their mind to what they want to achieve and go out and do it. Not adding one or two true offensive weapons will probably hold the team back yet again, especially in such a tough division, but who is going to say that to Bill’s face.
New York Jets:
1(15) DE Will McDonald IV Iowa State
2(43) C Joe Tippman Wisconsin
4(120) OT Carter Warren Pittsburgh
5(143) RB Israel Abanikanda Pittsburgh
6(184) LB Zaire Barnes Western Michigan
6(204) CB Jarrick Bernard-Converse LSU
7(220) TE Zack Kuntz Old Dominion
The Jets entered the draft looking to add some offensive line help to protect their new franchise quarterback Aaron Rodgers, but had their dream tackle stolen from under their noses by the Steelers.
They didn’t seem prepared to switch gears, and while DE Will McDonald IV will be a decent addition to their pass rushing group, he is a significant reach at 15. The Jets defensive pass rush was already impressive, so using the 15th pick for what will likely be a rotational piece isn’t great value, especially with higher rated pass rushers left on the board. He has potential to be a high level pass rusher if he adds some weight and gets a little bit stronger, but right now looks like he would do best rushing as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 as opposed to putting his hand in the ground in the Jets 4-3.
The Jets managed find Rogers some interior help in C Joe Tippman, who will likely be a day 1 starter. He played every snap for the past 2 seasons at center, and while Wisconsin’s performances as a whole were inconsistent, Tippman’s individual efforts were impressive, allowing just one sack and 4 combined hits on the quarterback. He will likely eventually move to guard due to his length, but for now having him as the center is a strong addition to the offensive line.
OT Carter Warren can be a nice swing tackle and should be able to step up in a pinch, with the potential to develop into a reliable starter with some proper coaching. He will need to shake off the rust after missing the past 6 months with a knee injury.
RB Israel Abanikanda is coming off of a dominant season at Pitt and is still only 20 years old. He’s a big play threat every time he touches the ball, and should have no problem surpassing Michael Carter and Zonovan Knight on the depth chart. He still needs to work on being more consistent, and have more patience to set up blockers, but once he finds daylight he’s hard to catch. While ideally he would act as the perfect complement to Breece Hall, Abanikanda might just find himself as a larger part of the offense than expected as Hall works his way back from ACL surgery.
LB Zaire Barnes is a sneaky good pick in the 6th round. He has NFL size and athletic traits, college experience playing both outside and inside linebacker, can cover man-to-man and will produce on special teams. He gets a little loose with his technique, but has a solid shot to make the team this season.
Jarrick Bernard-Converse needs to improve his tackling, and will probably be better served switching to safety as his hips and backpedal aren’t smooth enough to compete in the NFL.
Taking high upside players at the end of the draft is always smart and the Jets did that with TE Zack Kuntz. He lit it up at the combine with his speed and athleticism, but he needs to fill out his long frame as his subpar hands won’t keep him on the field as a receiver. He does have potential as a pick and stash development player who can elevate his game with a couple offseasons in NFL gyms and with good coaching.
They may have reached on their first round selection, but the rest of the draft was well executed by the Jets staff.
-Devon Gallant
Twitter: @DevGallant
Photo: Brian McDermott. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.