Welcome to Monday's edition of the With the First Pick newsletter. It's Draft Week, the only week in America when everyone embraces that they know absolutely nothing. Because when the actual draft begins, believe me, those mock drafts will go up in flames. All of them. But we don't care! That widespread lack of concern is amazingly freeing.
Of course, the rebrand of the Pick Six newsletter isn't stopping now. And I, CBS Sports NFL Draft analyst Chris Trapasso, will be with you through this glorious week. This daily newsletter's sole purpose of existence is to track everything transpiring in the NFL and spin it into a draft angle.
Before I begin, here's your daily reminder to tell all your buddies and that one uncle who's always texting you mock draft links to sign up for the With the First Pick newsletter. Just click here and then share this link with them.
Today's NFL mock draft 🔮: Lamar to... San Francisco?!
Host of the "All Things Covered" podcast and NFL analyst Bryant McFadden penned his one and only mock draft this year, and you are not ready for the madness. Which, by the way, is a good thing, because the draft is always madness, and it appears we're going to have an extra serving of madness this year. Hats off to Bryant for his attempt to prepare us.
The Jackson trade is the centerpiece of Bryant's mock. In this mega deal, Baltimore would get Trey Lance and first-round selections in 2024 and 2025 from the 49ers. Monster haul to acquire Jackson, who undoubtedly would be a blast with Kyle Shanahan. But the awesomeness doesn't end there. Not even close.
Here are some other notable selections:
2. Houston Texans - Will Levis, QB, Kentucky
8. Tennessee Titans (via mock trade) - Anthony Richardson, QB, Florida
18. Los Angeles Chargers (via mock trade) - Bijan Robinson, RB, Texas
19. Green Bay Packers (via mock trade) - Quentin Johnston, WR, TCU
29. New Orleans Saints - Calijah Kancey, DT, Pittsburgh
Top 100 Big Board: Anthony Richardson is my QB1 🚀
With my finalized Top 100 Big Board for the 2023 draft, I did something I never do: I moved a quarterback's ranking late in the pre-draft process. The idea came from a gut feeling I typically ignore because of my reliance on the multi-layered quantitative system I've built. Richardson went from QB2 to QB1 super late, and I feel much more at peace with the world now. Really do.
I included my positional value rankings, which factor into my Big Board, and provided pro comparisons for the top 32 prospects, along with a few others. Now, l'll provide some of my sleepers.
28. Jakorian Bennett, CB, Maryland
39. Sidy Sow, OG, Eastern Michigan
42. Cory Trice, CB, Purdue
47. Jalen Redmond, DT, Oklahoma
66. Darrell Luter Jr., CB, South Alabama
What teams SHOULD do mock draft 👀
Doubling up on mocks today because, if there's ever a time to do it, it's now. After spending months attempting to peg what WILL happen on Thursday, Ryan Wilson was given the green light to build a mock draft based on what he believes teams should do in the first round.
Ryan has Bijan Robinson to the Eagles at No. 10 overall and wrote the following on what would be a marquee prospect-team pairing:
"Is it something of a reach to think the Eagles would take a running back with the 10th pick? Yeah, sure. But the team hosted Robinson on a top-30 visit, and while that doesn't guarantee anything, it is a sign they're interested. And they should be because Robinson is special -- and he'd be a perfect fit in the Eagles' offense, even with the loss of Shane Steichen. And if the club doesn't think he'll be on the board when they're back on the clock at No. 30, then maybe this isn't so weird after all."
Quarterback Desperation Tiers 🏈
This is a perfectly crafted idea for Will Brinson to tackle. In the piece, Will breaks down how desperate many teams are to select a quarterback in this draft. He starts with the category titled "Sure Thing" and highlighted the Panthers (obviously). Then Will played a fun "Why and Why Not" game with the likes of the Texans, Colts, Seahawks, Lions, Raiders Titans, Falcons, Commanders, and Buccaneers. There's also a "QB Purgatory" section and a few others. All 32 teams are covered. It's a good one. You can check it out, here.
News & Notes 📝
- Coach says Zay Flowers will be rewarded for 2022 decision. Boston College WR reportedly had a litany of NIL deals to transfer from the Eagles program for the 2022 campaign. But he decided to stay and play through a 3-9 season. His head coach recently stated "now in return, he's going to make more money because of it, because every head coach that I talk to wants a loyal guy, wants a guy they know they can count on."
- Mock draft based on betting markets. True to form, R.J. White wrote a mock draft based on what the Vegas betting markets are indicating about each prospect's draft position and each team's biggest needs. Good one to check if you plan to put down some money Thursday night.
