You know the NFL Draft is getting close when prospect invites are being handed out. Announced by the NFL, as shared by NFLN’s Ian Rapoport Thursday, 17 prospects will be in Kansas City for this year’s NFL draft.
Rapoport tweeted the full list of names below.
Of course, all the top QBs received the invite: Alabama’s Bryce Young, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, Florida’s Anthony Richardson, and Kentucky’s Will Levis. Other names here aren’t surprises like Alabama EDGE Will Anderson and Georgia DT Jalen Carter. The “big three” at cornerback have also been invited, including Penn State’s Joey Porter Jr.
At wide receiver, there’s three invites in Boston College’s Zay Flowers, Ohio State’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and USC (and former Pitt wideout) Jordan Addison.
Interestingly, only one offensive lineman will be there, Ohio State OT Paris Johnson Jr. It’s unclear if others, like Northwestern’s Peter Skoronski, received an invite but declined and are opting to stay at home with family and friends. Georgia’s Broderick Jones also isn’t on this list.
Rounding out the list include one RB in Texas’ Bijan Robinson, Alabama DB Brian Branch, and perhaps most surprising, Georgia Tech DE Keion White. Regarded as a Day Two player for much of this process, his draft invite is a sign the NFL is higher on him than most draftniks. Pittsburgh had White in for a pre-draft visit and he’s a name to watch, though #17 arguably still feels too early.
Of the 21 players who attended last year, 18 were first-round picks with the only exceptions being CB Kyler Gordon (39th) and the two QBs in Malik Willis and Matt Corral, who tumbled and became third-round picks.
The 2023 NFL Draft will be held April 27th through the 29th. Day One will feature just the first round, Day Two rounds two and three, with the final day containing rounds four through seven. Over the first two days, Pittsburgh holds picks 17, 32, 49, and 80. They also have a fourth-round pick and pair of sevenths.
