NFL Draft prospects: Ranking safeties heading into the 2023 NFL Combine

The 2023 NFL Combine will run from Thursday, March 2 to Sunday, March 5. Each day, a new positional group will get a chance to show off in front of NFL scouts, coaches and executives. The secondary will be on display on Friday, March 3 at 3 p.m. ET with the corners and safeties getting the spotlight.

This year’s class of safeties is pretty shallow. There are two distinct tiers up top and then everyone else. Alabama’s Brian Branch and Texas A&M’s Antonio Johnson lead the class. Branch spent three years playing for the Crimson Tide. He had 172 career tackles with four sacks, three interceptions and 23 passes defended in 35 career games. Johnson played in 25 games for the Aggies and had 164 total tackles with two sacks, one interception and seven passes defended.

The second tier consists of Alabama’s Jordan Battle, Georgia’s Christopher Smith, Penn State’s Ji’Ayir Brown and Florida State’s Jammie Robinson. The Crimson Tide will have to replace their starting safeties next year, with Branch and Battle moving on. The latter could increase his stock into the late part of the second round with a good Combine. Smith, Brown and Robinson are likely destined for the middle rounds and should play good depth roles for their respective teams.

The rest of the class needs a good Combine to try and ensure they even get drafted. With where they are, a bad performance could spell them not being selected and having to sign as free agents. Either way, they will have to prove themselves in the preseason to try and make a 53-man roster but are likely to fill out a practice squad for a team.