NFL Draft prospects: Ranking quarterbacks heading into the 2023 NFL Draft

The 2023 NFL Draft will be held from Thursday, April 27 through Saturday, April 29 in Kansas City, MO. The first round will be held on Thursday, Friday will cover the second and third rounds, and then the remainder of the draft will be wrapped up on Saturday.

After a weak class last year, the quarterbacks are once again front and center of draft discourse heading into the first round. There are a handful of QB-needy franchises making picks near the top of the board and they’ll have some interesting options come Thursday.

Likely first player off the board

Alabama’s Bryce Young will most likely be the first quarterback taken off the board, going to the Carolina Panthers with the No. 1 overall pick. He is the current odds favorite at DraftKings Sportsbook to be selected No. 1.

The 2021 Heisman Trophy was excellent in his two seasons as the starter for the Crimson Tide, displaying good mechanics, fast processing, elusiveness, and confidence. His small stature at 5’10”, 204 pounds is a concern and a team like the Panthers would hope that he can follow a trajectory similar to other short QB’s like Drew Brees and Russell Wilson.

Biggest names

Right behind Young is Ohio State’s CJ Stroud, who is expected to be the second QB taken off the board. Stroud excelled in his two seasons as the starter at OSU and both of them, respectfully, registered as the second and third-best passing seasons in program history.

The two other quarterbacks that have generated a lot of buzz in the weeks leading up to the draft are Florida’s Anthony Richardson and Kentucky’s Will Levis. Richardson’s accuracy issues were a concern in college, but he has been touted as one of the most physically gifted top QB prospects in quite some time Levis’ production dipped off a little bit in 2022 compared to his campaign the year prior, but he’s been on teams’ draft radar for multiple years and has a large frame at 6’4”, 229 pounds.

Sleepers

A potential sleeper QB in this class is Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker. He was a primary piece of the Vols’ resurgence in 2022, completing 70% of his passes for 3,135 yards, 27 touchdowns to just two interceptions through 11 games. He was in the driver’s seat to win the Heisman Trophy before suffering a torn ACL late in the year.