My top five ranked OL in the class were selected in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, leaving TCU G Steve Avila as my highest ranked blocker left on the board as round two kicks off tonight.
Before we get into my top available OL, here are a few takeaways and thoughts heading into day two.
Over the last six drafts (2017-2022), an average of 5.8 OL have been selected in round one, making 2023’s five slightly below what we have seen over that span. This was expected considering this draft was a little light on high-end, ‘blue-chip’ talent.
As with most drafts (particularly on the interior OL), the bulk of the picks typically come on day two. Since 2017, the average number of day two picks is 12.5 (5.5 in round two and 7 in round three). I would peg the over/under for tonight to be right near that number.
You will see some of the players listed below with fourth round grades. Even though my grades lined up with the NFL’s on day one, those can and likely will start to vary considerably as we get further into the draft. I included players graded as early day three picks since it is likely some teams will like them more.
Here are my top 20 OL remaining who could feasibly get selected tonight along with each of their scouting reports linked to their name:
School-Position-Name-Grade
Tier 1
TCU G Steve Avila - 7.6 (Mid 2nd)
Ohio State T Dawand Jones - 7.6 (Mid 2nd)
Syracuse G Matthew Bergeron - 7.5 (Late 2nd)
Minnesota C John Michael Schmitz - 7.5 (Late 2nd)
Florida G O’Cyrus Torrence - 7.5 (Late 2nd)
Tier 2
North Dakota State IOL Cody Mauch - 7.4 (Early 3rd)
Wisconsin IOL Joe Tippmann - 7.4 (Early 3rd)
Old Dominion OL Nick Saldiveri - 7.3 (Early 3rd)
Alabama OL Tyler Steen - 7.1 (Late 3rd)
N.C. State G Chandler Zavala - 7.0 (Late 3rd)
Pittsburgh T Carter Warren - 7.0 (Late 3rd)
Arkansas C Ricky Stromberg - 6.8 (Early 4th)
Tier 3
Notre Dame C Jarrett Patterson - 6.8 (Early 4th)
Oklahoma T Wanya Morris - 6.8 (Early 4th)
North Carolina OL Asim Richards - 6.7 (4th)
LSU G Anthony Bradford - 6.6 (Mid-to-late 4th)
Tier 4
Ohio State C Luke Wypler - 6.6 (Mid-to-late 4th)
Georgia T/G Warren McClendon - 6.5 (Late 4th)
Alabama IOL Emil Ekiyor Jr. - 6.5 (Late 4th)
Maryland T Jaelyn Duncan - 6.5 (Late 4th)
I recorded nine total film rooms with 2023 OL prospects, including three of the selected players in round one.
The remaining six film rooms were with some of the players expected to be selected tonight.
Stay tuned to my Twitter account for instant reactions to the picks tonight along with more content to be announced as the draft progresses.