Meet the 17 Players Who Are Confirmed to Attend the 2023 NFL Draft’s First Round
Fourteen days from now we’ll be sweating out the Chicago Bears’ first-round pick.
But, in fairness, we won’t be sweating it out like the guys in the green room.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport shares the list of players who are confirmed to be in attendance when the 2023 NFL Draft kicks off in Kansas City. And as you might expect, it’s a who’s who of stars:
- Jordan Addison, USC WR
- Will Anderson Jr., Alabama DE
- Brian Branch, Alabama CB
- Jalen Carter, Georgia DT
- Zay Flowers, Boston College WR
- Christian Gonzalez, Oregon CB
- Paris Johnson Jr., Ohio State OL
- Will Levis, Kentucky QB
- Joey Porter Jr., Penn State CB
- Anthony Richardson, Florida QB
- Bijan Robinson, Texas RB
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Ohio State WR
- C.J. Stroud, Ohio State QB
- Keion White, Georgia Tech DE
- Tyree Wilson, Texas Tech DE
- Devon Witherspoon, Illinois CB
- Bryce Young, Alabama QB
Generally, the NFL invites players it strongly feels will be Day 1 picks. And of these 17 prospects, I feel certain there isn’t one who will slip all the way out of the first round. Sure, you can make cases for one or two prospects seeing their stock slip from where they might want to go. However, I’m sure each of these players has first-round grades across the league. Hence, they’re invited to attend the festivities (and confirmed, via ESPN’s Adam Schefter).
As for the Bears, they’ve been connected to a handful of these players. The most notable are Jalen Carter, Paris Johnson Jr., Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Tyree Wilson, and Devon Witherspoon. I suppose we could throw Anthony Richardson in the mix. But I wouldn’t waste my time expecting NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to call his name when the Bears are on the clock making a pick.
