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| Wednesday, April 19, 2023 |
| Welcome to Wednesday's installment of the With the First Pick newsletter -- it's time for you to get your NFL Draft fix to kickstart your day. It's a more effective boost than coffee or that new all-natural energy drink in the cool can you've been wanting to try. |
| As for the newsletter itself, we've rebranded the Pick Six newsletter through the end of April. And I, CBS Sports NFL Draft analyst Chris Trapasso, will be with you every step of the way. This daily newsletter's sole purpose is to track everything transpiring in the NFL and spin it into a draft angle. |
| Before I begin, here's your daily reminder to tell all your buddies and that one uncle who's always texting you mock draft links to sign up for the With the First Pick newsletter. Just click here and share this link with them. |
| Today's NFL mock draft 🔮: Austin Ekeler traded to Eagles for seventh-rounder |
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| I started on this seven-round mock in the middle of last week. And it's finally live on CBSSports.com. I feel like Andy Dufresne in Shawshank. |
| Just like Ryan Wilson yesterday and Josh Edwards tomorrow, it features pick predictions for all 259 selections in the 2023 NFL Draft. For realism purposes, I included plenty of trades, including a seismic one near the end of the first round -- the Eagles swinging a monster trade while they're on the clock for the second straight year, this time snagging Ekeler from the Chargers for a late pick. |
| I also had the Chiefs replenishing their receiver room with a trio of wideout selections in Round 3, Round 4 and Round 7. |
| Some other notable prospect-team pairings: |
17. Pittsburgh Steelers - Jordan Addison, WR, USC
48. Detroit Lions - Trenton Simpson, LB, Clemson
74. Seattle Seahawks - Cedric Tillman, WR, Tennessee
136. Chicago Bears - Byron Young, EDGE, Tennessee
197. Miami Dolphins - Mo Ibrahim, RB, Minnesota |
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| 'With the First Pick' podcast 🎧: Tiers and clusters |
| The latest episode features Rick Spielman and Ryan Wilson discussing the method of utilizing tiers and clusters to rank players on a Big Board. It's not exactly a mainstream way to do things this time of year, but it's often utilized by teams and provides a different picture as to the level of prospect a team would be drafting every time it goes on the clock. |
| Rick and Ryan provide their thoughts on prospects by placing them in five separate tiers. It's a fun, insightful listen. |
| Teams with toughest decisions in Round 1 😬 |
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| CBS Sports staffer Jordan Dajani gave a detailed look at the five clubs with the most challenging choices to make during the first round next Thursday night. Yes, there are some obvious selections, like the Panthers at No. 1 overall. It's not like Jordan could write the article without Carolina, right? Anyway, here's what Jordan wrote on the Raiders, a team with a top 10 pick and plenty of options with the seventh pick. |
| "At No. 7 overall, the Raiders could go any number of different directions. If Will Levis falls to No. 7, do you take him? Do you take the first cornerback off the board, or do you take Jalen Carter or a pass rusher? Maybe the Raiders take an offensive tackle. There's a lot to mull over." |
| The Raiders have been arguably the most difficult team to peg in the eight million mocks I've done since the start of the football season. Ironically, they've gotten even harder to peg during the pre-draft process when many things crystalize for most clubs. |
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| Notable players, coaches, executives who'll be most impacted by the draft 👀 |
| Who's going to be impacted most by the draft? Good question. And Cody Benjamin gave the answers. While we do go into somewhat of a league-wide lull after ho-hum minicamps following the draft, there's often many behind-the-scenes decisions made about veteran players and their futures with their respective teams entering training camp. The same is true for executives after we can look back on a fresh draft class. |
| Cody mentioned Texans GM Nick Caserio in his piece, and his inclusion is perfect. The heat is on for Caserio. Here's what Cody wrote: |
| "Entering Year 3 atop Houston's front office, the ex-Patriots executive has yet to enjoy a single season with a proven answer at quarterback," and later wrote "Facing rumors of a looming split from the organization, the GM could instantly boost his stock by guaranteeing Houston enters 2023 with a promising new face of the franchise under center." |
| News & Notes 📝 |
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Cowboys' Stephon Jones on Bijan Robinson. Dallas' director of player personnel was asked about the Texas running back being possibly picked by the Cowboys if he were available at No. 26 overall. His response? "You never know." LET THE BIJAN TO COWBOYS RUMORS BEGIN. By the way, if Robinson was selected by the Cowboys, his jersey would be the highest selling among rookies right away. Jonathan Jones' first-round mock draft. Throwing another mock your way, because we're in prime, actually informative mock draft season, our CBS Sports NFL Insider is plugged in with the league and doesn't publish these often.
Trey Lance drawing trade interest. The 49ers quarterback, who was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 draft, has drawn trade inquiries from several teams looking into the young passer via a trade. Are we looking at a draft-day swap? |
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