The top 5 wide receivers in the upcoming 2023 NFL Draft
In a league where it is all about your ability to throw the football it is impossible to have too many good wide receivers as this year’s NFL Draft will show.
The wide receiver position is becoming a more and more important position in the NFL today. Every top team has a top receiving target. Some of those targets are tight ends, but most of them are wide receivers.
Here are the top five wide receiver prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft.
5. Zay Flowers – Boston College
Zay Flowers is a 5’9 wide receiver out of Boston College. Boston College went 3-9 last year, but it was not because of Flowers. He had quite the year and he will leave as the all-time leader in receptions (200), receiving yards (3,056), and receiving touchdowns (29).
He is exactly what you would expect out of a 5’9 receiver. Fast and quick. Those two abilities allowed him to have a play of 30+ yards in 11 out of 12 games this season. He is a big play threat, but there are some concerns.
He is really small. There are not too many players around the 5’9 height who are number one options in NFL offenses. There is only one, and his name is Tyreek Hill. There is also concern with the length of his arms.
His arms measure at 29.25 inches. In a league where all the windows are small, his window is even smaller.
Arm length is not something people talk about often, so to put it in perspective Greg Dortch, you do not even know who that is, had 461 receiving yards last year. He was the leading receiver for wide receivers with arms under 30 inches.
Flowers could definitely make it in the league as a big play threat. His college tape shows that, but there are definitely concerns about his lack of size.
The next two top WRs should land in the middle of the first round of this month’s NFL Draft.
4. Jalin Hyatt – Tennessee
Jalin Hyatt is a wide receiver coming out of the University of Tennessee who had a major breakout season in 2022.
He jumped from 21 receptions for 226 yards and two touchdowns to win the Biletnikoff Award last year.
I want to rank him higher, but it is hard to tell if the success he had was because of himself or the offensive genius of head coach Josh Heupel.
Hyatt’s biggest attribute is his speed. Many of his touchdown receptions were him just running by people. It is hard to just run by people in the NFL.
Either way Hyatt projects as a player who can succeed as a deep threat in the NFL. The questions are all about his ability to do anything else. If he can, he could be a star.
3. Jordan Addison – USC
Jordan Addison is a wide receiver coming out of the University of Southern California. Addison started his career at Pitt where he had a lot of success. He won the Biletnikoff Award as a sophomore at Pitt before he transferred to USC in his final year.
Fox Sports has a great breakdown of his strengths and weaknesses. Here are the cliff notes.
He is already a good route runner. Most of the time when a receiver makes the leap from college to the NFL route running is the biggest thing that needs to be developed.
He is a good athlete with good start-stop ability and quickness. Those two abilities are what allow him to be a good route runner.
The route running paired with the good hands and body control make him an enticing prospect.
There are some concerns about his strength and weight. He can be pushed around in press coverage and against bigger cornerbacks. For him to truly thrive in the NFL he will have to add some strength to deal with the press coverage and bigger cornerbacks in the NFL.