Category: 2023 Player Profiles

STRENGTHS
Joey Porter is a pure shutdown cornerback…there I said it, deal with it. He is long and smooth and has the makeup speed needed that allows him to take calculated chances to intercept the ball when he is in single coverage. He is smart and understands zone coverages and has the hands to ball hawk. Joey has the size teams are looking for in their corners. He has the speed, agility, and high football IQ to lock down any size receiver because of his ability to understand routes and anticipate angles. Joey is aggressive and that can be a gift and a curse but don’t mistake his aggressiveness in coverage for panic. No, no, no, …it’s calculated, and meant to intimated and get into the head of his opponents and force them into making mistakes. I have no doubt that Joey will become one of the Gemstones of defense, for the team that selects him.

CONCERNS
Well, I guess you could nitpick all you want but I just don’t have the time or energy to do it. Joey is not perfect…there, is that good nitpicking for you?

BOTTOM LINE; 1.40
If your team is looking for a shutdown corner and doesn’t need a quarterback, don’t be surprised if their first pick in this draft is Joey. It’s that old question, do sack’s come from corners shutting down receivers, giving time for Edge Rushes to make the sacks, or…do interceptions come from edge rushes being in the backfield and causing quarterbacks into making bad decisions? It all depends on how a team values the positions of Quarterback, Shutdown Corner, and Edge Rusher. Looking at the film, I’m not sure there is a more athletic and talented player in this draft than Joey but I do know, there are teams that have needs, and those needs will affect at what point Joey will be selected. I call him Joey (The Gem) Porter because he will become one of the Gemstones of a defense of the team that selects him.

STRENGTHS
Bryan has excellent overall size and talent for coaches to work with for, the next level. He has the quick burst and solid feet to be used in a 1-gap attack type of defensive line scheme. He is a disrupter on third downs and can be used inside or outside rushing the passer on your defensive line, disrupting and flushing quarterbacks out of the pocket. Bryan has the size and athleticism to be used in multiple positions in a 4/3 defensive alignment or a 3/4 defensive alignment. On passing downs, he can play on the nose or be used as an edge rusher lining up on the outside shoulder of the offensive guard. As I said before there is a lot of talent to work with and as long as Bryan has the work ethic then he should become a core player for the team that selects him.

CONCERNS
Bryan, I suspect because of his injuries to his shoulder and knee, is not in NFL football shape right now. He struggles big time against the run, isn’t able to disengage quickly, and gives up his chest allowing himself to be handled by guards once they get their hands on him. His lateral agility is questionable and along with poor change of direction skills, he struggles to finish once he gets into the opponent’s backfield. Bryan will struggle to stop the run in a 2-gap system because right now he lacks the correct techniques to dominate and demand double teams.

BOTTOM LINE: 3.94
I know Bryan will test well once he gets to the combine but looking at his film and taking into consideration his injuries, I see a rotation defensive lineman with a lot of talent but lacking the techniques to be effective in every down and distance. Bryan’s recruitment reputation has brought him the attention to be considered as a top defensive player. That being said, I’m sure the closer we get to the draft that he will live up to that reputation with his workouts. If he can play as well as he workouts then Bryan can become a core player on defense for the team that selects him. Inside pass-rushers are at a premium so you never know at what point in this draft Bryan could be selected in.

STRENGTHS
Max is the type of quarterback who is never out of a game no matter what the score is. He is an athletic quarterback with the size, talent, and high football IQ to play more than one position on offense or defense but, QB is the position he will impact the most. Max has excellent speed to make third downs and move the chains and score on the ground in the Red Zone. He also has a strong arm and throws with good accuracy and velocity to make all the needed throws all over the field and in the Red Zone. Max has very good overall throwing mechanics and when given the time in the pocket will make the difficult throw to bring your team from behind. He is what I call “Farm Strong” and coach smart and ready to take on any challenge an opponent or coach might throw at him. He is an excellent leader and has shown that he will do anything to win a game making the players around him better. Max has “franchise quarterback” written all over his play on the field.

CONCERNS
There are former medical concerns that will scare some teams into overthinking the process. It could be the issue that will make Max slip a little in this draft but not too far I suspect. He also will play wild at times trying to make plays he should not be trying to make and leaving the pocket too soon. He has to continue to protect the ball and not try to be the hero all the time.

BOTTOM LINE: 1.44
Maxwell Duggan’s story, and the way he plays the game, is almost a carbon copy of Bills Josh Allen. He is a farm boy, played all the sports in high school, was coached by his father, comes from a small town, and has been doubted all through college. He even lost his QB position at the beginning of the 2022 season, similar to Josh who after high school, could not find a college that wanted him to play for them. Max might be a bit smaller and doesn’t have a bazooka for an arm like Josh but, he is as strong running the ball and might be more consistent with his mechanics throwing the ball than Josh was when he first came out. The key attribute for both is the ability to lead their teammates from behind, making plays running and throwing, that other QB’s won’t even try to make much less be successful in making them. Max has learned to take care of the ball and although he will throw the ball into situations that most others would not, his accuracy in putting the ball where only his receiver can catch it is excellent. Max is my style of quarterback, he’s athletic enough to manipulate the pocket to extend plays and make third-down yardage. He is smart and accurate throwing the ball but not afraid to take a chance and he plays the game with the passion and leadership skills to “will” his teammates to a win when everyone else thought it’s not possible. Some smart team is going to get themselves a hell of a quarterback when they select Max…believe it.

STRENGTHS
Trent reminds me a lot of Buffalo Bills linebacker Matt Milano. He is a dynamic open-field linebacker with a high football IQ to play multiple linebacker positions in any style of defense. Trent is the type of linebacker who has the speed to go any place on the field in coverage as well as attacking the line of scrimmage. He has good size and is an excellent open-field tackler. Tackling for loss, coverage, and open field tackles is how Trent will impact and be one of your top defensive players. He is perfect as an outside linebacker in a 4/3 defense and is perfect for the new 4/2/5 defenses some teams are playing now. Trent’s speed, quickness, size, high football IQ, and instincts will allow the team that selects him to use him in different positions and in every down and distance situation. If you have to nickname Trent as Bart…because he is smart like Bart, and will do things to get the other team in trouble just like Bart Simpson does. It’s a no-brainer, Trenton (Bart) Simpson.

CONCERNS
Trent does have an ankle injury and that needs to be addressed before the draft. If some teams feel he needs surgery then that could affect his draft status or…it could be leaked that it’s worse than it is and that could affect his draft status. Trent is an open field run to the play, type of linebacker and not a meet-the-block, shed, and tackle-in-the-hole linebacker and that could make some teams feel that he is strictly a systems linebacker who might not fit their system and that would affect his draft status. Also, some teams do not value the linebacker position as high as others positions and that will affect Trent’s draft status too.

BOTTOM LINE: 1.47
Do I value positions over other positions when selecting a player in the draft? The answer is yes but…do I overlook a talented player at a position and draft another position with a less impacting or talented player…no, that’s stupid drafting. Trent is a multi-position player so suggesting I would pass on selecting him because I might need a cornerback rated behind him and I don’t need a linebacker because I’m “set” at the linebacker position, seems to me to be overthinking the process. I do see that type of thinking if Trent was not a multi-position type of player. Please, that needs to be understood before you send the Hells Angels gang at me. My point is Trent is an exception because of his flexibility to play more than one position. He can play all three linebacker positions, all the safety positions, and even play in the slot in coverages against Tight Ends and bigger slot receivers. Trent (Bart) Simpson is an exception to any position rule and value a team might believe in.

STRENGTHS
Will is an explosive Edge Rusher/Defensive End with excellent strength and power to play in any style of defensive front. He does an excellent job setting the edge against the run and can play in a 1-gap or 2-gap system. His size, play style, and explosiveness on the field remind’s me a lot of Former Cowboys/49ers Charles Haley and for you younger Draftniks, Steelers T.J. Watt. He is so powerful and in spite of his lack of positional height, his college team will use him as a defensive tackle in goal-line situations and will move him inside on situational passing third downs. Will might be one of the best Edge Rushers coming out that uses excellent hand techniques to defeat his opponent when pass-rushing. He shows excellent leadership skills through his mature play on the field and I suspect this maturity also reflects the same off the field. Will, could easily be selected as the first player in this draft by many teams who are in the hunt for one of the top Defensive players in this draft.

CONCERNS
After a 2020 season when Will’s play on the field reminded me a lot of Charles Haley, teams decided to game plan against him, and although he still got double digits sacks and plenty of tackles you could see the frustration in his overall play. That being said, it should not affect his status in this draft because I suspect his workouts and interviews will be outstanding.

BOTTOM LINE: 1.40
Teams game planned and ran away from Will and that’s why he was moved inside in some situations to allow him to help out against the run and on passing downs to nullify teams running and rolling out, away from him when he just played on the Edge. When I saw Alabama using him inside in goal-line situations that’s when I knew this guy had remarkable talent and leadership skills. I did see a difference in his play from years before but I also saw an increase in his team play, scheme play, and his leadership skills. I saw a more well-rounded player who decided that stats was not everything. Will is projected to be an impact player at the next level and although this year his stats were not as good as past years, his play was just as impacting for his college team. I believe, the team that selects him will get a Charles Haley/T.J. Watt type of impact player and that should be good enough for all 32 teams to consider him as a top pick in this draft.

STRENGTHS
Bryce is a sneaky-good, athletic quarterback. Every time I watch Bryce play he does something in the game that shocks me, either mentally or athletically that I never thought he would be able to do. He has good to excellent arm strength and throws the ball with the needed velocity and excellent accuracy in the red zone to make the unique play. Bryce has surprising athletic talent to make a first down, manipulate the pocket, extend plays, and make difficult throws on the run with accuracy. He has a high football IQ and the overall talent to make the players around him better. Bryce is one of the best quarterbacks in this draft and his play on the field reminds me a lot of former Saints Drew Brees because of his ability to keep reinventing himself from game to game.

CONCERNS
For those teams that overthink the draft process this quarterback’s size and lack of bulk will deter them from thinking about Bryce as a potential franchise quarterback. It will be Bryce’s lack of bulk and possible ability to increase that bulk, to take the pounding at the next level. They are not wrong because this year alone (as of this writing) there have been over 55 quarterbacks who have started for 32 teams because of injuries. Trust me when I say weight and bulk-wise, all of those 55 quarterbacks are bigger than Bryce is.

BOTTOM LINE: 1.81
There is no doubt in my mind that Bryce has the potential to be a starting and franchise quarterback for the team that selects him. The question is, can he stay on the field? I think Bryce is smart enough to adjust but the facts are, he will get hit and get hit as he has never gotten hit before. So, the big question is, how many times will he be on the sidelines trying to recover? Bryce always seems to make a play with his legs or arm which surprises me and makes me realize that we haven’t seen all of this guy’s football talent. He will make a throw I didn’t think he had the arm strength to make or a throw from a different angle I never thought he had that type of arm talent to do. Then when he is flushed from the pocket he shocks me with speed, that I never saw, or a throw on the run that I didn’t know he could do. He doesn’t ever seem to force his talents into the game plan until it is absolutely needed and I think that’s what makes his play surprising and uniquely different from game to game. Bryce is listed as 6’0” and 194lbs. But he has small shoulders and a small chest. It doesn’t look like his body type will handle becoming bigger. That being said there always are exceptions to the “you have to have a big QB rule”. Drew Brees was 6’0” 209. Russel Wilson is 5’11” 215. Both played in many games and won Super Bowls and very rarely missed games. Think about that when the “experts,” tell you Bryce is too small.

STRENGTHS
CJ Stroud has the athletic talent and High Football IQ, to become a franchise quarterback for the team that selects him. He can make all the throws for the next level with excellent velocity to be effective in the red zone. CJ has excellent size and although he likes to play from the pocket he does an excellent job manipulating the pocket and resetting, to make the needed accurate throw that will move the chains. When he needs to leave the pocket, he can make the difficult throw, with accuracy also. When C.J. throws from the pocket, his ball reminds me a lot of how Joe Flaco throws, a strong arm, a smooth motion, and good velocity, but at the same time, an easy ball to catch. C. J. plays with good maturity, decision-making, and with excellent leadership skills.

CONCERNS
For me, there are no really big concerns, but the “experts” will start with trying to downgrade him because, he did not play in the SEC, or he comes from a program that has not been successfully producing quarterbacks lately. He plays with excellent talent around him and is not under adverse situations enough and he doesn’t bring his team from behind in the big games. When you hear this nitpicking by the “expert” media and so-called “inside” sources remember this…When you see the obvious…you draft the obvious and then, you coach the obvious. It is not smart to nit-pick yourself out of selecting the obvious.

BOTTOM LINE: 1.47
CJ has all of the athletic talent needed to play at a high level for the team that selects him. That doesn’t mean he is perfect and you can throw him on the field and he will not make mistakes or struggle to win games. It does mean he will have to be coached very much like Jalen Hurts needed to be coached when he came out. CJ is a better overall thrower than Jalen was coming out and unlike Jalen, C.J. prefers to work from the pocket. That means he will have to learn to go through his progressions quicker and make decisions quicker, like any pocket passer coming out. With the right coaching, C.J. will develop into a franchise quarterback, but others might think differently. We shall see.

STRENGTHS
Hendon is without a doubt the most athletically, talented, thrower of the ball quarterback, in this draft. He has excellent arm strength with unique accuracy to make all the throws all over the field, against any style of defense, using the whole route tree. Hendon shows on film the athletic talent to move well in the pocket and run the ball when necessary to move the chains or score touchdowns in the red zone. In spite of his athleticism, he is a proven pocket passer who can extend a play, throwing the ball from different angles as well as resetting and throwing the ball with accuracy. Hendon can also throw the ball with accuracy on the run and this makes him dangerous inside or outside of the pocket. Hendon is what all 32 teams are looking for in a potential franchise quarterback because he plays with the instincts and moxie to make a play when there is no play to make.

CONCERNS
Two issues that might set him back for teams who overthink the Draft process. He has a knee injury that might keep him from working out and was in an offense that did the play-calling and thinking before the snap for him.

BOTTOM LINE: 1.43
Hendon will have to get up to speed on reading defenses in the NFL but doesn’t every quarterback coming out have that as an issue? Not to mention, just because he was in an ego-driven coach-controlled offense that doesn’t mean that Hendon doesn’t have the ability to think for himself on the field. He shows the ability to see the whole field after the ball is snapped, throwing to the open receiver or check it down, so what else does he really need to show, some sort of Whiteboard BS, just to impress teams when he is not on the field? I say, look at the film and if you can’t see the potential then so be it. Maybe it’s you that has a problem recognizing talent when you see it. Oh, and by the way, if you can’t accept a knee injury that will need rehab while he learns the playbook, I really think you need to change jobs. Like I always say…when you see the obvious, you draft the obvious, you don’t nit-pick it to death.

STRENGTHS
Paris is an extremely athletic offensive lineman. He has excellent size and wing span to go along with his quick feet and excellent lateral agility. He plays with just enough of a competitive, nasty attitude that shows the needed leadership skills to protect the blind side of your franchise quarterback. Paris really likes to go out to the second level or be used on sweeps and screens in the open field. When watching Paris on film, blocking for sweeps and screens, you can see the drool coming out of his mouth, waiting to make an open field block on a smaller linebacker, safety, or cornerback. Paris has the athleticism of a Tight End, in fact, he is more athletic than most of the backup Tight Ends in the NFL right now. He is big, strong, nasty, and athletic and plays one of the most important positions on the offensive line protecting the blind side of most team’s franchise quarterbacks. If I needed a Left tackle, I would not hesitate to pick him at ANY point in this draft.

CONCERNS
Paris is tall, so against a bull rush he will struggle and can get out leveraged but for Paris, that will just be a technique issue to correct. As with most O-linemen coming out, and because he is so tall, Paris will need to improve his overall strength in his lower and upper body.

BOTTOM LINE: 1.43
So many offensive tall tackles are told they have to hunker down and gain more strength in their lower body to deal with the bull rush. I say screw that, because against a taller player a bull rush is more about leverage than strength. After all, a smaller player already has the leverage advantage. So, what does the taller player need to do? I say, don’t go strength against strength, the taller player either pushes down on the smaller player’s shoulders and falls on him or the taller player pushes one of the smaller players shoulder’s, turning his shoulders and making the smaller player lose balance and strength because he doesn’t have both feet under him to push. I don’t think that Paris, needing to learn one move or technique better, would be a reason to not select him high in this draft anyway. Paris is way too athletic to think that a bull rush is going to defeat him and put your franchise quarterback in harm’s way. After all, if your franchise quarterback and Offensive Coordinator, can’t see his Left Tackle being overwhelmed with a bull rush and adjust, then you don’t have a franchise quarterback or a very good Offensive Coordinator. As far as Paris being considered as the very first pick in this draft? For me, it would depend on if I needed a quarterback or not. If not a quarterback then why not a pure Left Tackle?