NFL Network's Lance Zierlein releases first 2023 mock draft
Super Bowl LVII is almost here, which means the entire NFL landscape will shift into offseason mode come Monday morning.
The Super Bowl's arrival means the NFL Scouting Combine is just around the corner. Festivities in Indianapolis will begin on Monday, February 28.
Experts have already begun releasing their predictions for the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. The latest to do so is NFL Media draft analyst Lance Zierlein, who published his first mock draft of the year this week.
Zierlein predicted the Giants address the defensive side of the ball with the selection of Clemson linebacker Trenton Simpson at No. 25.
"Simpson has extremely rare speed as a linebacker," writes Zierlein. "The Giants know they need to put players on the field who can run and chase the Eagles for years to come."
Simpson played three seasons for the Tigers, totaling 187 tackles, 12.5 sacks, 22.5 tackles for loss, six pass breakups and three forced fumbles in his collegiate career.
As a freshman back in 2020, the linebacker amassed four sacks and 6.5 tackles for loss in just eight games. He followed that up with six sacks and 12.5 tackles for loss as a junior in 2021.
This past season, Simpson accumulated 77 tackles, 2.5 sacks, four tackles for loss, three pass breakups and two forced fumbles on 616 defensive snaps across 12 games, all of which he started. He earned a selection as Third-Team All-ACC, along with being named to the All-ACC Academic Team for the second consecutive year.
As of now, the Giants have just three inside linebackers under contract for next season, two of which (Cam Brown and Carter Coughlin) combined for less than 10 defensive snaps this past season. Rookie Micah McFadden, who played 39 percent of the team's defensive snaps at linebacker, is the third linebacker currently set to return in 2023.
NFL Media analyst Daniel Jeremiah updated his ranking of the top 50 prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft.
No. 50 Zach Charbonnet, RB, UCLA
No. 49 Jack Campbell, LB, Iowa
No. 48 John Michael Schmitz, IOL, Minnesota
No. 40 Keeanu Benton, DT, Wisconsin
No. 47 Kelee Ringo, CB, Georgia
No. 37 Steve Avila, IOL, TCU
No. 46 Hendon Hooker, QB, Tennessee
No. 45 Trenton Simpson, LB, Clemson
No. 44 Sam LaPorta, TE, Iowa
No. 43 Mazi Smith, DT, Michigan
No. 42 Jalin Hyatt, WR, Tennessee
No. 38 Luke Musgrave, TE, Oregon State
No. 39 Cody Mauch, OT, North Dakota State
No. 36 Bryan Bresee, DT, Clemson
No. 41 O'Cyrus Torrence, IOL, Florida
No. 35 BJ Ojulari, EDGE, LSU
No. 27 Emmanuel Forbes, CB, Mississippi State
No. 34 Joe Tippmann, IOL, Wisconsin
No. 32 Felix Anudike-Uzomah, EDGE, Kansas State
No. 31 Brian Branch, DB, Alabama
No. 30 Quentin Johnson, WR, TCU
No. 29 Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Alabama
No. 28 Keion White, EDGE, Georgia Tech
No. 26 Calijah Kancey, DT, Pittsburgh
No. 25 Will McDonald IV, EDGE, Iowa State
No. 33 Darnell Washington, TE, Georgia
No. 24 Deonte Banks, CB, Maryland
No. 21 Myles Murphy, EDGE, Clemson
No. 22 Zay Flowers, WR, Boston College
No. 20 Michael Mayer, TE, Notre Dame
No. 23 Joey Porter Jr., CB, Penn State
No. 17 Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Ohio State
No. 13 Nolan Smith, EDGE, Georgia
No. 19 Broderick Jones, OT Georgia
No. 16 Paris Johnson Jr., OT, Ohio State
No. 18 Darnell Wright, OT, Tennessee
No. 14 Lukas Van Ness, EDGE, Iowa
No. 15 Jordan Addison, WR, USC
No. 12 Will Levis, QB, Kentucky
No. 10 Christian Gonzalez, CB, Oregon
No. 11 Anthony Richardson, QB, Florida
No. 9 Dalton Kincaid, TE, Utah
No. 8 Peter Skoronski, OT, Northwestern
No. 7 C.J. Stroud, QB, Ohio State
No. 5 Devon Witherspoon, CB, Illinois
No. 6 Jalen Carter, DT, Georgia
No. 4 Tyree Wilson, EDGE, Texas Tech
No. 3 Bijan Robinson, RB, Texas
No. 2 Will Anderson Jr., EDGE, Alabama
No. 1 Bryce Young, QB, Alabama
