2023 NFL Mock Draft: Trey Lance, Aaron Rodgers find new homes in three-round projections
There are several fascinating quarterback movement dramas with six days until the 2023 NFL draft begins. Aaron Rodgers, Lamar Jackson, and Trey Lance all might be finding new teams sooner than later if the draft is the tipping point for all of those potential trades, which you think it would be.
In the case of Aaron Rodgers, for the purposes of this mock draft, he gets the move to the Jets that he wanted. In return, the Packers get New York’s 2023 13th overall pick, and a conditional 2024 second-round pick that could conditionally bump up to a first based on certain stipulations, like Rodgers playing football in 2024 and beyond as opposed to going on some sort of vision quest.
Here, we’ll say that Lamar Jackson and the Ravens will eventually come to terms on an agreement that will keep Jackson in Baltimore, though that situation is far from stable at this point — and this could be reflected in my next mock draft as it was in my last one — in this case, conducted with my lovely and talented “4-Down Territory” comrade, Kyle Madson.
As for Trey Lance and the 49ers… well, this was the guy that San Francisco mortgaged three first-round picks to select with the third pick in the 2021 draft, only to find that due to Lance’s injury situation, 2022 Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy was actually far more relevant for Kyle Shanahan’s offense. Things have fallen for Lance to the point where Shanahan has said that Purdy is his starter for the 2023 season, and Lance is left to battle for the backup job with Sam Darnold. who was selected by the Jets with the third overall pick in the 2018 draft.
Maybe never get selected with the third pick in any draft if you want things to go well for you with the 49ers, I guess.
In any event, given that new Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans got his current gig after a spectacular stint as San Francisco’s defensive coordinator, he’s more than familiar with Lance’s potential. And given the fact that the Texans need all the help they can get, roster-wise, let’s say that Houston is able to pry Lance away from the 49ers for the 33rd, 65th, and 73rd picks in this draft.
That gives the Texans flexibility at the top of the draft to go get premier players at other positions as well as a potential franchise quarterback, and the 49ers now actually have real estate in this draft before the 99th pick. We’ll call that a win-win, though punting on a guy you gave that much up for this soon after you did it is hardly a win for Shanahan and his group.
With these marquee trades in mind, and with the benefit of our position list analysis mostly in the barn and our Top 50 big board up, it’s time for a three-round projection, six days before the draft begins.
