2023 NFL mock draft: Cowboys land WR, Lions land star QB prospect
20. Philadelphia Eagles: Bijan Robinson, RB, Texas
20. player. Scouting Report. RB. Bijan Robinson. 54. Pick Analysis. Texas
If you’ve already got your mind made up that you dislike running backs early on in the NFL Draft based on principle, you’ve already decided not to like Texas running back Bijan Robinson. And that’s a shame. Robinson is one of the most electrifying playmakers in college football right now and he almost helped Texas upset Alabama. As far as being a fit for modern NFL offenses, Robinson is perfect.
As far as the price to get him? Well, it’s going to cost you a top-20 pick. He’s that good. The Philadelphia Eagles are one team that I feel could justify a pick on a running back in round one. They are obviously a very run-heavy team and they also have multiple first-round picks. With his three-down abilities, Robinson would be another dynamic weapon for an offense that seems to have them growing on trees these days.
21. Cincinnati Bengals: Broderick Jones, OT, Georgia
OT. Broderick Jones. player. 56. Pick Analysis. 21. Scouting Report. Georgia
The Cincinnati Bengals are another team that’s a bit tough to project for next year’s draft at this point. We’ll have to see how their revamped offensive line holds up over the course of the 2022 season, but Joe Burrow was sacked a whopping seven times in the Bengals’ season-opening loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. That kind of stuff just can’t happen anymore.
The Bengals’ growth as a young team is going to be stunted by that kind of poor offensive line play, so hopefully things improve over the course of the season. If not, they’ll be back on the hunt for help in the 2023 offseason and in this 2023 NFL mock draft scenario, they get Georgia’s athletic left tackle prospect Broderick Jones. As a redshirt sophomore, Jones is barely draft eligible but if he can keep progressing this season he might be an early entry and a much higher pick than this.