Regardless, the best principle in drafting would always be picking all-pro caliber talent over fit. Most NFL franchises know how they can juggle the growth of their new picks and maintain proper roles. If they do pick based on name recall and star potential, the best options are at the quarterback position.

Here are the quarterbacks that have the best upside in this year’s NFL Draft.

NFL Draft 2023: Cream of the Crop From a Quarterback-heavy class

1. Bryce Young, Alabama Crimson Tide

Alabama has a huge hole to fill with Bryce Young declaring for the draft but that is for good reason. He broke multiple statistical records with the Roll Tide. These include the team’s single-season passing yards record (4,872 yards), single-season passing touchdowns (47 TDs), and career five touchdown games (5 games).

His accolades also do not fall short. Young is a Heisman Trophy winner in 2021, Sugar Bowl MVP in 2022, Manning Awardee in 2021, and a College Football Player of the Year Awardee. Arguably one of the most decorated players to make the transition to the professional leagues, Bryce is going to be either one of the top two picks.

Alabama’s QB1 is also not just good on paper — his game sense is the difference maker. His game characteristics involve swift defensive processing which makes him one of the more impressive playmakers. His body control is also something else given that he has minimal unnecessary movements in the pocket which makes him less prone to non-contact injuries. Overall, the Carolina Panthers or Houston Texans would surely be lucky to have him in their rotation.

2. C.J. Stroud, Ohio State Buckeyes

The debate for who goes first between C.J. Stroud and Bryce Young will only be settled once April 27 hits the calendar. However, a lot of draft experts project that Stroud will not translate well to the NFL. His accolades and statistics would disagree with those claims. He is Big Ten’s Graham-George Offensive Player of the Year in 2022, Griese-Brees Quarterback of the Year during the same year, and is a Heisman Trophy finalist.

The Buckeyes’ offensive mastermind has also broken almost every record for his alma mater and the Big Ten conference. Some of those include the single-season passing yards in Big Ten games (3,193 yds), single-season passing touchdowns in Big Ten games (34 TDs), Big Ten career passing efficiency (182.39),  Ohio State single-game passing yards (573 yds), Ohio State single-game passing touchdowns (6 TDs), and the Ohio State single-season completion percentage (71.9 PCT).

A mean man with a cannon for an arm, Stroud cannot go lower than being the 2nd pick in this draft. It will be the Texans’ loss if they do not take a chance on him.

3. Anthony Richardson, Florida Gators

The Florida Gators’ athletic quarterback set the team record for the longest rushing touchdown by a Florida when he rushed for 81 yards. That statistic alone should speak for what he can bring to an NFL roster. An elite passer out of the blitz that can bail out broken plays through his rushing game, Anthony Richardson is a physical specimen.

Totals of 1,116 rushing yards, 12 rushing touchdowns, 3,105 passing yards, and 24 passing touchdowns prove why he is the most versatile quarterback in this draft. Physically, he has the strength to overcome most pass rushers in the league. Mentally, he has great field awareness which allows him to find the open receiver swiftly or find a route for a quick first down.

Letting him slip past the lower top ten picks in the draft will be a regrettable choice given his massive upside.

Will Levis from Kentucky, Hendon Hooker out of Tennessee, Houston’s Clayton Tune, and even Jake Haener from Fresno State are also solid picks that are coming out of this draft. If there is anything this draft will be known for, it is the amount of talent that is prominent at quarterback.

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The problem that will have Red Auerbach rolling in his grave? Boston’s production drops significantly starting in the third quarter. Here’s why:

Celtics and Their Biggest Enemy — The Halftime Buzzer

The First Half

Joe Mazzulla‘s Celtics are known to be a jump-shooting and flare screen-heavy offense. It makes them one of the more perimeter-oriented teams in the NBA. With the exception of Robert Williams III, the C’s core offense involves good shooting big men with the likes of Al Horford, Luke Kornet, and even Jayson Tatum at times. Their guards also boast good scoring numbers, whether it’s Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart, or Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon.

This system made them the most successful first quarter team. After the first 12 minutes of play, Boston finishes with the third best points per game production (30.3). They also have the best point difference margin because the leads they build amount to 2.9 points on average more than their opponents. Their defense also does not slouch because they only allow 27.4 points for their matchups — that’s good enough to rank them third in defensively in the league.

Boston is at the peak of their offensive powers in the second quarter. Jayson has the 3rd most points per game in the 2nd quarter and Jaylen is 10th. Collectively, the C’s have the 2nd best offense in all of basketball with 30.2 points per game in this quarter. The setback would be that they start declining on the defensive side of the court. While they still rank high, they fall to seventh place with 28.1 points allowed. This is where Joe Mazzulla’s offense shines because they start to outshoot the opponents more and favor having more effort on offense. It leads to the squad having the second best offense in the first half — only trailing a historically good Sacramento Kings team.

Fall-Off

The third quarter has always been Boston’s weakness. A reason why they got beaten in the NBA Finals by the Golden State Warriors was that they lost by an average margin of 7.17 points in that time period. With the exception of game five as a statistical outlier, they were losing by an average margin of 10.8 points which cost them the series.

This regular season has been the same story. From being second in offensive production, the team falls to ninth by only scoring 29.3 points per game. They are also ninth in points allowed which makes the fall-off in defense more evident. In their first two playoff games, the Celtics have not won a 3rd quarter. The Hawks outshot them 20-31 in Game one and, despite being tightly contested, Atlanta did the same in Game two by garnering 32 points to Boston’s 29. These were games where Trae Young was inefficient and could not score which is concerning given that other teams’ stars have the ability to shoot more consistently.

Joe Mazzulla has yet to patch up these woes given that he is still inheriting the same problems that Ime Udoka faced. Although the team is losing by a lesser margin during his stint, they could be getting more consistent in their balance on the court by avoiding drop coverages that hunt their unathletic bigs like Sam Hauser, who the Hawks continue to hunt as per Quin Snyder‘s offensive plan.

It does not help that the offensive decay becomes worse in the forth quarter. Their offense is the seventh worst in the league when closing games. Having only scored 26.6 points per game in the season and 22.3 points in their last three matchups, Boston’s offense continues to go downhill. A lot of it is attributed to fatigue which leads to poor shot selection due to the team exerting a lot of energy on both ends for all of the other quarters. Closing tightly-contested games has been a huge hindrance on why this team could not secure having the best record in the NBA despite their high net rating.

The Boston Celtics are favorites to win the NBA title this year. Despite how great a team with a Defensive Player of the Year, two First-Team All-NBA talents, a Sixth Man of the Year, and a Coach of the Year is, great teams have their Achilles’ heel — this team is no exception.

If they try to fix these woes in the coming months, banner 18 is coming for the winningest basketball franchise in the world.

Main Photo: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

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These paydays often come at risk given that some players’ production regress immediately after. For others, it can springboard their performance due to the other incentives attached to every deal. This deal has yet to show its long-term dividends, unlike other absurdly huge contracts in the league.

Let’s dissect whether these contracts were a bang for a buck or a bank buster for franchises.

Largest Contracts in NFL History — Worth It?

1. Patrick Mahomes – $477 Million for 10 years

The longest contract signed in the league belongs to the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback. Patrick Mahomes got this deal in 2020 immediately after they won Super Bowl LIV. This could have been seen as a panic move if it were any other player but Mahomes had proven why he was worth the cash.

Over the next three years, he would lead the squad to two Super Bowl appearances. One of which followed immediately after signing his deal. Mahomes had to face Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during Super Bowl LV, where they lost. They would then lose to Joe Burrow‘s Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Championship in 2021. For the 2022-2023 campaign, he had his redemption season where he would win the Season MVP award, Super Bowl LVII MVP, and another chip for Kansas City.

It is safe to say that the Chiefs money was well-spent in the early years of this extension.

2. Josh Allen – $258 Million for six years

Throwing 18,397 yards and 138 touchdowns for a career with 4,283 of those happening in a single season can certainly get someone a big bag of cash. That is what happened for Josh Allen as the Buffalo Bills trust him to lead this team to victory until 2028.

Before his arrival, the Bills had one of the longest post-season droughts which occurred from 1999 to 2017. With his promising cannon of an arm and fast feet to rush on his own, he has become a specimen of what a versatile quarterback should be. Ever since they had their established quarterback, the Bills had not missed the post-season. Moreover, Josh Allen has been of the consistent front-runners for the MVP award in the past three years. NFL executives even preferred him over Aaron Rodgers in the 2022 race.

With all of this said the Bills got their wish: a superstar quarterback that they could build on top of. However, a season award and more post-season success, even a Super Bowl, would be the only solid pieces of evidence to say that the deal was a bang for Buffalo’s buck.

3. Russell Wilson – $245 Million for five years

Denver hoped for a star to lead them back to Super Bowl contention when they gave Russell Wilson this deal. While it may be early to conclude, the drop-off has been drastic for the former Super Bowl champion. For comparison, his quarterback rating is at its lowest at 84.4 which includes career lows for touchdowns (16), and touchdown percentage (3.3).

He is also getting career highs but in the wrong places. Statistics like getting sacked this season the most in his career (55) and loss of yards per sack (368 yards total, 6.69 per sack) have been at their peaks this season.

The eye test has been even worse with more unforced interceptions coming his way and no playoff appearances since 2020. It is but a question as to why the Denver Broncos gave him this expensive of a contract at 34 years old. With more years to regress as most athletes of his age, this contract may go down as the most terrible sunken cost for an NFL franchise. However, observers may never know the future — if he goes down to age gracefully like Tom Brady.

Main Image: Michael Chow/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK

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Here are the three draft aspirants that the Baltimore Ravens may pursue:

NFL: Draft Prospects Who Fit the Ravens’ System

1. Tre’vius Hodges-Tomlinson, Cornerback

The 5-foot-9 player from TCU is one of the better defensive prospects in the 2023 Draft class. Tre’vius Hodges-Tomlinson‘s game is characterized by his great route coverage and agility. These skills have allowed him to win the Jim Thorpe Award in 2022, and get hailed as First Team All-American in the same year.

Statistics of 15 passes defended, and opponents only getting 34.6% in pass completion when he is on the targeted receiver prove why he can do a lot on defense. Allowing him to play alongside Marlon Humphrey would create a matchup nightmare for opposing receivers.

Baltimore has struggled with single-man coverage in the 2022-2023 season. This TCU Horned Frog would be the best fit given that he is versatile on running routes. More than that, his tackles and steals are violent to the point where the offense could feel that their wind has been knocked off of them.

2. Jaxson Kirkland, Offensive Lineman

Patrick Mekari and the Ravens’ offensive line need more help in pass protection — the two-time John P. Angel Linemen of the Year awardee can surely do the job. Standing at 6-foot-7 and 310 pounds, this Washington Husky has one of the best run-game timing among all draftees.

Jaxson Kirkland‘s game is all anchored around his above-average field awareness and low center of gravity. This allows him to defend against great pass-rushers in the league. Baltimore can use better coverage for Lamar Jackson to buy him more time in the pocket.

A new tackle would help the flock go deeper as most of their linemen are approaching their early 30s which is when their bodies catch up to them. Fresh legs in their rotation would add more explosiveness to pass protection. With Jaxson’s game sense, the Ravens’ offense can be more smooth.

3. Will McDonald IV, Defensive End

Fresh out of Iowa State, this 6-foot-4 player was consecutively part of the All-BIG 12 team from 2020 to 2022. Will McDonald‘s hands are vicious when he goes all-in to strip the ball from the quarterback. Moreover, his athleticism only allows for a small margin of error that often makes it hard to throw a pass.

Totals of 39.5 tackles for loss and a flat 33 sacks for his college tenure make him a defensive menace. With the amount of potential he bears, Defensive Coordinator Mike Macdonald will surely have a blast when drafting his sets on defense.

A lot of Will’s draft stock comes from his potential and vicious nature. Think of it as — if Patrick Beverley were in the NFL, that would be the expectation for him. The kid plays with a lot of heart and passion which allows him to be peskier when attacking the opponent’s passes.

Only time will tell if the Baltimore Ravens do go with these draft picks. Regardless, the flock is alive more than ever.

Main Image: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

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