The NFL Draft is one of THE key milestones in a popcorn-worthy off-season calendar, and the countdown is well and truly on to the 2023 edition.
In just over one month all 32 franchises will gather in Kansas City, Missouri for pro football’s annual talent contest. The coming-out party for the best college players in the United States.
The most important detail heading into the Draft is who picks where - particularly in Round 1 where the premium players all go off the board.
There are still gems to be had later as well, remember San Francisco selected QB Brock Purdy with the 262nd and final pick of the 2022 Draft. More on him later.
Here is where we stand with the order heading into the 2023 Draft. Must-know information for anybody betting on the NFL later this year.
Latest NFL Draft Order in 2023
We have already seen a huge change in the Round 1 order in recent days, with the Carolina Panthers pulling off a massive trade with the Chicago Bears to move up into that prized #1 overall slot. They are likely to take their quarterback of the future.
The latest betting has Ohio State QB C.J. Stroud as favourite to go at #1 overall, with Alabama signal caller Bryce Young just behind him. But right now, nothing is guaranteed and anything is possible.
The other big Round 1 news is that the Miami Dolphins have forfeited their pick for violating league rules around tampering.
Here is the latest order for Round 1 in 2023:
- Carolina Panthers (from Chicago)
- Houston Texans
- Arizona Cardinals
- Indianapolis Colts
- Seattle Seahawks (from Denver)
- Detroit Lions (from Los Angeles Rams)
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Atlanta Falcons
- Chicago Bears (from Carolina)
- Philadelphia Eagles (from New Orleans)
- Tennessee Titans
- Houston Texans (from Cleveland)
- New York Jets
- New England Patriots
- Green Bay Packers
- Washington Commanders
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Detroit Lions
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Seattle Seahawks
- Los Angeles Chargers
- Baltimore Ravens
- Minnesota Vikings
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- New York Giants
- Dallas Cowboys
- Buffalo Bills
- Cincinnati Bengals
- New Orleans Saints (from San Francisco through Miami and Denver)
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Kansas City Chiefs
Who has multiple first-round picks in 2023?
Four teams have two first-round picks each right now - the Houston Texans, the Seattle Seahawks, the Detroit Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles.
How does the NFL Draft order work?
Remember, the NFL is all about parity - or making sure teams have a level chance of success. So where a team picks in the Draft is based on their record the previous season. The really bad teams pick highest, with an immediate chance to improve their talent level. The Super Bowl winner picks last.
The order obviously can change with trades as teams look to move up or down. The collateral for trades is normally other draft picks or current NFL players.
For example, Seattle has an extra first-round pick this year for trading QB Russell Wilson to Denver while Detroit is in the same boat after sending Matthew Stafford to the Rams. It’s a similar story for Houston, which traded Deshaun Watson to Cleveland.
There are 7 rounds in the Draft, so the starting point is that every team has 7 picks. That of course then changes with trades impacting how many players they eventually select.
When does the 2023 NFL Draft start?
The 2023 Draft takes place over three nights in the plaza outside Union Station in Kansas City. The key dates for your diary are as follows:
Thursday April 27
- 8pm EST - Round 1
Friday April 28
- 7pm EST - Rounds 2 and 3
Saturday April 29
- Noon EST - Rounds 4-7
All of those above timings, remember, are US, so to work out the times in the UK, just add 5 hours. So Round 1 will start at 0100 Friday, Rounds 2 and 3 will start at midnight on Friday and Rounds 4-7 will start at 5pm on Saturday.
How to watch the NFL Draft on TV in the UK
Okay, so there are two main ways to watch the Draft on TV and the first one is via Sky Sports, which normally broadcasts the event live.
The second way is if you have an NFL Game Pass subscription - this would entitle you to watch the live feed from NFL Network.
Who is ‘Mr Irrelevant’ in the NFL Draft?
‘Mr Irrelevant’ is the name given to the player selected with the very final pick of each NFL Draft.
Like we said, the latest player to be saddled with that unfortunate title absolutely did not live up to it in 2022 as Brock Purdy led the San Francisco 49ers to the NFL Championship Game.
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