It's NFL Scouting Combine Week, and the "With The First Pick" crew is here to dish out all the insight needed to be fully prepared for when the 2023 NFL Draft kicks off April 27. With the NFL becoming more of a passing league by the season, here are some of CBS Sports draft analyst Ryan Wilson's and former Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman's breakdowns and comparisons for a few of the class's best pass-catchers.
An under-the-radar trait
Everyone knows about how NFL wide receivers need to have great hands and awesome route-running ability as well as solid size and speed. However, Spielman -- who spent 10 seasons as the Vikings general manager from 2012-2021 -- identified a characteristic that isn't as discussed in the larger draft narrative each spring, thanks in part to the Vikings' analytics team: social maturity.
"One of the key traits in the psychological testing for receiver to have success is social maturity off the field," Spielman said. "Every Pro Bowler at the position scored highly in the social maturity aspect of it. That's something I wouldn't have guessed in a million years until analytics was able to point that out to us."
Player Comparisons
Ohio State WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba
In the 2022 Rose Bowl that was played at the end of the 2021 college football season between No. 11 Utah and No. 6 Ohio State, then-sophomore wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba had the best receiving performance ever in a bowl game: 347 receiving yards (a single-game bowl record) and three receiving touchdowns on 15 catches in the Buckeyes' 48-45 win against the Utes. Even though he was limited to three games during his junior season in 2022 while battling a hamstring injury, Smith-Njigba still profiles as one of the better receivers in his draft class.
First-round mock draft projections
| Ryan Wilson | Chris Trapasso | Josh Edwards | Kyle Stackpole | Garrett Podell | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Team | Giants | Bills | N/A | Chargers | Chargers |
Pick | 25 | 27 | N/A | 21 | 21 |
Rick Spielman: Adam Thielen (Vikings)
"I don't know how big Smith-Njigba is, but I think he's going to be around 6-foot, 200 pounds [at the combine]. Adam was roughly the same size," Spielman said. (The Vikings currently list Thielen at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, while Ohio State lists Smith-Njigba at 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds].
"Both of them are excellent route-runners [and] catch the ball extremely well. If they're going to get open down the field, they're probably going to have to use their route-running ability. By that I mean maybe putting a double-move on a corner in order to get him to bite in order to get separation downfield. Extremely tough when they're coming across the middle, when they hang on to the ball when they know they're going to whacked. That's why I had the comparison between the two."
Ryan Wilson: Robert Woods (free agent)
"I don't hate it," Wilson said in reaction to Spielman's comp to his former player. "I had Robert Woods out of USC. He's a tough player, he's not a No. 1. I don't know if Jaxon Smith-Njigba is going to be a No. 1 at the next level. I think Robert Woods has exceeded expectations after perhaps initially not. I think he's gotten better. He's quietly a really good receiver. I don't know if Jaxon Smith-Njigba is ever going to be [his former college teammates] Garrett Wilson or Chris Olave. They've only played one year, but they've been really good for their respective teams [the New York Jets and New Orleans Saints]. I'm going to go with Robert Woods."
Spielman: "I'll agree with you on that. That's a pretty good one."
USC WR Jordan Addison
Addison was THE wide receiver in college football in 2021, winning the Biletnikoff Award while co-leading the NCAA in receiving touchdowns (17) and ranking fourth in receiving yards (1,593) in his sophomore season at Pittsburgh. Following his quarterback Kenny Pickett's departure to the NFL, Addison hit the road, too, transferring to USC to team up with quarterback Caleb Williams and head coach Lincoln Riley. His numbers declined as he missed three games with an injury, but Addison still provided plenty of big plays in 2022.
First-round mock draft projections
| Ryan Wilson | Chris Trapasso | Josh Edwards | Kyle Stackpole | Garrett Podell | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Team | Packers | Texans | Seahawks | Texans | Ravens |
Pick | 15 | 12 | 20 | 12 | 22 |
Rick Spielman: DeVonta Smith (Eagles)
"[Addison] is a little taller than 5-7... I think he's going to measure 5-10, 5-11, which is tall enough, but [he's] very thin," Spielman said. "I think he has excellent speed, at least on the tapes that I've watched. I'm anxious to see what he runs [in the 40-yard dash]. That's why I kind of compare him to a DeVonta Smith. [Addison] didn't have the same kind of overall production this year that DeVonta had when he came out of Alabama [Smith won the Heisman Trophy]. I saw a linear, thin receiver with excellent speed, and he has enough elusiveness after the catch, so that why I came up with that comparison."
Notre Dame TE Michael Mayer
Michael Mayer was college football's premier tight end during his three-season career at Notre Dame, leading all tight ends in catches (180) and receiving yards (2,099) from 2020-22. His all-around skill set as a blocker and a pass-catcher make him the 2023 NFL Draft's most complete tight end.
First-round mock draft projections
| Ryan Wilson | Chris Trapasso | Josh Edwards | Kyle Stackpole | Garrett Podell | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Team | Jaguars | N/A | Lions | Packers | Packers |
Pick | 24 | N/A | 18 | 15 | 15 |
Ryan Wilson: Mark Andrews (Ravens)
"Great season, one of my favorite players in terms of just being a football guy, he fits that mold," Wilson said. "He's just so good. This was a hard comp for me because it's hard to find a guy who does all the things he does. He's more of a throwback I think, so I went with [Baltimore Ravens tight end] Mark Andrews, who wasn't a Day 1 guy but who is incredibly important to what they do in Baltimore. He can block, but he's more important in the middle of the field. I think Mayer gives you that sort of production, especially if he lands in a place like the Chargers. Or he goes to the Chiefs. I think fit matters with a lot of these guys, but Michael Mayer, my tight end one, that could change in terms of how teams feel about him, but I love him."
Rick Spielman: Jason Witten (retired)
"I went back to Jason Witten because I don't think Mark Andrews was a great blocker when he came out of Oklahoma," Spielman said. "He's more used in the passing game. They removed him from the formation and put him in the slot a lot to create mismatches that way. I think Mayer is a little bit more like a Jason Witten where he can play on the line as a Y-tight end, but also be effective in the passing game. I just don't think he's a vertical threat."