The first round of the 2023 NFL Draft took place in Kansas City, Missouri on Thursday night. The New England Patriots traded down in the opening round, taking pick #17 after a trade with Pittsburgh who took the Pats #14.
The top pick was quarterback Bryce Young out of Alabama who is heading to the Carolina Panthers. Three of the first five players drafted were quarterbacks, including at #2 as the Houston Texans took C.J. Stroud out of Ohio State. Anthony Richardson from the University of Florida was taken #4 by the Indianapolis Colts. New England selected cornerback Christian Gonzalez from the University of Oregon at #17. Gonzalez at 6 foot 2 is expected to give the Patriots some size in a shorter statured secondary. He had four interceptions with Oregon last season with 51 total tackles, after making a total of 78 tackles in his first two years at Colorado before transferring to join the Ducks. His size and speed gives him a possible cornerback number one spot and should make an immediate impact on Bill Belichiks defensive unit. He joins Jonathan Jones, Marcus Jones, and Jack Jones atop the depth chart at the cornerback position.
Here is a recap of the top 10 picks from Thursday night. The draft continues with rounds two and three on Friday night at 7 p.m., and wraps with four through seven at noon Saturday-
Round One
1. Carolina: Bryce Young, QB Alabama
2. Houston: C.J.Stroud, QB Ohio State
3. Houston (From Arizona): Will Anderson, Jr, LB Alabama
4. Indianapolis: Anthony Richardson, QB Florida
5. Seattle (From Denver): Devon Witherspoon, CB Illinois
6. Arizona (From Detroit via LA Rams): Paris Johnson Jr., T Ohio State
7. Las Vegas: Tyree Wilson, DE Texas Tech
8. Atlanta: Bijan Robinson, RB Texas
9. Philadelphia (From Chicago): Jalen Carter, DT Georgia
10. Chicago (From Philadelphia via New Orleans): Darnell Wright, T Tennesee
Story by Chris Lessner
