Mel Kiper Jr. 2023 NFL Mock Draft 3.0: Colts Trade for Levis; Richardson to Seahawks

In his third 2023 NFL mock draft, ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. projected four quarterbacks to be selected within the top five picks.

Along with Ohio State's C.J. Stroud going No. 1 overall to the Carolina Panthers and Alabama's Bryce Young going second to the Houston Texans, Kiper also has Kentucky's Will Levis and Florida's Anthony Richardson as top-five selections.

Kiper is predicting the Indianapolis Colts to move up one spot from No. 4 to No. 3 in a trade with the Arizona Cardinals to select Levis, and for the Seattle Seahawks to take Richardson fifth overall as the understudy to veteran Geno Smith.

It has been expected for at least the past couple of months that four quarterbacks would come off the board in the first round of the draft after Kenny Pickett of the Pittsburgh Steelers was the only first-round quarterback last year.

The stock of all four of the top quarterbacks in the 2023 class has continued to rise, though, making it a distinct possibility that they will all be top-five picks, or top-10 selections at the very least.

Stroud and Young are widely viewed as the safest picks among the quarterbacks, but neither of them have as high of a ceiling nor the same physical traits as Levis and Richardson.

Levis began his collegiate career at Penn State before transferring to Kentucky and serving as the starter in 2021 and 2022. Levis has a huge arm and some athleticism, as evidenced by rushing for 376 yards and nine touchdowns in 2021, but he also threw 13 interceptions compared to 24 touchdowns in 2021 and 10 interceptions to 19 touchdown passes in 2022.

His potential is through the roof if he can clean up the mistakes, and Indianapolis may be the ideal place for him to do it since offensive guru Shane Steichen is the Colts' new head coach.

As offensive coordinator of the Philadelphia Eagles, Steichen worked wonders with Jalen Hurts and helped him develop into an MVP candidate, perhaps making him the perfect person to work with a raw talent like Levis.

While Levis undoubtedly needs some seasoning, it can be argued that Richardson will need even more before being ready to start at the NFL level.

Richardson set the vertical and broad jump records for a quarterback at the NFL Scouting Combine while also posting one of the best 40-yard dash times ever at the position.

The former Florida signal-caller also showed off his top-flight arm strength by effortlessly flicking the ball deep downfield with accuracy.

However, Richardson has just one full year of starting experience to his credit, and it was an up-and-down season to say the least.

He completed just 53.8 percent of his passes for 2,549 yards, 17 touchdowns and nine interceptions, but he also ran for 654 yards and nine scores.

Richardson is far too underdeveloped as a passer to start immediately, but that would make Seattle an ideal landing spot.

The Seahawks re-signed Smith after he shockingly led the team to the playoffs last season and was named a Pro Bowler for the first time. Because of that, there would be no rush to press Richardson into the lineup.

Richardson could sit and learn behind Smith for two or even three years before being prepared to take over the starting job.

The Seahawks essentially have a lottery ticket on their hands with the No. 5 overall selection since they got it from the Denver Broncos as part of the trade involving quarterback Russell Wilson.

Seattle can use its own first-rounder to address an area of need, so it can afford to take the big swing with Richardson at No. 5 and hope he develops into an elite quarterback.