NFL Rookies Who Already Look Like Draft-Day Steals After 2023 OTAs
There's still a long time before the book on the 2023 NFL draft class is written, but we are starting to get our first look at this year's batch of rookies as OTA's around the league are underway.
Practices don't feature full contact yet, but there's plenty of drill work, 7-on-7's and 11-on-11 scrimmages to get an idea of what rookies are starting to showcase their skills.
A rookie standing out in these early practices is a good sign of things to come. These early days are vital to taking in the playbook and carving out a role early.
Based on OTA observations from beat writers, teammates and coaches around the league, here's a look at some rookies who are already shaping up to be high-value picks from the 2023 draft.
S Ji'Ayir Brown, San Francisco 49ers
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The Niners didn't pick until the compensatory section of the third round, but they still may have found a way to find an early contributor.
Safety Ji'Ayir Brown has caught the eye of lockermate and practice rival Brandon Aiyuk at OTAs.
"He's been doing a great job. He's got three or four picks already through these first couple of days. He just comes in willing to work, doesn't say too much, so I like him. I like him a lot," the wide receiver told media.
The fact that Brown is making plays on the ball shouldn't come as a shock. He had 10 interceptions over his final two seasons at Penn State, leading the nation with six in 2021.
Matt Barrows of The Athletic noted that Talanoa Hufanga and George Odum were the starters at safety with Tashaun Gipson running on the sideline. However, Brown got some reps with the first team.
If Brown continues on this trajectory he could be utilized early on in three-safety sets while eventually pushing Gipson or Hufanga to become one of the top two safeties on the roster.
WR Tank Dell, Houston Texans
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With C.J. Stroud taking reps with the first team already, it's imperative that the Houston Texans give him legitimate weapons to work with.
Specifically, he needs some players who can create separation and generate yards after the catch. On paper, third-round pick Tank Dell is the perfect receiver to take advantage of Stroud's elite accuracy.
Thus far, he's showing the fit isn't just a hypothetical. Offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik told media that Dell has "hit the ground running" and has, "taken the coaching really well".
He's also earned respect from Robert Woods. The veteran receiver says the 5'8", 165-pound Dell has all the tools he needs to play.
"From a receiver standpoint, good technician, good feet, good hands — you see him run his routes crisp with his feet," Woods said, per Coty M. Davis of Sports Illustrated. "He has all the physical abilities to be able to play in this league, fast, quick, really just want him to be able to have an impact right away."
It's always a gamble to take an outlier like Dell. His diminutive stature most likely dropped his stock, but his agility, explosiveness and ball skills could pay off in a big way for the Texans.
The early returns point toward Dell becoming a valuable dimension of the offense and a draft-day steal.
LB Marte Mapu, New England Patriots
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Bill Belichick loves finding small school gems, and he may have uncovered another one in Marte Mapu from Sacramento State.
The 6'3", 216-pound rookie played a hybrid safety-linebacker role in college and could transition into the same role in New England. For now, he appears to be getting work at linebacker.
Zack Cox of NESN, noted that Mapu figures to be "in the mix" early. He got plenty of work at linebacker despite wearing the red non-contact jersey. Mapu had surgery to repair a torn pectoral muscle he suffered while preparing for the draft.
Evan Lazar of Patriots.com also chimed in with praise for Mapu. He noted the rookie made a strong first impression thanks to his "eye discipline and trigger to the ball".
On one hand, the fact that he made this much of an impression while in a non-contact jersey shows the limitations of drawing conclusions from OTAs.
On the other, it shows how highly the Patriots think of him that they wanted to make sure he got reps in despite being injured. It's a sign they have high hopes that he'll be a contributor as early as possible.
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RB Tyjae Spears, Tennessee Titans
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Derrick Henry has been the dominant back in the backfield for the Titans, but it would behoove the team to find a back who can take some of the load off the 29-year-old back.
They may have found their solution in third-round pick Tyjae Spears. The Tulane back was productive in his time at Tulane, had a good showing at the Senior Bowl and is now impressing at OTAs.
"Tyjae Spears is sure fun to watch in these practices. He's been catching the ball well, and it doesn't take him long to turn on the jets while putting moves on defenders. Spears showed off some nifty moves," Jim Wyatt of the Titan's website noted in his observations.
Spears could be particularly helpful as a pass-catching back. He flashed that ability with the Green Wave with 41 catches over his final two seasons.
Ben Arthur of Fox Sports noted that Spears had one of the best catches of the day in one practice. He caught a ball more than 20 yards downfield on a pass from Ryan Tannehill.
As Henry approaches 30, Spears' early highlights should be welcomed news in Tennessee.
CB Tyrique Stevenson, Chicago Bears
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The Chicago Bears are building quite the young secondary and second-round cornerback Tyrique Stevenson looks to be a part of that early on.
After taking Kyler Gordon and Jaquan Brisker in the second round of last year's draft, Ryan Pace continued the trend with Stevenson. The expectation is that, like Gordon and Brisker, he'll be a starter in Year 1.
Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic wrote that the Miami alum should, "be in line to start at outside corner" before passing along a quote from cornerback coach Jon Hoke.
"He uses his length well," Hoke said. "He's really, really instinctive. He has a way of getting his hands on a lot of footballs. He does know the game of football. It comes relatively — not easy, but he does understand concepts easier than some guys do, so it's been a real plus."
At a premium position like cornerback, it's a great value to find a starter on the outside in the second round. Stevenson appears to be on that track. He stood out in Bears minicamp as well and continues to shine with the veterans mixed in.
It's also worth noting that fifth-round pick Terrell Smith drew some praise from Hoke as well so the Bears' eye for secondary talent is something to keep an eye on going forward.
CB Cory Trice, Pittsburgh Steelers
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Eyes are going to naturally gravitate toward Joey Porter Jr. in Pittsburgh. The second-round pick and son of former Steelers great Joey Porter has a lot of reasons to generate hype.
But seventh-round pick Cory Trice is garnering some attention for himself too.
The Purdue cover corner has competed in OTAs, picking off two passes in one drive to end the practice, per Noah Strackbein of Sports Illustrated.
The playmaking ability drew the attention of Steelers veteran cornerback Levi Wallace too.
"For him to go back-to-back. He makes a good play, and I don't know if it was pass interference or not; I wasn't looking. But then he comes back and gets the interception," Wallace said. "That's what being a corner is about - forgetting - whatever happened, happened."
Strackbein noted the offense argued the first interception was pass interference on the physical Trice, but he came back and got a more clean interception the second time.
Either way, the 6'3", 206-pound is showing off the best parts of his scouting report. Bleacher Report's Cory Giddings noted Trice, "has good ball skills to locate and track the ball, while showing to be a great reactive defender when playing the ball."
If he continues to do that he'll be a no-brainer to make the roster and become a tremendous value as a seventh-round pick.
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