We may well be coming up to the Divisional Round of games in the NFL Playoffs for 2023, and with eight teams out of the 32 still in with a chance of Super Bowl glory, you can perhaps forgive those teams for putting all talk of the 2023 NFL Draft in April on the back burner.

However, for the other 24 teams, it is very much a time for reflection and assessment.

Head Coaches and General Managers have already been hired and fired, speculation is rife that many of the players who are set to be free agents at the end of the year could be released, others handed the franchise tag while others may yet re-sign with their current team.

But behind the scenes in the NFL, there will be teams of scouts, player analysers, personnel managers and more who will be dedicating a huge amount of their time over the next few weeks to preparing their team’s draft war room.

Now is the season when rumours are rife and there is continual speculation about what teams could do in the draft, trade up to secure a top pick, trade down to secure more picks and future equity in later drafts, or even bundle up a player and pick deal to acquire a pick from a team.

Furthermore, it is also a time of the year when College stars not automatically eligible for the NFL draft, may decide to declare for it anyway.

All this commotion is of huge interest in the NFL and many punters like to have a bet on draft markets, such as which player will be picked first and of course, you can bet on this at bet365 Sport.

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So where do we stand at the moment in terms of the 2023 NFL Draft, free agency, head coaching vacancies and the like? Let’s clarify the situation as it stands.

NFL Post Season 2023

Head Coaching Vacancies (As of 19^th January 2023)

Outlined below are the five teams without a HC and a number of the names that have so far been linked with the post in the press.

• Carolina Panthers

Linked – Sean Payton (Former Saints HC), Ben Johnson (Lions OC), Mike Kafka (Giants OC), Steve Wilks (Interim Panthers HC), Jim Caldwell (Former Lions HC), Ken Dorsey (Bills OC), Jerod Mayo (Patriots DC), Kellen Moore (Cowboys OC), Frank Reich (Former Colts HC), Shane Steichen (Eagles OC)

Our Pick – Steve Wilks

• Indianapolis Colts

Linked – Mike Kafka (Giants OC), Jeff Saturday (Interim Colts HC), Eric Bieniemy (Chiefs OC), Ejiro Evero (Broncos DC), Aaron Glenn (Lions DC), Wink Martindale (Giants DC), Raheem Morris (Rams DC), Shane Steichen (Eagles OC), Bubba Ventrone (Colts ST Co-ord)

Our Pick – Eric Bieniemy

• Denver Broncos

Linked – Sean Payton (Former Saints HC), Jim Caldwell (Former Lions HC), Ejiro Evero (Broncos DC), Raheem Morris (Rams DC), Dan Quinn (Cowboys DC), DeMeco Ryans (49ers DC), David Shaw (Former Stanford HC)

Our Pick – Sean Payton

• Houston Texans

Linked – Sean Payton (Former Saints HC), Mike Kafka (Giants OC), Jonathan Gannon (Eagles DC), Ejiro Evero (Broncos DC), DeMeco Ryans (49ers DC), Stane Steichen (Eagles OC), Thomas Brown (Rams Assistant HC)

Our Pick – DeMeco Ryans

• Arizona Cardinals

Linked – Sean Payton (Former Saints HC), Vance Joseph (DC Arizona Cardinals), DeMeco Ryans (49ers DC), Brian Flores (Steelers LB Coach), Ejiro Evero (Broncos DC), Aaron Glenn (Lions DC), Frank Reich (former Colts HC)

Our Pick – Aaron Glenn

Which NFL Stars Could Be Free Agents In 2023

Outlined below is a list of stars at a variety of positions that could hit Free Agency in 2023, unless they agree a new deal with their current team, or are handed the Franchise Tag.

Quarterbacks

• Lamar Jackson (Baltimore Ravens)
• Geno Smith (Seattle Seahawks)
• Tom Brady (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
• Daniel Jones (New York Giants)

Running Backs

• Josh Jacobs (Las Vegas Raiders)
• Saquon Barkley (New York Giants)
• Tony Pollard (Dallas Cowboys)

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

• Jacoby Meyers (New England Patriots)
• Dalton Schultz (Dallas Cowboys)
• JuJu Smith-Schuster (Kansas City Chiefs)
• Mike Gesicki (Miami Dolphins)
• Evan Engram (Jacksonville Jaguars)

Offensive Linemen

• Mike McGlinchey (San Francisco 49ers)
• Orlando Brown Jr. (Kansas City Chiefs)
• Kaleb McGary (Atlanta Falcons)
• Ben Powers (Baltimore Ravens)
• Isaac Seumalo (Philadelphia Eagles)
• Jawaan Taylor (Jacksonville Jaguars)
• Kelvin Beachum (Arizona Cardinals)
• Ethan Pocic (Cleveland Browns)
• Dalton Risner (Denver Broncos)

Defensive Linemen

• Javon Hargrave (Philadelphia Eagles)
• Daron Payne (Washington Commanders)
• Dalvin Tomlinson (Minnesota Vikings)
• Dre’Mont Jones (Denver Broncos)
• Zach Allen (Arizona Cardinals)
• Sheldon Rankins (New York Jets)
• David Onyemata (New Orleans Saints)

Linebackers/Edge

• Lavonte David (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
• David Long (Tennessee Titans)
• Marcus Davenport (New Orleans Saints)
• TJ Edwards (Philadelphia Eagles)
• Tremaine Edmunds (Buffalo Bills)
• Jadaveon Clowney (Cleveland Browns)
• Germaine Pratt (Cincinnati Bengals)
• Bobby Okereke (Indianapolis Colts)
• Melvin Ingram III (Miami Dolphins)
• Justin Houston (Baltimore Ravens)
• Brandon Graham (Philadelphia Eagles)
• Leighton Vander Esch (Dallas Cowboys)
• Charles Omenihu (San Francisco 49ers)

Secondary

• Jesse Bates III (Cincinnati Bengals)
• Jamel Dean (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
• James Bradberry (Philadelphia Eagles)
• Cam Sutton (Pittsburgh Steelers)
• Patrick Peterson (Minnesota Vikings)
• Jordan Poyer (Buffalo Bills)
• Jonathon Jones (New England Patriots)
• Chauncey Gardner-Johnson (Philadelphia Eagles)
• Vonn Bell (Cincinnati Bengals)
• Marcus Peters (Baltimore Ravens)

Confirmed as Retired

• J.J.Watt (Arizona Cardinals)

Now lets take a look at some of the names that the NFL teams will be running the rule over in the next few weeks as they narrow down who they will pick in the NFL Draft.

Our NFL 2023 Mock Draft – Players In Contention To Be Round 1 Picks

• EDGE – Will Anderson (Alabama)
• QB – C.J.Stroud (Ohio State)
• RB – Bijan Robinson (Texas)
• QB – Bryce Young (Alabama)
• DT – Jalen Carter (Georgia)
• EDGE – Tyree Wilson (Texas Tech)
• QB – Anthony Richardson (Florida)
• EDGE – Myles Murphy (Clemson)
• QB – Will Levis (Kentucky)
• DE – Isaiah Foskey (Notre Dame)
• OT – Peter Skoronski (Northwestern)
• WR – Quentin Johnson (TCU)
• OT – Tyler Steen (Alabama)
• WR – Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Ohio State)
• OT – Paris Johnson (Ohio State)
• CB – Brian Branch (Alabama)
• OT – Jaelyn Duncan (Maryland)
• CB – Joey Porter Jr. (Penn State)
• CB – Christian Gonzalez (Oregon)
• DE – Tuli Tuipulotu (USC)
• DT – Mazi Smith (Michigan)
• WR – Kayshon Boutte (LSU)
• CB – Cam Smith (South Carolina)
• CB – Max Melton (Rutgers)

Who Are The Favourites To Go #1 In The 2023 NFL Draft?

At the moment, Bet365 Sports has Bryce Young as the 10/13 favourite to be picked 1^st in the NFL Draft with C.J. Stroud the 7/4 second favourite and Will Anderson an 11/2 chance.

Jalen Carter at 7/1 and Will Levis at 9/1 are the only other players viewed as realistic number 1 picks with the next best player Myles Murphy a 50/1 chance.

However, my view is that for Bryce Young to go first, then the Bears would need to trade out of top spot in the Draft, most likely to the Colts who hold the fourth pick. The Bears would pick up extra draft picks (or players) from the Colts and they would stand a chance of landing their prime choice (which is probably Will Anderson or Jalen Carter) in that fourth spot.

No doubt a lot more will be forthcoming as we head towards the Super Bowl and the draft itself in April.

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