2023 NFL Draft: Grades for Every Notable Draft Day Trade
Analysis 4/27/23
The NFL Draft is always filled with trades. Teams move up and down the board, trying to get the prospects they want at the appropriate value. However, judging those trades can be difficult since they involve players who haven't played a down of NFL football or draft picks.
That's why The 33rd Team analyst and former NFL executive Joe Banner is evaluating every major trade from the 2023 NFL Draft. Which teams are winners? And which teams are losers?
>> READ: Full Compensation for Every Trade
Day 3 Trade Analysis
Eagles Acquire Star Running Back
Philadelphia Receives: RB D'Andre Swift, No. 249 (DL Moro Ojomo)
Detroit Receives: No. 219 (WR Antoine Green), 2025 fourth-round pick
Analysis: Once the Lions drafted Jahmyr Gibbs, it made sense that Detroit was going to move one of their running backs. D'Andre Swift was the running back on their roster with the best chance to receive some compensation in a trade.
Swift is a great fit for the Eagles. The rest of their running backs are guys who contribute in the passing game — some of them are even better at receiving than as true running backs. The Eagles were already good, in spite of some losses this offseason, but Swift will make them even better.
Detroit got some compensation, even if it is far into the future, but I’m not sure picking Gibbs made sense because Swift is a good player. He may not be as good as Gibbs, but he’s still very good. The Lions only received a modest upgrade when they made these moves.
As for who won this trade ... I'll call it a draw.
Day 2 Instant Trade Analysis
Titans Trade-Up for New QB
Tennessee Receives: No. 33 (Will Levis), No. 84
Arizona Receives: No. 41, No. 72, 2024 third-round pick
Analysis: The trade is basically fair. The Arizona Cardinals move back eight spots in one round and move up eight in the next. Plus, they gained an extra third-round pick next year. So it’s a reasonable payment for a quarterback (Will Levis). Some people had him going high in the first round, and thought would cost a bit more. But that’s probably an indication there were teams — a lot of them — that didn’t have a super high grade on Levis.
I’m just glad he was picked. Frankly, it’s painful to watch something like this where a draft candidate keeps waiting and waiting. I can’t imagine what he and his family went through Thursday. So, whether you like him or not, it’s good he was chosen early because that’s hard to watch.
It’s even better when you see that he was taken by the Tennessee Titans because that’s a good spot for him. The Titans have a strong coaching staff and a solid quarterback who will start for another year. But he’s not the long-term answer. Levis might be. That’s why I say this is a perfect spot for Levis. He’s going to a team with a strong offensive line that added a player Thursday (Northwestern tackle Peter Skoronski) I really like, making that line even stronger. Plus, the Titans like to run the ball, which is good for a young quarterback. It gives him more time to process and figure things out.
Now, Levis did struggle in college. Frankly, I wasn’t all that thrilled with the tape. His decision-making is just OK. His accuracy was a question mark. He threw a lot of interceptions, and he didn’t have a winning year in his last year in college. So we’ll see how this works out, but the good news is he’s going to a team that will give him time to grow. He’ll learn the offense in Tennessee fairly quickly. But the question is: How long will it take him to run an offense vs. defenses that change every week?
So it’s a good move for Levis and Tennessee. But it’s another strong move for the Cardinals, who will have a raft of picks in next year’s draft. Arizona is fearless and smart about its moves.
Titans Grade: B-
Cardinals Grade: B+
Instant Trade Analysis
Texans Move Up With Cardinals
Houston Receives: No. 3 (Will Anderson), No. 105
Arizona Receives: No. 12, No. 33, 2024 First-Round Pick, 2024 Third-Round Pick
Analysis: First of all, what the Houston Texans did right off the bat is shocking and aggressive. I’d been thinking they were going to pick C.J. Stroud (scouting report) with the second pick, but let’s focus on the value of this trade at the third position. They overpaid a bit, but we don’t see moves like this often. We have too many people running teams who are afraid of making a mistake. So they don’t do something like this. I applaud both teams here because I’ll be honest: I’m not sure who got the better of this deal at this point.
The Arizona Cardinals realized they have a lot of needs, and they’re not going to be great this year. So they might have a plan two or three years out. If so, they positioned themselves so well, given the choice, I’d say they may have edged out Houston here even though the Texans walk with all the headlines.
But people should know Anderson is not Myles Garrett. I don’t even think he’s Bradley Chubb. No question, he’s a good player, and I’ll give DeMeco Ryans the benefit of the doubt. He comes in from San Francisco, so it’s no mystery what he believes in and what he wants to do. This is a good start. But people should have realistic expectations. When you have Garrett, you’re wondering if he’s going to get 10 or 20 sacks. I think Anderson is more of a seven-to-12-sack guy. This is fairly high to pick someone with that kind of expectation.
Cardinals Grade: A-
Texans Grade: B
Cardinals Move Back Up with Lions
Arizona Receives: No. 6 (Paris Johnson), No. 81
Detroit Receives: No. 12 (Jahmyr Gibbs), No. 34, No. 168
Analysis: I loved what the Cardinals did. They’re fearless and aggressive, and, frankly, that’s football. When that happens with a new group of people running the front office, I get excited. Their fans should be excited, too. Again, both teams did well here. The Detroit Lions need more ammunition and may have felt the defensive help they needed was already gone with Devon Witherspoon taken right in front of them. The Lions told everybody they believe in Jared Goff, and it’s time to believe them.
As for Arizona, they did what they needed to do. They’ve been asking Kyler Murray, who’s undersized, to play behind an average-or-worse offense line, and that hasn’t worked. He gets hurt. Johnson is a big guy, and it’s appealing to see such a physical, dominant presence whose movements are good. I just wonder if Johnson can deal with the speed of the NFL.
The consensus is he’s the best offensive lineman in this draft, and time will tell. But let me reiterate: The Cardinals are on the right track. The things they’re doing – prioritizing lines, being aggressive in the draft and not having set rules that drive everything – that’s what successful front offices are doing. That’s what winning teams are doing. If I was Michael Bidwill, I’d say, “We finally have someone who’s not afraid to make a mistake and who’s willing to think outside the box.”
Cardinals Grade: B+
Lions Grade: B+
Eagles Climb One Spot, Trade with Bears
Philadelphia Receives: No. 9 (Jalen Carter)
Chicago Receives: No. 10 (Darnell Wright), 2024 Fourth-Round Pick
Analysis: This is a great lesson. Many teams say if you’re getting a pick next year, it’s worth a round less. But having been around the Philadelphia Eagles and helping to develop Howie Roseman, we thought that was crazy. The pick is where the pick is, and the pick they got from New Orleans in 2022 was 10th overall this year. With the Eagles, they just turned it into the highest-rated player in the draft. There are character questions and work-ethic questions about Carter, but he’s joining a team with Brandon Graham and Fletcher Cox. So there’s powerful veteran leadership.
If there’s any place Carter could go with the culture to overcome fears that some teams had about him, this is it. It will be on him, but at this point, he’ll be surrounded by good coaches, a great culture and former teammates from Georgia in an aggressive scheme that will only make him better.
I’m sure he got down as he watched players drafted ahead of him, but he lucked out. This is the right place for him. He ends up in the best place possible in the first 10 picks. I applaud the Eagles. They were focused on Carter all along and were aggressive. They have everything in place to make Carter succeed. My guess is that in the coming years, we’re going to look back and wonder how in the heck they got this guy at nine. They just added what should be a Pro Bowl player at a crucial position.
Eagles Grade: A-
Bears Grade: C
Steelers Get New OT After Patriots' Trade
Pittsburgh Receives: No. 14 (Broderick Jones)
New England Receives: No. 17 (Christian Gonzalez), No. 120
Analysis: The point system says it should’ve cost the Pittsburgh Steelers a third-round pick, not a fourth, to move up three spots, but I guess the New England Patriots didn’t have a better offer. They thought they could get their guy by moving back, and they did. So, there’s a slight benefit in terms of value here for the Steelers. Moreover, in Broderick Jones, Pittsburgh got one of my favorite players in this draft. He’s physical, moves his feet well and fills a major need. The Steelers’ entire offensive line is the team's weakness right now, so this was the right place to go. Remember: They have a young quarterback who needs to be protected.
People say a young quarterback’s best friend is a running game, but they’re wrong. A young quarterback’s best friend is an offensive line. In Kenny Pickett, they have a quarterback who has a chance, which will help him. Odd as it may seem, if there was a loser, it wasn’t one of these two teams. It was the New York Jets. Pre-draft speculation had them taking Jones with the 13th pick. But they moved to 15th with the Aaron Rodgers deal, and it cost them an offensive lineman.
From everything I was told prior to the draft, the Jets wanted to get one of the first two tackles. They thought moving from back two spots wouldn’t hurt them. However, it made a big difference. When we saw that picture of their draft room on TV, it was obvious they were down. New England ended up with a corner that is highly rated, so they did well here. In fact, both teams did. But I give the Steelers a little bit of an edge because Jones is a player I like and because they got the perfect fit for what they need now.
Steelers Grade: A-
Patriots Grade: B
Joe Banner is a former front office executive for the Philadelphia Eagles and Cleveland Browns. He was a part of an Eagles franchise that made a Super Bowl and played in four NFC Championship Games. Follow him on Twitter at @JoeBanner13