Here’s a fun thought exercise for 4th-to-last weekend before the 2023 NFL Draft: What if the media’s “Big Boards” were 100% accurate?

Who would the top picks be in the 2023 NFL Draft?

And, of far more interest to the 12s, what would the Seattle Seahawks‘ 2023 draft class look like?

Before we dive in, let’s lay out the parameters:

• No trades
• No drafting for need
• BPA all the way

Putting that another way, Seattle would get whoever each board has listed at #5, #20, #37, #52, #83, #123, #151, #154, #198, and #237 (aka the official NFL draft order for all seven rounds, as posted on NFL.com).

Note: Some of the Big Boards chosen for this article have less than a full draft’s worth of prospects (ex. top 100 or top 125). In those cases, Seattle’s (hypothetical) draft class is only the first 5 (or 6) picks. Also, the data in this article was pulled on March 30th and may have changed by the time you’re reading this.

At the end of this article, there will be some polls so folks can choose the draft class that they like best, as well as which player they’d prefer with each of our first 5 picks (based on the results from this canvas of sixteen Big Boards).

Enjoy!

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Pro Football Network’s ‘NFL Industry Consensus Big Board’

From their site:

The 2023 NFL Draft Industry Consensus Big Board includes 40 different boards and breaks down the top 300 prospects just after the workout phase of the NFL draft.

Top 4 picks:

1. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
2. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
3. DT Jalen Carter, Georgia
4. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: RB Bijan Robinson, Texas
• #20: S Brian Branch, Alabama
• #37: WR Jalin Hyatt, Tennessee
• #52: DT Mazi Smith, Michigan
• #83: S Sydney Brown, Illinois
• #123: EDGE Isaiah McGuire, Missouri
• #151: RB Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State
• #154: DT Keondre Coburn, Texas
• #198: S Rashad Torrence II, Florida
• #237: OT Richard Gouraige, Florida

FTR’s takeaway(s): Drafting three safeties isn’t ideal (and would certainly add fuel to the debate about what Seattle’s plans are for Jamal Adams), but I would be reasonably happy with the results of our first four picks.

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NFL Mock Draft Database’s ‘2023 Consensus Big Board’

From their site:

This consensus big board of each player’s overall ranking for the 2023 NFL Draft was compiled using 114 Big Board(s), 1011 1st Round Mock Draft(s), and 735 Team-Based Mock Draft(s). These numbers do not include ALL mock drafts in the database, but rather ones that are closest to the Draft date.

Author’s Note: I like that this site gives you access to past ‘consensus’ big boards (going back to 2016) and also gives you an early preview of the big boards for 2024 and 2025.

Top 4 picks

1. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
2. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
3. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
4. CB Christian Gonzalez, Oregon

Seattle’s 2023 draft class

• #5: DT Jalen Carter, Georgia
• #20: S Brian Branch, Alabama
• #37: DT Mazi Smith, Michigan
• #52: IOL Steve Avila, TCU
• #83: S Jammie Robinson, Florida State
• #123: EDGE Isaiah McGuire, Missouri
• #151: WR Charlie Jones, Purdue
• #154: S Daniel Scott, California
• #198: QB Clayton Tune, Houston
• #237: CB Myles Brooks, Louisiana Tech

FTR’s takeaway(s): Love the pick at #52 (Avila); like that we address the D-line early and take a QB on Day 3.

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The Athletic’s ‘2023 NFL Consensus Big Board, 4.0’ (paywall)

From their site:

The Athletic’s Consensus Big Board combines rankings from a wide range of draft experts to identify how the top prospects are viewed, relative to the rest of this class. In theory, by the time we reach draft weekend, this set of rankings should help give us a handle on how picks could (or, at least, should) play out.

Top 4 picks

1. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
2. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
3. DT Jalen Carter, Georgia
4. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State

Seattle’s 2023 draft class

• #5: RB Bijan Robinson, Texas
• #20: RB Jahmyr Gibbs, Alabama
• #37: DT Calijah Kancey, Pittsburgh
• #52: DT Siaki Ika, Baylor
• #83: S JL Skinner, Boise State

FTR’s takeaway(s): I think I’d be in a distinct minority of 12s who would find it hilariously awesome if we landed both Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs. That said, Anthony Richardson is #21 on this board and I’d be hoping him and Gibbs swapped spots before Day One of the draft.

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The Athletic’s ‘Updated Top 100 Prospect Rankings’ (paywall)

From their site: Welcome to our 2023 NFL Draft board, a new look at Dane Brugler’s top 100 prospects. These are the players who we predict will hear their names called the earliest during the three-day, seven-round draft from April 27-29 in Kansas City.

Author’s Note: Sorry for any confusion. The board above this one is the Athletic’s Consensus Big Board; this is just The Athletic’s, and it’s quite different than the consensus board (at least for the Seahawks).

Top 4 picks:

1. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
2. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
3. DT Jalen Carter, Georgia
4. CB Christian Gonzalez, Oregon

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
• #20: RB Jahmyr Gibbs, Alabama
• #37: LB Trenton Simpson, Clemson
• #52: CB Clark Phillips III, Utah
• #83: DT Zacch Pickens, South Carolina

FTR’s takeaway(s): My only complaint is the R2 cornerback – especially since #53 on their board is LB Jack Campbell. Not that I’m advocating for taking 2 linebackers in Round 2; no, I’d actually prefer to move back one spot with both R2s (Mazi Smith is #38).

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Pro Football Focus’s ‘Big Board 2023’

From their site:

PFF’s Big Board for the 2023 NFL Draft offers three-year player grades, combine measurables, position rankings, and in-depth player analysis for all of the top draft prospects.

Age, height, weight, and 40 times will be updated after the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine.

Top 4 picks

1. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
2. DT Jalen Carter, Georgia
3. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
4. QB Will Levis, Kentucky

Seattle’s 2023 draft class

• #5: QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
• #20: DT Bryan Bresee, Clemson
• #37: LB Daiyan Henley, Washington State
• #52: EDGE Andre Carter II, Army
• #83: RB Tank Bigsby, Auburn
• #123: S Ji’Ayir Brown, Penn State
• #151: CB Mekhi Blackmon, USC
• #154: WR Xavier Hutchinson, Iowa State
• #198: EDGE Isaiah Land, Florida A&M
• #237: WR Derius Davis, TCU

FTR’s takeaway(s): I thought I would like this one more than I do. Stroud being available at #5 is cool, and landing Xavier Hutchinson with our second R5 seems like a steal.

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Walter Football’s ‘2023 NFL Draft Big Board’

From their site:

The top prospects available for the 2023 NFL Draft.

Updated March 29, 2023

Top 4 picks

1. RB Bijan Robinson, Texas
2. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
3. EDGE Will Anderson, Alabama
4. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State

Seattle’s 2023 draft class

• #5: OT Peter Skoronski, Northwestern
• #20: DT Calijah Kancey, Pittsburgh
• #37: DT Mazi Smith, Michigan
• #52: RB Kendre Miller, TCU
• #83: DT Byron Young, Alabama

FTR’s takeaway(s): I’m curious if Skoronski would be moving to Guard or pushing Abe Lucas inside and taking his spot at RT (can’t see him displacing Charles Cross at LT). Also, Tennessee’s Byron Young is #82 on this board which means that if it were 100% accurate, Byron Young’s name would be called on consecutive picks.

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Drafttek’s ‘2023 NFL Draft Big Board Top-500’

From their site:

Drafttek.com’s Big Board of 2023’s top NFL draft prospects is compiled by our internal staff of talent evaluators. The NFL draft prospect rankings are adjusted regularly during the NCAA Football season. The Big Board also undergoes an adjustment process during post-season All-Star games, the NFL Combine workouts, and individual campus workouts.

Top 4 picks:

1. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
2. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
3. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
4. RB Bijan Robinson, Texas

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: EDGE Tyree Wilson, Texas Tech
• #20: TE Michael Mayer, Notre Dame
• #37: DT Mazi Smith, Michigan
• #52: DT Keeanu Benton, Wisconsin
• #83: CB Mehki Garner, LSU
• #123: WR A.T. Perry, Wake Forest
• #151: EDGE K.J. Henry, Clemson
• #154: WR Jalen Moreno-Cropper, Fresno State
• #198: S Khoury Bethley, Arizona State
• #237: S Brandon Hill, Pittsburgh

FTR’s takeaway(s): At this point, a lot of 12s, myself included, have a Pavlovian response to Seattle selecting Tyree Wilson at #5. A.T. Perry at #123 is a FUN pick.

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The Sporting News’ ‘Updated big board of top 125 players overall’

Top 4 picks:

1. DT Jalen Carter, Georgia
2. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
3. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
4. EDGE Myles Murphy, Clemson

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
• #20: RB Jahmyr Gibbs, Alabama
• #37: WR Kayshon Boutte, LSU
• #52: S JL Skinner, Boise State
• #83: WR Nathaniel “Tank” Dell, Houston
• #123: RB Kenny McIntosh, Georgia

FTR’s takeaway(s): I would be grinning like the Cheshire Cat after Day One (Stroud, Gibbs), and wondering what the heck we were doing by the end of Round 4 (two WRs -and- two RBs with our first 6 picks; really?)

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ESPN’s ‘Best Available’ (aka their Pre-Draft Big Board)

Top 4 picks:

1. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
2. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
3. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
4. EDGE Tyree Wilson, Texas Tech

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: OT Peter Skoronski, Northwestern
• #20: WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba
• #37: EDGE Isaiah Foskey, Notre Dame
• #52: S Ji’Ayir Brown, Penn State
• #83: WR Dontayvion Wicks, Virginia
• #123: TE Luke Schoonmaker, Michigan
• #151: EDGE D.J. Johnson, Oregon
• #154: RB Israel Abanikanda, Pittsburgh
• #198: DT Dante Stills, West Virginia
• #237: WR Nathaniel Dell, Houston

FTR’s takeaway(s): Would be stoked to get JSN at #20 and just as stoked to have Nathaniel Dell still on the board with our final pick.

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CBS Sports ‘2023 NFL Draft Prospect Rankings’

Top 4 picks:

1. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
2. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
3. DT Jalen Carter, Georgia
4. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: CB Devon Witherspoon, Illinois
• #20: WR Zay Flowers, Boston College
• #37: OT Matthew Bergeron, Syracuse
• #52: TE Sam LaPorta, Iowa
• #83: DT Jaquelin Roy, LSU
• #123: RB DeWayne McBride, UAB
• #151: S Chamarri Conner, Virginia Tech
• #154: TE Brenton Strange, Penn State
• #198: TE Brayden Willis, Oklahoma
• #237: LB Drake Thomas, North Carolina State

FTR’s takeaway(s): We would need a bigger meeting room for our Tight Ends after this draft. Love the selection of Zay Flowers at #20. Also, DeWayne McBride is a heckuva pick at #123 – he had the 2nd most rushing yards in college football last season (1,713), but that came on 112 fewer carries than the guy that finished a mere 25 yards ahead of him.

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Sports Illustrated’s ‘2023 NFL Draft Big Board’

From their site:

Get ready for the 2023 NFL Draft with positional and big board rankings from the team at The NFL Draft Bible.

Top 4 picks:

1. DT Jalen Carter, Georgia
2. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
3. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
4. RB Bijan Robinson, Texas

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
• #20: EDGE Lukas Van Ness, Iowa
• #37: DT Calijah Kancey, Pittsburgh
• #52: IOL Joe Tippmann, Wisconsin
• #83: RB Devon Achane, Texas A&M
• #123: EDGE Brenton Cox Jr., Florida
• #151: OT Carter Warren, Pittsburgh
• #154: OT Jaxson Kirkland, Washington
• #198: OT Conner Galvin, Baylor
• #237: TE Noah Gindorff, NDSU

FTR’s takeaway(s): I could get onboard with each of our first 6 picks but then using both of our R5s and our R6 on OTs? That would really turn some heads.

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Fox Sports’ ‘100 best available players’

From their site:

After 20 years of scouting, I’ve learned better than to significantly adjust my rankings of football players based on the workouts conducted since the season began. Terrific workouts are the expectation of the best players in the draft, after all. Disappointing results, however, are a red flag and led to some big drops on my last update.

Top 4 picks:

1. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
2. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
3. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
4. EDGE Tyree Wilson, Texas Tech

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: RB Bijan Robinson, Texas
• #20: WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Ohio State
• #37: CB Clark Phillips III, Utah
• #52: RB Zach Charbonnet, UCLA
• #83: WR Cedric Tillman, Tennessee

FTR’s takeaway(s): I would be throwing a HUGE party at the end of Day One. And scratching my head after Day Two (even though I like 2 of the 3 picks).

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Tankathon’s ‘2023 NFL Draft Big Board’

Top 4 picks:

1. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
2. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
3. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
4. EDGE Tyree Wilson, Texas Tech

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: DT Jalen Carter, Georgia
• #20: EDGE Nolan Smith, Georgia
• #37: DT Mazi Smith, Michigan
• #52: TE Luke Musgrave, Oregon State
• #83: WR Kayshon Boutte, LSU

FTR’s takeaway(s): I like the symmetry of using both of our R1s on defensive players from Georgia; I just wish I didn’t have reservations about Jalen Carter.

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NFL Draft Buzz’s ‘Overall Rankings 2023 NFL Draft’

Top 4 picks:

1. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
2. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
3. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
4. DT Jalen Carter, Georgia

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: WR Quentin Johnston, TCU
• #20: CB Emmanuel Forbes, Mississippi State
• #37: QB Anthony Richardson, Florida
• #52: EDGE Isaiah Foskey, Notre Dame
• #83: CB Julius Brents, Kansas State
• #123: DT Kobie Turner, Waker Forest
• #151: RB Israel Abanikanda, Pittsburgh
• #154: LB Ventrell Miller, Florida
• #198: WR Bryce Ford-Wheaton, West Virginia
• #237: WR Jaden Haselwood, Arkansas

FTR’s takeaway(s): Zero complaints about landing Anthony Richardson with our first pick of the 2nd round (!!). Like the Julius Brents pick at #83. Three wideouts though, including QJ at #5? Hmmm . . .

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NFL Draft Diamonds’ ‘Top 400 Prospects’

Top 4 picks:

1. EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
2. DT Jalen Carter, Georgia
3. QB Bryce Young, Alabama
4. QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: EDGE Myles Murphy, Clemson
• #20: WR Jordan Addison, USC
• #37: OT Darnell Wright, Tennessee
• #52: OT Matthew Bergeron, Syracuse
• #83: CB Garrett Williams, Syracuse
• #123: S Ji’Ayir Brown, Penn State
• #151: CB Mehki Garner, LSU
• #154: EDGE Dylan Horton, TCU
• #198: FB Hunter Luepke, NDSU
• #237: OT Trevor Reid, Louisville

FTR’s takeaway(s): I like that we drafted a fullback, but will we use him? Also, has any NFL team ever drafted two Syracuse players in the same draft, let alone with back-to-back picks? (Don’t answer that.)

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The 33rd Team’s ‘2023 NFL Draft Big Board’

From their site:

Our former NFL personnel evaluators provide their expertise and insight on the prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft from the perspective of those who have been in team draft rooms. These are only the rankings of players they have scouted personally. New prospects are added frequently.

Top 4 picks:

1. OT Broderick Jones, Georgia
2. WR Quentin Johnston, TCU
3. QB Will Levis, Kentucky
4. DT Jalen Carter, Georgia

Seattle’s 2023 draft class:

• #5: EDGE Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
• #20: QB Hendon Hooker, Tennesee
• #37: EDGE B.J. Ojulari, LSU
• #52: DT Keeanu Benton, Wisconsin
• #83: DT Gervon Dexter, Florida
• #123: OT Tyler Steen, Alabama
• #151: EDGE Lonnie Phelps Jr., Kansas
• #154: RB Israel Abanikanda, Pittsburgh
• #198: S Brandon Hill, Pittsburgh
• #237: N/A (their list stops on #208)

FTR’s takeaway(s): This board is pretty wild, but it would have us landing Will Anderson Jr. at #5 so . . . Go Hawks!

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POLL TIME

As promised, it’s poll time!

Favorite overall draft class

Favorite pick at #5

Favorite pick at #20

Favorite pick at #37

Favorite pick at #52

Favorite pick at #83

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When it comes to election misinformation on social media, Facebook takes the cake, according to a new study which found heavy Facebook users were far more likely to consume fake news than Twitter or other social media sites.

The study, published earlier this month in the peer-reviewed journal Government Information Quarterly, found Facebook users read the most fake news about the 2020 U.S. presidential election and reported the most concern about votes not being counted properly.

They also found the biggest factor in whether a person reported being suspicious about the election results was their level of fake news consumption, not their method of casting their vote.

According to the study, a big part of the problem with relying on social media for news is that these sites have algorithms designed to keep you scrolling and engaged, meaning that they’re likely to keep serving you the same content you’re engaging with and make it harder to climb out of a disinformation hole once you are in it.

“What we saw in this study is that if you aren’t careful, the bias that you bring into your news consumption can be absolutely confirmed and supported if you are in a place like Facebook where the algorithms feed into that,” Robert Crossler, study co-author and an associate professor in the WSU Carson College of Business, said in a press release.

Those who got their news about the 2020 election primarily by navigating directly on a news website were less likely to consume fake news, the study found, and were more likely to believe that the election had unfolded the way it did.

U.S. President Joe Biden’s win in 2020 was accompanied with unproven allegations pushed by former U.S. President Donald Trump that the election had been stolen from him and that many votes for him had gone uncounted. Allegations of voter fraud with mail-in ballots and with Dominion voting machines were spread after the election, but none of these claims stood up in court, and few legal experts supported this position.

However, the lack of factual support didn’t stop the story from spreading widely on social media.

It’s not new that Facebook and other social media sites can be drivers of disinformation and fake news, but it’s trickier to measure how consuming fake news affects a person’s perception of reality.

In order to get a better understanding of this, the Washington State University-led study designed three surveys relating to how political alignment, fake news consumption and voting method each individually impacted a person’s perception of the election.

In the study, “fake news” was defined as articles and sites spreading disinformation that was provably incorrect, not articles or sites with information perceived to be false from a partisan standpoint.

The first two surveys were given to different groups of voters prior to the election, both containing hypothetical scenarios for participants to react to.

The first posited a scenario where the participant would either be voting in-person, through the mail or online. Once the participant had read the scenario of their voting method, they were asked questions about how concerned they were about votes being counted properly, and how much news they got from various news organizations.

The second survey gave the scenario of all voters needing to use mail-in ballots that would be counted either by a government official, a neutral party or by a voting machine. They were then asked again about their concerns regarding votes being counted and their news sources.

The third survey was presented to a group of actual voters after the election. Participants filled out what their voting method had been, and then answered the same questions presented in the previous two surveys. They then reported what percentage of their news they got from direct navigation, Twitter, Facebook, or other social media sites.

Researchers were surprised to find the voting method — whether people voted by mail or in-person — had no measurable impact on how likely participants were to be worried about votes not being counted properly.

Instead, the more a person reported receiving their news from social media, particularly Facebook, the more likely they were to be heavily concerned about votes not being counted.

This suggested to researchers that Facebook, more so than other social media sites, was elevating sources spreading these fears.

“I don’t think that Facebook is deliberately directing people towards fake news but something about how their algorithm is designed compared to other algorithms is actually moving people towards that type of content,” Stachofsky said. “It was surprising how hard it was to find the websites Facebook was directing people to when we looked for them in a web browser. The research shows that not all social media platforms are created equal when it comes to propagating intentionally misleading information.”

The study also found there was no age group more likely to read fake news, which is different from other studies, suggesting that there could be a higher proportion of younger adults consuming fake news than had been previously thought.

Authors noted that more research needs to be done to understand how disinformation spreads and how it can be combatted, particularly in a political climate where the partisan divide in the U.S. is increasing the distrust in mainstream media. They’re hoping that this study could spur social media sites to think more about how their algorithms impact their users.

“This supports the argument that people need to be encouraged to be information or news literate,” Crossler said. “Right now, we are talking about the elections, but there are a lot of other issues, such as the war in Ukraine, that directing people to misinformation is not only misleading but also potentially dangerous.”

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