The 2023 NFL Draft completed this past Saturday with 3 players from Notre Dame getting selected. Now only 360 days until the 2024 Draft commences in Detroit as Joe Alt Watch™ begins with the coveted left tackle surely considering leaving after his junior. After a quick peek at some way-too-early mock drafts, Alt was listed as going 6th, 8th, and 11th overall in the places that I looked at this weekend.

Back to the 2023 NFL Draft.

Taking a look at Danny Kelly from the Ringer’s grades from the 1st round he handed out A+ marks for #2 QB C.J. Stroud (Texans), #11 OT Peter Skoronski (Titans), #17 CB Christian Gonzalez (Patriots), #20 WR Jaxson Smith-Njigba (Seahawks), #22 WR Zay Flowers (Ravens), #23 WR Jordan Addison (Vikings), and #30 DE Nolan Smith (Eagles).

The lowest grades went to the following:

#3 DE Will Anderson, Texans, C+ (because they gave up a ton)
#6 OT Paris Johnson, Cardinals, C+
#12 RB Jahmyr Gibbs, Lions, C+
#15 DE Will McDonald, Jets, C
#18 LB Jack Campbell, Lions, D

That’s a big oof, Lions.

For Notre Dame, it was an okay NFL Draft with some disappointment a 4th player wasn’t picked. Mayer ended up going 10-15 spots lower than expected, Foskey surprised a bit going 21 spots higher than our scouting report, and Patterson went 33 spots lower than our prediction.

Notre Dame Draft Picks

TE Michael Mayer
2nd Round, 4th Pick
35th Overall
Las Vegas Raiders

If Mayer had gone 18th overall like our prediction he would be signing a contract around $14.7 million. Instead, the Raiders will be readying a contract worth around $9.3 million with a $3.77 million signing bonus.

Las Vegas traded Darren Waller (280 receptions since 2019) this off-season but did bring in former Stanford tight end Austin Hooper on a 1-year $2.75 million deal this off-seaosn. The Raiders also signed former 1st-round pick O.J. Howard to a 1-year deal as well as retaining former undrafted tight end Jesper Horsted on another 1-year deal. With Mayer in town now, one of these roster spots may not be secure anymore.

This is an okay landing spot for Mayer. The Jimmy Garoppolo era doesn’t inspire a ton of confidence, and like our resident Chiefs fan ndroyalsfan quipped, Mayer won’t be winning a division title while in Las Vegas.

DE Isaiah Foskey
2nd Round, 9th Pick
40th Overall
New Orleans Saints

Foskey was the 7th defensive end off the board in the draft and that’s a huge win for him. His contract with the Saints it projected to be for $8.7 million with a $3.35 million signing bonus.

New Orleans has former undrafted defensive end Carl Granderson heading into the final year of his contract and Foskey should push him immediately for starting reps. The Saints are set on the strong side with Cameron Jordan (although he’s turning 34 soon) but they need a lot of pass rushing help on the weak side. This was a great spot for Foskey to land in the NFL.

C Jarrett Patterson
6th Round, 24th Pick
201st Overall
Houston Texans

Patterson heads to the Texans and will sign a contract for around $4 million with a signing bonus of $170,000.

This is a bit of a curious pick as Houston selected Penn State center Juice Scruggs with the 62nd overall pick on Friday. The Texans also had 2022 starter Scott Quessenberry coming back and signed him to a 1-year $2.1 million deal this off-season.

Are they looking for Patterson to play guard? Houston just traded for Shaq Mason at right guard, although his contract will end after 2023. On the left side, the Texans just drafted Kenyon Green out of Texas A&M in the 1st round last year and he’s due a lot of money through 2025 when his rookie contract ends.

Free Agents

S Brandon Joseph
Detroit Lions

The Lions have 4 safeties under contract for 2023 totaling a $11+ million cap hit, plus they drafted Alabama safety Brian Branch in the 2nd round which will add nearly $1.5 million more to their cap. This was a pretty far fall from grace for Joseph who wasn’t one of 20 safeties selected in this draft.

DT Jayson Ademilola 
Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jags passed on taking a defensive tackle until the 7th round when they took North Carolina’s Raymond Vohasek. He’s more of a nose guard and a little bit of an underwhelming talent, even for that late in the draft. Jacksonville plays a 3-4 so this isn’t a great fit for Ademilola, but they did just restructure Foley Fatukasi’s contract after signing him to a big 3-year deal prior to 2022. Perhaps Ademilola can sneak on to the roster.

DT Chris Smith
Detroit Lions

I was surprised that this wasn’t a rookie camp invite for Smith but he is a native of Detroit and maybe got some preferential treatment to get his shot with the Lions.

K Blake Grupe
New Orleans Saints

Saints kicker Wil Lutz had the 2nd worst kicking percentage on field goals last year for players who made more than 10 attempts. He’s coming into his final year of contract and restructured it so New Orleans will save $1.5 million on their cap. Grupe doesn’t have a strong enough leg to survive in the NFL, but weirder things have happened.

Rookie Camp Invites

OT Josh Lugg
Chicago Bears

LB Bo Bauer
Seattle Seahawks

DE Justin Ademilola
Green Bay Packers

As of this writing we haven’t heard any contract updates or news for receiver Avery Davis or cornerback Tariq Bracy. Is it sizeism from the NFL? Bauer and Lugg were hurt so much during their college careers and likely aren’t holding on for much longer. I can see Justin Ademilola being a practice squad player for the Packers and sticking around the pro ranks for a while.