2023 NFL Draft Sleepers

The glamor and the pageantry of the NFL Draft primarily comes from the first round. That’s when the blue chip prospects and supposed superstars are selected, while TV networks spend hours dramatizing and evaluating. I love the first round of the NFL Draft, don’t get it twisted! I’m a New York Jets fan, so I’ve often been excited (and terrified) to see who we’d take with our top five pick(s)! There are, however, six other rounds to the draft and many more players eagerly awaiting their chance to play in the NFL. In this article, I zeroed in on three under-the-radar draft prospects and impending rookies that I believe can make an impact for their new teams.

Fresno State QB Jake Haener

Selected with the 127th pick (4th round) by the New Orleans Saints

Jake Haener wasn’t the face of a prominent power five program that competed for national recognition, but he was quietly one of the best QBs in the country during his time at Fresno State. After starting his career at Washington, Haener teamed up with coach Kalen DeBoer, now back at Washington, at Fresno State. In the shortened 2020 season, Haener looked the part, throwing for 2,021 yards and 14 TDs in 6 games. Then, he took a giant leap in 2021, accumulating 4,096 passing yards, 33 TDs, and a stellar 67.1 CMP%. What got me hooked on Haener was his brilliance against Pac-12 competition in 2021. Against Oregon, he completed nearly 70% of his passes, was just a tick short of 300 yards passing (298), and totaled 2 TDs in a heartbreaking loss. Fast forward two weeks, Haener had one of the gutsiest performances I’ve ever seen against UCLA. Despite getting battered and bruised by the UCLA defense– I thought he had broken ribs and a hip pointer– Haener rose to the occasion and threw for 455 yards on 53 attempts with a 73.6 CMP% en route to a thrilling Fresno State victory. After finding WR Jalen Cropper on fourth down to take the lead with fourteen seconds left in the fourth quarter, Haener fell to his knees, praising the heavens and demonstrating the great amount of pain he was dealing with. There have been games where QBs have put up gaudier statlines, but that was one of the most commendable and impressive showings you’ll find in college football. His 2022 season was derailed by injuries, but Haener still managed to throw for 2,896 yards and 20 TDs with an eye-popping 72.0 CMP% in parts of ten games. His college career ended perfectly, with Haener slaying another Pac-12 foe, this time Washington State in the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl. His tape backs up his statistics, he’s a precision passer with the touch and toughness to dissect defenses. He isn’t a classic dual-threat signal-caller with notable rushing stats, but he has the athletic profile to improvise as a passer and tuck it and run in the right situation. To continue, Haener doesn’t need a stable offensive line or perfect play designs to succeed, rather he thrives off of chaos and off-script playmaking. There’s no formal way to measure instincts, IQ, and toughness, but Haener is better than just about any other QB in those categories. The pitfalls of Jake Haener’s game are hardly his fault, as one of his biggest knocks is his small frame at 6’0” 207 lbs with a 9 ⅜” hand measurement. Along with being undersized, Haener doesn’t have the typical arm talent and deep ball of a modern NFL QB, which may limit his ability to take the top off of pro defenses. Lastly, he’s an older prospect at the age of 24, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be an effective player. Taylor Heinicke and Gardner Minshew are often drawn as comparisons for Jake Haener, which makes sense in terms of being under-the-radar and undersized, but Haener has superior accuracy compared to Heinicke and significantly more athleticism than Minshew. I won’t go out far enough and emphatically declare that he’ll be a franchise QB, but I strongly believe Jake Haener will be a starting QB in the NFL for a long time, perhaps a high-end backup at the worst. Derek Carr likely isn’t a long-term solution for New Orleans, which means Haener could slide in and rise to relative stardom as a Saint.

Arizona State RB Xazavian Valladay

Signed as an Undrafted Free Agent with the Houston Texans

Another member of the Mountain West/Pac-12 club, Xazavian Valladay started his career at Wyoming before transferring to Arizona State for his fifth year. He played sparingly as a freshman, but Valladay quickly emerged as one of the best rushers in the Mountain West when he ran for 1,265 yards and 6 TDs with a rate of 5.1 YPC. He also showed off his pass-catching ability, eclipsing 200 receiving yards and finding the endzone twice. His stats from the shortened 2020 season don’t look that sexy, but he still ran for 550 yards and 4 TDs in five games. His 2021 season looked a lot more like his breakout 2019 season, albeit with a slightly toned down workload, as he ran for 1,063 yards for 6 TDs and caught 23 passes for 233 yards. He could’ve called it a career after his four years at Wyoming, a good one at that, but Valladay opted to use his extra year of eligibility to play for Herm Edwards and the Arizona State Sun Devils. He only ended up playing for Edwards for a few games due to his mid-season dismissal, but Valladay’s play wasn’t affected at all. It was one of Arizona State’s worst seasons in program history, but possibly Valladay’s best season ever averaging 5.5 YPG with 1,192 yards and 16 TDs on the ground, coupled with 37 receptions for 289 receiving yards and 2 TDs. 1,481 all-purpose yards and 18 total TDs, not bad. What makes Xazavian Valladay a playmaker is his burst and elusivity on outside runs. He’s not a technician with fancy spin moves, but he devastates defenders with his cutting ability. These tools make him useful as a pass-catcher as well, making him a guy that can spell Dameon Pierce in obvious pass situations. Pierce is a powerful downhill runner, which makes Valladay a beautiful complimentary piece; they could combine as a lightning and thunder type duo. The Texans have a bunch of RBs on their roster, such as Devin Singletary, Mike Boone, and Dare Ogunbowale, but those are mediocre veteran players that don’t possess the upside that Valladay has. Carving a role as a UDFA, especially as a rookie, is difficult, but Xazavian Valladay has the makings of a strong change-of-pace back and valuable piece within a RB committee.

Purdue WR Charlie Jones

Selected with the 131st pick (4th round) by the Cincinnati Bengals

Going three for three, Charlie Jones also transferred a few times. He had modest to lackluster production at Buffalo and Iowa before transforming into one of the best WRs in college football at Purdue in 2022. His 2022 was truly special, as he led all FBS players with 110 receptions, ranked second with 1361 receiving yards, and was tied for fifth with 12 TDs. Jones had 39 career catches, stepped onto campus in West Lafayette, and nearly tripled his production in a single season en route to an All-American nod. Jones isn’t your typical modern WR. He’s small, doesn’t have world class speed, and isn’t exactly a rockstar athlete. For all of his shortcomings, Jones makes up for it with his strong IQ and route running to get himself open. Jones excels at running quick slants and in routes from the slot, essentially serving as a safety net for his QB. His reliability ought not to be taken for granted, as his hands are stellar and allow him to hold onto passes amidst heavy traffic in the middle of the field. The underneath routes are his bread and butter, but don’t be mistaken, Jones can create separation and use a combination of acceleration and vision to be a scary threat after he catches the ball. Another plus for Jones that should get him quick playing time is his versatility on special teams, as he has experience returning kicks and produced two return TDs during his college career. The Bengals have an elite three-headed monster at WR, consisting of Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Tyler Boyd, which means that playing time on offense won’t be easy to come by for Jones. He’ll likely have a special teams role early on, however, and injuries will certainly arise and possibly thrust him into more playing time on offense. Tyler Boyd only has one year left on his deal, and if Charlie Jones can show some flashes of his slot ability, he could become a permanent replacement and steady option for Joe Burrow.

If you’ve made it this far, thanks for reading! Do you agree with my sleeper picks? What other late round selections did I miss? Let me know in the comments down below!

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