It’s officially bowl season!
Our annual draft prospects series returns for the sixth consecutive year. We’ve identified over 200 college prospects to keep an eye on ahead of the 2023 NFL draft, all of whom might be potential fits with the Kansas City Chiefs. Last season’s prospect list included several of the Chiefs’ 2022 NFL draft picks including George Karlaftis, Skyy Moore and Bryan Cook. Who will be next?
Our fifteenth group of prospects includes an underrated edge rusher, a First-Team All-American offensive lineman, a Last Chance U standout and an interior offensive lineman from Andy Reid’s alma mater.
Louisville EDGE YaYa Diaby
Listed at 6-foot-4 and 270 pounds, Diaby is coming off of a big senior campaign with the Cardinals. The former JUCO transfer had a breakout campaign with 33 total tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, two fumble recoveries and a pass batted in 12 games played. His sack total ranked third in the ACC this season, but his statistical production has cooled a bit since the early portion of the season. He could use a big performance in the bowl game against Cincinnati.
Assuming that the Chiefs don’t make a coaching change on the defensive side of the ball this offseason, Diaby is a fit for Steve Spagnuolo’s prototype. He does a good job setting the edge and playing the run, but he also is relentless in getting after the quarterback. He’d be a solid rotational piece to add to a lineup that will feature George Karlaftis and Mike Danna in 2023.
Fenway Bowl: Cincinnati vs. Louisville – Saturday, Dec. 17 at 10:00 a.m. CT – Live stream on fuboTV (free 7-day trial).
Florida OG O'Cyrus Torrence
I had originally planned to write about WR Justin Shorter, who officially declared for the draft and will skip the bowl game. We pivoted to Torrence, who is now also not playing in the game. Still, this hulking interior offensive lineman is worth writing about even if he won’t suit up on Saturday.
Torrence has a fresh set of First-Team All-American honors. At 6-foot-5 and 345 pounds, he’s been a load to handle in both the running game and the passing game. He’ll finish his four-year career at Florida without having surrendered a single sack in 46 career starts.
The Chiefs don’t exactly need another interior offensive lineman with Joe Thuney and Trey Smith under contract, but Torrence has the potential to be the best available player late in the first round of the draft.
Las Vegas Bowl: Florida vs. Oregon State – Saturday, Dec. 17 at 1:30 p.m. CT – Live stream on fuboTV (free 7-day trial).
Oregon State CB Rejzohn Wright
A former standout from the fifth season of the hit series Last Chance U, Wright is a lengthy cornerback prospect (6-2, 192 pounds) that has become the NFL prototype at the position. He’s posted a productive season, making quarterbacks pay for targeting him by allowing just 47.2% of passes into his coverage to go for completion. He had two interceptions on the season and two passes defended, but he also gave up six touchdowns on the year.
While the Chiefs invested a ton in the cornerback group a season ago, you can never have too many bodies in the secondary in this league. If they’re looking for someone in the mid-to-late rounds of the draft to supplement what they already have, K.C. could do a lot worse than Wright.
Las Vegas Bowl: Florida vs. Oregon State – Saturday, Dec. 17 at 1:30 p.m. CT – Live stream on fuboTV (free 7-day trial).
BYU OG Clark Barrington
Barrington is a do-it-all interior offensive lineman with experience playing left guard and right guard. He’s also able to snap and play center in a pinch. In over 1,300 pass-blocking snaps in four seasons, Barrington has surrendered just two sacks and 31 pressures according to PFF. He’s also been one of the better run blockers for the BYU offensive line over the last three seasons.
Like most players coming out of BYU, Barrington is an older prospect at 24 years old. That said, he’s a player who looks capable of coming and contributing at a high level early in his NFL career. With guys like Nick Allegretti, Andrew Wylie and Austin Reiter set to hit free agency in 2023, it’d pay to make an investment in another jack-of-all-trades interior offensive lineman.
New Mexico Bowl: SMU vs. BYU – Saturday, Dec. 17 at 6:30 p.m. CT – Live stream on fuboTV (free 7-day trial).
