Where will each Penn State football player go in the 2023 NFL Draft?

Penn State football hopes to see many of its former players picked in this year’s NFL Draft. It starts Thursday night with Round 1 in Kansas Citi, Mo., and runs through Saturday’s seventh round. The Lions are not expected to have more than a handful of one-time members of the roster selected throughout the three-day extravaganza. But, that said, there are always surprises.

Each year, Blue-White Illustrated aims to predict not just how many Penn State players will hear their name called, but also which round they will go in and who will select them. Here’s this year’s version.

Penn State should only have one player picked on day one

Former second-team All-American Joey Porter Jr., has long been viewed as the player who would make Penn State history by becoming the program’s first defensive back ever taken in the first round of the NFL Draft. As Thursday has inched closer, though, many media mock drafts have had him going later in the opening stanza then anticipated. Still, we’d be stunned if he falls out of day one completely.

Many mock drafts have sent him to Pittsburgh. New England and Washington have been other frequently used teams. If Detroit does not take a corner at No. 6, it’s hard to see it passing on ‘JPJ’ should he be there at 18. But, with so many thinking the Lions go corner first, we’ll rule them out. Ultimately, then, we’ll project Porter Jr., to Seattle at No. 20 overall. And, we won’t be shocked if he goes sooner than that.

Day 2 should be very interesting for the Lions

The second day consists of Rounds 2 and 3. Before the draft begins, it feels like a good total to set here would be for over or under 1.5 Penn State players going on Friday.

Are we siding with the over or the under?

There is not a complete consensus, but many draftniks think safety Ji’Ayir Brown will be the second Lion off the board. His draft stock went up considerably during his time at Penn State. That was especially true during his final season in 2022.

Brown does not have to be the next Penn State player taken after Porter Jr., however. Around the Internet, some mock drafts suggest that honor could go to lineman Juice Scruggs, tight end Brenton Strange, or even receiver Parker Washington. It’s what makes this day so interesting for Penn State: A few Nittany Lions could go. But, at the same time, they all might have to wait until day three to hear their name called.

With all that said, we’re going with the over here. Our Day 2 projections are as follows: Brown to the Las Vegas Raiders with the No. 70 overall pick, which is in Round 3. Then, Strange will go to the Miami Dolphins with the No. 84 overall pick. It will also be made in Round 3.

Day 3 should be a busy one for former Penn State players

It is nearly impossible to predict the first round of the NFL Draft, let alone the second and third. By the time Rounds 4-7 arrive, it is virtually impossible. But, where’s the fun in that?

Just like with Day 2, we’ll set a Day 3 total and put it at 3.5. A few things make this tricky. For starters, if one of the two projected Day 2 Penn State players fall to Day 3, then this total will likely go over.

Beyond that, one must also decide how many of lineman Juice Scruggs, receiver Parker Washington, defensive tackle PJ Mustipher, and quarterback Sean Clifford, among others, will hear their names called.

What’s more, teams sometimes use a sixth- or seventh-round selection to take a player they want but can’t be certain that they’ll be able to sign from the undrafted free agent pool. Thus, making calls here feels somewhat equivalent to predicting exactly how many raindrops will fall during the next thunderstorm. No matter, we’re up for the challenge.

On Day 3, we’ll send Washington to the New Orleans Saints with the No. 115 overall pick. It comes in Round 4. Scruggs then, will land with the Los Angeles Rams. The franchise has both the No. 167 and No. 171 overall pick in Round 5. After a quiet Round 6, Clifford will go No. 252 overall to the Tampa Bay Buccanneers in Round 7. Mustipher will be a top undrafted free agent priority for many. But, he won’t hear his name called before Mr. Irreelvent ends the draft.

All told, then, we have six former Penn State players going off the board.

Final thoughts

Let’s finish with one wildcard pick and a player that has us confused.

For the former, we’ll say that long snapper Chris Stoll to the Seattle Seahawks with the No. 237 selection in Round 7.

With the latter, we have hard time believing receiver Mitchell Tinsley will not hear his name called. But, good luck finding a current seven-round mock that has him on the list. That is surprising. It’s also currently a fact. We won’t be caught off guard, though, if that changes by the end of Saturday.