Illinois Football: 3 Illini projected in first three rounds of 2023 NFL Draft

We are now six days from the 2023 NFL Draft, and the Illinois football program is in line for a nice haul of players selected.

Lovie Smith recruited some great guys to the Illini, and with Bret Bielema taking over the program, we have been able to develop those players into high-level NFL talent.

Prior to Bielema taking the reins, the last time Illinois had back-to-back years with multiple players selected in the NFL Draft was in 2012 and 2013. That dry spell was broken in the last two NFL Draft classes. Two players were picked in the 2021 NFL Draft and last year, Illinois had three players selected.

Illinois is about to continue the streak of having multiple players selected. We are looking at having at least four players picked in the 2023 NFL Draft.

The Illinois football secondary is going to be well represented in the 2023 NFL Draft

When it comes to the 2023 NFL Draft, a lot of the talk has been about where Illinois cornerback Devon Witherspoon will be selected.

Witherspoon is currently ranked by ESPN as the No. 1 cornerback in the draft and the No. 7 prospect overall. I have seen numerous mock drafts with the Detroit Lions or the Las Vegas Raiders taking him with pick No. 6 or 7, respectively. He would join former teammate Kerby Joseph in the Lions’ secondary or Nate Hobbs in the Raiders’ secondary.

I mentioned earlier that Illinois is likely to have at least four players selected in the 2023 NFL Draft, and three of those four players might end up going in the first three rounds.

Sydney Brown is looked at as one of the best safeties in the draft. He is ranked as the No. 2 safety and the No. 64 prospect overall. Mel Kiper and Todd McShay did a three-round mock draft, and they have Brown going No. 82 overall in the third round to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Illinois is also going to put Quan Martin into the NFL. He is a safety in the professional ranks and is ranked as the No. 4 safety in the 2023 NFL Draft and the No. 85 prospect overall.

In the Kiper and McShay mock draft, Martin gets selected before Brown. They have him going No. 69 overall in the third round to the Los Angeles Rams.

The last projected Illinois player to be picked in the 2023 NFL Draft is running back, Chase Brown. He is ranked as the No. 11 running back in the draft and the No. 130 prospect overall. With 32 picks, roughly, you are looking at Brown going in round four.

Those are the four locks to be selected in the 2023 NFL Draft. It is an impressive haul for the Illini considering the last time we had four selections was 10 years ago. Who knows, maybe someone like Tommy DeVito or Alex Palczewski sneak into the back end of the draft. It should be a fun watch.