Vincent Frank
With the 2023 NFL Draft class set to make its debut this season, incoming sophomores have been lost in the conversation. However, these players are likely going to make much more of an impact than their “younger” counterparts once the 2023 NFL season comes calling.
From a young EDGE rusher in the NFC East to a talented wide receiver in Wisconsin and a record-breaking quarterback in Northern California, here’s a look at 10 sophomores who will improve in 2023.
Related: 2023 NFL schedule
10. Kayvon Thibodeaux, EDGE, New York Giants
The No. 5 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, Thibodeaux was slowed out of the gate as a rookie after suffering a sprained MCL during the preseason. Despite this, the EDGE guy started all 14 games in which he appeared. He ended up recording 13 QB hits, five passes defended, two forced fumbles and an amazing touchdown. Now fully healthy, Thibodeaux is expecting big things from himself as a sophomore.
“I feel like it was pretty good,” Thibodeaux said of his rookie season. “I feel like my rookie year, I left a lot of space to grow, got better as time went on. Continuously put the work in. I’m excited for the second year now.”
Working under legendary defensive coordinator Don Martindale for a second year and with a full offseason program under his belt, this youngster is going to do his thing in 2023.
- Projected Kayvon Thibodeaux stats: 65 tackles, 25 QB hits, 10.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles
9. Kenny Pickett, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers
Pickett’s rookie season was full of ups and downs. That’s to be expected with the former first-round pick starting out of the gate and replacing the legendary Ben Roethlisberger. Typically, quarterbacks make that leap from Year 1 to their sophomore campaigns.
We’re expecting a similar dynamic to surround Pickett in 2023. Pittsburgh added Pro Bowl wide receiver Allen Robinson to the mix this past offseason. It also has a new starting left tackle, rookie Broderick Jones, and one of the better all-around running backs in the NFL in the form of Najee Harris.
- Projected Kenny Pickett stats: 65% completion, 3,650 yards, 23 TD, 12 INT
Related: Top 2023 NFL Rookie of the Year candidates
8. Treylon Burks, WR, Tennessee Titans
Tennessee literally selected Burks with the first-round pick it acquired for A.J. Brown during the 2022 NFL Draft. That’s a lot of pressure to place on a young wide receiver, especially with the Titans’ disastrous situation at quarterback.
While Tennessee has not solved its issues under center, it is safe to say veteran Ryan Tannehill will be under center for the majority of the 2023 campaign. From a micro perspective, this is going to help the talented 23-year-old Burks.
It must also be noted that the former Arkansas star missed six games due to injury as a rookie. Now that he’s 100% healthy and expected to be one of the top targets in Tennessee’s passing game, expect a breakout sophomore campaign.
- Projected Treylon Burks stats: 70 receptions, 1,100 yards, 10 TD
7. Derek Stingley Jr., CB, Houston Texans
Yet another former LSU standout, Derek Stingley Jr. played extremely well as a rookie for Houston last season. He yielded a mere 78.4 QB rating when targeted. It wasn’t Sauce Gardner great, but it was darn good.
With that said, Stingley did miss eight games to injury and recorded only one interception. We’re fully expecting him to play a full season as a sophomore and show himself to be more of a ball hawk in the Texans’ backfield. That’s especially true with Houston’s pass rush set to improve via rookie No. 3 pick Will Anderson.
- Projected Daryl Stingley stats: 70 tackles, 15 passes defended, 4 INT, 70.5 QB rating allowed
Related: Ranking all 32 NFL offenses
6. Skyy Moore, WR, Kansas City Chiefs
Moore’s big breakout as a rookie came in the Super Bowl against the Philadelphia Eagles. With Kansas City up 28-27 and about midway through the fourth quarter, he caught a four-yard touchdown passes to pad the Chiefs lead. Outside of that, the second-round pick from Western Michigan did very little (22 receptions, 250 yards in 16 games).
Short of the Chiefs adding DeAndre Hopkins in free agency, Moore will take on a larger role as a sophomore.
“We are expecting Skyy Moore to step up. We’ll just see how everything else works. We got the same guys coming back that we had, and we like that group with the exception of JuJu,” Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said in March. “Mecole was banged up a little bit so he didn’t have a chance to play as much as he would have wanted. We’ll work out the thing without JuJu. Somebody will have to step up and take that spot.”
Indeed, Kansas City lost both JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman during NFL free agency. Given the Reid-led offense and Patrick Mahomes’ presence, Moore is an obvious breakout candidate.
- Projected Skyy Moore stats: 65 receptions, 850 yards, 7 TD
5. James Cook, RB, Buffalo Bills
It wasn’t too much of a surprise that Buffalo didn’t re-sign Devin Singletary during NFL free agency. He was far too inconsistent to rely on moving forward. The Bills also utilized a second-round pick on Cook in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Cook displayed flashes as a rookie in Western New York as a rookie (5.7 yards per attempt). Even with the Bills having signed Damien Harris away from the division-rival Patriots in free agency, we’re expecting Cook to get the bulk of the touches to help create balance with Josh Allen as a sophomore. This should set him up for a huge season.
- Projected James Cook stats: 240 attempts, 1,150 yards, 40 receptions, 270 yards, 8 TD
4. Christian Watson, WR, Green Bay Packers
Imagine going from playing at North Dakota State to catching passes from Aaron Rodgers. As much as anything else, Watson’s rookie season had to be a culture shock for the young receiver. Even then, he was still able to put up 611 receiving yards while catching north of 62% of his targets.
With Jordan Love now slated to take over for Rodgers in Green Bay, most figure regression is going to be the name of the game. While that might be true from a team-wide standpoint, we’re looking for Watson to show out big time as a sophomore. He’s Green Bay’s unquestioned No. 1 receiver and should find a connection with Love early and often.
- Projected Christian Watson stats: 75 receptions, 1,125 yards, 11 TD
3. Kyle Hamilton, S, Baltimore Ravens
Hamilton was viewed as a generational safety prospect coming out of Notre Dame last year. That’s why it was such a surprise he fell to Baltimore with the 14th pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. We’re talking about a true centerfielder with some of the best range we’ve seen from a young safety in recent history.
Splitting time with Chuck Clark at safety last season, Hamilton still recorded 62 tackles with five passes defended. Now that Clark is on the Jets, the job is Hamilton’s to grab and keep for the next decade or so. Look for a Pro Bowl-caliber performance from the young safety in 2023.
- Projected Kyle Hamilton stats: 90 tackles, 13 passes defended, 4 INT
Related: Ranking all 32 NFL starting QBs
2. Brock Purdy, QB, San Francisco 49ers
An argument could be made that Purdy far exceeded expectations as a rookie. Heck, it’s not even much of an argument. Mr. Irrelevant as the last pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, the Iowa State product put up an historic performance. He led San Francisco to wins in each of his first seven starts, playoffs included. That span saw Purdy put up the best quarterback rating of any starter in the league.
Coming off elbow surgery, Purdy is expected to be 100% and ready to go Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He has all the tools a young quarterback could ask for in that of running back Christian McCaffrey and tight end George Kittle as well as wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel. With offensive-minded head coach Kyle Shanahan calling the plays, look for Purdy to put up a Pro Bowl performance as a sophomore.
- Projected Brock Purdy stats: 68% completion, 4,200 yards, 28 TD, 11 INT
1. Aidan Hutchinson, EDGE, Detroit Lions
Hutchinson finished No. 2 in the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting behind Sauce Gardner last season. He was a brilliant all-around performer despite it not showing up too much on the stat sheet (15 QB hits, 9.5 sacks).
Like we’ve seen from other generational young pass rushers, the expectation is that Hutchinson will take a second-year leap. He’s now the face of a vastly improved unit under defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn and should continue showing out. Only this time, it will show up on the stat sheet.
- Projected Aidan Hutchinson stats: 65 tackles, 19 for loss, 25 QB hits, 15.5 sacks
