2023 NFL draft buzz: Latest rumors, notes on teams, picks, QBs - ESPN

At this stage of the NFL draft cycle, speculation becomes a sport unto itself.

The start of the 2023 draft (8 p.m. ET Thursday on ESPN, ABC, ESPN App) will bring some answers to questions about what teams really thought about the players the NFL world had been analyzing and hyper-analyzing. The name announced by commissioner Roger Goodell at the top of Round 1 is only the beginning,

Until then, all we can focus on is what we're hearing, and we've assembled a consortium of well-informed reporters and analysts covering the NFL (Jeremy Fowler, Dan Graziano), the NFL draft (Matt Miller, Jordan Reid) and college football (Adam Rittenberg) to try to separate what's real from what isn't in these final hours.

What's the latest on top quarterbacks Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud, Will Levis and Anthony Richardson? Which teams could trade out of — and into — the top 10 picks? And which veteran players could get traded over the next week? Fowler, Graziano, Miller, Reid and Rittenberg tell you what they've heard.

Jump to a topic:Top 10 dominoes | Bijan Robinson Jalen Carter | Teams that could trade backVeteran trade targets | Down WR yearWilson vs. Anderson | First O-line picked?Surprises in Round 1? | Emptying notebook

Let's get this out of the way: Bryce Young is still the overwhelming favorite to go No. 1 overall to the Carolina Panthers. What happens after that, with the Houston Texans picking at No. 2, is being kept under lock and key. As Todd McShay mentioned earlier this week, there's buzz about Houston targeting one of the top edge rushers — Alabama's Will Anderson Jr. or Texas Tech's Tyree Wilson — instead of a quarterback, which could leave the Ohio State passer without an early landing spot.

The Indianapolis Colts (No. 4