2023 NFL Draft: Teams Reportedly Considering Trading up in Second Round for Kentucky QB Will Levis

The big shocker of the first night of the 2023 NFL Draft was that no one took Kentucky quarterback Will Levis. Teams are now apparently looking into trading up for Levis in the second round.

Kentucky quarterback Will Levis falling out of the first round was perhaps the biggest surprise of the first night of the 2023 NFL Draft. But his slide might be coming to an end soon.

Various explanations exist for why teams passed on Levis. Todd McShay reports that Levis may not have displayed “ideal personality” in team interviews and that teams are concerned that Levis’s play style might lead to further injuries. Moreover, Levis’s 2022 tape was not great. And while some have attempted to explain away his questionable performance and alarmingly high rate of turnovers, teams apparently were not comfortable throwing out an entire year of film on a passer who struggled last season to showcase the quarterbacking ability needed to win a Super Bowl in the NFL.

Still, Levis is probably coming off the board in the second round. In fact, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero has reported that multiple teams are calling the Pittsburgh Steelers—owners of the first pick of the second round (pick No. 32 this year because the Miami Dolphins forfeited their first-rounder)—about getting their pick.

Pelissero notes that “[m]ultiple teams made calls to teams at the bottom of the first and were believed to be targeting ... Levis.” That makes sense: if a team picked Levis in the first round, it would get to bake a fifth-year team option into Levis’s four-year rookie contract. Second-round picks, by contrast, do not get the fifth-year option. And because the fifth-year option creates so much surplus value—as compared to other positions—when exercised on a quarterback, we have regularly seen teams trade into the back of the first round to snag quarterback prospects who have fallen down the board. Recent examples include the Minnesota Vikings trading into the back of the first round to snag Teddy Bridgewater in 2014 and the Baltimore Ravens doing the same with Lamar Jackson in 2018.

That is no longer a possibility for Levis. Still, he has some terrific traits and could well end up a star in the NFL. For quarterback-needy teams, snagging Levis with a second-round pick could best balance the risk and reward associated with drafting this polarizing prospect. Some possible suitors include the Seattle Seahawks (pick No. 37), Las Vegas Raiders (pick No. 38), and possibly even the Tennessee Titans (pick No. 41). Tennessee has already attempted to trade up for a quarterback—reports indicate that they were going to try to get the No. 3 pick from the Arizona Cardinals for C.J. Stroud if the Ohio State quarterback made it past the Houston Texans at No. 2.

A few other teams that could make sense for Levis are the Atlanta Falcons (pick No. 44), New England Patriots (pick No. 46), Washington Commanders (pick No. 47), and Detroit Lions (pick No. 48). But moving up more than ten slots could be a bit tricky, especially if a bidding war ensues.

As for the Seahawks and Raiders, they both have starting quarterbacks (Geno Smith and Jimmy Garoppolo, respectively) who have each demonstrated that they can lead a team to the playoffs. Either spot might be a perfect destination for Levis—he would come in without the pressure of being a first-round pick, and he could sit behind either Smith or Garoppolo while learning the ropes and healing from the injuries that plagued his 2022 campaign.

How Levis’s career ends up will be a worthwhile case study on various fronts. He is a quarterback with real physical gifts who had great film in his penultimate collegiate season. If an NFL team can get the most out of Levis, it could turn itself into a true contender. As of now, Levis does not have a team. That will most likely change in a few hours.