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C.J. Stroud Officially Declares For The 2023 NFL Draft

By Jacob Schyvinck

Oct 8, 2022; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) celebrates after throwing his fourth touchdown in the first half of the NCAA Division I football game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Michigan State Spartans at Spartan Stadium.Osu22msu Kwr 46
Oct 8, 2022; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) celebrates after throwing his fourth touchdown in the first half of the NCAA Division I football game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Michigan State Spartans at Spartan Stadium.Osu22msu Kwr 46 /
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After potentially weighing a return to Ohio State, C.J. Stroud is now officially in for the 2023 NFL Draft.

Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud spent some time thinking about his options, and ultimately decided to forego his senior season with the Buckeyes to declare for the 2023 NFL Draft. He posted his decision on Twitter this morning.

Stroud had two dominant seasons for the Buckeyes. After a slow start acclimating to things in 2021, he found his stride, throwing for 44 touchdowns and six interceptions. He followed that up with 41 more touchdowns and six picks in 2022.

Two disappointing losses to Michigan almost guaranteed we wouldn’t get to see him in the College Football Playoff, but thanks to some help on conference championship weekend, we got to see him face off against the top defense in college football in Georgia in the playoff semifinal.

Against Georgia, Stroud showed off a part of his game that wasn’t common in his career, excelling off-script and against pressure. Georgia had him in trouble multiple times with pressure, but Stroud’s ability to escape and be accurate on the move certainly raised his stock for scouts, teams, and analysts.

C.J. Stroud is almost scientific in his methods as a passer, operating with immense precision within the pocket. His ball placement and tight window throws are plentiful on film, and he has quick eyes to work through reads and can maneuver around the pocket. His confidence with hot reads is impressive, and he flashed accuracy on the move, albeit briefly, in 2021 and the 2022 regular season.

Stroud will be in a battle with Bryce Young for QB1 in the 2023 NFL Draft, and his prototypical size could be the tiebreaker with some teams. With so much need at the quarterback position this cycle, teams could be trading up for his services. The Colts could be interested via a trade up, as could the Texans, Panthers, and Raiders. With that much competition, Stroud might not escape the top five. His landing spot will be very interesting.

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