2023 NFL Draft: Late risers after the NFL Scouting Combine and pro days


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• Wake Forest DI Kobie Turner: He was the second-highest-graded defensive tackle in the Power Five this past season.


The term “risers” used by draft analysis is really just shorthand for “people got around to watching their tape.” And that’s completely OK, as there are no brownie points for having the correct evaluation in January.

That being said, here are eight 2023 NFL Draft prospects you may not have heard much about who’ll be climbing their way toward the Day 2 conversation.


DI KOBIE TURNER, WAKE FOREST

Turner turned heads at his pro day on April 4 when the 288-pound defensive tackle ran a 4.49-second shuttle and a 7.08-second cone (97th percentile), then put up 31 reps on the bench. Flip on the tape, and it should come as no surprise.

After transferring from Richmond to Wake Forest this past fall, all Turner did was turn in the second-highest-graded season of any defensive tackle in the Power Five (92.2 overall). While he’ll get dinged for his 6-foot-2 frame with 32-inch arms, his pro day showed a player who can overcome it at the next level. That still could relegate him to a Day 3 selection with the NFL’s emphasis on size at the position.

Kobie Turner gets his right shoulder across the Mizzou center – disallowing access to his chest while staying low – before getting skinny through the A-Gap and turning into the pocket for a sack

I should have an eval on the Wake Forest DL soon on Giants Country @Patricia_Traina pic.twitter.com/w2qfZhDcLJ

— Nick Falato (@nickfalato) March 31, 2023