Should Jaxon Smith-Njigba be the top WR prospect in 2023 NFL draft? Peter King is doubtful
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NBC Sports football reporter Peter King is still questioning why Jaxon Smith-Njigba is so high on many 2023 NFL draft boards.
After setting Ohio State football single-season records for receptions and receiving yards and coming into his junior season as a preseason All-American candidate, Smith-Njigba caught only five passes for 43 yards in 2022, missing the majority of the season with a hamstring injury.
In Monday's "Football Morning in America" column, King said he's "hearing some reticence" about taking Smith-Njigba as either the No. 12 or No. 18 pick after playing "the equivalent of one football game with a hamstring injury" last season.
"This is not an overriding negative on Jaxon Smith-Njigba, an excellent receiver prospect," King wrote. "But the Ohio State football season was five months long last year, including practice, and Smith-Njigba got a left hamstring injury early, and he played 60 snaps total in three games, and never got on the field in the last 10 weeks. He runs a 4.48 40-. I’m not the only one wondering: How is Jaxon Smith-Njigba the top-rated receiver on so many boards with 10 days to go?"
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With his 4.48 40-yard dash time at Ohio State football's pro day in March, Smith-Njigba said he "felt like I could have run better" and left happy with the chance to "walk off this field healthy."
“Who knows with this stuff,” Smith-Njigba said. “I know the player that I am. I've got speed. I can beat players with my speed and my athletic ability. I’m definitely confident in that.”
In December, after Smith-Njigba announced he would not be available to return for Ohio State's College Football Playoff run, ESPN NFL draft analyst Todd McShay reported that’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba was healthy enough to play against Georgia, but sat out to protect himself ahead of the draft.
"I've got news for every prospect out there: NFL teams know," McShay said. "They know what you had for lunch last Thursday. They are going to know if you are healthy or not. And if you are healthy enough to play, you need to be out there with your teammates and play.
"I'm not saying it's going to hurt his draft stock... but the difference is with Jaxon Smith-Njigba, he is like a late first, early second rounder. He's a great college player, great slot receiver. But he has some drops, doesn't have exceptional size, doesn't have exceptional speed. There were some things coming into the year, after the great season he had, scouts were pointing to that said 'I don't think he's a lock to go top-15, top-20.' Now the fact that he's not playing certainly isn't going to help those odds."
Maada Smith-Njigba, Jaxon's father, blasted these claims, saying Smith-Njigba was just starting to rehab his injury in December.
"Being (with) my son yesterday for his first day of rehab and seeing his limitations for myself gave me peace (with) our families (sic) choice to get my son healthy," he tweeted. "Encouraging him (to) play would be selfish and abusive. I'm at peace (because) I know he's in the right hands (for) recovery."
Will C.J. Stroud be selected by the Houston Texans in the 2023 NFL draft?
While sportsbooks are trending toward Alabama quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young to be the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL draft to the Carolina Panthers, King said that C.J. Stroud being the No. 2 pick may not be a lock.
But while King says he hears the "Houston's souring on Stroud" rumors, he still believes that the Texans will pick a quarterback at No. 2.
"How would (Texans owner) Cal McNair answer to his disaffected season-ticket holders if, after passing on a quarterback with the third and 15th picks in the first round last year, he passes on a quarterback at number two this year?" King wrote. "It’s the job of coaches to get the best out of players, and there’s certainly enough potential in C.J. Stroud — should he be there for Houston at two—for the Texans’ coaches to make a good NFL QB out of him."
However, King still has doubt in where Stroud would end up come draft day.
"This might sound crazy," King writes, "but I’m not sure how many teams will be aggressive in trying to move up for C.J. Stroud if Bryce Young goes first to Carolina."
In two seasons as Ohio State's starting quarterback, Stroud threw for 8,123 passing yards, 85 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
Stroud was a two-time Heisman Trophy finalist in two seasons as the Buckeyes' starter.
The NFL draft will be held in Kansas City starting April 27.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: NBC Sports' Peter King doubts Jaxon Smith-Njigba as top NFL draft WR
