Trio of Aggies await their future as 2023 NFL Draft kicks off

At some point over the next few days, three Texas A&M football players opting for early entry into the 2023 National Football League Draft will unofficially join the league.

The question for defensive backs Antonio Johnson and Jaylon Jones and running back Devon Achane is, when will it happen?

The 2023 NFL Draft, which is being held in Kansas City, begins Thursday at 7 p.m. with the first round. The second and third rounds begin on Friday at 6 p.m. Rounds four through seven start on Saturday at 11 a.m.

Some mock drafts have projected Johnson as high as a late-first-round pick.

If an Aggie is taken in the first round, it will mark the second consecutive year A&M has produced a first-round pick. Last year, guard Kenyon Green was a first-round selection of the Houston Texans.

Since 2011, A&M has produced 10 first-round picks. That list includes linebacker Von Miller (2011), quarterback Ryan Tannehill (2012), offensive tackle Luke Joeckel (2013), offensive tackle Jake Matthews, receiver Mike Evans and quarterback Johnny Manziel (2014), offensive tackle Cedric Ogbuehi (2015), guard Germain Ifedi (2016), defensive end Myles Garrett (2017) and Green.

However, NFL.com doesn’t expect that list to grow this year.

NFL.com draft analyst Chad Reuter projects Johnson to be selected in the second round by the Philadelphia Eagles. Achane, a first-round talent, is largely projected as a third- or fourth-round pick because running backs rarely are taken in the first two rounds.

Reuter projects Achane as a fourth-round pick of the Denver Broncos.

There seems to be little consensus about Jones. He’s appeared anywhere from the late first round to the fifth round in mock drafts.

Reuter projects Jones as the first pick in the fifth round to the Chicago Bears.

Regardless of where they’re picked, A&M will have at least one player selected for the 48th time in the last 49 drafts. No A&M player was taken in the 2007 draft.

It will also mark the 12th consecutive year in which A&M has had at least two players taken.