Jordan Addison selected in first round of 2023 NFL Draft
Jordan Addison has been selected with the No. 23 pick in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings.
The former USC wide receiver spent just one season in Los Angeles. After winning the Biletnikoff Award as the best receiver in the country in 2021 with Pittsburgh, Addison looked to prove he could be just as effective at the highest level, so he joined Lincoln Riley and Caleb Williams at USC and helped the Trojans go from 4-8 to 11-3.
Now, as many expected he would be, he’s a first-round draft pick.
Addison gives the Trojans a second consecutive draft with a wide receiver taken in the first round. It’s also the fourth straight year USC has had a first-rounder.
Jordan Pick 2️⃣3️⃣@Espn_Jordan pic.twitter.com/70CAGCZZ5k
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) April 28, 2023
A 5-foot-11, 173-pound receiver from Frederick, Maryland, Addison blew up at Pittsburgh in 2021, winning the Biletnikoff Award and earning consensus All-American honors. As the star for a surprise ACC champion Pitt team, Addison posted a school-record 100 receptions for 1,593 yards and 17 touchdowns (tied for first in the nation).
He left Pitt to join a loaded receiver room at USC and still managed to stand out. Addison had seven catches for 172 yards in his first Pac-12 game against Stanford on Sept. 10, then posted another 100-yard game against Arizona State on Oct. 1.
Addison dealt with a nagging ankle issue from the Trojans’ Oct. 15 loss to Utah throughout the rest of the season. He missed two games in the regular season as a result, and only ever looked like himself once the rest of the way. Addison went off for 178 yards and a score on 11 catches in the Trojans’ Nov. 19 win over UCLA, but was limited to 45 yards on three catches the following week against Notre Dame and then 65 yards on five catches in USC’s Pac-12 title loss to Utah. Addison opted out of the Cotton Bowl to prepare for the draft.
He finished the season with 875 yards on 59 receptions. Heading into bowl season, he was tied for the Pac-12 lead with eight receiving touchdowns. He ranked eighth in the Pac-12 in receiving yards and earned a spot on the All-Pac-12 First Team for his efforts.
In three seasons at the collegiate level, he produced more than 3,000 receiving yards and 29 touchdowns. In March, he declared himself the best receiver in the class.
“I know I’m the best receiver in this draft,” he told reporters at USC’s Pro Day. “I can come into a new system and perform really well early. I can play any position on the field. I can run any route, intermediate, shallow, deep. Then, take away all football-related stuff, I’m just a great person.”
Minnesota agreed.45