2023 NFL Draft: Which player do you hope does not end up on an NFC North rival?

We close out our five-part WCG round table by discussing the player we hope does not land in Green Bay, Minnesota, or Detroit.

We’re wrapping up our five-part NFL Draft roundtable with this question.

Which player do you hope does not end up on an NFC North rival?

Jeff Berckes: I really don’t want the Detroit Lions to draft Anthony Richardson. Sure, he might bust, but there’s a chance he develops into something special, and I want to make sure that doesn’t happen in Motown. The Lions are going to be good this year, I just want that ceiling to stay right where I can see it with Jared Goff under center.

EJ Snyder: Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Ohio State) landing with the Packers would sting… a lot. I think he’s going to be very good in the NFL very quickly and having to see him twice a year would not be any fun for the Bears’ secondary.

Sam Householder: The idea that the QBs could push a player of Will Anderson’s ability down to the Lions scares me. I really do not want the Lions to be able to pair Anderson with Hutchinson. Big time yikes.

Ken Mitchell: C.J. Stroud. I don’t want any of our three opponents having a promising young QB to build around. Detroit has the ammo to trade up to #2 if they so choose.

ECD: Jalen Carter has his fair share of red flags. And I’m not entirely sure he’s worth taking in the first round. I would still hate life if he got picked up within the division.

Aaron Leming: Jaxon Smith-Njigba… I’m looking at you, Green Bay. I know I’m far from alone, but I still wouldn’t be remotely upset if the Bears took “JSN” in the first round. Smith-Njigba is far and away the best receiver in this class for me, and the last thing I want to see is Green Bay getting their hands on a player like that. The Packers have many needs and have limited financial resources. With Allen Lazard leaving for New York and a change at quarterback, it wouldn’t shock me to see Green Bay take a couple of big swings on some young pass catching options early in next week’s draft.

Jacob Infante: Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Ohio State) is my WR1 in the 2023 draft, and I strongly feel he has the chance to match — if not exceed — the 1,000-yard mark his former Buckeye teammates, Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave, met as rookies. The Packers scare me a bit as a landing spot for JSN, but I might be even more scared of the thought of him teaming with Justin Jefferson with the Minnesota Vikings.

Robert Schmitz: Jaxon Smith-Njigba has become every Packers’ fan’s favorite potential pick and it’s made me realize that I can live with Jalen Carter in Detroit, I can live with Quentin Johnston or Zay Flowers in Minnesota, but I’m going to struggle to watch #11 line up against Chicago twice a year. If he does, he’ll either make Jordan Love look good (which, gross!) or Jordan Love will make him look like a poor draft pick and either option will bum me out. I’d rather he end up anywhere else.

Josh Sunderbruch: Calijah Kancey. I think this dude is going to be a wrecking ball in the NFL, and while I’m not sure he projects well into Chicago’s defense, he has a ton of game, and I just don’t want Chicago to deal with him for two games a year.

Bill Zimmerman: It has to be Will Anderson going to Detroit. I don’t think Anderson is going to fall to the sixth pick so I think we are safe here, but NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah keeps mocking Tyree Wilson to the Texans at two. If Wilson goes two and three QBs come off the board, we are the Seattle Seahawks doing something crazy from Anderson landing with the Lions. The Lions are steadily building a roster with plenty of talent and the idea of Anderson and Aidan Hutchinson on the same defensive line, while unlikely that could happen, is a terrifying thought for Justin Fields.

Patti Curl: I don’t care for the possibility that the top 4 picks are quarterbacks and the Lions end up with either Will Anderson or Jalen Carter. I just think being jealous of the Lions’ defensive line would be a very uncomfortable feeling.

Lester A. Wiltfong Jr.: Anderson or Carter landing in Detroit would be the worst-case scenario tomorrow night. Then again, the Lions lucking into Stroud would be awful. But so would them taking the dual threat Richardson. Basically, I want the Lions to screw this up somehow and I don’t see a path to that happening.

Now it’s your turn, which player do you hope does not end up on an NFC North rival?

Catch up on our previous Chicago Bears roundtable topics here;

• Who is the 1 offensive lineman you want the Bears to draft?
• Who is the 1 defensive lineman you want the Bears to draft?
• Besides the trenches, who is the 1 player you want the Bears to draft?
• Who is the 1 player you want the Bears to avoid at all costs?