Analyzing the Chaos of the 2023 NWSL Draft

By JULIA MOSS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Draft time in any sports league is typically a time for teams to look to the future and try to set them up for success with young talent. The extensive scouting, strategizing and dreaming for a good pick is usually the overarching narrative of each year around draft time. However, this year’s National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) draft distinctly challenged that idea. Surprisingly, the biggest story of this year’s draft was how teams are shaping up for a winnow philosophy.

Of the twelve first-round picks, eight were acquired by trade, and with these trades, a lot of players got shifted to new teams. It didn’t take long for the biggest shocker of the night to be shared. Directly following the announcement of Angel City FC’s first overall pick, Alyssa Thompson, it was revealed that Gotham FC would trade their second overall pick to the Kansas City Current in exchange for United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) forward Lynn Williams.

trading what could have been their best player to invest in young talent, and for Gotham, they are betting on a good recovery from Williams to bring her the same success as before. On a positive note, Williams recently played her first game back from the injury for the USWNT and headed in a beautiful goal, so it seems her recovery is on the right track.

game ended with Prescott being unable to clock the ball before time expired. The two teams boasted top defenses all year and proved it with the score knotted up at six at the half. In the second half, the legend of Purdy continued as he was able to manufacture a fourth-quarter touchdown drive, while the Niners defense continued to come up big, preserving a 19-12 victory and setting up a heavyweight bout between the Eagles and 49ers for the NFC title game.

It will be a rematch of the AFC Championship game from last year as the Chiefs and Bengals are once again squaring off at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. Burrow is going into the game 3-0 alltime against Mahomes and the Chiefs after a 27-24 statement win against this Chiefs team earlier in the season. Last year’s championship game ended with the same final score after a game-winning field goal by Evan McPherson in overtime. The Bengals have a similar team to last year, however with a banged-up offensive line, while the Chiefs are the same team from earlier in the season, but without Tyreek Hill from last year. The injury Mahomes sustained in the previous game could be a deciding factor in whether or not the Bengals repeat as AFC Champions or if the Chiefs can return back to the Super Bowl after a one-year hiatus last season.

On the NFC side, the top two teams in the conference will face off for the conference title. The Eagles started the season off undefeated before a week 10 loss to the Washington Commanders. After a hot start for Jalen Hurts, injuries plagued him and he was forced to sit out two games before coming back for the crucial week 18 victory to grant them home-field advantage this coming week. The Eagles will try to go poll to poll as the best team in the NFC.

The 49ers season was not as expected, but still found Kyle Shanahan’s team in the championship game for the third time in the last four years. After losing Trey Lance early in the season, Jimmy Garapollo came in relief and regained his starting quarterback job. After Garapollo got injured, a trade for Christian McCaffrey as well as the emergence of the last pick in the 2022 draft, Purdy carried them to eight consecutive wins. They will hope these winning ways continue and propel them into a Super Bowl opportunity this year.