Israel Abanikanda goes to the New York Jets with the 143rd pick in the 2023 NFL draft. Even if the Breece Hall injury provides a small window at the beginning of the season, this is a disaster for Abanikanda.
Well, this one hurts. Abanikanda was pretty easily the most exciting running back in this draft not named Bijan Robinson or Jahmyr Gibbs. You don’t normally get a back with this much upside in Round 5. In fact, he looks eerily similar to last year’s New York pick and instant breakout star.
| Breece Hall | Israel Abanikanda | |
|---|---|---|
| Final Age | 20.6 | 20.2 |
| 40 | 4.39 | 4.4* |
| Vertical | 40 | 41 |
| Final Scrimmage Yds | 1577 | 1764 |
| Final Total TDs | 21 | 23 |
* We have a 4.45 forty for Abanikanda in the Workout Explorer due to the lack of official times at a pro day, but numerous sources report times in the 4.3s.
Abanikanda is not Hall. He doesn’t enter the league with three years of elite production, he’s not the same caliber of receiver, and his evasion profile is significantly weaker. It’s still a darkest-timeline result for Abanikanda, the youngest and most athletic back in the 2023 draft.
Yesterday, I broke down the unique elements of Abanikanda’s profile versus the equally unique characteristics for Roschon Johnson. I came away optimistic for both. Although they don’t go that far apart in drafts, their new situations could hardly be more different.
In my final rookie rankings heading into the draft, I placed Abanikanda at No. 13 overall. He’ll plummet from that level, but what can we hope for in New York?
