The Jacksonville Jaguars kicked off the 2022 NFL draft with a risky, counter-intuitive roster that could send the franchise teetering at the bottom of the standings for years if it backfires.
In other words, it was a typical start to a typically unpredictable first round.
The Jaguars selected Georgia edge rusher Travon Walker with the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. Walker netted just six sacks in the 2021 season for the College Football Playoff champions, but his 35.5-inch arms and excellent results in athletic tests such as the three-cone drill impressed scouts during the preparatory process, leading the Jaguars to pick him over higher valued, more successful prospects.
Walker may have a deep reservoir of long-term potential, although the Jaguars may not be the best franchise to tap into it. Until the team proves otherwise, the Jaguars are ready when opponents protect their quarterbacks by placing him behind cones or on a high bookshelf.
Walker’s roster set the tone for what turned out to be a big night for edge rushers, offensive linemen, cornerbacks and wide receivers, but a very quiet night for quarterbacks.
Michigan edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson, who is less and less athletic than Walker but had 14 sacks in 2021, fell to the Detroit Lions’ second-choice. The Lions later traded for 12th overall to select Alabama receiver Jameson Williams. Ultra-macho Lions coach Dan Campbell couldn’t have been happier with the first round results had he dropped nine points with nothing but a determined frown.
Cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. and Texas A&M guard Kenyon Green were picked third and 15th overall by the Houston Texans, as close as a prospect can get to the bottom rung of a multi-level marketing plan.
The Jets and Giants, each with two selections in the top 10, got through the night shockingly without making any glaring, potentially catastrophic mistakes. The Jets selected Cincinnati cornerback Ahmad Gardner in fourth and Ohio State wide receiver Garrett Wilson in 10th, then traded for Florida State edge rusher Jermaine Johnson II in 26th overall. The Giants selected Oregon edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux in fifth and Alabama guard Evan Neal in eighth.
Gardner is 6-foot-3, runs the 40-yard dash in 4.41 seconds and has a cool nickname, Sauce, the three prerequisites for a top-tier NFL cornerback. Wilson combines pure speed with trail running, which consists of two parts Cooper Kupp and one part Bob Fosse. If Wilson takes three jukes to open, he will make three jukes, but some reviewers are concerned because if Wilson takes one juke to open, he will make three jukes. Johnson registered 11.5 sacks in 2021 after switching from a program in Georgia that yielded five first-round selections on Thursday.
Thibodeaux was a consensus All-America roster in 2021 and one of the best defenders in the nation for three years. However, the NFL’s gossip inexplicably disliked him this off-season, causing him to slip on the draft board under Walker and Hutchinson. Justin Herbert, now a Pro Bowl quarterback for the Los Angeles Chargers, faced similar vague whispers when he left Oregon in 2020. It’s worth noting that NFL Scouting departments are still full of guys who think anyone who chooses to play in the Pacific Northwest over Alabama or Texas must be a filthy hippie.
Neal is a typical top-level offensive line that looks and moves like a video game boss. He should be able to protect Daniel Jones from anything but himself.
To round out the top 10:
The Carolina Panthers selected Ikem Ekwonu, a North Carolina state tackle, at number 6: a surprising decision, as the Panthers were expected to select a quarterback to replace Cam Newton, who proved to be a poor replacement for Sam. Darnold, who was a poor replacement for Teddy Bridgewater, who was a poor replacement for Cam Newton.
So desperately in need of a pay cap write-off that they gifted longtime quarterback Matt Ryan to 1-877-QBS-4-COLTS, the Atlanta Falcons selected Southern California receiver Drake London as the eighth pick.
The Seattle Seahawks, who became a quarterback-needy team after trading Russell Wilson for the Denver Broncos, selected Mississippi State tackle Charles Cross in ninth overall to block for Drew Lock, Geno Smith or whoever they can in later rounds. pick up.
A spate of trades involving receivers marked the middle of the first round, with the Arizona Cardinals buying Marquise Brown from the Baltimore Ravens for 25th overall pick, and the Philadelphia Eagles trading 18th overall pick for the Tennessee Titans for receiver AJ brown. San Francisco recipient Deebo Samuel was not treated, despite openly seeking a trade.
The New Orleans Saints traded a myriad of picks in a series of deals over the next three years to get on the board and select Ohio State recipient Chris Olave at number 11, then added Northern Iowa’s Trevor Penning with the 19th choice. The Saints also tried to get out of purgatory this off-season by converting many of their veterans’ contracts into reverse mortgages. By 2024, Olave and Penning may be the only players the team can afford to keep.
One team that neither traded for nor fielded a receiver was the Green Bay Packers, who selected Georgia linebacker Quay Walker and defending Georgia Devonte Wyatt with the 22nd and 28th picks, the first of which they acquired by trading Davante Adams to Las Vegas in March. That rumble you hear on the horizon is Aaron Rodgers’ mood.
Kenny Pickett of Pittsburgh eventually became the only quarterback to be selected when the Pittsburgh Steelers made him the 20th overall pick. He will be the heir to retired Ben Roethlisberger if he can deprive journeyman Mitchell Trubisky of a runway. That’s both a low bar and a big ‘if’. Liberty’s Malik Willis was not called up on Thursday night, despite speculation he could be a top-10 pick.
Most analysts believed this year’s quarterback picks were scarce, which is why many NFL teams filled the position in creative ways earlier this season: trading for Wilson, Deshaun Watson or Carson Wentz (we said creatively). , not necessarily recommended); pledging their budget and dignity to Rodgers; delay in filing Tom Brady’s retirement papers; finding peace and acceptance with Jones for another year.
Remarkably absent from Thursday evening’s course: the Rams themselves, who will only make a selection again in the first round when the draft is held in a colony on Mars.
