2022 Comprehensive Draft Thread

[Skinsinparadise]

1 hour ago, Going Commando said:

 

I can get excited about a QB at 11.  I know they are rough and have their warts, and that we'd be headed for a rough year next season most likely.  But getting a QB prospect is exciting.  And I like the potential of these QB prospects well enough.  I can see a path to success with Pickett and Willis in particular.

 

Me, too.  I am not as high on Pickett as you are.  But I'd be into it.   Definitiely intrigued.  There is something about all these top 6 QBs that intrigue me on some level and i'll ride with whichever one they like the best.  Judging by rumors sounds like for now that's Pickett and Wllis. 

Edited March 9, 2022 by Skinsinparadise

[Always A Commander Never A Captain]

3 hours ago, KDawg said:

I don’t think he had a great senior bowl. I think he had one really good throw and then just played mediocre football. Which is what I ultimately believe he’s going to give. 
 

We’ll see, but I don’t think he’s even close to being a top 20 overall player. I don’t think any of the QBs are. 

 

If he plays mediocre with occasional good throws...that might be worth it for pick 11.

 

We've had such bad QB play that league average play is an improvement.  You just don't give that guy a 2nd contract after 5 years are up.

 

A 1st round pick and only rookie pay against the cap for 5 years isn't bad value.  But that's only if he actually produces at a league average rate.

[VirginiaVibes]

Good breakdown of Matt Corral's strengths. You can easily see he maneuvers the pocket better tham any QB in this class and has improv skills like Rodgers and Mahomes (I don't think any other QBs in this class are very good at improvising when the play breaks down or they are in trouble)

 

 

Edited March 9, 2022 by VirginiaVibes

[The Rook]

My vote for the Washington use of a draft pick for the "he would have gone higher if he hadn't torn his ACL last year" is George Pickens.  This guy has some great tape from 2020 and looked good at the combine after his recovery.  If he is there at the 4th round pick, they need to consider him for the  "he would have gone higher ..." pick.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Rook

[Skinsinparadise]

McShay's new mock

 

https://www.espn.com/nfl/draft2022/insider/story/_/id/33422215/nfl-mock-draft-2022-todd-mcshay-predictions-all-32-first-round-picks-following-combine-workouts-russell-wilson-trade

11. Washington Commanders

Kenny Pickett, QB, Pittsburgh

Last Thursday at the combine began with concerns about Pickett's 8½-inch hand size, which is worrisome for a quarterback who has struggled in bad weather games and with turnovers. But it ended with a great performance from him throwing the football during the on-field workouts. I was impressed with the way he put all of the morning's chatter behind him and put on a show. I still have Liberty's Malik Willis ranked higher, but Pickett is the most NFL-ready signal-caller in the class. Washington, which had the NFL's 23rd-best QBR (38.2) last season, would be getting a quarterback with good touch, field vision and accuracy.

The door is still open for the Commanders to trade for Jimmy Garoppolo or even sign a free-agent quarterback. That would change things. But if they go into the draft still needing a signal-caller, this is a tremendous outcome.

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12. Minnesota Vikings

Jermaine Johnson II, DE, Florida State

The Vikings have a tenacious pass-rush duo in Danielle Hunter and D.J. Wonnum, but Johnson can be a third impact player on their front. His 12 sacks and 45 pressures were both top-15 numbers in the country last season, and he's a great value pick for Minnesota at No. 12. In Indianapolis, the 6-foot-5, 254-pounder ran a 4.58 in the 40-yard dash and impressed with a 10-foot-5 broad jump. New Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell watched a great pass rush help his former team, the Rams, to a Super Bowl. So he'd happily welcome another smooth-moving explosive end to the mix.

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13. Cleveland Browns

Devonte Wyatt, DT, Georgia

Another in a long line of Georgia defenders who impressed in Indy, Wyatt locates the football super fast and then has 4.77 speed to close on it. That 40-yard dash time led all defensive tackles at the combine, and he was in the top five at the position in both the vertical (29 inches) and broad jump (9-foot-3). Malik Jackson is a free agent, leaving a hole in the middle of Cleveland's defensive front, and Wyatt -- one of the biggest risers in the class -- could slide in next to Myles Garrett to both help get after the quarterback and stuff the run at the line of scrimmage.

And yes, receiver is a position to watch for Cleveland, but it might be slightly early for Ohio State's Chris Olave or Arkansas' Treylon Burks.Mel Kiper Jr., Todd 

14. Baltimore Ravens

Trevor Penning, OT, Northern Iowa

I was blown away by Penning's combine workout. He ran a 4.89 in the 40 and tied for the fastest time among offensive linemen in the three-cone drill (7.25). With that mobility, 34¼-inch length and 6-foot-7, 325-pound size, Penning is tough to get around in pass protection.

But his real bread and butter is run blocking, which aligns well with Baltimore's offense. He overpowers defenders at the point of attack and can move them off the ball. That'd open lanes for quarterback Lamar Jackson and running back J.K. Dobbins, who are both expected back to the Ravens' offense after 2021 injuries. With Ronnie Stanley missing 26 regular-season games over the past two years and Alejandro Villanueva turning 34 in September, it's time for Baltimore to restock the line with real maulers. That's especially true after the Ravens allowed 57 sacks last season (second most).

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15. Philadelphia Eagles (via MIA)

Devin Lloyd, ILB, Utah

Ah, we've entered the Eagles' portion of the draft, in which they'll make three picks over the course of the next five. They don't look at linebackers in Round 1 often -- they've taken just one here over the past 40 years (Marcus Smith in 2014) -- but Lloyd's sideline-to-sideline range and versatility make him a perfect fit in the middle of the Philadelphia defense. He filled the stat sheet last season with impact numbers in all facets of the game: 96 tackles, 8.0 sacks, 20 tackles for loss, four interceptions and seven passes broken up.

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16. Philadelphia Eagles (via IND)

Derek Stingley Jr., CB, LSU

April 6 is circled on the calendar of the scouts for every team that needs a first-round cornerback. It's the LSU pro day, when we should finally see Stingley in action after he opted to sit out the combine workouts while rehabbing his left foot injury a bit longer. There's not a more confusing evaluation in the class. Stingley is versatile, physical, long and fast. In fact, if I were forced to choose between Ahmad Gardner and him, and I was basing the decision on Gardner's 2021 tape (which is excellent) and Stingley's 2019 tape, I'd take the latter. That's how good he was during his freshman campaign.

But 2020 brought uneven play, and 2021 was largely lost to injury. Failing to quiet concerns at the combine only heightened the apprehension around using an early pick on him. All that said, he has the traits to be shutdown corner in the NFL. Darius Slay and Stingley could be one of the top duos in the league.

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17. Los Angeles Chargers

Jordan Davis, DT, Georgia

There isn't much more to say about Davis' combine workout. It was one of the most impressive showings I've ever seen at the event. Running a 4.78 in the 40-yard dash and jumping 10-foot-3 in the broad jump at 341 pounds seemingly defies physics. If he keeps his weight in the 340-pound range, Davis is going to be a problem for offensive coordinators in the NFL. Against the run, he's a space-eater who plays with power. He sees double-teams regularly but still appears impossible to move off his spot.

That's all good news for the Chargers, who gave up 4.6 yards per carry last season (tied for the fifth-worst rate in the NFL) and lose defensive tackles Linval Joseph and Justin Jones to free agency. Davis' big-time combine showing cemented his top-20 status, but if he keeps up his conditioning and can get on the field more often in the pros, Los Angeles could have a steal at No. 17.

 

18. New Orleans Saints

Chris Olave, WR, Ohio State

Quarterback is super tempting, especially with Liberty's Malik Willis still sitting on the board. We know Taysom Hill isn't the answer, but I do think Jameis Winston goes back to New Orleans in free agency and puts at least a short-term solve on the Saints' signal-caller woes. But who is he throwing to? Michael Thomas hasn't been able to stay healthy, and two of the team's top three wide receivers from 2021 -- Tre'Quan Smith and Deonte Harris -- are free agents. Olave, meanwhile, is a silky smooth runner with 4.39 speed and great acceleration -- and he scored at least once in nine of 11 games last season. Winston (or whoever ends up under center) would immediately have a reliable downfield target.

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19. Philadelphia Eagles

David Ojabo, DE, Michigan

I still think the Eagles stick with Jalen Hurts at quarterback -- Pittsburgh, next on the board, is undoubtedly holding its breath here -- so let's instead address another potential issue. The Eagles' 29 sacks last season were No. 31 in the league, Derek Barnett is a free agent, and age is starting to catch up to Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham. Ojabo has a quick first step and closes with explosion. That explosion was on display at the combine, where he ran a 4.55 in the 40 and had a solid 10-foot-2 broad jump. His production (11 sacks last season) would be welcomed in Philly. (As an aside, I considered Arkansas receiver Treylon Burks, too, but the Day 2 receiver pool is so deep that the Eagles can wait.)

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20. Pittsburgh Steelers

Malik Willis, QB, Liberty

We saw the arm strength in Indianapolis. We know he's terrific on second-reaction throws. And it's pretty clear he has the most upside of the class' quarterbacks. Is he ready to take over right away? That's another discussion, and the Steelers might want to sign a Mitchell Trubisky or Teddy Bridgewater to avoid the necessity of throwing Willis out there in Week 1. But Pittsburgh needs a franchise quarterback, and Willis has arm talent, great mobility and outstanding field vision. If developed effectively, he can keep the Steelers -- who already have a good defense and some offensive playmakers -- relevant in the QB-loaded AFC North.

[Chump Bailey]

9 hours ago, The Rook said:

My vote for the Washington use of a draft pick for the "he would have gone higher if he hadn't torn his ACL last year" is George Pickens.  This guy has some great tape from 2020 and looked good at the combine after his recovery.  If he is there at the 4th round pick, they need to consider him for the  "he would have gone higher ..." pick.  

The Rook

 

I love Pickens - even like him more than Wilson but doubt he sees the 4th round.

Edited March 9, 2022 by Chump Bailey

[ColonialWBSkinsFan]

9 hours ago, The Rook said:

My vote for the Washington use of a draft pick for the "he would have gone higher if he hadn't torn his ACL last year" is George Pickens.  This guy has some great tape from 2020 and looked good at the combine after his recovery.  If he is there at the 4th round pick, they need to consider him for the  "he would have gone higher ..." pick.  

 

 

 

 

The Rook

 

You mean the "we think we're smarter than everyone else and look what great value this is" draft strategy that has led to such "gems" as:

 

Bryce Love

Fabian Moreau

Saahdiq Charles

Phillip Thomas

Devin Thomas

Malcolm Kelly

 

No thanks.  For once I'd prefer all our draft picks to have intact ACL's this year...

[Skinsinparadise]

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Going Commando]

10 hours ago, The Rook said:

My vote for the Washington use of a draft pick for the "he would have gone higher if he hadn't torn his ACL last year" is George Pickens.  This guy has some great tape from 2020 and looked good at the combine after his recovery.  If he is there at the 4th round pick, they need to consider him for the  "he would have gone higher ..." pick.  

 

Pass on Pickens from me.  He is a huge knucklehead who never lived up to his recruiting hype at Georgia plus he has a serious injury in his recent history.  Too much risk with him at any point before the end of Day 3 for me.  I'd rather go with one of the many, many fast and productive receiver prospects on Day two or Day three before we're left scraping the bottom for a lotto ticket with Pickens.

[Chump Bailey]

21 minutes ago, Going Commando said:

 

Pass on Pickens from me.  He is a huge knucklehead who never lived up to his recruiting hype at Georgia plus he has a serious injury in his recent history.  Too much risk with him at any point before the end of Day 3 for me.  I'd rather go with one of the many, many fast and productive receiver prospects on Day two or Day three before we're left scraping the bottom for a lotto ticket with Pickens.

 

Oh, had no idea Pickens had that kind of baggage. 

[Anselmheifer]

Am I the only one that think Hamilton is going to drop? FS isn’t a highly valued position and he’s coming off an injury that kept him from finishing the season. A 4.59 isn’t going to help him. 
 

I think there is a super good chance he is there for us at 11. 

[Warhead36]

6 minutes ago, Anselmheifer said:

Am I the only one that think Hamilton is going to drop? FS isn’t a highly valued position and he’s coming off an injury that kept him from finishing the season. A 4.59 isn’t going to help him. 
 

I think there is a super good chance he is there for us at 11. 

40 times aren't that important for FSs and he's too talented to drop that far. 

[Going Commando]

19 minutes ago, Chump Bailey said:

 

Oh, had no idea Pickens had that kind of baggage. 

 

Just immaturity issues.  Team suspensions and stuff like starting fights and getting penalties.  They were waiting for him to grow up and have the light bulb turn on for three years and then he got hurt.  They were desperate for outside playmaker help at UGA so the runway was wide open for him but he was too childish and inconsistent to take the opportunity.  Then they ended up not needing him and won a national championship without him.  I know he was a very frustrating player for Georgia fans.

[Always A Commander Never A Captain]

1 minute ago, Anselmheifer said:

Am I the only one that think Hamilton is going to drop? FS isn’t a highly valued position and he’s coming off an injury that kept him from finishing the season. A 4.59 isn’t going to help him. 
 

I think there is a super good chance he is there for us at 11. 

 

I haven't watched any film of him in months, but speculation way back when was his NFL position needs a quality DC.  He shouldn't be a FS, SS, Nickel, or LB full time.  But he should be some of each.

 

He's a talent.  But he's not going to fix our defense by himself, and we still probably want to address FS in free agency, as Hamilton should be playing multiple roles.

 

We really need our Edge players to stop freelancing.  We need a capable MLB.  We need our outside corners to play a little better.

 

If that happens, then Hamilton would be a great addition and this D would be heading back towards the top.

 

[Going Commando]

2 hours ago, Skinsinparadise said:

McShay's new mock

 

This is almost the exact scenario I fear most with Philly's draft.  My worst nightmare is a sequence of like Davis--Lloyd--Stingley.  I'm hoping Baltimore takes Davis at 14 so there is no chance he ends up in the division.

 

I'm actually pretty impressed by this McShay mock.  Every pick feels logical and plausible and a good matching of player to fit/need/value.  McShay's take on the class kind of matches  up with my own thinking.  I'm stunned by how far Kayvon Thibodeaux has fallen on draft boards.  I read that his combine interviews were really bad, but they must have been horrific.

 

Do you get the sense that our FO favors Pickett over Willis though?

[Warhead36]

I could see Turner wanting Pickett more because he fits the mold of a natural protoypical pocket passer. Rivera has experience with Newton though and would probably take the higher upside Willis. 

[Skinsinparadise]

13 minutes ago, Going Commando said:

 

Do you get the sense that our FO favors Pickett over Willis though?

 

Pickett versus Willis hard to tell.  Keim has been crystal clear that they like Pickett and likely take him if he lands at 11.  Keim started talking up Willis some out of nowhere after the Senior Bowl.  Standig who I trust almost as much as Keim, said talking around to people, he's found them linking Willis to this team more than the other QBs -- sounded like he was referring to national sources on that.

 

So in short, its tough for me to figure that out.  Rivera did his interviews with the QBs at the combine so I don't know yet if that changed anything.

 

The only Qb of the 6 that Keim strongly hinted they are out on is Howell but that was weeks back.  I don't know if that changed post combine though.    I am about to listen to Keim talking to Paulsen about the combine on his latest podcast, if something comes out of it that I find interesting, I'll post that here. 

 

 

[Anselmheifer]

Pickett just feels like he is going to have such a limited ceiling. I’d so much rather have a guy that at least has a shot at being a top 10 QB. 
 

Also, I know this might sound silly, but if we sign Wagner, Jordan Davis could easily be BPA at 11. I’m surprised not to see more buzz about drafting him, or more comparisons to Tennessee era Albert Haynesworth. 
 

Edit: Just looked at his jumping numbers. 10’3” broad jump is the longest ever for a player over 300 pounds and ELEVEN inches longer than second place at DT this year. And, he posted a 32.5” vertical. 

Edited March 9, 2022 by Anselmheifer

[actorguy1]

 

[Koolblue13]

1 hour ago, Anselmheifer said:

Pickett just feels like he is going to have such a limited ceiling. I’d so much rather have a guy that at least has a shot at being a top 10 QB. 
 

Also, I know this might sound silly, but if we sign Wagner, Jordan Davis could easily be BPA at 11. I’m surprised not to see more buzz about drafting him, or more comparisons to Tennessee era Albert Haynesworth. 
 

Edit: Just looked at his jumping numbers. 10’3” broad jump is the longest ever for a player over 300 pounds and ELEVEN inches longer than second place at DT this year. And, he posted a 32.5” vertical. 

I'd draft Davis at 11 and keep the 4 linemen we have now. That would be so fun to watch. Especially with Wagner or a legit bully MLB behind them.

[Anselmheifer]

4 minutes ago, Koolblue13 said:

I'd draft Davis at 11 and keep the 4 linemen we have now. That would be so fun to watch. Especially with Wagner or a legit bully MLB behind them.

This is what I’d do too. Sign Wagner. Play a 4 man rotation of Davis, Allen, Payne, Ioannidis. Sign Marcus Williams of the saints. Add another hammer at RB and maybe Carson Wentz. Try to play bully ball. 
 

If we can’t get a franchise QB this year, play to your strengths and try again.
 

 

[Going Commando]

1 hour ago, Anselmheifer said:

Also, I know this might sound silly, but if we sign Wagner, Jordan Davis could easily be BPA at 11. I’m surprised not to see more buzz about drafting him, or more comparisons to Tennessee era Albert Haynesworth. 

 

Yeah he's a unicorn, the Kyle Pitts of this class.  For the first three quarters of the college season, I thought it was kind of crazy that he was the rightful Heisman frontrunner.  There's been some talk of him being the BPA at 11--at least I've been floating that out there.  And I suspect we were all thinking about that Albert Haynesworth comparison but were afraid to give voice to it and were using the John Henderson comparison instead.  But yeah, Davis is a world's better athlete than Henderson was and has a chance to be way better than him and instead be peak Albert Haynesworth level of dominant.  Which is to say, the most dominant defensive player in the NFL on a limited snap basis.

 

Jeff Bezos man's Akiem Hicks is another comparison I could see, once his hand work catches up to his talent level.  I could see him becoming like a 17 AV player and DPOY candidate.

 

Another poster brought up a question about his lack of production/pressures that I never responded to.  I think Davis is likely to be much more productive in passing defense at the next level, and that playing in an almost unbelievably loaded rotation for a defense that always got off the field at Georgia is the reason why his production was so low.  He's going to have to play a lot of passing downs in the NFL and I think his explosiveness and power are so special and impossible to deal with that he's just going to blow by interior linemen and break up the middle of pockets.

 

I personally think he's a top five player in the class, along with Lloyd, Hutchinson, Thibs, and Hamilton.  He would probably be the pure BPA at 11 for me.  But I think the clear reasons he's not getting a lot of consideration for us are that our QB need is so profound and we just signed Jon Allen to a big extension and we already have Daron Payne in-house as a high quality every down 1 tech.  And it sounds like they are about to start extension talks with Payne, so you're looking at what could be an extremely expensive and resource heavy defensive line if we drafted Davis too.  But I'm a BPA man and there is no reason we couldn't rapidly change gears and deal Payne or Sweat.  Plus Jon Allen is already 27.  We're looking at like maybe three more years of dominant play from him, and that might even be a little on the optimistic side.  So this current expensive deal he's got could be the one big one he'll be able to command from us, and it's off the books before it'd be extension time with Jordan Davis.  Could actually make sense to stagger our IDL contracts this way if we want to maintain a dominant interior rotation.

 

Schematically, I like Davis for us.  Even if we sign Daron to an extension.  Draft Davis and you can effectively phase Settle and Io out of the rotation.  Settle has never been a factor here and Io is on the downswing of his career and hit a peak of 7 AV.  Payne plays a **** ton of snaps, but that was never the best way to use him.  And I actually like 5 man front looks for this personnel group, as well as four man lines where Sweat is the odd man out.  TBH I don't have a ton of faith in Sweat and think he's the one we should be trying to sell high on before extension-time hits us.  Especially if he gets off to a fast start next season and we're scuffling.

 

And I also want us to be able to cover up Jamin in our fronts so he can just chase and hit, and I want us to have some dominant size in our front.  Montez is the only guy with high percentile size for his position on our DL.  We want these speedy LBers playing behind them, who aren't thumpers, but our DL is small and fast.  The parts don't really fit together seamlessly.  If you get Jordan Davis, not only do Jamin and Holcomb benefit, but LBers like Nakobe Dean also make a lot more sense for us.

 

But all of that said, I still think we should be targeting Willis or Pickett over him.  Could end up looking like an absolutely awful pick if they bust and Davis goes on to be a dominant player, but I kind of feel like we just have to try at QB in this class, as this might be Ron's best shot at getting his QB as the HC of the Commanders.  Not the only shot, because I think Matt Ryan will become available eventually, and I do still like the second round options in this QB class.  But the only way I can support them passing over Willis or Pickett is if the room is too divided on them and they just don't have any faith in them and aren't willing to marry their regime to them. 

 

And if that happened and they pass on either of those two QBs and they end up becoming good NFL starters, then it'll be house cleaning time again.  And that is going to be really dicey for the future of the franchise.

[Anselmheifer]

We always draft for need. We aren’t going to draft Jordan Davis. But I still like the idea. 
 

If we sign Wagner and someone like Wentz, then I wonder where we try to go with pick 11. It really would leave us open to pick BPA. I’d love Drake London or Garrett Wilson across from Terry. 

[Koolblue13]

Allen plays a lot of DE for us and him Payne Davis, along with Young is a pretty formidable group. We wouldn't really need to have Davis finishing games in theory, unless we were losing and we don't need to be giving Daron 90% of the snaps. Thats pretty inexcusable and a waste. If Davis played 60% of snaps and Payne and Allen 70% then I think you'd see paynes pass rushing numbers closer to Allens and they'd really be a force in the 4rth quarter of games.

 

While we probably shouldn't drop Young or Sweat into coverage, especially Young, those 3 in the middle allows a lot of fun coverage/blitz hides. Especially if we keep Collins. He and Davis would be clean to just read and react.

[duffy]

16 hours ago, Going Commando said:

 

I can get excited about a QB at 11.  I know they are rough and have their warts, and that we'd be headed for a rough year next season most likely.  But getting a QB prospect is exciting.  And I like the potential of these QB prospects well enough.  I can see a path to success with Pickett and Willis in particular.

Trying to recall all the times I was excited about a QB selection in the past couple of decades.... 

 

Sage Rosenfels - No. Nothing remotely exciting. 

 

Patrick Ramsey - I'll admit I was a little enamored by his arm strength, but that's about it. 

 

Jason Candle - I never really got too pumped about Campbell. Just a boring prospect. Can't believe Rodgers went one pick prior 😫

 

RGIII - Finally! I was so excited to see this kid in B&G. It's a shame how fleeting his time in DC was. 

 

Kirk Cousins - I was not excited, but more confused, when we traded up for a QB only to select another one the same draft. But the Kirk selection ultimately proved to be a great value. 

 

Dwayne Haskins - I was not excited to hear Dwayne's name called. I believe I actually groaned. Immediately, I tried to talk myself into the pick and gave him almost two years to prove himself before I wanted him gone.