In my tenth 2022 NFL Mock Draft of the year, we are starting to see some trends develop at the top.
Let’s do some mock drafting!
**PLEASE NOTE THAT THE DRAFT ORDER WAS SELECTED PRIOR TO SNF & MNF**
| Pick | Team | Player | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacksonville Jaguars | Evan Neal, OT, Alabama | The Jags must protect Trevor Lawrence. Evan Neal is the franchise left tackle they need. |
| 2 | Detroit Lions | Kayvon Thibodeaux, EDGE, Oregon | The Lions don't have a QB worth having but they choose the Browns method of building. Take the premier edge rusher and punt on the QB position until 2023. Thobodeaux is the pick with higher upside over Hutchinson. |
| 3 | Houston Texans | Aidan Hutchinson, EDGE, Michigan | Maybe they are seeing enough in Davis Mills to not have to take anoter QB high. In this case they go back to the old trick of get the pass rusher first and then the QB later. |
| 4 | NY Jets | Kyle Hamilton, S, Notre Dame | The Jets can upgrade a great many positions. With two selections in the top 7, they can do a lot to help Robert Saleh in his second season as coach. Hamilton is an elite prospect and one of the best safeties in a decade. |
| 5 | NY Giants | George Karlaftis, EDGE, Purdue | The Giants have two picks in the top 8. They can get better up front on both sides. Getting Karlaftis to rush the passer and Charles Cross a little later to help stop it are tremendous picks. |
| 6 | Carolina Panthers | Kenny Pickett, QB, Pittsburgh | Pickett has had a tremendous senior season and has moved himself into the first round conversation. Carolina's Sam Darnold experiment went so well they had to bring back Cam Newton. They need something else. I am also not ruling out a trade for Deshaun Watson before the draft. |
| 7 | NY Jets (F. SEA) | Derek Stingley, Jr., CB, LSU | Stingley is the top corner in the class and a true lockdown player. He has played little over the last two seasons and that may cause some concern. |
| 8 | NY Giants (F. CHI) | Charles Cross, OT, Mississippi State | See pick 5 |
| 9 | Washington FT | Malik Willis, QB, Liberty | Washington has to upgrade their QB position. Willis is a true boom-or-bust prospect. Re-signing Ryan Fitzpatrick to bridge to Willis may be the best play. |
| 10 | Atlanta Falcons | Matt Corral, QB, Mississippi | The Falcons are likley to move on from Matt Ryan (no matter how costly in the short term). Corral has the talent but isn't a sure thing. No QB in this class is. |
| 11 | Denver Broncos | Devin Lloyd, LB, Utah | Lloyd is a multi-faceted LB prospect that can be a three-down asset. He is the guy that will be wearing the green dot on his helmet. |
| 12 | Minnesota Vikings | David Ojabo, EDGE, Michigan | This will likely be a common position pick for Minnesota going forward. An edge rusher to pair with Danielle Hunter. |
| 13 | Cleveland Browns | Treylon Burks, WR, Arkansas | The Browns need a new threat at WR. Burks is a height/weight/speed freak. He will give Cleveland a new alpha in the WR room. |
| 14 | Philadelphia Eagles (F. MIA) | Demarvin Leal, DL, Texas A&M | Leal can give the Eagles a pass rushing threat from the interior and bulk up their defense as a whole. |
| 15 | New Orleans Saints | Jameson Williams, WR, Alabama | The Saints need a big play threat on offense. Williams can give them that immediately. |
| 16 | Baltimore Ravens | Ahmad Gardner, CB, Cincinnati | Maybe the Ravens get healthy enough and don't need another corner. Or they take Gardner who may be the second best corner in this class. |
| 17 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Ikem Ekwonu, OT, NC State | Offensive tackle, offensive guard, it really doesn't matter where he plays. His nasty demeanor and tremendous blocking ability is an upgrade for Pittsburgh. |
| 18 | Las Vegas Raiders | Garrett Wilson, WR, Ohio State | Unfortunately the Raiders are lacking the deep threat at receiver again because their former 1st-round pick was a complete and utter moron. Garrett Wilson can be their #1 target. |
| 19 | Philadelphia Eagles | Kaiir Elam, CB, Florida | After Stingley and Gardner, the next few corners could go off the board in any order. I am higher on Elam than I think the NFL might be. |
| 20 | Los Angeles Chargers | Kenyon Green, G, Texas A&M | Chargers need a tone setter on the interior of the offensive line. Green gives them that. |
| 21 | Philadelphia Eagles (F. IND) | Nakobe Dean, LB, Georgia | Nakobe Dean is an athletic, versatile, and playmaking LB. He can help Philly immediately. |
| 22 | Miami Dolphins (F. SF) | Trevor Penning, OT, Northern Iowa | There aren't many players rising higher than Trevor Penning over the last few months. He was the first to get a Senior Bowl invite this year. Penning can upgrade the Miami OL. |
| 23 | New England Patriots | Chris Olave, WR, Ohio State | The Patriots can add another weapon to help Mac Jones. Olave has been great for several seasons in Columbus. |
| 24 | Arizona Cardinals | Trent McDuffie, CB, Washington | McDuffie has been rising up my board and I could see Arizona going with the Husky CB. |
| 25 | Buffalo Bills | Channing Tindall, LB, Georgia | Tindall has been flying up my draft board about as fast as he flys around the field for Georgia. |
| 26 | Cincinnati Bengals | Tyler Linderbaum, C, Iowa | The Bengals have to fix the offensive line. They have everything else (for the most part) in place. Linderbaum would be perfect for the Bengals to either play center or guard. |
| 27 | Dallas Cowboys | Jordan Davis, DL, Georgia | This may seem low for Davis. And it probably is. However, I have seen some questions about his ability to consistently get after the QB. If he falls to Dallas, I think they run the card up to grab him. |
| 28 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Jalen Wydermyer, TE, Texas A&M | Wydermyer to replace Gronk? Sure why not. |
| 29 | Kansas City Chiefs | Roger McCreary, CB, Auburn | McCreary can upgrade one of the corner spots for KC if they choose to go that way. |
| 30 | Detroit Lions (F. LAR) | Drake London, WR, Southern Cal | How quickly can Drake London rehab his injury? He was a top ten pick before that. The Lions need skillful pass catchers. |
| 31 | Tennessee Titans | Devonte Wyatt, DL, Georgia | The often forgotten Georgia defensive lineman. Wyatt can get in the rotation for the Titans. |
| 32 | Green Bay Packers | Bernhard Raimann, OT, Central Michigan | I love the Austrian import at offensive tackle and the Packers like them some athletic offensive linemen. |
| Pick | Team | Player | Explanation |