Hi all-
Figured I would send out my top 96 for the 2022 NFL Draft because I know many have shifted their focus in that direction. With multiple college games multiple days per week, some may want to start watching legit prospects with their own eyes
A few things:
-I have not fully screened / scouted anyone yet. This time of year, I have only seen these guys 1 or 2 times. I usually get another 3-5 looks between now and April. I also have official measurements and times on about half of these guys and I have not received the medical checks from most. Simply put, these are very far from final and they are extremely fluid this time of year, especially for someone that does most of the scouting by myself. I don't cross check with anything or anyone until the winter months.
-Please remember, the "55th ranked player" is not very different than the "65th ranked player" or "45th" ranked player. And specific schemes warrant very different stacks when it comes to the specific players. Also, position value is a part of this.
-Lastly, especially this year, I am subjective with which players I believe will declare for the draft and which will not. If you see an underclassman missing, that could be the case. Any questions there, feel free to ask.
-Feel free to generate discussion / ask a few questions and I will get to them eventually today/tonight.
Thanks
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1: Derek Stingley - CB/LSU
2: Kavon Thibodeaux - DE/Oregon
3: Kyle Hamilton - S/Notre Dame
4: Aidan Hutchinson - DE/Michigan
5: Ahmad Gardner - CB/Cincinnati
6: Malik Willis - QB/Liberty
7: Drake London - WR/USC
8: Evan Neal - OT/Alabama
9: Ikem Ekwonu - OT/OG - NC State
10: Nicholas Petit-Frere - OT/Ohio State
11: George Karlaftis - DE/Purdue
12: Garrett Wilson: - WR/Ohio State
13: Sam Howell - QB/North Carolina
14: Chris Olave - WR/Ohio State
15: Sean Rhyan - OT/OG - UCLA
16: Jameson Williams - WR/Alabama
17: Kenny Pickett - QB/Pittsburgh
18: Charles Cross - OT/Mississippi State
19: Trey McBride - TE/Colorado State
20: Nakobe Dean - LB/Georgia
21: Daxton Hill - S/Michigan
22: Roger McCreary - CB/Auburn
23: Kingsley Enagbare - DE/South Carolina
24: Adam Anderson - OLB/Georgia
25: Treylon Burks - WR/Arkansas
26: Jahan Dotson - WR/Penn State
27: Trent McDuffie - CB/Washington
28: John Mechie III - WR/Alabama
29: Desmond Ridder - QB/Louisville
30: Matt Corral - QB/Mississippi
31: Tyler Linderbaum - OC/Iowa
32: Kenyon Green - OG/Texas A& M
33: Jordan Davis - DT/Georgia
34: Drake Jackson - OLB/USc
35: DeMarvin Leal - DT/Texass A& M
36: Abraham Lucas - OT/Washington State
37: Brandon Smith - LB/Penn State
38: David Bell - WR/Purdue
39: Isaiah Spiller - RB/Texas A& M
40: Devin Lloyd - LB/Utah
41:Josh Jobe - CB/Alabama
42: Kellen Diesch - OT/Arizona State
43: Breece Hall - RB/Iowa State
44: Kaii Elam - CB/Florida
45: Christian Harris - LB/Alabama
46: Kenneth Walker - RB/Michigan State
47: Jalen Tolbert - WR/South Alabama
48: Carson Strong - QB/Nevada
49: Trey Dean III - S/Florida
50: Darian Kinnard - OT/Kentucky
51: Jaleel Billingsley - TE/Alabama
52: Jordan Battle - S/Alabama
53: Quay Walker - LB/Georgia
54: Trevor Penning - OT/Northern Iowa
55: Jermaine Johnson - DE/Florida State
56: Zion Johnson - OG/Boston College
57: Devonte Wyatt - DT/Georgia
58: Phidarian Mathis - DT/Alabama
59: Will McDonald - OLB/Iowa State
60: Cam Taylor-Britt - CB-S/Nebraska
61: Alontae Taylor - CB/Tennessee
62: Jaquan Brisker - S/Penn State
63: Brian Robinson - RB/Alabama
64: Kyren Wlliams - RB/Notre Dame
65: Jeremy Ruckert - TE/Ohio State
66: Jalen Wydermeyer - TE/Texas A& M
67: Andrew Booth Jr - CB/Clemson
68: Damonbe Clark - LB/LSU
69: Nick Broeker - OT-OG/Ole Miss
70: Riley Moss - CB-S/Iowa
71: Zamir White - RB/Georgia
72: Wan'Dale Robinson - WR/Kentucky
73: Pierre Strong Jr - RB/South Dakota State
74: Joseph Ngata - WR/Clemson
75: Justyn Ross - WR/Clemson
76: Benhard Raimann - OT/Central Michigan
77: Nik Bonitto - OLB/Oklahoma
78: Perron Winfrey - DT/Oklahoma
79: Arnold Ebeketie - DE/Penn State
80: Cameron Thomas - DE/San Diego State
81: Lewis Cine - S/Georgia
82: Willie Beavers - LB/Cincinnati
83: Brenton Cox Jr - OLB/Florida
84: Myjai Sanders - DE/Cincinnati
85: Tariq Castro-Fields - CB/Penn State
86: Jack Sanborn - LB/Wisconsin
87: Coby Bryant - CB/Cincinnati
88: Alex Lindstron - OC/Boston College
89: Jamaree Salyer - OG-OT/Georgia
90: Cade Otton - TE/Washington
91: Zach Harrison - DE/Ohio State
92: Zachary Carter - DE/Florida
93: Kevin Austin - WR/Notre Dame
94: Jaxson Kirkland - OT-OG/Washington bdxg
95: Tiawan Mullen - CB/Indiana
96: Will Mallory - TE/Miami
Two years from now Leonard Williams will be on the cusp of being an UFA and can get a new contract.
Good question, and I don't know really.
NYG coaching staff talks about adapting their scheme to personal a la Belichick. But I don't think many have done a good job there and I think this staff leads more toward 3-4 personnel.
That in mind, this staff would likely lean toward Karlaftis. He is likely going to measure around 280-285. That is a nice frame for the CRASH end. A DE that plays some edge, some 5 tech type roles.
Woefully good question. I'll answer but please know this is so fluid right now.
I see the cut off after the top 5.
Another cutoff after 11.
Another cutoff after 21
Do you think Corral ‘s game translates to theNFL? I worry about him being a Johnny Manzell.
I really like Spiller from A&M as the number 1RB
Ton of drops, poor body language, low effort blocker
Better deep ball accuracy. More pocket awareness / pressure evasion. He is smart and has the feel, but makes poor decisions with where to move within the pocket.
Hit guys on the move on crossing routes in the numbers.
The 2022 NFL Draft is tomorrow and Malik Willis is still #6 on your Big Board, which just happens to be exactly where the Giants are picking.
The Giants have asked YOU to make the call.
Would you send up a card with the Liberty QB's name on it? And, if not, who then?
If at the end of the year, I didn't think Jones Wass THE guy to get this team back to the postseason as a direct result of his play, I am looking for a new QB. If a prospect meets the grade after the process, yes I am going QB with the early 1st rounder. Building his support (OL) with the pick after assuming the grade meets that spot as well. Which in this class, it likely will. OT/OG/OC all on the table.
Stingley is twitchier and has more playmaking ability. Similar profile otherwise.
Also think Stingley could be a threat at PR...I never saw that with Surtain.
I have no idea how you (scouts) assess these guys with the college game the way it is. I was 5 mins into the video before he took a real pass set. (Which wasn't that pretty even though it had no effect on the play.) But he looks good mauling people and play through the whistle.
Seems like you would have to delete out 90% of the film to get to the meat and potatoes of what you are looking to evaluate.
I want to see him against speed around the outside, the bull rush, stunt pick-ups,etc... What happens when the rusher has long arm and strikes him in the chest, does he just fall over like Solder??? I don't see him get challenged like that.
Link - ( New Window )
I have no idea how you (scouts) assess these guys with the college game the way it is. I was 5 mins into the video before he took a real pass set. (Which wasn't that pretty even though it had no effect on the play.) But he looks good mauling people and play through the whistle.
Seems like you would have to delete out 90% of the film to get to the meat and potatoes of what you are looking to evaluate.
I want to see him against speed around the outside, the bull rush, stunt pick-ups,etc... What happens when the rusher has long arm and strikes him in the chest, does he just fall over like Solder??? I don't see him get challenged like that. Link - ( New Window )
You can watch 30 plays on a guy...and 4 of them telling you something. That's the biz
In Howell's defense, that offense had significant turnover from last year to this year. They had four guys drafted from that offense in 2021.
So dealing with those growing pains have manifested itself in Howell's struggles.
LINK - ( New Window )
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Do you see Hutchinson as a 3-4 end or edge? Many have him pegged as a defensive end in a 4-3 or 3-4. Thank you
He can play both. He dropped weight over the past 2 years, about 20 pounds, and maintained his power. I think any scheme can bring him in as a feature EDGE guy. I would love to see NYG return to more 4-3 looks (with occasional change ups) and have Hutch play the LDE spot. Can shift inside on pass rush packages.
I can buy that. Although it was interesting hearing Sy have the same issue I have with Corral - body type. As much as I like his plus arm and his toughness, MC's body is small and narrow.
He’s got him at 96. Seems like a ridiculous splitting of hairs here
Height/weight/speed looks good. He can outrun defensive backs at 6'5/250 and hands looked good in the 2 games I watched. Agreed he looks soft, though. I will get deeper on him in the coming months.
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In comment 15442772 Go Terps said:
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This IS a good year to go get a quarterback.
Do you see a Mahomes or Rodgers? Or is just anybody good enough?
You can't wait for a Mahomes or Rodgers. Those guys don't come around often.
You're not drafting a quarterback for the next ten years anymore. You're drafting a QB for the next 4-5 years, with the possibility that it's becomes 10 years or more.
You were touting Rattler a month ago until he got benched. Just stop.
If Gettleman is still GM I assume we already have a card filled out with Adam Anderson's name on it.
Guess baring some miracle breakthrough of evidence that completely exonerates him we can scratch Anderson's name off the draft board...
Don’t agree with Stingley over Thibodeaux, especially since we haven’t seen Stingley yet and he had a bit of a down year last year.
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In comment 15442553 JohnB said:
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Keep DJ for another year. Maybe draft one in a later round but not early.
I don't think that is clear. It depends on the evaluation. Sy does a service here by offering his opinion. And in his opinion Willis is good enough to consider, at the very least.
Only because the dump DJ narrative is your mantra for everything.
Not entirely. You can find a HOF QB in a bad QB class.
The 2005 QB class was pretty weak. Go look at who it included.
I agree that Producer tends to be a one-trick pony when it comes to DJ, but I also think BBI tends to get hung up on the strength of a position in a particular draft class rather than the strength of a particular prospect or two.
Even if we were going to draft a QB in 2022, we wouldn't be cluster drafting QBs. The depth of the class isn't as relevant as the question of whether a single, significant QB upgrade exists within the 2022 class.
I don't know the answer to that question, but I do know that the strength of the QB class in general is a pretty weak argument since we wouldn't be drafting the entire QB class.
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In comment 15442615 Producer said:
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In comment 15442553 JohnB said:
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Keep DJ for another year. Maybe draft one in a later round but not early.
I don't think that is clear. It depends on the evaluation. Sy does a service here by offering his opinion. And in his opinion Willis is good enough to consider, at the very least.
Only because the dump DJ narrative is your mantra for everything.
Not entirely. You can find a HOF QB in a bad QB class.
The 2005 QB class was pretty weak. Go look at who it included.
I agree that Producer tends to be a one-trick pony when it comes to DJ, but I also think BBI tends to get hung up on the strength of a position in a particular draft class rather than the strength of a particular prospect or two.
Even if we were going to draft a QB in 2022, we wouldn't be cluster drafting QBs. The depth of the class isn't as relevant as the question of whether a single, significant QB upgrade exists within the 2022 class.
I don't know the answer to that question, but I do know that the strength of the QB class in general is a pretty weak argument since we wouldn't be drafting the entire QB class.
I think strength of a class matters even if not cluster drafting. If you have a weak QB class are you bumping QB's more than you ordinarily would? For example, if you have a weak QB class and you ordinarily bump a QB two rows to account for positional value of a QB, are you unconsciously bumping one 3 rows in this draft? That is why for positions that relative value causes you to not go strictly by grade I like to look at the past draft or two and ask myself if Player X in 2022 Draft was in 2020 Draft or 2021 Draft where would he rank against those at that position and then rank him accordingly in 2022 Draft.
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In comment 15442625 Spider56 said:
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In comment 15442615 Producer said:
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In comment 15442553 JohnB said:
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Keep DJ for another year. Maybe draft one in a later round but not early.
I don't think that is clear. It depends on the evaluation. Sy does a service here by offering his opinion. And in his opinion Willis is good enough to consider, at the very least.
Only because the dump DJ narrative is your mantra for everything.
Not entirely. You can find a HOF QB in a bad QB class.
The 2005 QB class was pretty weak. Go look at who it included.
I agree that Producer tends to be a one-trick pony when it comes to DJ, but I also think BBI tends to get hung up on the strength of a position in a particular draft class rather than the strength of a particular prospect or two.
Even if we were going to draft a QB in 2022, we wouldn't be cluster drafting QBs. The depth of the class isn't as relevant as the question of whether a single, significant QB upgrade exists within the 2022 class.
I don't know the answer to that question, but I do know that the strength of the QB class in general is a pretty weak argument since we wouldn't be drafting the entire QB class.
I think strength of a class matters even if not cluster drafting. If you have a weak QB class are you bumping QB's more than you ordinarily would? For example, if you have a weak QB class and you ordinarily bump a QB two rows to account for positional value of a QB, are you unconsciously bumping one 3 rows in this draft? That is why for positions that relative value causes you to not go strictly by grade I like to look at the past draft or two and ask myself if Player X in 2022 Draft was in 2020 Draft or 2021 Draft where would he rank against those at that position and then rank him accordingly in 2022 Draft.
Did Rodgers get bumped due to a weak QB class? Did JP Losman get dinged due to a strong QB class?
IMO, the answer to both questions is "no."
I later met the Bills southern scout, as he was a friend of a friend. I may have mocked him for Losman when drinking.
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In comment 15442827 section125 said:
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In comment 15442772 Go Terps said:
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This IS a good year to go get a quarterback.
Do you see a Mahomes or Rodgers? Or is just anybody good enough?
You can't wait for a Mahomes or Rodgers. Those guys don't come around often.
You're not drafting a quarterback for the next ten years anymore. You're drafting a QB for the next 4-5 years, with the possibility that it's becomes 10 years or more.
You were touting Rattler a month ago until he got benched. Just stop.
Yeah - now I wouldn't touch him with a ten foot pole. This is when you evaluate these guys.
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The 2022 NFL Draft is tomorrow and Malik Willis is still #6 on your Big Board, which just happens to be exactly where the Giants are picking.
The Giants have asked YOU to make the call.
Would you send up a card with the Liberty QB's name on it? And, if not, who then?
If at the end of the year, I didn't think Jones Wass THE guy to get this team back to the postseason as a direct result of his play, I am looking for a new QB. If a prospect meets the grade after the process, yes I am going QB with the early 1st rounder. Building his support (OL) with the pick after assuming the grade meets that spot as well. Which in this class, it likely will. OT/OG/OC all on the table.
Thanks Sy
I cannot disclose but Ourlads isn't going anywhere. May even be getting better soon
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Got my 2022 Draft Preview Booklet in & a note saying they are not taking orders for 2022 draft materials. What happened? I've subscribed to Ourlads since its' outset in the 1980's & it would be tragic if they were to stop their coverage.They left the door open to coming back & I certainly hope that is the case!
I cannot disclose but Ourlads isn't going anywhere. May even be getting better soon
Thanks Sy,that is GREAT news. I'm a hard copy guy & from the '80's it was Ourlads & Kiper,then Kiper packed it in! I'm SO glad to hear Ourlads is still going to be with us!
I asked this in a game review thread a few weeks back, but I watch Fordham every week because my nephew is on the team (but unfortunately not a draft prospect). He jumps off the screen every game without fail.
It is a lower level of competition for sure, and he tore his ACL in his senior year which probably buries him with a lot of other guys, but was wondering if you were aware of him or hand any thoughts about him as possibly a late day 3 pick/UDFA.
Look at - literally - Mahomes and Rodgers. If anybody knew they would be Mahomes and Rodgers, they would have been the #1 pick. And teams would've offered 5+ 1st round picks to move up.
Nobody is good at predicting these things with QBs. Look at the 2018 draft - 2 MVP caliber guys, 2 busts, 1 avg QB. Where were they drafted?
You cannot be sure about this. Nobody can. Treat it like a numbers game. You need a good QB. You draft a guy who has the tools. You try him out. If he's good, you keep him . If he's not you try again.
Thats it. Its that simple
Haven't done him yet beyond background search. We have a UDFA outlook right now. That can change. He still has a couple years of eligibility left and I don't see him being a factor in the 2022 Draft. That is just my opinion.
I know he isn't eligible until 2024, and I know you haven't watched every single prospect. Just wondering if you have an idea who seems most likely to emerge as elite.
I know he isn't eligible until 2024, and I know you haven't watched every single prospect. Just wondering if you have an idea who seems most likely to emerge as elite.
Good question. My gray area answer would be CJ Stroud (Ohio State).
Couple guys that have caught my eye:
Devin Leary (NC State)
Caleb Williams (Oklahoma)
Phil Jurkovec (Boston College)
Will Levis (Kentucky)
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But what are your thoughts on Western Michigan QB Kaleb Eleby?
Haven't done him yet beyond background search. We have a UDFA outlook right now. That can change. He still has a couple years of eligibility left and I don't see him being a factor in the 2022 Draft. That is just my opinion.
Gotcha. I had noticed him as a Day 3 guy who could exceed expectations. 4th year sophomore due to Covid (Freshman year was 2018).
I think that is the RIGHT move if you are asking me right now.
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Is it Caleb Williams at the moment?
I know he isn't eligible until 2024, and I know you haven't watched every single prospect. Just wondering if you have an idea who seems most likely to emerge as elite.
Good question. My gray area answer would be CJ Stroud (Ohio State).
Couple guys that have caught my eye:
Devin Leary (NC State)
Caleb Williams (Oklahoma)
Phil Jurkovec (Boston College)
Will Levis (Kentucky)
Thanks, Sy. Appreciate the hard work and insights. I'll stay tuned for your continuing evals of these guys.