The 2022 NFL Draft is officially underway, and as the top picks are selected, fans see heartfelt moments from players who have been working their entire lives for this opportunity. As picks come in, cameras capture the heartfelt moments between the players and their families and those with them to celebrate. Show
There is a lot of emotion on the draft stage all weekend, not only from players, but for those supporting them. The culmination of hard work and dedication can be seen in the expressions of the newest NFL additions, and their reactions are always a highlight of the draft. Here is a look at the reactions of the top picks in the 2022 NFL Draft: No. 1: EDGE Travon Walker (Georgia)The No. 1 overall pick was not a sure bet like it has been in years past. Travon Walker, defensive end out of Georgia, earned the honor of being selected first overall, going to the Jacksonville Jaguars. After Walker got the call, he took a deep breath and was visibly emotional. No. 2: EDGE Aidan Hutchinson (Michigan)Aidan Hutchinson was selected at No. 2, and the defensive lineman looked thrilled to be staying in his home state of Michigan by joining the Detroit Lions. Upon receiving the call he's been waiting for, Hutchinson said, "Let's go baby." No. 3: CB Derek Stingley Jr. (LSU)Cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. is headed to the Houston Texans, and despite not being in Las Vegas to celebrate, he was surrounded by many, many loved ones as he soaked up the biggest moment of his life. No. 4: CB Ahmad 'Sauce' Gardner (Cincinnati)Cincinnati cornerback Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner is now a New York Jet. The larger than life star came out with branded chains and all the confidence in the world, clearly ready and hoping to make a difference with the Jets. Sauce was so excited, he forgot where the stage was, and got a little lost along the way. No. 5: EDGE Kayvon Thibodeaux (Oregon)Kayvon Thibodeaux had the best selection announcement of the night so far, when Make-A-Wish recipient Sam Prince took the stage to let the fans know the New York Giants were adding the star pass-rusher. Thibodeaux danced to the stage and then celebrated with Prince, who had been pumping up the crowd. No. 6: OL Ikem Ekwonu (NC State)Ikem Ekwonu, an offensive of lineman out of NC State, was selected No. 6 overall by the Carolina Panthers. "Icky" is originally from Charlotte, North Carolina, went to school in North Carolina, and is now staying in North Carolina. No. 7: OL Evan Neal (Alabama)Offensive lineman Evan Neal out of Alabama was selected No. 7 overall by the New York Giants. He was all smiles as NFL commissioner Roger Goodell called his name. No. 8: WR Drake London (USC)The Atlanta Falcons have their newest wide receiver in Drake London, and London was celebrating with his family in the draft green room. No. 9: OL Charles Cross (Mississippi State)Charles Cross, offensive tackle from Mississippi State, bolted right to the draft stage after hearing his name called by Goodell. No. 10: WR Garrett Wilson (Ohio State)The New York Jets added wide receiver Garrett Wilson to their squad with the No. 10 overall pick. Wilson was taking deep breaths as he headed to the stage, clearly taking in the moment. 2022 NFL Draft hats now availableNFL Draft - 1. Jacksonville Jaguars: Travon Walker, Edge Rusher, Georgia Drafting Georgia edge rusher Travon Walker does not crack the top five biggest mistakes in Jacksonville Jaguars history. But that’s only because they have such an illustriously mistake-filled history. Hiring Urban Meyer last season was obviously a larger mistake. So was allowing Tom Coughlin to retake over the franchise for a few years and alienate the entire Jalen Ramsey/Yannick Ngakoue/Etc. playoff team. Blake Bortles and Blaine Gabbert were obvious draft mistakes, and there have been too many regrettable free agent moves to count, from Laurent Robinson to Nick Foles to (probably) Evan Engram. Remember when the Jaguars selected Arkansas quarterback Matt Jones 21st overall as a wide receiver? The Jaguars do dumber stuff than drafting Walker, who should at least turn out to be a capable defender, all of the time. Still this may be the most glaringly obvious “own goal” in Jaguars history, or perhaps second to hiring Meyer. The risk-reward ratio on Walker as a first-round pick, when compared to the other options on the board (including broadly similar players in Aidan Hutchinson and Kayvon Thibodeaux), is simply indefensible. This selection reminds me of one of those viral social-network memes: “Would you rather have one million dollars right now or fifty bucks per week for the rest of your life? I, Trent Baalke, would take the fifty bucks
because unlike you I realize [insert completely cuckooballs reason here]. No, dips**t, you aren’t being clever, just contrary for its own sake because you think it makes you look clever. I predict that Walker will have a Jadeveon Clowney career. He might reach a Pro Bowl or two. He’ll flirt with double-digit sacks in his best seasons. Know-it-alls will post Tuesday morning GIFs on Twitter (soon to be renamed Amazon Hate) explaining what a great job he did on run defense to help hold Jonathan Taylor to a 96-yard afternoon. Clowney was a better prospect than Walker, and he is in the process of wrapping up a decent career, but he never came close to his expectations or (really) had much impact on the Texans’ fortunes. And in this draft, there were two potential Khalil Macks just waiting to be selected instead.
2. Detroit Lions: Aidan Hutchinson, Edge Rusher, Michigan Dan Campbell hasn’t been this thrilled since the last 75% off all camo gear sale at Bass Pro Shoppe!
3. Houston Texans: Derek Stingley, Cornerback, LSU Derrik likes this pick. I worry about a defender that I have not seen play really well since before I had to carry a mask around in my back pocket all the time.
4. New York Jets: Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner, Cornerback, Cincinnati I prefer Sauce to Stingley and think the Jets got a steal here. Derrik believes that the blind squirrels have found a pretty good acorn to help a pass defense which ranked 32nd in DVOA last year.
5. New York Giants: Kayvon Thibodeaux, Edge Rusher, Oregon Thibodeaux sat atop the FO 40 draft board from pillar to post. A shrewd pick for a franchise that somehow STILL must rebuild their defensive and offensive front after years of Dave Gettleman obsessively flailing to upgrade both of them.
6. Carolina Panthers: Ickey Ekwonu, Offensive Tackle, North Carolina State I love Ekwonu and take brief offense to Derrik’s suggestion that he’s a Travon Walker-like “swing for the fences.”
7. New York Giants: Evan Neal, Offensive Tackle, Alabama It’s not even 9 PM and the Giants get an A-plus for the draft.
8. Atlanta Falcons: Drake London, Wide Receiver, USC Derrik thinks that London and Kyle Pitts can be a pair of “pterodactyl” wide receivers. I think Tom Brady just won another trip to the NFC Championship Game because he will play four games per year against teams with zero quarterbacks.
9 Seattle Seahawks: Charles Cross, Offensive Tackle, Mississippi State An uninspiring pick at a position of need. Perhaps boring will be good for the Seahawks, who have a habit of overthinking their selections. Notably: we have passed through the gauntlet of quarterback-needy teams with no Kenny Pickett or Malik Willis sightings.
10. New York Jets: Garrett Wilson, Wide Receiver, Ohio State I am a huge Wilson fan. Derrick worries that he’s “more sizzle than steak” right now but is still upbeat about the pick and the Jets offseason to date.
11. New Orleans Saints: Chris Olave, Wide Receiver, Ohio State The Saints traded a 2023 first-round pick and a 2024 second round pick, plus extra mid-round picks, for the second Ohio State receiver on the board and perhaps the third-best Ohio State receiver on the field last year. You do you, Mickey Loomis.
12. Detroit Lions: Jameson Williams, Wide Receiver, Alabama The run of trades up to select wide receivers is on! The Lions got a better player than the Saints (once Williams’ ACL heals) and gave up far less overall. Strong, bold move that both Derrik and I like.
13. Philadelphia Eagles: Jordan Davis, Defensive Tackle, Georgia The Eagles have replaced Fletcher Cox with Son of Fletcher Cox, also known as the Godskin Noble. I get a little TOO excited in the video clip.
14. Baltimore Ravens: Kyle Hamilton, Safety, Notre Dame A potential perennial Pro Bowl safety for a team that set an Adjusted Games Lost record in 2021 and was hit hard by injuries throughout the secondary.
15. Houston Texans: Kenyon Green, Guard, Texas A&M A “tone setter” and a “bully,” per Derrik, for the 32nd-ranked offense in adjusted line yards. Derrik and I also liked the fact that the Texans traded down for some extra picks so they can clean up all the Patriots leaf litter in the corners of their roster.
16. Washington Commanders: Jahan Dotson, Wide Receiver, Penn State Dotson is a solid overall player who felt like a reach here.
17. Los Angeles Chargers: Zion Johnson, Offensive Line, Boston College A player Derrik and I both like a lot, but he does not solve the Chargers’ most pressing needs at right tackle (Johnson is a center-guard) or, of course, on run defense.
18. Tennessee Titans: Treylon Burks, Wide Receiver, Arkansas Burks arrives as the Titans trade A.J. Brown to the Eagles. It’s an odd move for the Titans, who should not be trying to get younger at wide receiver during a win-now window. As for the Eagles? NO MORE JALEN REAGOR.
19. New Orleans Saints: Trevor Penning, Offensive Tackle, Northern Iowa I am a big Saints skeptic but love Penning as a player, and he fills a need. As Derrik points out, Penning’s film doesn’t quite match his Senior Bowl accolades and buzz. Still, the Saints filled their two biggest needs with Penning and Olave.
20. Pittsburgh Steelers: Kenny Pickett, Quarterback, Pitt In which Derrik goes ham.
21. Kansas City Chiefs: Trent McDuffie, Cornerback, Washington The Chiefs trade up to fill a position of obvious need.
22. Green Bay Packers: Quay Walker, Linebacker, Georgia Derrik likes Walker, but not at No 22. I think he was the third-best linebacker at Georgia.
23. Buffalo Bills: Kaiir Elam, Cornerback, Florida Bills doing smart, logical 2020s Bills things.
24. Dallas Cowboys: Tyler Smith, Offensive Tackle, Tulsa The Cowboys don’t draft for need, folks. Smith is raw as heck but could someday replace Tyron Smith without anyone having to change the tags on their lockers.
25. Baltimore Ravens: Tyler Linderbaum, Center, Iowa As Derrik said off camera: “That’s so Ravens.”
26. New York Jets: Jermaine Johnson, Edge Rusher, Florida State The Jets are having themselves a night!
27. Jacksonville Jaguars: Devin Lloyd, Linebacker, Utah I like Lloyd, but both Derrik and I like Nakobe Dean much better. As Derrik points out, “Trent Baalke likes length.” #phrasing.
28. Green Bay Packers: Devonte Wyatt, Defensive Line, Georgia The Packers did not draft a wide receiver. I cannot think of anything more hilarious.
29. New England Patriots: Cole Strange, Guard, Tennessee-Chattanooga. Activate the BeLiCHick kNowZ moRe tHaN U hive for this reach.
30. Kansas City Chiefs: George Karlaftis, Edge Rusher, Purdue Derrik is a huge Karlaftis stan, and I dig him too. We’re both high on the Chiefs draft class.
31. Cincinnati Bengals: Dax Hill, Safety, Michigan I like Hill but am clearly getting a little punchy by the time this video rolls around. One problem was that I kept mixing him up with Lewis Cine in my head, especially since the Cine pick had just been announced.
32. Minnesota Vikings: Lew Cine, Safety, Georgia The 55th Georgia player taken in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft. A likely and worthy successor to Harrison Smith. The Vikings made a shrewd decision to trade down for a high second-round pick and lots of change as they begin reshaping their roster.
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