2022 NFL Mock Draft | 17-32
The run on quarterbacks slows down in this 2022 NFL Mock Draft. Still, one team makes a desperate play to get back into Day 1 to grab their signal-caller of the future. Let’s get to it.
17) Cleveland Browns: DeMarvin Leal, DT, Texas A&M
A defensive interior player like few we’ve seen before, DeMarvin Leal is 6’4″ and 290 pounds of pure strength and muscle. He can play a bevy of defensive line positions and play them each with terrific ability. He helps change the course of a Cleveland defense that is truly only missing a pocket-pushing defensive interior player.
18) Kansas City Chiefs: Kaiir Elam, CB, Florida
The Chiefs’ defense is … bad. They need help at seemingly every position, but cornerback is where they go with this pick. Kaiir Elam has been inconsistent at times, but few possess ball skills like his. He is sticky in coverage as well, and he has a keen football IQ that shows when he breaks off coverage to find the football.
19) Miami Dolphins: Kenyon Green, G, Texas A&M
Power, strength, athleticism, speed, knowledge, length, balance. If that doesn’t describe your ideal offensive lineman, then you won’t like Kenyon Green. Dolphins fans rejoice, a valuable asset to your offensive line is here.
Green comes with positional versatility and all of the superlatives above, as well as a few more that didn’t even make the cut. From right to left guard and even in between, Green can play anywhere Miami needs him, giving them the freedom to leave Robert Hunt at right guard and move former first-round pick Austin Jackson after two years.
20) New England Patriots: Jordan Davis, DT, Georgia
The Patriots make a true New England selection by grabbing Jordan Davis. It may not be the “sexy pick,” but it certainly is a potential game-changing selection. Davis moves like a smaller man, but he possesses even more strength than you would expect from a man of his size. His best attribute, surprisingly, is his speed, as he routinely chases down ball carriers from behind. Davis changes the game for New England’s defense.
21) New Orleans Saints: Justyn Ross, WR, Clemson
Justyn Ross has proven in 2021 that his back is healthy — but that’s about all he has proven. With terrible quarterback play at Clemson this season, Davis has yet to show that his fabulous 2019 season wasn’t just an anomaly. With that being said, his 2019 campaign was among the greatest receiving seasons we’ve seen in some time. That sample is a bit far away for him to be a consensus first-round pick, but you can bet whichever team does select Ross will hope that is the player they’re receiving. And if they do, it’s a home run.
22) Pittsburgh Steelers: Treylon Burks, WR, Arkansas
Treylon Burks is a physically gifted athlete with a limited route tree. The Steelers have needs on the offensive line and at spots on the defense, but Burks’ blend of size and speed is too good to pass up here.
At 6’3″, 225 pounds, Burks will likely run a head-turning 40-yard dash at the combine and see his draft stock soar. He will need to increase his down-to-down efficiency and his route-running if he wants to stick, but he should make an immediate impact in Year 1.
23) Las Vegas Raiders: Ahmad Gardner, CB, Cincinnati
The Raiders need help in the defensive secondary, and even their selection of Ahmad Gardner here isn’t enough. It is a start, however, as Gardner can lock down an entire side of the field on his own. He possesses shifty hips that allow him to follow and track receivers. Gardner also has shown a knack for the football in 2021, pulling in 2 interceptions and a handful of forced incompletions as well. He’s far from a finished prospect, but he certainly has the makings of a terrific lockdown cornerback in the NFL.
24) Dallas Cowboys: Kingsley Enagbare, EDGE, South Carolina
The veteran SEC pass rusher heads to Big D to join college teammate Israel Mukuamu on Dallas’ defense. Kingsley Enagbare is a monster of a man at 6’4″, 265 pounds, and moves even better than you’d imagine. He can rush the passer with a variety of moves, and his selection affords 2021 first-round pick Micah Parsons the freedom to play as a hybrid pass-rush/off-ball coverage defender for Dallas.
25) Buffalo Bills: Jordan Battle, S, Alabama
Both Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer will be free agents following the 2022 season, and both Bills safeties will be 32 years old upon entering free agency. Buffalo will need to address the position one way or another, and Jordan Battle provides them with insurance in the secondary. Battle has great read-and-react ability as a free safety, but he possesses the size and strength to be a strong safety in the Bills’ defense. He becomes the ever-popular “movable chess piece” on the Buffalo defense as they figure out their back-end players.
26) Washington Football Team: Matt Corral, QB, Ole Miss
Trade: WFT sends pick No. 37 in 2022 and their 2023 first-round selection to the Los Angeles Chargers for pick No. 26 in 2022.
The slide stops here as Washington moves back up into the first round to grab Matt Corral by sending their second-rounder and next year’s first to Los Angeles. Corral has done nothing but impress yet again at Ole Miss this season. He’s athletically gifted and has shown improved accuracy on all his throws this year. It remains to be seen if he can handle true NFL throws, but Corral has shown he can make special plays that few others can.
27) Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Ikem Ekwonu, G, NC State
Ikem Ekwonu plays left tackle for NC State, routinely dominating edge rushers with ease on Saturdays. He projects as an interior offensive lineman on Sundays, and he heads to Tampa in this 2022 NFL Mock Draft. The Bucs are set at the bookends, but Alex Cappa’s contract is up at the end of the year. Ekwonu’s insertion into the lineup at right guard next to Tristan Wirfs would give the Bucs a scary offensive line and keep them near the top of the NFL’s offensive line rankings.
28) Minnesota Vikings: Myjai Sanders, EDGE, Cincinnati
Trade: Minnesota sends pick No. 43 in 2022 and their 2023 second-round selection to the Detroit Lions for pick No. 28 in 2022.
The Vikings jump back into the first round by sending two second-round picks to Detroit for what would have been their second first-round choice. Myjai Sanders is the selection, as the Vikings’ edge-rushing duo of Danielle Hunter and Everson Griffen have been the only players generating pressure for Minnesota this year. With Hunter coming off a season-ending pectoral injury and Griffen turning 34 before the season ends, Sanders injects youth into a pass-rushing unit that needs help.
29) Baltimore Ravens: Rasheed Walker, OT, Penn State
Rasheed Walker is a terrific selection for Baltimore as they need all the help they can get on the offensive line. Ronnie Stanley’s failure to return from injury gives pause as to whether or not he’ll be able to play a full season again. Walker, on the other hand, has been a terrific player for Penn State for the past three seasons. If Stanley is healthy enough to go in 2022, Walker can play right tackle — or better yet, adjust to the NFL speed behind the former All-Pro.
30) Green Bay Packers: Brandon Joseph, S, Northwestern
The Packers may be in the hunt for a new quarterback sooner than later as the first experience with Jordan Love in place of Aaron Rodgers was subpar. However, the upside that Brandon Joseph brings to the table at No. 30 is too good to pass in this 2022 NFL Mock Draft.
Joseph is a youngster who led the nation in interceptions back in 2020. His role switched around a bit in 2021 and his ball productivity has fallen off with it, but he is still that ball-hawking, game-changing safety that we saw in 2020. Joseph’s versatility to play either safety role on the back end is unmatched thanks to his coverage prowess.
31) Tennessee Titans: Isaiah Likely, TE, Coastal Carolina
A first-round tight end from lesser-known Coastal Carolina is the pick for Tennessee here. Let it be known, however, that Coastal should be lesser-known no more. Coastal has churned out multiple future draft picks for this class and the 2023 class, but Isaiah Likely takes the top spot. He’s a formidable ask for any linebacker to cover, and he’s even been known to dominate safeties in coverage. Likely possesses top-end speed and can win from any alignment in the passing game.
32) Arizona Cardinals: Nicholas Petit-Frere, OT, Ohio State
With the final pick of this 2022 NFL Mock Draft, the Cardinals select the first round’s fifth offensive tackle. The third Ohio State Buckeye drafted, Nicholas Petit-Frere has been a revelation in 2021, dominating action at times. There has been an inconsistency in his game, but when he is in top form, he’s a surefire first-round pick. Arizona needs help at both tackle spots, and Petit-Frere has played both right and left tackle very well during his time in Columbus.