With so many players taking advantage of their extra year of college eligibility, there will be no shortage of prospects to peruse in next year’s class. Thankfully for you, we’ve been narrowing down the top players at each position to watch out for this season. In the final installment, we examine the top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft class.
Top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft | 1-5
These are my very early rankings of the top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft class. The rankings are compiled from observations made while watching players in the 2021 class and early adventures into 2022 summer scouting. As such, they’ll be subject to change throughout the summer and 2021 college football season.
1) Sam Williams, Ole Miss
Before arriving at Ole Miss and becoming one of the top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft, Sam Williams was a dominant force at the JUCO level. During his two seasons for Northeast Mississippi Community College, Williams earned a reputation as a game wrecker.
In a hyper-productive sophomore season, he racked up 75 tackles, 28.5 tackles for loss, and 17.5 sacks. Meanwhile, his performances earned him a four-star ranking and first-team All-NJCAA All-American honors.
Williams chose Ole Miss over a host of SEC teams and made an immediate impact for the Rebels. He led the team with 6 sacks while adding 9.5 tackles for loss, 1 interception, and 1 forced fumble in 2019. Despite the disruption of the 2020 season, Williams added another 4 sacks, 8 tackles for loss, and 1 forced fumble. Although he could have declared at the end of 2020, he opted to return for his super-senior season.
The Ole Miss outside linebacker is built differently from other players on this list. At 6’4″ and 265 pounds, Williams is an absolute unit. He can line up at defensive end with his hand in the dirt or play stood up over the tackle. The Rebels even used him inside towards the end of the season. Williams is as strong as an ox, helping him set the edge in the run game and be disruptive as a pass rusher.
2) Nik Bonitto, Oklahoma
Following the New England Patriots selection of Ronnie Perkins this spring, can Nik Bonitto be the latest Sooners pass rusher to head to the NFL?
The former four-star recruit was viewed as the 17th best at the position in the 2018 recruiting cycle. Yet, he has emerged as one of the top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Bonitto redshirted in 2018 but surfaced as a dangerous playmaker in 2019. Making his first starts for the Sooners, his 6.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks flashed his pass-rush ability. Meanwhile, Bonitto snagged an interception and 4 pass deflections to demonstrate some skill in coverage. Last season, he added 10.5 sacks and 8 tackles for loss, plus an interception that secured the Big 12 Championship.
Although he doesn’t possess the same raw strength as Williams, Bonitto is a phenomenal athlete. He showcases excellent burst and bend to get around the edge. The Oklahoma outside linebacker has an arsenal of pass-rush moves, including a perfectly executed spin move witnessed on tape. Bonitto has also shown that he can be one of the best coverage linebackers on this list.
3) Adam Anderson, Georgia
There is a heavy amount of projection here, which we’ll get to shortly. Nevertheless, Georgia’s Adam Anderson is one of the most exciting pass rushers that I’ve watched early on in the process. Not all five-star recruits live up to their billing, but the former No. 1 outside linebacker in the 2018 recruiting class has the potential to do just that.
Despite being such a highly-rated recruit, Anderson has fought for playing time with the Bulldogs. He’s seen action in all three seasons but only truly began to flash last year. Although a lot of focus fell on Azeez Ojulari, Anderson secured the second-most sacks and quarterback pressures. He achieved this while predominantly being used as a third-down pass rusher.
So here comes the projection part. We’ve only seen a small sample of what Anderson can achieve. He’s explosive, athletic, and when locked on to his target, the result is disastrous for his opponent.
Given the opportunity to increase his snaps in 2021, his production could skyrocket. Still, at 6’5″ and 225 pounds, the concern is how he would hold up in the NFL? Anderson could add a bit of weight, and he has the frame to do so. But can he do that without compromising his movement ability?
If the answer is yes, Anderson could easily be one of the top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft.
4) Merlin Robertson, Arizona State
Arizona State has a ton of defensive talent, and with the return of Merlin Robertson, the Sun Devils have one of the top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft. He only played four games last season, but many expected Robertson to leave for the NFL after his junior campaign. Instead, he’ll be terrorizing Pac-12 offensive linemen for a fourth consecutive year.
The former four-star recruit made an immediate impact in Tempe in 2018. During his first season, Robertson earned Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year recognition after leading the Sun Devils in all major pass-rush categories. He’s compiled an eye-watering stat sheet that consists of 171 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, 7 sacks, 3 interceptions, 4 pass deflections, and 4 forced fumbles.
A physically gifted and intelligent player, Robertson is impressive in all phases of defense. He can use his football instincts to sniff out the ball carrier in the ground game. Robertson is aggressive and athletic coming downhill as a pass rusher or against the run. Furthermore, he has the athleticism required to excel in pass coverage.
5) DeAngelo Malone, Western Kentucky
There isn’t a more productive player on this list of the top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft than Western Kentucky’s DeAngelo Malone. These are pure, indisputable facts. The Hilltoppers’ standout amassed 255 tackles, 41.5 tackles for loss, 24.5 sacks, 1 interception, 3 pass deflections, and 4 forced fumbles during his college football career.
There’s no doubting that Malone has been dominant at the Conference USA level. He earned C-USA Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2019 and is an early favorite to take home the award again this season. His combination of explosion, athleticism, and bend off the edge puts him at a whole different level than opposing tackles. Malone owns impressive length, which he uses to take down quarterbacks and ball carriers with ease.
The biggest issue with Malone’s projection to the NFL is his size. At 6’4″ and 230 pounds, he is exceptionally light. As such, he is a pass-rush prospect only, with no discernible influence on the ground game. Moreover, there may be injury concerns after several medical issues in his career. Nonetheless, Malone is a potent pass-rush presence in this class.
Top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft | 6-10
Which outside linebackers currently round out the top 10?
6) Kuony Deng, California
At 6’6″ and 250 pounds, Kuony Deng is not your average linebacker. He’s also not had your average football journey. Deng spent the 2017 season at the Virginia Military Institute before heading to Independence Community College — the one featured on “Last Chance U.”
Having impressed as a sophomore, he earned a four-star JUCO ranking and transferred to Cal. There, he’s accumulated 152 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles in just two years.
Cal has done him a disservice, however, by using him predominantly as an inside linebacker. Yes, it’s allowed him to display the ability to come down and make plays in the box. Yes, it’s allowed him to show off his length in pass coverage. But Deng truly excels off the edge as a pass rusher and can utilize his athleticism and size to be a dominant force there.
Deng is expected to make a position change this season. He’ll emerge as one of the top outside linebackers in this 2022 NFL Draft class when he does.
7) Christopher Allen, Alabama
A former four-star recruit in the 2017 recruiting cycle, Christopher Allen’s early Alabama career was disrupted by injury. After seeing significant time as a freshman, he lost his entire sophomore season before seeing some defensive snaps in 2019. Allen exploded into life last year, leading the SEC in tackles for loss in addition to recording 6 sacks.
Allen possesses the athleticism and bend to win off the edge. Moreover, he demonstrates excellent effort in the run game. Allen owns excellent coverage skills but needs to develop a pass-rush arsenal. If he can, he should elevate as one of the top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft by the end of the season.
8) Noah Taylor, Virginia
After playing through multiple injuries in 2020, Noah Taylor hopes to return to his 2019 form. As a sophomore, he racked up 57 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss, and 7 sacks. Although he couldn’t achieve similar numbers last season, he still showcased the attributes that will make him one of the top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft.
At 6’5″ and 225 pounds, Taylor is a long and rangy linebacker. He puts his length to good use as a tackler, wrapping up while exhibiting solid athletic ability to track down the opposition. Taylor also flashes some explosive tendencies as a pass rusher.
Yet, where he excels is in coverage. Taylor displays excellent ball tracking traits and uses his length to pluck the ball out of the air. You can see his experience as a high school wide receiver in these instances. Taylor has 3 career interceptions as a result of his coverage prowess.
9) Nolan Smith, Georgia
Georgia’s Nolan Smith was the No. 1 ranked high school recruit in the 2019 cycle. In fact, Smith earned a comparison to Chicago Bears pass rusher Khalil Mack coming out of the IMG Academy from some analysts.
He hasn’t yet quite lived up to that reputation for the Bulldogs, however. So far in his career, he has logged just 5 tackles for loss and 5 sacks.
Like his teammate Anderson, Smith should see significantly more snaps this season in the Georgia defense. That will allow him to showcase his speed, explosiveness, strength, and ability to bend around the edge. The talent is there to emerge as one of the top linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft; he just needs to reveal it consistently.
10) Mike Rose, Iowa State
Iowa State has multiple 2022 NFL Draft prospects, and Mike Rose should be one of the top linebackers in the class. With 38 games under his belt, he will be one of the most experienced players at the position. Furthermore, he earned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year last season.
Rose racked up 251 tackles, 29 tackles for loss, and 5.5 sacks during his career. He proved disruptive in the passing game, with 6 interceptions and 7 pass deflections in that time.
Despite that success, Rose does his best work in the ground game. At 6’4″ and 245 pounds, he poses a physical threat coming downhill and meeting the ball carrier head-on. Rose also plays the game with intensity as a leader of the defense.
Honorable mention for the top outside linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft
Micah McFadden, Indiana; Amari Gainer, FSU; Payton Wilgar, BYU; Jeffrey Gunter, Coastal Carolina; Brandon Smith, Penn State; Big Kat Bryant, UCF; Zakoby McClain, Auburn; Jacquez Jones, Ole Miss; Jeremiah Moon, Florida.
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Oliver Hodgkinson is a staff writer for Pro Football Network. You can follow him on Twitter at @ojhodgkinson.