The first round of the 2022 NFL Draft is in the books. There is still plenty of talent available though, with a handful of notable names slipping out of the top 32 picks. Here are my top five players available for selection on day two.
Nakobe Dean – LB, Georgia (5-11, 229, Junior)
Big Board Rank: #14, LB1
Pros: Outstanding processing ability. Reads the game so well and his first step is consistently excellent. Good athlete in short areas with some nice explosiveness to get downhill in a hurry. Plays like a heat-seeking missile when hunting down the ball carrier in space. Reliable tackler in the open field, with just 17 missed on 156 attempts over the last two seasons. Excellent blitzer, with 31 pressures, including six sacks, on just 142 career pass rushing snaps. Plays with a really high motor and gives 110% on every play.
Cons: Size is an obvious concern. At 5’11” and 229 lbs he lacks ideal NFL size and his limited length will result in him getting stuck on blocks. This will also lead to concerns about how well he can match tight ends and bigger bodied receivers in coverage. His athleticism is good but it doesn’t compare to some of the other linebackers in the class. Speed is good enough to cover sideline to sideline but he may have issues matching up against quicker and shiftier opponents in coverage.
Andrew Booth – CB, Clemson (6-0, 194, Junior)
Big Board Rank: #16, CB4
Pros: Outstanding movement skills. Some of the most fluid hips you will see at the position, with effortless change of direction ability. Long speed is good and allows him to cover the vertical tree and he has the burst out of his packpedal to close on underneath routes. Pairs this with good physicality and a fiesty attitude that permeates his game. Effort and competitive toughness is outstanding in every phase of the game and he shows great willingness as a run defender. Outstanding body control and ball tracking make him a menace at the catch point.
Cons: Really needs work as a tackler. Technique is all over the place and he will often throw his shoulder in an attempt to make a big hit, rather than wrap up in space. Missed an incredible 21.8% of his career tackle attempts and had his worst showing in 2021, where he missed 23.9%. Not wholly comfortable as a zone corner at this point. Eye discipline needs to improve as he gets caught watching the backfield. Saw him surrender a number of big plays downfield as a result.
Leo Chenal – LB, Wisconsin (6-3, 250, Senior)
Big Board Rank: #24, LB2
Pros: Has the build and strength of an old school linebacker. Excels at getting downhill and taking on blockers, with the power at the point of attack to create movement and make his way into the backfield. Despite his size he moves incredibly well, with outstanding short area quickness and the movement skills you’d expect from a much smaller player. Brilliant at reading the run and making plays, with his 43 run stops ranking third amongst draft-eligible linebackers. Confident and reliable tackler in space who packs a punch on contact. Missed just 12 tackles on 111 attempts in 2021.
Cons: Has all of the traits but isn’t particularly impressive in coverage. Wisconsin’s defense didn’t ask much of him in that department and he played a spot drop-heavy role that won’t easily translate to the NFL. Ball production is modest, with just two career forced incompletions. Needs to get better at reading route distribution and understanding space in coverage. Can still improve more generally as a processor and has a tendency to be overeager to make plays, leaving him vulnerable to misdirection.
Jaquan Brisker – S, Penn State (6-1, 206, rs-Senior)
Big Board Rank: #25, S3
Pros: Super smart and showcases great play recognition skills. Good understand of route combinations and distribution in coverage and looked good against smarter route runners. Didn’t allow a single reception in 104 man coverage snaps in 2021. Good physicality at the catch point to make a tonne of plays on the ball, with a 28% forced incompletion rate through his career. Very accomplished run defender who takes good angles and is adept at deconstructing blocks. Reliable tackler in the open field.
Cons: Desire to be a playmaker can work against him on occasion. Several times in zone coverage where he got caught with eyes in the backfield and allowed big plays behind him. Timed speed is excellent but didn’t always show up on tape. Range isn’t elite and won’t be the kind of player to play a tonne of single high safety in the NFL. More of a box safety in the NFL. One of the older safeties in this year’s class at 23 years old.
Logan Hall – IDL, Houston (6-6, 283, Senior)
Big Board Rank: #30, IDL2
Pros: Excellent pass rusher who combines outstanding length with short area explosiveness. Hands are super quick and he is very accurate at landing inside the frame of his opponent. He also shows good awareness of how and when to vary moves, with a particularly impressive inside swim against oversetting linemen. Produced in college, with 48 pressures on 477 pass rushing snaps. His combination of size and speed give him real versatility and he can have success from the interior or off the edge.
Cons: At 6’6″ he is on the taller end of the scale for interior linemen and it does cause some issues with leverage. Can slow his progress as a pass rusher and did see better leveraged offensive linemen move him off the line of scrimmage in the running game. Has a couple of key pass rushing moves that his game is built around but will need a more varied arsenal to reach his potential in the NFL. Some teams might see him as a tweener.
Carson Strong – Nevada (6-3, 225, rs-Junior)
Big Board Rank: #33, QB1
Pros: Strong possesses arguably the strongest arm in this year’s class and pairs this with high-level accuracy at every level of the field. Strong logged a 77.8% adjusted completion rate in 2021, the third highest rate amongst draft-eligible quarterbacks. He has also shown himself to be an outstanding processor, with the ability to work through progressions effectively and execute full field reads, with good poise in the pocket. Unlike a lot of the other quarterbacks in this year’s class, he also had responsibility for calling pass protections and audibles at the line of scrimmage.
Cons: Major lack of mobility and offers nothing as a runner. He will be far more reliant on his offensive line than other quarterbacks in this class. Struggles to throw with consistent accuracy when his feet aren’t set. Lengthy and concerning injury history, most notably being diagnosed with osteochondritis dissecans lesions in high school, which required significant surgery in both high school and college.
Malik Willis – Liberty (6-0, 219, rs-Senior)
Big Board Rank: #34, QB2
Pros: Rivals Strong for the best arm strength in the class. He is capable of generating a tonne of velocity on deep balls and throws to the far hashes. Works very well outside of structure and doesn’t need to set his feet to make throws. Makes some truly special throws too and led the FBS in big-time throw rate at 11%. Pairs this with elite athletic traits. Willis racked up over 2,000 rushing yards in the last two seasons and averaged 8.4 yards per carry in his career. Led the FBS with 90 forced missed tackles on his 151 carries.
Cons: Inconsistent accuracy. He had an adjusted completion rate of just 50% on intermediate throws, which ranked 123rd amongst all FBS quarterbacks. Operated a simplistic offense at Liberty and was rarely asked to make NFL-style progressions. When he was, the results were erratic to say the least. Won’t give up on plays on when he should and this results in some seriously questionable throws. Willis had 18 turnover-worthy plays in 2021, the second-most amongst draft eligible quarterbacks.
David Ojabo – Michigan (6-4, 250, rs-Sophomore)
Big Board Rank: #36, EDGE6
Pros: Has all of the traits to build on. Outstanding explosiveness out of his stance and is a natural speed rusher who will challenge tackles immediately out of their stance. Good length that allows him to initiate contact and beat his man early in the rep. Such a smooth mover with exceptional bend at the top of the arc to flatten and get at the quarterback. Possesses an impressive array of pass rushing moves for a player with such little experience. Still just scratching the surface of his potential.
Cons: Small sample size, with just 26 career snaps to his name before a breakout 2021 season. Still very new to football and getting a feel for the game. Shows up in his processing speed. Lacks ideal play strength for an NFL edge. No real power element whatsoever to his pass rush and really struggles to make an impact against the run. Needs to add more lower body strength to be an impact player on early downs. Tore his achilles in the pre-draft process and will miss the bulk of his rookie season.
Arnold Ebiketie – Penn State (6-2, 250, rs-Senior)
Big Board Rank: #37, EDGE7
Pros: Excellent pass rusher with a proven track record of success. Hit the ground running in his first season in the Power Five, with 52 pressures on just 374 pass rushing snaps in 2021. His 22.9% pass rush win rate ranked seventh amongst Power Five edges. Refined technician who knows how to vary his pass rush plan to win consistently. Has the ankle flexion to win outside and the loose hips to win off inside counters. Reads the run well and uses his length to set the edge.
Cons: Doesn’t have elite explosiveness of the line and won’t win with first step quickness. Doesn’t have much of a power profile either, relying more on his ability to win with finesse than bull rushing his opponents. An older prospect at 23 years old and he had a very late breakout. Had less than 600 snaps in his four years at Temple and 2021 was his first year of high-level production.
Skyy Moore – Western Michigan (5-9, 195, Junior)
Big Board Rank: #38, WR7
Pros: Very good athlete, with the combination of short area quickness and long speed to be a true three level threat in the NFL. Has a release package that is amongst the best in the class, allowing him to consistently win against press coverage despite a size profile more typically associated with a slot receiver. Very reliable hands when working within the strike zone, with just seven drops on 177 career catchable targets. Will create with the ball in his hands, turning small gains into home runs. Moore led all FBS receivers with 26 forced missed tackles in 2021.
Cons: Smaller receiver with a naturally limited catch radius. Didn’t always look comfortable when asked to work outside his frame or make late adjustments to bad ball placement. Unsurprisingly he isn’t particularly productive in contested catch situations. Didn’t face much top-tier opposition at Western Michigan either and there will be a big step up to the NFL. Had a history of ankle injuries stretching back to high school that teams will want to monitor.
