The NFL Draft 2022: 32 Franchises Gamble with their Picks in Las Vegas

San Francisco keeps picks, takes talent in unusual draft 

“The Unknown” seemed to be the theme of this year's NFL Draft. The level of top end talent was focused along the offense and defensive lines, with quarterbacks plummeting down draft boards and outside of the first and second rounds. There was only one quarterback taken in the whole of the first round: Kenny Pickett out of the University of Pittsburgh, to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Players like Drake London, Evan Neal, and Kayvon Thibodeaux went off the board in round one, with Travon Walker out of Georgia heading to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who had the first overall pick.

Concerns were raised over the choice of Walker as first overall pick, having 9.5 total sacks over the course of his college career. However, teams fell in love with his versatility as an athlete, as he has played along both the outside and the inside enroute to a national championship. Walker being drafted to the Jaguars opened up the door for the Detroit Lions at #2 to take Aidan Hutchinson, who had the most eye popping stats of the first round. The Lions weren’t done yet, trading up to #12 to take Jameson Williams, a wide receiver out of Alabama. Williams is regarded as one of the most explosive receivers coming out of college and could’ve gone in the top five or ten in the draft if not for an ACL injury in this year’s NCAA national championship game.

On the Bay Area front, this was a quiet draft compared to last year. Last year, Oakland’s Alijah Vera Tucker, Antioch’s Najee Harris, Oakland’s Jevon Holland, and Richmond’s Aaron Banks were all in the first two draft rounds. This year, not one metro player was drafted, with all the professional hopefuls from the Bay Area, like Ronnie Rivers, Nate Landman, and Makai Polk, signing free agent contracts. However, some Bay Area college players were drafted. Thomas Booker from Stanford was selected in the 5th round, at pick 150, by the Houston Texans. Cameron Goode from the University of California, Berkeley was selected in the seventh round, at pick 224, by the Miami Dolphins. Goode’s teammate Elijah Hicks was also selected in the seventh round at pick 254 by the Chicago Bears. Though far from the norm, the lack of Bay Area draft picks seems to be an anomaly as more talent continues to grow at the high school and college level.

The 49ers didn’t have a first round pick, so the franchise bided its time on day one of the draft while keeping an eye out for possible trades.The 49ers traded away their initial first round pick spot for Trey Lance, at 3rd overall in the 2021 draft. The 49ers would select USC defensive lineman Drake Jackson in the second round, 61st overall in order to complement the likes of Nick Bosa as the Niners elite defensive line continues to retool.

Trades were the stars of the show this year and created plenty of drama, with several Pro Bowl receivers getting dealt in confusing fashion. Marquise “Hollywood” Brown was traded from the Baltimore Ravens to the Arizona Cardinals, making the NFC West all the more a bloodbath. Furthermore, AJ Brown was finally traded from the Tennessee Titans after months of tension between him and the franchise, where he was sent to the Philadelphia Eagles. The Titans attempted to replace Brown by drafting Treylon Burks from Arkansas in the first round, pushing the Music City franchise further towards the young end of the athlete spectrum.

As expressed by many, the 2022 NFL Draft lacked an “it” factor in the context of top end talent and positions that get people riled up, like quarterback. Outside of Kenny Pickett, quarterback stocks plummeted, with first round hopeful Malik Willis falling to the third round before being picked up by the Tennessee Titans. A lot of quarterback draftees were disheartened at the fact they fell so far down the board, but not going in the first round isn’t a make or break scenario.

The message is clear according to Super Bowl MVP Cooper Kupp: Go To Work. Draft position hasn’t been the end-all-be-all of NFL careers, a fact that won’t change any time soon. It’s up to these rookies to seize the moment they’ve wanted their whole lives.