2022 NFL redraft: Sauce Gardner to No. 1, Garrett Wilson leads WR reset of top 10
Nick Baumgardner
Apr 14, 2023
In football, grading in the moment is impossible. Grading an entire draft within a year is also pretty difficult, but it’s possible the year provides evidence of true progress and, perhaps, adjusts future outlooks. Context matters so much in football, and it’s everything when determining how a rookie is performing in the NFL.
That said, let’s go back a year and look at the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. How might things shake out if that draft were held again today?
(Note: The draft order here is as it was when Round 1 began — before any draft-day trades were made.)
1. Jacksonville Jaguars: Sauce Gardner, CB, Cincinnati
Original pick: Travon Walker, Edge, Georgia
It didn’t take very long before Gardner not only looked like the best rookie but arguably the best cornerback in the NFL, regardless of age. The 6-foot-3, 200-pounder can do everything — either on an island or in zone — and is the prototype for the modern CB1 moving forward. This is the easiest pick in hindsight.
2. Detroit Lions: Aidan Hutchinson, Edge, Michigan
Original pick: Aidan Hutchinson, Edge, Michigan
If it weren’t for Gardner’s special rookie year, Hutchinson (whom the Lions also picked in real life, obviously) would have been the Defensive Rookie of the Year without much argument. He showed a bit of what he can do for a defense in his first year — pass rush, run defense, pass coverage — and should continue to improve. Detroit got exactly what it wanted.
3. Houston Texas: Garrett Wilson, WR, Ohio State
Original pick: Derek Stingley Jr., CB, LSU
Is this high for a receiver? Maybe, but there weren’t three better first-year players last season than Wilson. You could argue there weren’t two. Wilson played for a Jets team that had no serious answer at quarterback and still put together a marvelous rookie campaign with 1,103 receiving yards and 22 forced missed tackles — the latter placing him second only to Deebo Samuel among full-time starting receivers.
4. New York Jets: Kayvon Thibodeaux, Edge, Oregon
Original pick: Sauce Gardner, CB, Cincinnati
Starting the year injured was hardly ideal, and it pushed Thibodeaux’s rookie-hiccup stage deeper into the season than the Giants would’ve liked. However, he found a groove toward the middle of the year, especially after a nine-pressure game at Dallas on Thanksgiving. Despite the delayed start, Thibodeaux still finished with 45 pressures, third most among rookie edges.
continued..
Nick Baumgardner
Apr 14, 2023
In football, grading in the moment is impossible. Grading an entire draft within a year is also pretty difficult, but it’s possible the year provides evidence of true progress and, perhaps, adjusts future outlooks. Context matters so much in football, and it’s everything when determining how a rookie is performing in the NFL.
That said, let’s go back a year and look at the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. How might things shake out if that draft were held again today?
(Note: The draft order here is as it was when Round 1 began — before any draft-day trades were made.)
1. Jacksonville Jaguars: Sauce Gardner, CB, Cincinnati
Original pick: Travon Walker, Edge, Georgia
It didn’t take very long before Gardner not only looked like the best rookie but arguably the best cornerback in the NFL, regardless of age. The 6-foot-3, 200-pounder can do everything — either on an island or in zone — and is the prototype for the modern CB1 moving forward. This is the easiest pick in hindsight.
2. Detroit Lions: Aidan Hutchinson, Edge, Michigan
Original pick: Aidan Hutchinson, Edge, Michigan
If it weren’t for Gardner’s special rookie year, Hutchinson (whom the Lions also picked in real life, obviously) would have been the Defensive Rookie of the Year without much argument. He showed a bit of what he can do for a defense in his first year — pass rush, run defense, pass coverage — and should continue to improve. Detroit got exactly what it wanted.
3. Houston Texas: Garrett Wilson, WR, Ohio State
Original pick: Derek Stingley Jr., CB, LSU
Is this high for a receiver? Maybe, but there weren’t three better first-year players last season than Wilson. You could argue there weren’t two. Wilson played for a Jets team that had no serious answer at quarterback and still put together a marvelous rookie campaign with 1,103 receiving yards and 22 forced missed tackles — the latter placing him second only to Deebo Samuel among full-time starting receivers.
4. New York Jets: Kayvon Thibodeaux, Edge, Oregon
Original pick: Sauce Gardner, CB, Cincinnati
Starting the year injured was hardly ideal, and it pushed Thibodeaux’s rookie-hiccup stage deeper into the season than the Giants would’ve liked. However, he found a groove toward the middle of the year, especially after a nine-pressure game at Dallas on Thanksgiving. Despite the delayed start, Thibodeaux still finished with 45 pressures, third most among rookie edges.
continued..
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