The first round of the 2022 NFL draft is just over two weeks away and media outlets are producing mock drafts at a feverish pace. On Wednesday, ESPN’s Mel Kiper published his latest mock draft, and as is typical this time of year, he went a bit off-script to keep things fresh.
As has become commonplace, Michigan edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson was first off the board, and while most draft analysts have been pairing the Detroit Lions with an edge rushers’ like Oregon’s Kayvon Thibodeaux or Georgia’s Trayvon Walker—with some sprinkling of Florida State's Jermaine Johnson, Notre Dames’ Kyle Hamilton, and Liberty’s Malik Willis—Kiper pivoted in another direction.