2022 NFL Draft Prospects to Watch: Michigan vs. Michigan State

Michigan DE Aidan Hutchinson

If you’ve been reading mocks of the 2022 NFL Draft, you’ve surely seen Aidan Hutchinson’s name in the first round. Barring an injury, Hutchinson will likely hear his name called in the top half of the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. This is not only due to his ability, but because of how important pass rushers are in the modern NFL.

NFL defenses are designed to stop the pass. Those that can routinely win on passing downs can consistently get off the field and get the ball back to their offense. Therefore, having a dominant pass rusher that’s affecting the offense’s ability to gain yards through the air is immensely valuable. But not every pass rushing prospect is a first rounder. What sets them apart? Aidan Hutchinson is as good a case study as any to answer that question.

Hutchinson has elite size (6’6” 265), superb athleticism (he made Bruce Feldman’s Freaks list and is projected to run in the 4.6 range for his 40-yard dash time), and a tremendous motor. It helps that Aidan Hutchinson has good bloodlines too: his father Chris Hutchinson was a first team All-American for Michigan in 1992 where he split time between defensive tackle and outside linebacker.

Were it not for a season ending injury in 2020, it’s likely that Aidan Hutchinson would have come out for the draft last year, but he elected to return to school to improve his draft stock. And that plan’s been working great so far. Through seven games in 2021, he has five sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

What’s unique about Aidan Hutchinson is that he’s not a one-dimensional pass rush specialist. He can play the run and does so effectively. This year he has 27 total tackles and 6.5 tackles for loss. His size, functional strength, and ability to play with good leverage makes him hard to move. Hutchinson can hold his ground and use his hands to shed blockers and win one-on-one matchups in the running game. He has even shown the that he can play inside on the defensive line as the 2019 season saw him frequently lining up over the guard or on either side of the center.

Some people say, “Playing hard is a skill.” This means that a player’s motor or effort level is so high that it is a talent in and of itself. I believe in that line of thinking, and I believe Aidan Hutchinson embodies that saying. On film there were multiple plays where he kept coming, kept moving, kept running toward the ball, and through sheer effort and force of will made the tackle, the sack, the play, etc.

Not everything Aidan Hutchinson does ends up on the stat sheet. He can rush the passer and hurry throws, or make the quarterback step up before he wants to, throwing off the timing of the play. But what Hutchinson does most is command attention. It’s no coincidence that David Ojabo, who we discussed above, is having his best collegiate season as he’s lined up opposite Aidan Hutchinson on most plays.

If Michigan is going to win this rivalry game on Saturday in East Lansing against Michigan State, their defense is going to have to be outstanding, and that begins with 2022 NFL Draft prospect Aidan Hutchinson.