Chiefs, Steelers and Giants make moves in 3-round 2022 NFL Mock Draft

Devonte Wyatt is a player that I see dropping a bit due to his age in the first round on Thursday. He is a very solid player who can come in and contribute to a defense right away, but teams early in the draft are looking more for a younger prospect that they can mold and get more out of, like his teammate Jordan Davis.

With Tom Brady back in the fold, I’m sure the Tampa Bay Buccaneers don’t care too much about age. They have quite a few free agents on their defense, and could really use a versatile piece to play alongside Vita Vea and Shaq Barrett. Wyatt can anchor down in the run game and penetrate into the backfield and will contribute early and often at the next level.

This is a bit of a reach, in my opinion, but the Green Bay Packers desperately need some offensive help. Bernhard Raimann went into Central Michigan a tight end and came out an NFL tackle prospect. He is an impressive athlete with great size and decent technique at this point in his offensive line career.

An inexperienced 24-year old would not be at the top of my list of tackle prospects, but I see the upside and value with Raimann for the Packers. He can slide in at right tackle right away, allowing them to bump Elgton Jenkins back to guard and will allow him to learn and develop from top left tackle David Bakhtiari.

After trading out of the eighth pick, the Atlanta Falcons can now add two players in the first round of the 2022 NFL Mock Draft (and yet another in the second). To start things off, the Falcons go with the top edge rusher on the board.

Boye Mafe is another productive Big Ten edge rusher who can use power or athleticism to beat his opposition. Atlanta has often tried and failed to find a first-round edge rusher that will stick around for the long haul, but Mafe seems like a great candidate here.

After passing on Malik Willis at pick eight, the Atlanta Falcons are able to still get a quarterback in the first round, locking in that fifth-year option. Matt Corral, despite a torn ACL, is a dynamic athlete as well and has a little bit of Kyler Murray to his game.

Marcus Mariota seems to be a near perfect bridge quarterback for a player like Matt Corral to learn from. Both are very mobile with high upside as a passing prospect. Corral is incredibly fun to watch and is a similar type of quarterback, as well, to the guy that head coach Arthur Smith previously worked with an found success with in Tennessee, Ryan Tannehill.

Here, we have arguably the steal of this entire 2022 NFL Mock Draft. Tyler Linderbaum is truly one of the top offensive linemen in this draft class, but could fall because of his size and position. Surely, some teams will knock him because of his short stature and arms, but I really think that the pairing just isn’t there early in the draft for a center.

I could see Linderbaum going to Baltimore at 14, but otherwise I don’t see a team with enough of a glaring need before this pick to pass on a talented player at a different position to select a center. But maybe they should.

Linderbaum is a smart and dominant player who displayed his athleticism at his pro day. He is about as close to a sure thing as you’re going to get in this draft and will be monumental for the reigning AFC Champions who are completely revamping their offensive line.

Lewis Cine is one of the most impressive and dynamic defensive playmakers in this 2022 NFL Mock Draft. He stood out on a stacked Georgia defense with his ability to make plays deep in coverage and his heavy hits around the line of scrimmage.

If the Lions pass on a different defensive weapon like Kyle Hamilton at two, they could definitely look to add a safety here at the end of the first round, or early in the second. Head coach Dan Campbell and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn will love the fire and swagger that Cine plays with and would be an easy plug-and-play for their defense.