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NFL Draft 2022: Three bold predictions in the first round

By Lou Scataglia

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MAR 02: General manager, Joe Douglas of the New York Jets speaks to reporters during the NFL Draft Combine at the Indiana Convention Center on March 2, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MAR 02: General manager, Joe Douglas of the New York Jets speaks to reporters during the NFL Draft Combine at the Indiana Convention Center on March 2, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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2022 NFL Draft
2022 NFL Draft; New York Jets general manager Joe Douglas (left) chats with head coach Robert Saleh during an OTA at Jets Atlantic Health Training Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-USA TODAY Sports /

The NFL Draft is a few short days away. As the final mock drafts and churned out by NFL fans everywhere, what are some bold predictions for the first round?

With the 2022 NFL Draft set to kick off this Thursday, all eyes around the NFL world will be glued to their TVs, guessing who gets picked where.

This draft is a bit unique — it’s an incredibly deep draft overall, and excellent at a few positions, but the quarterback talent just isn’t there.

Contrast that with last year, where there was a ton of quarterback talent, but the overall class was not as talented.

Moreover, there seems to be no consensus as to who gets picked first overall.  Perhaps that’s the first time that this has happened in several years.

I’ve seen all of Aidan Hutchinson, Evan Neal, Ickey Ekwonu, and Travon Walker get first overall pick hype.

It’s truly unknown, which, to me, is more fun to experience.

Like any draft, there will be some bold moves made by the teams.  Some teams may trade up a ton of spots to take a guy, while others might shock the NFL landscape with their own selection.

I think some of the more bold activity we see in the draft is going to be quarterback-related since there are now a good bit of teams needing a franchise signal-caller, and not a lot of talent at that position in the draft.

So, let’s take a look at three bold predictions in the first round that could come true on Thursday.

NFL Draft: Three bold predictions in the first round

A team trades up to the Jets’ #4 pick for a quarterback

The Jets have a good bit of needs remaining on their roster and still have the 10th overall pick.

It might make sense for them to trade down from the 4th overall selection, especially if the team trying to trade up takes a quarterback.

I do think this could happen.

Fourth overall would be a great spot for the first or second quarterback to come off the board.  Not because they are that talented, but because of the other teams who could take a QB.

The Saints have the 16th and 19th overall selections.  Could they trade both to get the 4th overall pick from the Jets?  Possibly.

All of the Falcons, Commanders, Seahawks, and even Texans could realistically select a quarterback before the Saints make their first selection.

If New Orleans likes a guy a lot, why not go get him?  I think this is doubly true if the Lions pass on quarterback themselves.

For that reason as well, the 4th overall pick becomes very valuable.

Not only would the Jets get a haul for the 4th pick, but they’d still be able to pick at 10 and have a ton of high-quality prospects left to choose from.

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