The 2022 NFL Draft is cemented as one of the worst quarterback classes in history

The ’22 draft class at quarterback has proven to be one of the worst ever

Looking back on the 2022 NFL Draft, the narrative going in was the mixed bag of a quarterback class. It was headlined by Pittsburgh Panther Kenny Pickett, Cincinnati’s leader in Desmond Ridder and the explosive Liberty quarterback Malik Willis. Fast forward to just two drafts later, and none of the top quarterbacks from that class find themselves in a starting role, and most of them find themselves hanging on a thread for their NFL career.

In just the past week, three of the quarterbacks from that class who opened the last season as their team’s starter found themselves shipped off to another team. Sam Howell, Kenny Pickett, and Desmond Ridder were all moved off in favor of a veteran or a future rookie draft pick.

The only reason this class will likely not be considered a total bust is, ironically enough, the final pick in the entire draft with former Iowa State quarterback Brock Purdy, who is coming off a Super Bowl appearance. It goes to show that the quarterback draft process can, at times, be a bit of a crap shoot. With top projected talents falling out of the first round, others quickly failing at the next level, and the ones no one ever expected becoming heroes of their franchise.

Kyle Hamilton: The road to becoming a consensus NFL All-Pro

When the Baltimore Ravens drafted Kyle Hamilton 14th overall, out of Notre Dame, in the 2022 NFL Draft, it was the perfect fit.

When the Baltimore Ravens drafted Kyle Hamilton 14th overall, out of the University of Notre Dame, in the 2022 NFL Draft, it was the perfect fit.

Hamilton, the best defensive back in college football that season, was heading to a franchise synonymous with defense.

Having previously boasted all-time elite defenders like Ed Reed, Ray Lewis, Eric Weddle, Lardarius Webb, and Terrell Suggs, Hamilton looked to be the next in line. After all, many considered the safety, who skipped his final year at Notre Dame to enter the draft, the best overall prospect, regardless of position, in that year’s draft class.

“Kyle Hamilton is an eraser,” said then-Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly.

“It’s hard to get (All-American candidate at Tight End) Mike Mayer the football when we go against him because we’re bracketing the inside backer with Kyle Hamilton and Kyle’s got him over the top, then we got him inside-out, so when you have that kind of player, who can take a player like Mike Mayer away, imagine what he can do to others.”

A consensus five-star recruit when he came to South Bend, he left having been a consensus All-America selection in 2021 despite being limited to seven games because of a knee injury.

Hamilton racked up 138 tackles and eight interceptions during his three years on the Fighting Irish roster. His Fighting Irish career saw him go from freshman All-American nickel back to starter and All-ACC to team captain and best overall player.

We’re seeing that same fast learning curve here in the pros. Hamilton played in 16 games his rookie season, starting four. He finished the 2022 season with 62 total tackles (46 solo), two sacks and five pass breakups. His exploits landed him on the PFWA All-Rookie team.

This past season, the son of a pro basketball player with a distinguished career in the European leagues took over as a full-time starter. In week three against the Indianapolis Colts, he tied the NFL and broke the franchise record for sacks in the first half of a game with three.

His stellar campaign landed him in the Pro Bowl, and he earned first-team All-Pro honors from numerous publications. So, with this kind of trajectory, where does he go from here?

We’ll cover that in part two of this post.

 

How Kyle Hamilton Could Become the Best Safety in Football

Kyle Hamilton could be the next Ed Reed when all is said and done.

Kyle Hamilton did “not throw away his shot” at making the Baltimore Ravens starting lineup.

He started 15 games at safety this past season, tallying 81 total tackles (63 solo), three sacks, ten tackles for loss, 13 pass PBUs, four interceptions, and a defensive touchdown.

He was named to every publication’s first-team All-Pro list.

Sure, there’s still a million things he hasn’t “done, but just you wait, just you wait.” Okay, sorry, I’ll stop now with the references to Lin-Manuel Miranda’s unimaginably popular musical about the Founding Fathers.

Hamilton’s coach at Notre Dame, Brian Kelly, once discussed the attributes of the Atlanta native (who was born in Greece).

“He’s long, rangy, athletic, fit the run, you just don’t get many players of that caliber,” Kelly said heading into Hamilton’s junior/final college season.

“He is so much more aware of where he is in the big picture now than he was last year, and what I mean by that specifically is that this is a big year for him, and he knows that. His focus, his attention to detail, he is now locked into that.

“And we are the beneficiaries of that.”

As a freshman All-American, while splitting time with Alohi Gilman and Jalen Elliott, he displayed exceptional athleticism, ball skills, and a high football IQ. Throughout his Notre Dame career, Hamilton went on a consistent positive trajectory due to his versatility in the secondary, the “centerfielder” like range he shows in the back seven, and his overall physicality on the field.

We’re also seeing what a fast learner and quickly developing star he can be in the NFL now. On Christmas Day against the NFC (and oh so close to be being Super Bowl) champion San Francisco 49ers, Hamilton notched two vital interceptions that keyed the Ravens to a 33–19 victory.

The performance got him an AFC Defensive Player of the Week award. From high school to college to the pros, he’s shown an uncanny ability to make big plays, grab crucial interceptions, and break up passes with the best of them.

The next step for him is to become the best safety in football. He can do it. Kyle Hamilton could be the next Ed Reed when all is said and done.

 

Who is the best quarterback from the 2022 NFL draft?

Vote and tell us who the best quarterback is from the 2022 NFL draft.

The 2022 NFL draft was an odd group when it came to quarterbacks. Most draft pundits had this class greatly overrated in comparison to where they were drafted. Some experts had three or four guys in the mix for the first round when Kenny Pickett ended up being the only guy off the board early.

Since then, things have gone sideways for many of the quarterbacks in this group who most of us thought would be good and some others have shined. But which quarterback from the 2022 class has been the best?

[crowdsignal poll=12976431]

Cast your vote and tell us which one is the best. We included all the big names in our poll but we recognize this is a three-man race. Pickett, Sam Howell and Brock Purdy are the only ones out of this class starting and playing good football. Most of them have either been benched or never got a chance to start at all.

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2024 NFL mock draft roundup: Ravens adds an edge rusher with 1st round pick

The Ravens are 5-2 and atop the AFC North, but it’s never too early for a look ahead to the 2024 NFL draft. We recently looked at the mock drafts from around the country, and the consensus has Baltimore reloading on defense, especially in the …

The Ravens are 5-2 and atop the AFC North, but it’s never too early for a look ahead to the 2024 NFL draft.

We recently looked at the mock drafts from around the country, and the consensus has Baltimore reloading on defense, especially in the secondary or at edge rusher.

2 rookie first-round QB selections out for Week 3 NFL games

What rookie QBs will miss their games in Week 3 of the NFL season?

The first and fourth overall picks in the 2023 NFL draft will miss their respective games Sunday in Week 3 of the NFL season.

For the Carolina Panthers, QB Bryce Young will be sidelined with an ankle injury as his team faces the Seahawks in Seattle.

Andy Dalton will start in place of the No. 1 overall pick from Alabamaa.

The Indianapolis Colts will be without QB Anthony Richardson due to a concussion he suffered in Week 2.

In place of the No. 4 overall pick from Florida, Gardner Minshew will call the signals against the Baltimore Ravens.

List of Jon Robinson’s draft picks still on Titans’ roster

With Chris Jackson gone, an updated look at the draft picks made by former GM Jon Robinson who are still on the Titans’ roster.

When the Tennessee Titans parted ways with defensive back and 2020 seventh-round pick, Chris Jackson, he was just the latest player from one of former general manager Jon Robinson’s draft classes to get the boot.

This was not the first time Jackson had been cut, though, as he did not make the team’s initial 53-man roster in 2022 before being brought back on the practice squad and later promoted to the active roster.

While it’s possible Jackson will eventually be brought back, the fact that he was let go weeks before final cuts makes this one feel a bit more final.

With Jackson gone, cornerback Kristian Fulton is once again the last man standing from the 2020 draft class, which is one of three Robinson draft classes that has one player remaining on the Titans’ current roster.

The others are the classes of 2017 and 2018.

With Jackson’s recent departure, we thought it would be fun to see how many of Robinson’s picks from 2016-2022 are remaining on the 2023 squad as of right now.

We’ve also included a list of the departed players (and the teams they currently play for, if applicable) if you want to pour one out for them.

Several 2nd-year quarterbacks facing pressure to perform in 2023

The leash will be short for several of the top quarterbacks from the 2022 NFL draft.

When the 2023 NFL season starts, at least four quarterbacks taken in the 2022 NFL will be in their team’s starting lineup. But with a loaded 2024 NFL draft class, some of these players might be eyeing their last, best shot to stick in the starting lineup.

The one starter who appears to be safe regardless is Pittsburgh Steelers Kenny Pickett. After being named the starter early in 2022, Pickett has the full confidence of the team and a strong cast of skill-position players around him.

But of the other starters, there is much more uncertainty. The Washington Commanders are starting Sam Howell, the Atlanta Falcons have Desmond Ridder and the San Francisco 49ers have Brock Purdy.

With guys like USC’s Caleb Williams, North Carolina’s Drake Maye and Quinn Ewers would all be upgrades over Ridder, Howell and even Purdy. Unfortunately, the window for quarterbacks to play well is very small and shrinks even more when you are a mid or late-round quarterback starting in a season ahead of a very strong draft class.

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Ranking all 9 second-year QBs for 2023

Where does Kenny Pickett rank among the 2022 quarterbacks headed into year two?

Several of the nine quarterbacks taken in the 2022 NFL draft are in line to start this season while others are working on securing spots on various depth charts. This includes Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett. Here is our ranking of the nine quarterbacks from the 2022 NFL draft going into the 2023 season.

Panthers preseason expected to spotlight QB Matt Corral, not No. 1 pick Bryce Young

The Carolina Panthers are expected to play 2022 3rd rounder Matt Corral extensively in preseason instead of 2023 top pick Bryce Young

When fans tune into the Carolin Panthers during the preseason later this summer, they might not see what they want at quarterback. No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young figures to be a huge draw, but Young could very well be taking a back seat in Charlotte to Matt Corral in the exhibition season.

Corral was a third-round pick by the Panthers in the 2022 NFL draft coming out of Ole Miss. The Panthers even traded up to select him in that draft. Corral missed his entire rookie season after suffering a preseason foot injury, and the franchise clearly decided Young was the better direction to progress with.

However, Corral remains on the roster. As Joe Person of The Athletic notes, the new Panthers coaching staff is eager to see what he can offer. Person writes,

The former Ole Miss quarterback figures to get the bulk of the snaps in the preseason games. That will give the 2022 third-rounder a chance to showcase his skills for the Panthers (and every other team) following what amounted to a redshirt season

Young still hasn’t officially signed his rookie contract, but that’s about the only formality left in the Alabama star becoming the starting QB in Carolina. For Corral, the preseason will be an open audition to new head coach Frank Reich that he’s worthy of being the long-term backup. If not, perhaps one of their opponents might want an inexpensive young backup with some upside.

The other QB in Carolina is veteran Andy Dalton, who doesn’t really need to play other than as a “break glass in case of emergency” option.