From Kyvon Thibodeau and Malik Willis to Christian Watson and George Pickens, Sky Sports’ Cameron Hogwood tags 10 players to watch in the NFL’s Scouting Association. The 2022 NFL Draft is scheduled to run from Thursday, April 28 through Sunday, April 30.
The 2022 NFL Draft class promises to be the most open, controversial, and difficult to analyze in recent memory, and the Scouting Combine is offering team officials a welcome opportunity to take a closer look at their favorite targets.
Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral, LSU cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. and Alabama forward Evan Neal are among the big names who will be out of physical training this week as they wait for their respective pro days instead.
With training due to start on Thursday, Sky Sports’ Cameron Hogwood is reviewing 10 players to keep an eye on throughout the week…
In Malik Willis, you have perhaps the most compelling example in the entire drafting class, a big double-threat small school quarterback from whom no one knows what to expect, but whose ceiling many are afraid of missing a trick.
The Senior Bowl was the city’s biggest showcase of how he can handle experienced and high-level defensive talent, and he excelled. He shot with lasers off the platform and at oblique angles, he hit airfields with accuracy and daring in traffic to bring a smile to attack coordinators, he turned goalkeepers into shots at lightning speed. It came at the end of a season in which he threw for 2,857 yards, 27 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while rushing for 878 yards and scoring 13 points.
Some note problems with accuracy, others sometimes note not very beautiful footwork; it’s raw, but so are the others. The potential jumps off the screen. More than most will be watching him this week.
Logic dictates that the Project’s story about Kaivon Thibodeau borders on ignorance, perhaps even sloppiness. His voracious quarterback, perhaps even best-in-class strength and explosive start, continues to falter in popularity with claims of inconsistent effort and technique inferior to that of Michigan rim rusher Aidan Hutchinson.
For him, the Alliance is both a face-to-face meeting with team officials to dispel all doubts, and a demonstration of his physical fitness. He finished last season with 49 tackles, 12 losses, seven sacks, two forced fumbles, the second-best pressure in the nation (17.8%) and a passing pass in 11 games to win a unanimous All-American honors.
When it comes to big talent in small schools, Christian Watson of North Dakota is one of the most complete receivers in the class, thwarted in the first place by doubts generated by opposition in small schools. On offense, he finished last season with 43 catches for 800 yards at 18.6 yards per game and seven touchdowns in 11 games.
