- The first round of the
NFL Draft kicked off in Las Vegas on Thursday night. - The New York Jets and Giants both crushed their first-round picks, setting themselves up for potential future success.
LAS VEGAS — Just after 5 p.m. on Thursday NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell stepped out on stage in Las Vegas, Nevada to the boos of thousands of football fans.
—NFL (@NFL) April 29, 2022
And with that, the 2022 NFL Draft officially began. Four hours, 32 picks, and several eye-popping trades later, Round 1 came to a close, with some teams, players, and characters coming out on top and others wishing the day had gone differently.
Take a look below at the 11 winners and losers of the first round.
WINNER: Travon Walker
The Georgia Bulldogs edge rusher was a late-riser up draft boards after a brillaint performance at the combine.
In the weeks leading up to the draft, Michigan edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson had largely been projected to go first overall to the Jaguars, but at some point in the past few days the tides shifted.
Ladies and gentlemen, your first overall pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, Travon Walker.
While other top edge talents like Hutchinson and Kayvon Thibodeaux might have put up better numbers than Walker in college, the upside Walker presented was too much for the Jaguars to pass up.
It's a home run swing, and after a 3-14 campaign in 2021 with a defense that gave up more points than all but four teams in the NFL, the Jaguars are a team in need of a dinger. Regardless of whether or not it works out for the Jaguars, it's a boon for Walker, who goes down as the first defensive player taken No. 1 since Myles Garrett in 2017.
WINNER: Hometown heroes
After the Jaguars took Walker first overall, the door was open for the Detroit Lions to draft standout Michigan edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson.
Hutchinson broke the Wolverines' single-season sack record last year, and now will get to continue playing close to home as he begins his NFL career.
"I think it would be cool to stay around Michigan and be close to my family," Hutchinson told Insider earlier in the week when asked of the prospect of getting drafted by the Lions. "I'm sure it'd make the transition to the NFL easier. I think there's a lot of positives either way."
Hutchinson isn't the only potential superstar that will get to stay close to home.
North Carolina State offensive tackle Ikem Ekwonu was taken by the Carolina Panthers with the sixth overall pick, and Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett was taken by the Pittsburgh Steelers at No. 20.
With a large contingency of Steelers fans in attendance in Vegas, Pickett's selection earned one of the loudest reactions of the night.
—NFL (@NFL) April 29, 2022
WINNER: Somehow, both the New York Giants and New York Jets
With four top-10 picks between them, there was a lot of potential for the New York football collective to mess things up pretty bad at the 2022 NFL Draft. Instead, both teams, somewhat shockingly, crushed it.
For the Giants, finding a quality edge rusher and offensive tackle were both top priorities. When they were set to make their first pick of the night, at No. 5, one elite edge prospect (Kayvon Thibodeaux) and two elite tackle prospects (Ikem Ekwonu, Evan Neal) were left on the board.
Since the Giants were also picking at No. 7, New York smartly played their hand, selecting Thibodeaux fifth overall, knowing that regardless of who the Panthers took at No. 6, one of the best tackles in the draft would still be there at No. 7. Carolina went with Ekwonu, leaving the Giants to take Neal, who might have been the highest-rated tackle on their board anyway.
Largely, the Giants' success was a result of not overthinking their picks, but credit where it's due, that's a hell of a duo to start the new season with.
Similarly, the New York Jets found great value in both of their top-10 picks. The Jets were able to grab possibly the best cornerback to come out of this draft class in Cincinnati's Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner, at No. 4, and followed that up by taking a player that could possibly be the best receiver to come out of this draft class in Ohio State's Garrett Wilson, at No. 10.
But the Jets' success didn't stop there. As Florida State edge rusher Jermaine Johnson began to fall past where many had him projected, New York found a trade partner in the Tennessee Titans and were able to move back into the first round to snag Johnson at No. 26.
Heading into the draft, the Jets needed help all across the roster. In one night, they found players that could prove to be foundational pieces at three key positions for years to come.
WINNER: Howie Roseman
It's hard to imagine anyone having a better night than the young players drafted on Thursday, but if anyone did, it was Eagles general manager Howie Roseman.
—Jon DiMuzio (@jondimuzCBS) April 29, 2022
Heading into the draft, Philadelphia was armed with two first-round picks, one of which had already been swapped with New Orleans ahead of Thursday.
With his first move, Roseman traded up from No. 15 to No. 13 to pick Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis. Not only is Davis a dynamic run-stuffer already, he will also get a year to learn the craft from Eagles veteran Fletcher Cox before eventually stepping into his sizeable cleats as the anchor of the team's defensive front.
But Roseman's biggest move of the night came next, as the Eagles flipped the No. 18 pick to the Tennessee Titans along with a third-rounder in exchange for star wide receiver A.J. Brown.
As the 18th pick was approaching, many of the top receiving prospects were already off the board. Rather than draft yet another wide receiver that might not work out — it's a position the Eagles have struggled to draft with the exception of DeVonta Smith last year — Roseman instead negotiated a deal for a receiver everyone already knows can dominate in the NFL.
It was a deal that shocked Eagles center Jason Kelce live on air.
—. (@rubythevalley) April 29, 2022
"Howie Roseman is working that Howie Roseman magic," Kelce said. "He's moving up in the draft to get Jordan Davis, and now he's trading to get an unbelievable receiver. This is like Christmas right now.
"Howie is a man on a mission right now, man. He's making things happen, and I'm a big fan."
LOSER: Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals also made a deal for a wide receiver, trading the No. 23 pick away to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for Marquise "Hollywood" Brown.
On another day, the Cardinals' deal for Brown might have raised a few eyebrows and little else, but with the immediate comparison to the deal the Eagles pulled off with the Titans, Hollywood's move to Arizona suddenly looks less appealing.
—Kevin Clark (@bykevinclark) April 29, 2022
—Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) April 29, 2022
To be sure, this is a trade that could still work out fantastically for the Cardinals. Brown is a dynamic player and is being reunited with his college quarterback, Kyler Murray. The two are certainly capable of making sparks fly.
Still, given the price the Eagles paid for A.J. Brown, it's a tough comparison.
LOSER: Lamar Jackson
The Hollywood Brown trade came as a shock to the entire NFL, but no one was more surprised than Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson.
—Lamar Jackson (@Lj_era8) April 29, 2022
It would be rather strange to learn that one of your friends is moving away by watching television, but there's a lot about the life of an NFL quarterback that is rather strange.
WINNER: Wide receivers
There was a ton of wide receiver talent up for grabs in Thursday's first round, and clearly front offices around the league were aware of it.
From picks No. 8-18, a whopping six wide receivers were selected — Drake London to the Falcons (No. 7), Garrett Wilson to the Jets (No. 10), Chris Olave to the Saints (No. 11), Jameson Williams to the Lions (No. 12), Jahan Dotson to the Commanders (No. 16), and Treylon Burks (No. 18) to the Titans.
Given the instant impact that the likes of Ja'Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson have had in their recent rookie seasons, expectations are high for this group. It's going to be fun to look back on this group in four or five years.
LOSER: Aaron Rodgers
Another year, another draft with the Green Bay Packers refusing to draft for Aaron Rodgers. Despite all of that receiving talent available this year, the Packers didn't make a move to get Rodgers another pair of trusted hands. Green Bay's refusal to give Rodgers another target is magnified by the recent departure of Davante Adams.
With the Packers sitting out of the receiving pool through the first round, look for Green Bay to be major players in the potential market for 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel, who recently asked for a trade from San Francisco.
WINNER: Georgia Bulldogs
The 2021 Georgia Bulldogs defense was one of the greatest defenses in the history of college football.
On Thursday, they cemented their claim further, breaking the NFL record for most defensive players taken in the first round from one school.
—ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) April 29, 2022
The five Bulldogs that went off the board were: Travon Walker to the Lions (No. 1), Jordan Davis to the Eagles (No. 13), Quay Walker and Devonte Wyatt to the Packers (Nos. 22 and 28), and Lewis Cine to the Vikings (No. 32).
Additionally, linebacker Nakobe Dean is still on the board, and could be taken with one of the first picks of the second round on Friday.
WINNER: Trading up to get your guy
Trades make the draft, and Thursday's first round was full of exciting moves. Further, there's something inherently nice about teams moving up to get their guy.
Simply put, it's nice to be wanted.
In their press conferences after getting drafted, several players, including Jordan Davis and Devin Lloyd, expressed appreciation for their teams' making the effort to trade up for them.
Trades on draft day make the entire experience more exciting to watch and in some cases, leave players feeling warm and fuzzy inside. Feels like a win-win.
WINNER: The Las Vegas Draft
Heading to the NFL Draft in Las Vegas, I didn't know what to expect. Of all the things to turn into Coachella, "NFL teams hiring people," is about as strange a choice as you can make. And yet, the festival of football that the league has made of the modern draft sort of works.
It's weird, to be sure, but against the backdrop of Las Vegas, it feels right in place. Being here, it's entirely clear why the NFL was eager to get a team in Vegas — this town knows how to host a big event, and the NFL loves to throw them.