Abdullah has the potential to fill a pass-catching role on offense with Jalen Richard unsigned and Phillips has some IDP potential, though likely as a dime back at best. Deonte Harty changes his last name from Harris over the offseason, but what shouldnt change is his role as the primary return specialist in New Orleans. That said, hes listed as PR1 on the teams depth chart, and as long as hes there, Im ranking him. The Chargers were glad they did. Its dicey because he was the punt returner last season while Byron Pringle handled kicks. The Minnesota Vikings completed the largest comeback in NFL history, a perfect start to the current streak of holidays. The Browns mostly had Anthony Schwartz (KR) and Demetric Felton (PR) do the returning last year, although there was a bit of a committee approach on kicks. Look for an open competition between all four of the aforementioned names. This came after leading the league a season earlier with an outlandish 17.3 yards per runback. However, hes had his share of struggles this season. When you flip on the tape, its easy to see why the field-flipping Australian is the talk of the town. He didnt have his best punt returning season, which is probably why his streak of 3 straight Pro Bowl selections as a returned was snapped. Last year, there were no rule changes affecting return specialists. Interestingly, there doesnt seem to be much correlation between great returners and great teams, but they undoubtedly make good teams better. If Roberts makes the roster, it'll be for this purpose. A top-10 kicker in the nation out of Steinbrenner High School, Noah Ruggles spent the early part of his college career at North Carolina. He might get saved for defensive snaps. AP Offensive Rookie of the Year: Garrett Wilson, AP Defensive Rookie of the Year: Sauce Gardner, AP Offensive Player of the Year: Justin Jefferson, AP Defensive Player of the Year: Nick Bosa, Passing Leader: Patrick Mahomes, 5250 Yds, Receiving Leader: Justin Jefferson, 1809 Yds, Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Thursday, March 2, 12:12AM. 38: Carolina NY Jets NY Giants Atlanta, No. These 2023 NFL Draft prospects put the special into special teams as we rank the top kickers and punters available next April. Which cannon-legged clutch kickers are set to follow in the footsteps of recently drafted dynamos such as Cade York, Evan McPherson, and Tyler Bass? As Felger has pointed out a few times this week, kicker and punter are both sneaky needs for the Patriots. He's also a weapon on special teams, as a returner he returned two kicks for touchdowns in 2021 and . . His biggest strength is his shiftiness, which explains why has been a bit better at returning punts than kicks throughout his career. The top 10 NFL ball-carriers among Auburn alumni (as measured by rushing yards): 1. Hill might be the first one out the door when. Those two concepts may seem to be at odds, but theyre truly the only two constants in the NFL. Fittingly for the holiday season, we had some miracle finishes for the second week in a row. He ranked 7th last season with 9.7 yards per punt return and 4th in total kick return yards (776). If Schwartz wins the job, hes more likely to be a return specialist only. He played college football at Texas and was drafted by the Ravens in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Looks like Reagor will get first crack at PR work, after filling that role in Philly. Although hes had his struggles from shorter distance this year, no kicker in this class has more 50+ completions. Pollard had 489 yards and a touchdown on 17 kick returns last season, which isnt a lot for a returner but is tremendous when you add it to his 1,056 yards from scrimmage. Moore ended the season as the primary returner for the Cardinals last year and should be the leader in the clubhouse for the role heading into 2022. Moore saw 64 targets and 18 rushes last year and wound up with 973 all-purpose yards in a multi-faceted role. It might be all Turpin this year, with Pollard sprinkled in. He checks in with strong measurements of 5'11 height and 220 pounds . Sadly, we wont see an encore this year because Grant tore his Achilles in training camp, and thats the only reason he isnt featured in the above rankings, as theyre for *this* year, and Grant wont be playing. 122, select RB Zamir White", "Defensive lineman Neil Farrell Jr. selected after Raiders trade up to No. The reason he excels so much as a punt returner is his decisiveness. Hes a ball-striking sensation, a special-teams wonder. He led the league with 15.2 yards per punt, 2 punt return TDs (with a season long of 95 yards), and 592 total punt return yards. ", "Las Vegas will play host to 2022 NFL Draft", "2022 NFL Draft is going full Las Vegas, but will be missing one key detail from the original plan", "Caesars Entertainment ecstatically hosts the 2022 NFL Draft after a prolonged wait", "What to know about traffic around Las Vegas during the NFL Draft", "Browns will get extra NFL Draft picks because Vikings hired Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as GM", "Texans set to hire Ravens assistant David Culley as head coach", "Falcons hire Terry Fontenot as general manager, Saints to receive draft compensation", "49ers' development of Saleh nets two third-round draft picks", "Washington hires Mayhew as GM; 49ers to get 2023 comp pick", "49ers will gain a draft pick by losing executive Martin Mayhew", "Updated Chiefs 2022 NFL draft picks after Bears' hiring of Ryan Poles", "Rams are 1st team to earn compensatory picks thanks to NFL's new hiring initiative", "Dolphins hire Mike McDaniel as new head coach", "New Orleans Saints to forfeit 6th-round pick in 2022 draft for COVID-19 violations", "NFL approves plan to reward teams with draft selections for developing minority coaches, GMs", 1984 NFL Supplemental Draft of USFL and CFL players, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2022_NFL_Draft&oldid=1141704367, April 2022 sports events in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 26 February 2023, at 10:58. They will be updated at least weekly, through the seemingly endless amounts of drops, pickups, and training camp battles. who was also one of the best kick returners in college football. At every turn, Flowers beat the odds in 2022, from making the Colts' 53-man roster as an undrafted free agent out of Pittsburg State to leading the NFL in yards per kickoff return. Go to main menu . Players are identified as Pro Bowlers if they were selected for the Pro Bowl at any time in their career. Nick Saban's recruiting success at Alabama has not only brought several championships to Tuscaloosa, but it has also made the NFL draft an event that all Tide fans are tuned in to. This could change as the season progresses. Despite not possessing the raw speed or agility of other players on this list, he makes up for it by envisioning his return before catching the ball, allowing him to immediately make the necessary cut. We present them here for purely educational purposes. His 70-yard long punt against Purdue was not only the longest of his Iowa career but also one of the biggest punts of the year. Update: I'm concerned about Toney being nicked up. The San Diego State special-teams weapon adds kickoff duty to his rsum too, providing maximum versatility. Dax Milne has been very good at securing the punt, but . They have combined for 54 of the team's 57 returned punts since 2020 . Also where Devin Duvernay, Ray-Ray McCloud, and more rank . This season, Brownings comfortably been one of San Diego States best players, accounting for more points than anyone else on the team. Analysts attributed the high number of trades to eight teams entering the draft without a first-round selection and a general absence of highly-touted prospects. . Hes 100% on both field goals and extra points, while demonstrating his leg power with a 53-yard long against FSU. 2022 NFL Kick & Punt Returns. View the 2022 NFL kickoff return statistical leaders as well as statistics and stats from past NFL seasons. 29: San Francisco Miami Kansas City, No. If he makes the final cut, its likely for this capacity, whereas Schwartz is young and explosive enough to make the roster as a wide receiver, albeit low on the depth chart. Some players carve out a niche as a return-specialist and make a roster on that skill alone. Powell will definitely get the first opportunity at both jobs. The Mevis name has a presence in the NFL draft for the second year in succession. Hines has been a steady option in the return game for three seasons now, adding 240 return yards to his offensive stats in 2021 and leading the league with 30 punt returns in 2020. Michael Jackson Sr.: $0. 1. Defensive backs Adoree Jackson and Darnay Holmes both have experience and will be in play, but neither is a lock for the final roster. John Reid: $0. 42: Washington Indianapolis Minnesota, No. Kene Nwangwu, Vikings Minnesota drafted Nwangwu as an RB in the 4th round last year despite not needing a back, most likely because of his return ability. Their first three selections are Nos. [2], Draft activities were held around two main locations on the Las Vegas Strip; invited players walked a red carpet stage constructed on the man-made lake in front of the Bellagio and its fountains. He still managed 599 return yards, including a 102-yard touchdown on a kick return against the Broncos. Kickers: Younghoe Koo, K, Falcons. Boosted by a 101-yard TD, Carter provided 904 kick return yards last year, which was second to Andre Roberts. [3][4], Caesars Forum was used to house infrastructure for the event. The best-case scenario for fantasy managers is that Kadarius Toney wins this job, but theres a lot to sort out on the Giants roster before we can say who will be the primary return specialist in New York this year. If C.J. Had a 32-yard kick-off return and a 23-yard punt return vs. Indianapolis (11/6). UGA. McCloud has been one of the leagues more prolific returners over the past two seasons in Pittsburgh, totaling 944 return yards in 2020, and 1,143 yards in 2021. Boasting a booming leg, Baringer is on pace to break his own Michigan State single-season punt average, leading the nation with an average of 50.0 yards per punt. Hes been able to break off two returns of 40+ yards, so hes due to score on one in the near future. Despite this, Moody has shown through his college and high school career that he has the leg strength and clutch gene to come up big when the game is on the line. Should We Use Dynasty ADP to Inform Redraft Decisions? 1 overall pick Jadeveon Clowney, who has made . . Might see a bit of a committee though. Matt Corral may push Sam Howell as the potential top quarterback selected in the 2022 NFL draft. Roberts averaged 27.3 yards per kick return last year, second in the NFL, and racked up 1010 return yards. This battle may not be fully settled, but White has interesting double-dip potential as the possible pass-catcher there as well. Andre Roberts, Panthers When last season started, Roberts was a Texan. The bespectacled Bryce Baringer is undeniably one of the nations premier punters despite his relatively late introduction to the art. Given that the new Steel Curtain is likely to be forcing a lot of punts this season, Olszewski should get plenty of chances to establish himself as one of the best. That appears to be the case with the Denver Broncos,, Read More Broncos Fire Head Coach Nathaniel Hackett; Grade WithinContinue, With the trade deadline behind us, all teams now face an invariant truth: unless you sign a fringe player (or Odell Beckham) off the street, you need to win with the guys you have. Hill is starting the season on IR, but may take the KR job back when he returns. Godwin Igwebuike, Lions Igwebuike returned kicks for the first time last season, and I liked what I saw. Five Georgia defensive players were also taken during the first round, the most from an individual school in a draft. See Full Boxscore. Tre Brown was our 4th-round pick last year, played well before . 166: Arizona Philadelphia Houston Chicago Cincinnati, No. Max Mitchell is one of the more exciting offensive tackle sleepers, mainly due to his physical traits. The 2022 NFL Draft big board rankings are reflective of Bucky Brooks' top five 2022 NFL Draft prospects by position 1.0 and ESPN's NFL Draft "Best Available" list. Falcons Digital Managing Editor. Follow me @walterfootball for updates. Houston's Marcus Jones is the best return specialist and one of the most versatile players in the 2022 NFL Draft. But the Panthers werent thrilled with Smith early in the season and ended up making additions Alex Erickson and Ameer Abdullah who took work away from him. However, it does have several talented prospects led by Notre Dame's Kyle Hamilton, who is one of the best safeties to come out in college in recent memory. Even some of the best return specialists will find themselves off the final roster when cuts happen. Honorable Mention for the Top Kickers in the 2023 NFL Draft, Honorable Mention for the Top Punters in the 2023 NFL Draft. [1], The league awarded the draft to Las Vegas on April 23, 2020 after the Raiders officially relocated to Las Vegas. Oddly, Agnew only had 11 punt returns last season despite being the primary returner, which suggests that opposing punters shied away from him (smartly). The first five selections were defensive players, the second-most taken at the start of a draft after the six in 1991. Now that the 2022 NFL Draft is behind us and teams know exactly what they need heading into next season, the free-agent market will soon heat up again.. Both have explosiveness and talent in the return game and could win out. 44 with the Texans, pick up 68, 108, 124", "Chargers Acquire Six-Time Pro Bowl Outside Linebacker Khalil Mack", "2022 NFL draft: Bills trade back twice in second round with Buccaneers, Bengals", "Atlanta Falcons trade Julio Jones to Tennessee Titans", "Broncos trade star LB Von Miller to Rams for two 2022 NFL Draft picks", "Jaguars trade 2020 first-round CB C.J. I have no idea why they released him other than the fact that the Texans don't know their heads from theirwell, anyway. Kyle Hamilton, S, Notre Dame, Jr. . The 2022 NFL draft will take place April 28-30 in Paradise, Nevada. McCloud works well in space, finding small creases that he can use to gain positive yardage. His roster spot is likely specifically for return work. That was his second run, the second-fastest of all wide receivers at the . First thing to notice is size. 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