— Mark Lane (@therealmarklane) April 28, 2022
It may be the first day of the 2022 NFL draft, but NBC Sports game commentator Cris Collinsworth slid in at the last minute to provide his mock draft for Pro Football Focus.
Collinsworth has the Houston Texans taking Alabama tackle Evan Neal with the No. 3 overall selection.
“Best player available” will be the buzzphrase for the entire Houston draft. Deshaun Watson is now with the Browns, and it sounds like Houston is committed to Davis Mills. So, the best players on the board are tackles, Kayvon Thibodeaux or one of the cornerbacks.
This is just a guess as to who the Texans have ranked the highest, but I will go with Neal. He has as much upside as any offensive lineman, and there aren’t a lot of human beings on earth built like him. The Texans have time to wait for the upside.
With the Jacksonville Jaguars taking Georgia defensive end Travon Walker and the Detroit Lions going with defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, Houston has the rest of the field in front of them, and go with arguably the second-best offensive lineman for their situation.
The New York Jets take defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux the very next pick.
The Texans miss out on Ahmad Gardner as he goes No. 7 overall to the New York Giants. Even Derek Stingley is off the board by the time the Texans pick at No. 13 overall, where the club decides to beef up the interior defensive line with Devonte Wyatt from Georgia.
Edge is always the easy pick, but I think Wyatt can change the game inside. At 6-foot-3 and 304 pounds with a great first step, he is so quick that he is almost impossible to cut off on zone running plays. He has a knack for turning his shoulders sideways and gaining the edge, and his acceleration once he gets that edge makes him incredibly difficult to block.
He’s played around 400 snaps a season since 2019, but he tore it up when cut loose at the Senior Bowl. He corners like a sports car and freed linebackers for their blitzes at Georgia. I won’t be surprised if he gets 10-sack seasons in the NFL.
Safety Kyle Hamilton goes No. 15 overall to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Collinsworth’s decisions are safe bets for Houston in the first round. The Texans would need to hit on every pick thereafter in the draft to ensure they add firepower to the roster.
