ESPN NFL Draft analyst Todd McShay published his post-Super Bowl mock draft on Wednesday and, surprisingly, there weren’t many surprises baked into it. Alabama offensive tackle Evan Neal is the No. 1 pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars, which is something of a prevailing narrative right now, Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton comes off the board at No. 3 overall to the Houston Texans, which as I mentioned a few days ago,will become a more consistent trend as we march toward April, and the first quarterback drafted is Pittsburgh’s Kenny Pickett, whose name is called by the Washington Commanders at No. 11 overall.
But what about this year’s most dynamic downfield wide receiver, Alabama’s Jameson Williams? After tearing his ACL in the national championship game, there’ve been rumblings that he could tumble out of the first round and become the premier selection at the top round two.
Not so fast… at least, not according to McShay, who has Williams as the 27th overall pick to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“The Buccaneers used a second-rounder on Kyle Trask last year, so they already have a hope-we-can-develop-him young passer in the mix,” McShay wrote. “Instead, I’m looking at Williams, who is probably the most talented receiver in the class. He is coming off a torn ACL and will likely miss part of the season, but he’s big-play receiver with elite speed and shiftiness as a ball carrier. He piled up 1,572 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns in 2021. Antonio Brown is gone, Chris Godwin is a pending free agent and Rob Gronkowski could re-retire. The Buccaneers will make a move to re-sign Godwin, but even if they do, Williams is a game-breaker Tampa Bay offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich would love to scheme up.”
Jameson Williams’ knee injury could force him out of round one
Prior to tearing his ACL, Williams was projected to be a top-10 pick by most seasoned NFL draft analysts. While I have my reservations about ranking him that high, there’s no denying he was this year’s most electrifying wide receiver who, even as a No. 2 option in an NFL passing attack, seemed destined to be a field-flipping dynamo. Now, with a bum knee and no chance to showcase his athleticism in pre-draft events like the 2022 NFL Scouting Combine or his pro day, Williams will be left to rely on the tape — which is really good — and an encouraging medical. If the medical checks aren’t good, Williams could become the next in line of infamous draft day free-fallers.
For the Buccaneers, Williams sliding to their first-round pick is like a gift from the football gods. Tampa Bay is suddenly in an offensive reboot after the retirement of Tom Brady and unknown futures of Chris Godwin and Rob Gronkowski. They may lose their starting center, Ryan Jensen, in free agency too. Injecting a young blue-chip skill player into an offense that is losing so much talent is a perfect example of need meeting value.
All 15 of Alabama’s Jameson Williams’ receiving TDs, which led the SEC.
Williams was clocked at 23 mph during one of Alabama’s practices. Doubt he falls to the #Titans at 26 but I can dream lol. pic.twitter.com/vWCkZq8lq8
— Wes on Broadway (@TitansDraftTape) February 6, 2022
If Tampa Bay doesn’t land a serviceable quarterback this offseason, their chances of making another deep playoff run nearly disappear. It could actually help Williams if that happens, too. He won’t have to rush back for that playoff run; he’ll play when he’s 100% healthy (which probably won’t be until the second half of next season).
We can’t leave one of McShay’s 2022 NFL mock drafts without seeing where he has the quarterbacks going, right? Aside from Pickett, McShay has Malik Willis headed to the Pittsburgh Steelers — who trade up with the Los Angeles Chargers at No. 17 overall to draft him — and Matt Corral going to the New Orleans Saints one pick later at No. 18.
Sam Howell sneaks into McShay’s first round at No. 32 overall to the Detroit Lions, which seems like a logical projection even though I don’t view Howell as a first-round passer. That’s four quarterbacks in the first round, a number that’s more acceptable than some mock drafts that have five picked in round one.
