(SportsRadio 610) - If local news- and sports-directors had their way, here is how the 2022 NFL Draft would fall.
All together now, "What's the local angle???"
1) Jacksonville Jaguars – Travon Walker. Why: SEC country. Less than a 5-hour drive from his hometown. Georgia-Florida has been held in Jacksonville since 1933.
2) Detroit Lions – Aiden Hutchinson. Why: Duh. Go Big Blue. Plus, the Lions owners are huge Michigan fans.
3) Houston Texans – Garrett Wilson. Why: Austin kid who comes back to the state he shook up a few years ago by spurning his hometown Longhorns to go to Ohio State. And he comes back vindicated. It was the right decision, obviously. He will be welcomed by most fans, including the Longhorns fans, because he hates Tom Herman. Quote of the decade from a recruit: "I'm not going to lie, the official visit made me think about them a little more. In the end, I've watched a lot of people go to Texas with a ton of ability and maybe not achieve what I thought they could. I didn't want to be one of those guys."
4) New York Jets – Kyle Hamilton. Why: Notre Dame’s biggest fan base outside of the Midwest is New York City. By a longshot. The “Subway Alumni” have been around forever. Notre Dame and Army used to in fact play their annual game in New York City.
5) New York Giants – Kayvon Thibodeaux. My goodness, the over-the-top Lawrence Taylor references and connections would be glorious. Plus, if he comes across as lazy or underachieves, it’s a match made in tabloid heaven. Madison Avenue would love him, too.
6) Carolina Panthers – Ikem Ekwunu. From Charlotte, huge Panthers fan growing up and went to a lot of games. No-brainer.
7) New York Giants (from Chicago Bears) – Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner. Would you like some Sauce with your Kayvon? Just a perfect fit. Tough, underdog-type from Detroit. Flashy for the tabloids and a new term for every big play he makes for Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale could be coined: “Wink Sauce.”
8) Atlanta Falcons – George Pickens. Dude is the Second Coming of A.J. Green, another Georgia alum. And the name of the scholarship he earned at Georgia? The A.J. Green Family Scholarship.
9) Seattle Seahawks (from Denver Broncos) – Trent McDuffie. Played his college ball right up the road at Washington. Also, I found several stories in which he was called, “well-spoken.” He’ll fit right in where Russell Wilson left off. https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=836804170365292
10) New York Jets (from Seattle Seahawks) – Jeremy Ruckert. His father is a Jets season-ticket holder who paints his face for games. Jeremy grew up in Long Island going to Jets games. Maybe a reach, so Jets fans will boo the pick on Draft Night, which is a tradition unlike any other.
11) Washington Commanders – Zion Johnson. The guy grew up just outside of Washington DC in Maryland and was an R-word fan. Also is supposedly a real Brainiac – has two degrees, including Cyber Security, so he could work for the government in the off-season
12) Minnesota Vikings – Derek Stingley. The Ice Cold Bengal Tigers? The Vikes have had huge success with LSU players. First, there was Justin Jefferson, who played with Stingley at LSU. Most important, his 2021 defensive coordinator at LSU Deronte Jones now is on the Vikings staff. And Patrick Peterson has been all about the Vikings drafting Stingley, even lobbying for it on his podcast.
13) Houston Texans (from Cleveland Browns) – Kenyon Green. Kid grew up in Atascocita, went to A&M and is a monster. He even was the Houston area player of the year and as a high schooler played several games at NRG Stadium. Plus, Mark Berman will be able to ask him, “how does it feel” a million different ways.