Final Florida Gators 2022 NFL Mock Draft, Potential Landing Spots
Photo: Dameon Pierce; Credit: Alex Shepherd
The 2022 NFL Draft arrives this week and a handful of Florida Gators are expected to hear their names called when it does.
With cornerback Kaiir Elam leading the pack, at least three Gators are expected to be drafted this year. That number could double if teams buy into the athleticism several Florida prospects showcased at events like the Senior Bowl, NFL Combine and UF's Pro Day over the last few months.
Below, we've compiled our final Gators-centric mock draft ahead of the selection ceremony, which takes place Thursday through Saturday. We've also outlined some players that may not get picked but sign quickly after the draft with teams as free agents.
For reference, the AllGators' final 2021 mock draft accurately projected Kyle Pitts and Kyle Trask's team selections, although Trask went one round ahead of our prediction to Tampa Bay. Of Florida's eight prospects drafted a year ago, AllGators projected seven including three in their eventual round of selection, while another two players included in the mock signed with teams as undrafted free agents.
CB Kaiir Elam: Kansas City Chiefs, first round, 29th overall
The Chiefs entered the offseason with cornerback as, arguably, their biggest need. Kansas City addressed almost every other need it has in free agency but did not sign a corner, indicating that the Chiefs will use one of their back-to-back first-round picks on a player at the position.
As we outlined in our previous Gators' mock draft, Elam is an ideal fit in Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo's man coverage-heavy scheme.
Standing at 6-foot-1.5, 191 pounds with 30 and 7/8-inch arms, Elam possesses the prototypical size of a press-man cornerback and great athleticism to pair, which he proved this year with a 4.39-second 40-yard dash (83rd percentile among cornerbacks) and a 37.5-inch vertical jump (70th %tile).
Elam is physical at the point of attack and mirrors routes extremely well, skills that contributed to his five interceptions and 20 defended passes in 30 games.
Due to his stellar combine and pro day results, Elam is a candidate to be selected before Kansas City's first-round picks within a projected run on cornerbacks. But if Elam is available when the Chiefs are on the clock at No. 29 and No. 30, it'd almost be surprising to see them pass on him.
Other potential landing spots: New England Patriots (1.21), Buffalo Bills (1.25), Cincinnati Bengals (1.31)
DL Zachary Carter: Baltimore Ravens, third round, 100th overall
Athletically and physically, Carter is a tweener prospect who could play defensive end and/or tackle in the NFL based on the scheme he's in.
There aren't many schemes that could maximize the strengths and skills of Carter's game better than Baltimore's, as the Ravens are known to rotate their defensive linemen between different techniques due to being multiple with their fronts.
Carter split time between five-technique defensive end and three-technique defensive tackle throughout his career at Florida. He emerged as a starter over the last two seasons and produced 66 tackles, 12.5 sacks, 20.5 tackles for loss, a forced fumble and four batted passes in that span.
Standing at 6-foot-4, 282 pounds, Carter isn't big enough to play defensive tackle on a full-time basis in the NFL. But his 4.99-second 40-yard dash (74th %tile among defensive tackles), 110-inch broad jump (77 %tile) and 4.3-second 20-yard shuttle (95th %tile) suggest he could flourish as a late-down, pass-rushing tackle to begin his career while either adding weight to play inside full-time or rotate on the edge at his current size on early downs.
Starting defensive end Calais Campbell turns 36 this September and signed only a two-year extension with Baltimore this offseason, meaning the Ravens will soon look for the future Hall of Fame lineman's eventual replacement. From a scheme perspective, it would make a lot of sense for Carter to develop behind Campbell and play in a rotation until he's ready to start in the pros.
Other potential landing spots: Jacksonville Jaguars (4.106), Cleveland Browns (4.118), Green Bay Packers (4.132)
RB Dameon Pierce: Houston Texans, fourth round, 107th overall
With a plethora of picks this year due to several trades including the Deshaun Watson blockbuster, Houston is looking to upgrade just about every position on its roster through the draft.
The running back room — frankly, every position on the Texans' offense — needs some young talent, even after re-signing one and signing two veterans in free agency to inexpensive deals. Houston's rushing offense ranked dead last in the league last year and needs massive improvement.
Pierce presents good value in the fourth round when the Texans own back-to-back picks, especially since Houston is set to have made five picks by this point.
Pierce developed into an extremely well-rounded running back at Florida over the years. He always impressed as a physical, downhill rusher who had a knack for making defenders miss, but Pierce grew immensely as a receiver and pass protector during the 2020-21 seasons when he took on a larger role in the Gators' offense. In 2021, Pierce scored a touchdown every 7.4 times he touched the ball.
His combine and pro day numbers mostly hover around average for running backs — 40th %tile 40-yard dash, 51st %tile vertical and 54th %tile broad jumps — but Pierce's 86 %tile 10-yard split (1.51 seconds) will catch teams' eyes. So will his max lifts during his time at UF — 390 pounds on the bench and a whopping 705 pounds squatting.
Pierce's sudden explosion will allow him to win at the line of scrimmage in the pros, and as seen in college, he is capable of running over and around defenders at the second level. Add in Pierce's improvement in the passing game, and you've got a starting-caliber NFL running back waiting to be discovered.
Other potential landing spots: Detroit Lions (3.97), New York Giants (4.112), Atlanta Falcons (4.114)
OT Jean Delance: Los Angeles Rams, sixth round, 212th overall
Did Delance reach his potential during his five year-career at Florida? He struggled in pass protection over the years but made a name for himself in 2021 as one of the Gators' top run blockers when the offense depended on its rushing game, so the answer isn't clear.
NFL evaluators might tend to believe Delance can continue to develop based on his athletic and physical profile, however. Delance measured in with 36 1/4-inch arms (97th %tile among offensive tackles) at the East-West Shrine Game, which led to interviews with at least 25 teams throughout the week of the event.
The 6-foot-4, 296-pound right tackle proceeded to post a 75th %tile 20-yard shuttle, a 54th %tile vertical jump and a 52nd %tile 40-yard dash at Florida's pro day. Combine a solid frame with incredible length, plus athleticism and experience (37 SEC starts) as an offensive tackle, and pro teams will come calling.
The Rams lost two starting offensive linemen after winning Super Bowl LVI, one to retirement and the other to free agency, and their depth is expected to be shaken up as a result. Los Angeles snags Delance in the sixth round in this exercise as a result, and the Rams would hope that his best days on the field are ahead of him after an up-and-down career at UF.
Other potential landing spots: Minnesota Vikings (6.191), Arizona Cardinals (6.202), Cincinnati Bengals (7.227)
Late round/undrafted free agent candidates
LB Jeremiah Moon: If it weren't for injuries consistently getting in the way of Moon's potential, he'd almost certainly hear his name called in the NFL Draft — it even could have happened a year ago when he earned a Senior Bowl invitation but decided to return to school.
Moon is the rare type of linebacker prospect that teams have increasingly coveted in the modern, pass-happy NFL: He's tall (96th %tile height among linebackers), long (99th %tile wingspan/arm length), and filled out (84th %tile weight) with elite jumping athleticism (98th %tile broad jump, 96th %tile vertical jump) and above-average explosion (53rd %tile 10-yard split) and flexibility (55th %tile 3-cone).
However, Moon played at Florida for six seasons, continually trying to prove himself and never fully being able to do so due to numerous injuries. Four were season-ending to various degrees, one from 2020 lingering into the following spring camp last year and another at the end of the 2021 season that caused him to miss the 2022 Senior Bowl.
To make matters worse, Moon pulled up, injured, during his 40-yard dash at Florida's pro day. If not for the most recent incident, Moon had proven enough to be selected in the later rounds of the NFL Draft, but at this point, teams will likely consider him injury-prone and elect to sign him after the fact.
RB Malik Davis: Davis certainly improved his stock at Florida's pro day with fantastic vertical (39.5 inches, 93rd %tile among running backs) and broad (127 inches, 93rd %tile) jumps, but on the same day he posted a 4.71-second 40-yard dash (18th %tile), which will give teams pause about his long speed. There simply aren't many successful NFL running backs who have run a 4.7 or slower.
In fairness, Davis' 10-yard split in the 40 ranks in the 71st %tile, but losing his pace over a longer distance could raise a team's concern with Davis' history of lower-body injuries, two season-ending wounds to his knee and ankle earlier in his Gators career.
Davis is a proven receiving back who can also make defenders miss near the line of scrimmage as a rusher, so there's a chance he could sneak into the later part of the draft. If he doesn't, Davis is a strong candidate to sign with a team as an undrafted free agent immediately after the draft concludes.
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