Underrated Prospects in the 2022 NFL Draft

Highlighting players that are being overlooked or undervalued ahead of the 2022 NFL Draft

Author:
Bobby Greco
Publish date:
Feb 2, 2022 11:26 AM EST

In this story:

Cincinnati Bearcats

Minnesota Golden Gophers

Clemson Tigers

It’s finally here; the draft season has begun. This is every football fan’s favorite time of the year. It’s when everyone can pretend they are their team’s general manager and know exactly who the team needs. The NFLPA Bowl went well and the Senior Bowl is packed with talent, so it’s a very exciting time. This will be a very interesting draft season because like everything else in football this year, there is a lot of unpredictability. It’s the first time in recent memory that we are at this point in the process and there isn’t a clear front-runner to be considered the top quarterback. From my perspective, Kenny Pickett is the guy, especially after having a Joe Burrow-like final season. There’s a lot of uncertainty this year with what teams are actually thinking, so talented players are probably going to fall through the cracks. Let’s highlight those prospects. Who are the players that have a lot of talent and are still underrated? That is what we are trying to find out.

WR Justyn Ross, Clemson

Some might wonder how a Clemson receiver can be underrated. Well, Ross has had so much going against him that people forget just how good he is. Think back to Clemson’s last championship team, a team was loaded with talent and especially at wide receiver. Yet, by the end of the season, even in the title game, Ross was stealing the show and he was only a freshman. Unfortunately, Ross was severely injured the next year and didn’t play again until this season. After all that hard work rehabbing and trying to make a comeback, he was finally cleared to play this past season. This is where another roadblock was thrown at him because he had a quarterback that couldn’t get him the ball. It just seemed like he could never get traction and by the end of the season, Clemson barely even tried throwing the ball. If Ross can show that he is anything close to his freshman form, then whatever team drafts him will be getting a steal and someone who can make a real difference for an offense.

OL Daniel Faalele, Minnesota

This is the biggest prospect entering the draft this year, and size is what we are referring to. The young man out of Australia is absolutely massive at 6-foot-8 and 387 pounds. He was a standout player for the Gophers in 2019, but opted out of the 2020 season. He once again had a great year in 2021, but his team wasn’t as good as expected. His performance at the Senior Bowl this week is going to be huge because teams will need to see that his size doesn’t hinder his ability. He will be very comparable to Orlando Brown Jr. and will probably start out as a right tackle, though he is technically further ahead of Brown when he was going through this process. As long as he performs well this week, he should have no problem becoming a first-round pick and has a chance to be one of the top linemen in this class.

LB Darrian Beavers, Cincinnati

Though Beavers is a well-regarded prospect, he doesn’t get the respect that he deserves. He was a player for the Cincinnati defense who always seemed to be in the right place at the right time and when the team needed to make a stop, he made them. He is a very smart and physical linebacker, who can play both inside and outside. Even with Cincinnati having one of the top defenses in the country, it was mainly the cornerbacks getting the attention, but the entire defense was outstanding and all of their players deserve some love. Beavers will be an instant impact player for the team that drafts him and with a good Senior Bowl week, could even slip into the first round of the draft.

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