2022 NFL Draft: Detroit Lions 7-Round 2022 Mock Draft
Third Round
WR. South Alabama. Jalen Tolbert. 66. player. 50. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis
Most Lions fans would like to see a wide receiver before the third round. But Tolbert is a nice player, coming off a season (pending the College Football Playoff) where he finished fourth in FBS in receiving yards (1,474) and averaged 18 yards per catch.
In the vein of Hall and Oates, you might call Tolbert a “man (coverage) eater.”
https://twitter.com/PFF_College/status/1474107547850207248?s=20
🔟 Jalen Tolbert, S. Alabama - 71
— Alfredo Brown (@ThePretendGM) December 25, 2021
▶️ Can make acrobatic catches with long limbs
▶️ Top Long speed can get to be pretty fast
▶️ Better against Zone than Man Coverage
▶️ Still very raw as a route runner
Draft Projection: Early - Mid 3rd
Player Comp: Robby Anderson pic.twitter.com/CBbxJ5g4qt
Tolbert seems to be able to take the top off a defense, and the Lions can use someone who can do that whether they keep Josh Reynolds or not.
Pick Analysis. Oregon. 97. player. 50. Scouting Report. S. Verone McKinley
The Lions will need some help at safety, and if Tracy Walker departs in free agency it will be a critical need unless they sign someone to replace him. McKinley could go back to Oregon for a fifth season, or enter the 2022 draft off a great 2021 season where he led FBS with six interceptions and was All Pac-12 First Team and a consensus All-American.
McKinley acknowledged he’s enrolled in winter quarter classes at Oregon, but it doesn’t sound like it’d stop him from entering the NFL.
“I am enrolled in classes,” McKinley III said after the 47-32 Alamo Bowl loss to Oklahoma on Wednesday night. “That’s just because I enrolled for classes a while ago.”
McKinley also had 78 total tackles this season, so he’s a little bit more than a ballhawk safety (if undersized;5-foot-11, 196 pounds). The Lions would gladly take him here.
Fourth Round
The Lions don’t have a fourth-round pick in April’s draft right now.