Behind The Steel Curtain

The Senior Bowl and NFL Scouting Combine are now in the rearview mirror, and free agency is right around the corner. With that in mind, it is time to take a look at where things stand as I release to you my second mock draft of the 2022 draft season. With the combine and Senior Bowl behind us, we now have a better idea of how high these prospects could go. Pro days could shake things up, and free agency will definitely change the positions of need for each team, but doing one right after the combine is a good way to see whose stock was most affected by their athletic testing. There were several players in Indianapolis who were banking on strong athletic testing, as their tape was not so impressive in 2021. The biggest risers, however, are always the players who have strong tape already but surprise scouts with unforeseen athleticism at the combine. Ahmad Gardner is a perfect example of this. His tape was nearly flawless in 2021, but there were concerns about speed. Gardner put those concerns to bed by running a 4.41 in the 40, and it did not even look like the cleanest run. If not for tightening up midway through the run, he may have run a sub-4.4 time. He has now firmly cemented his status as the top cornerback in this class in the eyes of NFL scouts, according to several NFL insiders.