Account
NFL GM: 'I'd Hate to Need a QB', 'No One Feels Great About Any' QB in 2022 NFL Draft
April 18, 2022
It's looking increasingly likely that at least one quarterback will hear his name called in the top 10 of the 2022 NFL draft.
That said, general managers across the league aren't feeling great about it.
"I’d hate to need a quarterback this year, with an owner all over you to find one, and have to draft one with this group," one general manager told Peter King of NBC Sports. "No one feels great about any of these guys. [Pitt’s Kenny] Pickett is probably the best one, and he’s a maybe.”
Malik Willis and Kenny Pickett have emerged as the top two quarterbacks in this class. Willis has increasingly looked like a lock to be the top quarterback taken, rising up draft boards thanks to prodigious physical gifts that have drawn comparisons to Josh Allen. Pickett is considered the safer, steadier pick but one with a potentially limited upside.
It's far from a lock that either of them will be productive NFL starters. That said, it's equally clear that teams are going to be willing to risk punting their first-round pick in order to roll the dice.
Cost-controlled quarterbacks are the NFL's most valuable asset. The teams that draft Pickett and Willis will have them under contract making slot receiver money for the next four years, a time that will allow them to splurge on other areas of the roster and potentially compete for Super Bowls if Pickett or Willis becomes a star.
Cost-controlled stars at other positions are great values everywhere, but there is such a scarcity of talent at quarterback that even non-deserving players are going to get selected in Round 1. Pickett and Willis are in the 20s and 30s on most draft boards; B/R's Scouting Department has both outside the top 40.
Just don't be surprised when you hear both names coming off the board in the first half of Round 1.