4 2022 NFL Draft Picks on the Verge of Getting Cut in Training Camp

For first-round picks who have stumbled out of the gates to begin their NFL careers, Year 3 is often considered the make-or-break campaign where they either put it all together or slide into the bust category.

That means the fourth season is when we see players who had plenty of potential as prospects end up on the chopping block. And some 2022 NFL draft class members are on the verge of getting cut during training camp this summer.

Here, we'll discuss a handful of upcoming fourth-year pros who fall into that category. To qualify, the player must have been a first-round pick in 2022 and still be with their original team.

So, guys like Kenny Pickett, Jahan Dotson and Kenyon Green may be on the chopping block, but they don't qualify since they’ve already left the club that drafted them.

The rationale for each player listed is a combination of injuries, underwhelming production and any offseason additions that the team has made.

Treylon Burks

AP Photo/Erin Hooley

A case could be made that Treylon Burks is the biggest bust of the 2022 draft class. At one point, he was in the WR1 conversation with Drake London, Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave and Jameson Williams.

Granted, the Arkansas product was the sixth wideout off the board, but he was still a top-20 selection and expected to replace A.J. Brown for the Tennessee Titans.

Burks did show some promise as a rookie, collecting 33 catches for 444 yards and a touchdown in 11 games (six starts). But he was bitten by the injury bug, which hampered his development and ended up foreshadowing the next two years of his career.

The 25-year-old has missed 24 out of 51 regular-season games and only has 53 career catches for 699 yards and one touchdown, highlighted by participating in just five contests (two starts) with four grabs, 34 yards and no scores a year ago.

Now, the Titans have a new regime where the organization is on its second general manager since Jon Robinson, who drafted Burks, meaning the wideout has fewer people in the building to pound the table for him.

Also, Tennessee made four significant additions to its wide receiver corps this offseason, signing Van Jefferson and Tyler Lockett in free agency before drafting Elic Ayomanor and Chimere Dike. 

So, there might not be enough room for the 2022 18th overall pick to have a spot on the 53-man roster. At this point, the best chance for him to salvage his career is to become a slot receiver.

That's where the former Razorback primarily lined up in college, but Burks has been on the outside more often than not in the pros. Meanwhile, the Titans could use someone who can operate out of the slot.

Evan Neal

AP Photo/Danny Karnik

It’s hard to blame the New York Giants for using a top-10 selection on Evan Neal. He was an All-American left tackle during his last year at Alabama and also had experience playing guard and right tackle during the two previous campaigns. 

Additionally, the 6'7", 350-pound lineman seemingly fit the description of a "dancing bear" to a tee, entering the 2021 college football season as the No. 1 overall athlete in the sport on Bruce Feldman's annual list.

However, Neal's first two years in New York were filled with injuries and poor play.

The 24-year-old missed four games as a rookie while allowing seven sacks in pass protection and earning a 48.2 run-blocking grade, according to Pro Football Focus.

In year two, the Alabama product was sidelined for 10 contests, leading to just two sacks surrendered, but he posted a 38.5 pass-protection grade and a 51.1 mark in the running game, per PFF. 

As a result, the Giants signed Jermaine Eluemunor to a two-year, $14 million contract last offseason to upgrade the right tackle spot for the offense.

The plan was to move Neal inside in 2024, until Andrew Thomas suffered a season-ending injury, forcing Eluemunor to flip sides of the center and the 2022 No. 7 overall pick back into the starting lineup on the right edge.

Moving forward, and with a healthy Thomas, Neal's best chance to stick around in New York is at guard. That said, the organization added Jon Runyan and Greg Van Roten during free agency last spring and drafted Marcus Mbow a month ago, giving the team a couple of starters and a backup at the position.

So, even at a different position, Neal faces an uphill battle to make the 53-man roster during training camp.

Trevor Penning

AP Photo/Tyler Kaufman

Despite coming from a small school, Trevor Penning checked a lot of boxes as a draft prospect.

He measured in at over 6'7" and 325 pounds with 34¼-inch arms, while also running a 4.89-second 40-yard dash and 7.25-second three-cone. The latter two figures are in the 97th and 98th percentiles, respectively, among offensive tackles, per MockDraftable.

On top of that, the Northern Iowa product had dominant film and stood out at the Senior Bowl as a run blocker with his nasty demeanor. That led the New Orleans Saints to use the 19th overall pick of the 2022 draft on him.

However, Penning’s NFL career got off to a rough start as his rookie season began and ended with foot injuries.

In year two, the 26-year-old kicked off the campaign as the Saints' starting left tackle, but he quickly played his way onto the bench by allowing 19 pressures (four sacks) and posting a 49.0 run-blocking grade, per PFF, in just five starts.

As a result, the Saints spent their 2024 first-round selection on offensive tackle Taliese Fuaga, thinking he could hold down the left edge while Ryan Ramczyk continued his All-Pro career at right tackle and Penning would play guard.

But Ramczyk began training camp on the PUP list with a knee injury that eventually forced him to retire, putting the former Panther back at tackle.

Penning showed improvement in the running game last fall but continued to have issues in pass protection, giving up 54 pressures (five sacks), per PFF. So, for the second year in a row, New Orleans used a first-round pick on an offensive tackle: Texas’ Kelvin Banks.

That means the 2022 No. 19 overall pick will have to prove himself at guard this summer, a position he doesn't have any NFL experience playing and hasn't lined up at since 2019.

Meanwhile, the Saints also signed Dillon Radunz during free agency to compete for a starting spot on the inside, which could make Penning expendable at the end of training camp if he doesn't win the position battle.

Cole Strange

Winslow Townson/AP Images for Panini

Unlike the other featured players here, Cole Strange was a surprise first-round pick in 2022.

Most viewed him as more of a mid-round prospect, including Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay, who said the organization thought the offensive lineman might be available with the 104th overall selection (third round).

However, then-New England head coach Bill Belichick was known for having a different big board than the consensus, especially in comparison to the media, and for getting the most out of small-school or lesser-known prospects.

However, this one didn't work out in his favor. He and the Patriots parted ways just two seasons later, and Strange has become a draft flop.

The Chattanooga product started every game at left guard as a rookie, but he posted an ugly 48.3 run-blocking grade and gave up five sacks, per PFF.

The following year, he returned to the starting lineup and bumped the run-blocking mark up to 66.2 while decreasing the sacks allowed to three, but he only played in 10 games due to a torn patellar tendon.

The injury lingered into last season, where Strange only saw offensive snaps in two games and at a new position: center.

While Mike Vrabel said the 26-year-old was impressive at center on the small sample size last year, the new Pats head coach also said he will be competing with veteran free-agent signing Garrett Bradbury for the job this summer (h/t Taylor Kyles of CLNS Media).

Even if Strange sticks at guard, he will have to fend off a couple of other offseason additions, free-agent pickup Wes Schweitzer and third-round pick Jared Wilson, in addition to Layden Robinson.

That led NBC Sports Boston's Phil Perry to list the former Moc as a potential surprise cut, and it's hard to argue with the logic.