executive in Jacksonville, said he viewed this pass-rush
class as brimming with talent into the third round. Smith
thinks it’s even deeper.
When asked about Hutchinson and Thibodeaux in par-
ticular, the two rushers likely to come off the board first, one
personnel executive used one of the most generous descrip-
tors in the scouting football-guy lexicon: “Real Dudes.”
How did we arrive here? At a time when a pass-rushing
academy has its own hotline? When the waitlist for pass-rush
help seems longer than the one for an elite Brooklyn Heights
preschool? When, at the scouting combine in Indianapolis,
general managers expressed concern about overpaying for
premium veteran talent but soon did so, anyway? When a
draft that lacks a surefire quarterback might still be one of
the most consequential collegiate crops to enter the NFL
in almost a decade?
If there is a pass-rush academy, there must also exist
pass-rush economics. Consider this a crash course. If you
learn only one thing: Nothing is more valuable than the
pass rushers headlining this draft class.AT SOME POINT midway through the 2020 season, teams
collectively decided that the attrition rate on blitzes against
great quarterbacks was too much to handle. Outnumbereddefensive backfields were being torched by a gilded age of
passers raised in chaos and better equipped to handle free
rushers and exotic pressures. Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers,
running entirely different systems each predicated on knif-
ing open mismatches and isolating players against favor-
able coverage, were toying with opponents so flagrantly
that it was only a matter of time before someone decided
to abandon their core principles altogether.
That meant a bevy of teams deploying split-safety defenses
and abandoning the blitz altogether, increasing the num-
ber of defenders dropping into coverage. The trend beganDEVIN
LLOYD
LINEBACKER
UTAH
Linebacker has
long been a need
for Philly. Lloyd
isn’t an elite
athlete, but his
instinctive play
and versatility—
he’s an adept
blitzer—more
than make up
for it.DESMOND
RIDDER
QUARTERBACK
CINCINNATI
It’s unlikely
Mitchell Trubisky
will become
the long-term
solution for the
Steelers, and
Ridder would
fit nicely in OC
Matt Canada’s
RPO- and motion-
heavy offense.GARRETT
WILSON
WIDE RECEIVER
OHIO STATE
Getting QB
Mac Jones to
the next level
will require the
addition of a big-
play receiving
threat; Wilson’s
speed and
competitiveness
make him
just that.CHRIS
OLAVE
WIDE RECEIVER
OHIO STATE
The Davante
Adams trade
leaves the
Packers looking
for answers at
receiver; Olave
has the kind of
polish to make
an impact as a
rookie for
Aaron Rodgers.TREYLON
BURKS
WIDE RECEIVER
ARKANSAS
With his run-
after-catch
ability, Burks
would fit well
in the Cardinals’
quick-strike
Air Raid offense,
which requires a
deeper receiving
corps than they
currently have.BOYE
MAFE
EDGE
MINNESOTA
Losing
Randy Gregory
in free agency
leaves the
Cowboys
searching for
another edge
rusher. Mafe is
raw but has the
tools to become
a force.KENYON
GREEN
GUARD
TEXAS A&M
After a down year
for their O-line
the Bills are
restocking. Free-
agent signee
Rodger Saffold
will start at one
guard spot, and
Green would fit
perfectly at
the other.FR
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OR
TS
DRAFT PREVIEW
20
22
In 2021, blitz atheism was more
widely adopted.
MAHOMES
FACED
ROUGHLY
SEVEN BLITZES
PER GAME.
Rodgers saw an average of eight.