The New Orleans Saints get the ball rolling for the NFC South in this mock 2022 NFL Draft when they trade with the Philadelphia Eagles to gain an extra first-round pick this season. Between the Saints, the Carolina Panthers and the Atlanta Falcons, we could see even more movement via trades in this division. There’s a good chance the Tampa Bay Buccaneers stand pat, but given their sudden hole at interior offensive line, they may just have to move up for a player they're zeroed in on.
Carolina Panthers
The Panthers are a huge trade-back candidate, but there are no trades in this mock draft series. They have just one pick in the first three rounds, and there isn't a consensus generational top-10 quarterback prospect this year, so there would be no point in taking Kenny Pickett at No. 6 overall. The team could easily trade back and still acquire a competent quarterback while gaining a pick later in this draft. Should they hold on to the pick and bypass taking a quarterback, tackle and cornerback is in play for them.
In this mock draft, we go with tackle Charles Cross. The former five-star recruit struggled early in his career while playing in the almost triple-option offense of Joe Moorhead, but as the team transitioned to Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense, he broke out in 2021 with possibly the best season of any tackle in the country. He was one of six FBS tackles — across a sample of more than 300 players — to notch 80.0-plus grades in run blocking and pass blocking.
Get the 2023 Fantasy Draft Kit for FREE
with annual plan
DRAFT KIT: NEW Unlimited League Sync
DRAFT KIT: NEW Live Draft Assistant powered by AI & PFF Data
DRAFT KIT: NEW Mock Draft Sim customized for your league
DRAFT KIT: NEW Expert Strategy & Player Data Deep Dive Content
DRAFT KIT: Customizable Cheat Sheets, Rankings, and Projections
DRAFT KIT: Dynasty, Best Ball, and IDP Expert Rankings
Nathan Jahnkes Rankings - #1 Most Accurate Last 70 Weeks
NEW Line-up Optimizer with Start/Sit and Waiver Wire recommendations
WR-CB and OL-DL Matchup Tools with PFF Player Grades
Player Utilization Report and Offensive Line rankings and data
Best Bets, Player Props and Futures betting tools
NFL Mock Draft Sim, PFF Grades & NFL/NCAA Premium Stats 2.0
Already have a subscription? Log In
© 2023 PFF - all rights reserved.