Where Does Travon Walker Land in 2022 Re-Draft?
If drafting was easy, everyone would do it. But the simple fact of the matter is that the NFL Draft is rarely an exact science; instead it is a complex beast, with blurred lines, what-ifs, and nature vs. nurture at it's very best example.
As a result, it is always hard to do a re-draft of any class, especially after one season. Situations more often than not impact the success of prospects, and it is virtually impossible to compare situations on a player-by-player basis.
That doesn't stop the thought experiments, however, with ESPN's re-draft of the 2022 class being the latest.
Jacksonville bucked conventional wisdom when they selected Georgia's Travon Walker at No. 1 overall after a relatively unproductive college career. After a rookie year in which Walker recorded 3.5 sacks, it is clear he hasn't yet defeated the expectations of the No. 1 pick.
Instead, the top pick resulted in cornerback Sauce Gardner selected at No. 1 overall. Meanwhile, Walker fell to the Philadelphia Eagles at No. 15.
"Adding an elite cornerback in a conference that includes quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert is a no-brainer. Gardner led the NFL in passes defended (20), had two interceptions and was named first-team All-Pro for the Jets," ESPN's Michael DiRocco wrote.
"With the development of Tyson Campbell, this would give the Jaguars one of the league's best cornerback tandems. Walker had 3.5 sacks as a rookie, and his pass rush win rate (10%) ranked 41st of 48 qualifying edge rushers."
After just one season, Gardner is already one of the NFL's best cornerbacks and has proven to be a blue-chip player. The Jaguars were always unlikely to take a cornerback after signing Shaquill Griffin and Darious Williams in back-to-back offseasons, but the impending potential release of Griffin shows the flaw in that logic.
Gardner, through one season, has been the best and most productive player from the 2022 class. If the point of the No. 1 pick is to take the best player in the class, then Gardner is in the lead entering 2023, even if Walker is still trending upward for the Jaguars and their need for a pass-rusher moving forward.
If looking back today, it is likely teams would have taken Aidan Hutchinson and his 9.5 sacks over Walker, but it is hard seeing the Jaguars going in that direction, even if they got another chance at it. Then you look at the fact that other teams were in play for edge rushers such as the New York Jets, Houston Texans, New York Giants, Atlanta Falcons, Seattle Seahawks, and Baltimore Ravens.
With so many other teams in the top-14 in need of a pass-rush, it is hard seeing Walker fall to No. 15 in a true re-draft. He was a player who improved as the season went on and, by all reports, would have went No. 2 overall had the Jaguars taken Hutchinson.
"Everything that we saw in him in the draft process, we’re so thankful that we drafted him, he’s a part of our football team," Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said at the end of the season.
"I just met with him a few minutes ago, and he’s excited for this offseason. He’s excited for his future. He understands he can get better and he can help us in different ways. He wants to take that next step in a leadership role, and I think that’s important for him to do."
Ultimately, Walker finished his rookie season with 3.5 sacks, 10 quarterback hits, five tackles for loss, one forced fumble, one interception, two pass deflections, 49 tackles, and 43 pressures.
Walker's 43 pressures ranked fourth among all rookie edge rushers, per Pro Football Focus.
“I think Travon, like all these rookies, it was a season of growth. You’re always looking at young players, and usually that step between year one and year two is the biggest jump that these guys have as players, but I think he did a lot of nice things," Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke said at the end of the season.
"Like I talked to him a week ago, that stat number that everybody has in their mind of sacks is, in a lot of ways, very overvalued. There’s a lot of ways to influence a game, and I think Travon, you saw him do it, whether it be the run or the pass, he had an impact this year, and it’s only going to get better from here.”
