Where does Mel Kiper rank Rasheed Walker among 2022 NFL draft prospects?
The 2021 NFL draft is already a distant memory as we shift to full-blown preseason mode for the upcoming college football season. But for some, the focus is already on the 2022 NFL draft. That includes Mel Kiper. Kiper hasn’t released a mock draft just yet, but he has ranked the top prospects on his radar.
Penn State offensive tackle Rasheed Walker has already received some way-too-early first-round draft expectations for 2022 by some, but Kiper is a tad less sold according to his rankings. Walker did not appear in the top 25 overall of Kiper’s top prospects.
Kiper included Walker in his list of the top 10 offensive tackles, ranking the Nittany Lion eighth among his fellow position mates around the country. Kiper’s ranking certainly plays a different tune from some other early looks at the NFL draft, and that’s perfectly normal. Kiper doesn’t always find himself in sync with some others this far out.
But including Walker among his top 10 offensive tackles does still show some respect toward Walker as a draft prospect. Being the eighth offensive tackle probably still nets Walker in the second round.
It’s also worth a reminder that this is simply a ranking of prospects overall and not necessarily how the draft will play out. As Kiper would admit freely, there is a stark difference between ranking players and figuring out what team needs are in need of addressing, followed by figuring out the exact order of the draft.
Of course, Walker will get the benefit of a full college football season to show whether or not Kiper should give him another hard look and consider bumping him up his rankings between now and the start of the 2022 NFL draft.
Follow Nittany Lion Wire on Twitter and like us on Facebook for continuing Penn State coverage and discussion.
List
2021 NFL draft tracker: Tracking every Penn State player in the draft
[lawrence-related id=2990,2728,2725,2715
