Kiper’s Day 2 winners and questionable picks: Which teams got the best value?

Day 2 of the 2022 NFL draft brought some drama with the quarterbacks, as none went in Round 2 and three went in Round 3. I was extremely surprised that Malik Willis lasted all the way to Tennessee at No. 86, but I love where he landed. Desmond Ridder (Atlanta, No. 74) and Matt Corral (Carolina, No. 94) also slid down the board further than expected. So what happened? It’s clear that teams really weren’t in love with this class. I’m a fan of Willis — he’s the most talented signal-caller in the group — but he needs time to develop.

The other big storyline of Day 2 was Nakobe Dean‘s fall to the Eagles in Round 3 (No. 84), but that wasn’t because of his on-field performance. Teams had flagged his medical reports, so there’s some concern about his ability to play in 2022. As with Willis, I love Dean’s game, and he will patrol the middle of Philly’s defense for years to come.

Let’s roll through the picks I liked and didn’t love from the second and third rounds, just as I did for the first round. These are based on my rankings and how I have prospects graded. I’ll point out the teams that got the best value and the teams that reached. Check back in bright and early on Saturday as we’ll be back for Rounds 4-7 (noon ET on ESPN, ABC and the ESPN App). And come back late Saturday night for my post-draft grades for all 32 teams.

More NFL draft coverage:
Kiper’s final rankings
Round 1 winners and head-scratchers
Answering big Round 1 questions
Best available prospects | Top 32 picks

Winners and my favorite picks from Rounds 2 and 3

The picks: Arnold Ebiketie, DE, Penn State (No. 38); Troy Andersen, LB, Montana (No. 58); Desmond Ridder, QB, Cincinnati (No. 74); DeAngelo Malone, OLB, Western Kentucky (No. 82)

Ebiketie is one of my favorite prospects in this class, and Atlanta was able to snag him. I love this pick. I thought he might have gone in the 20s. The only downside is that general manager Terry Fontenot had to give up a fifth-rounder to move up five spots with the Giants. The Falcons had to get ahead of Seattle for Ebiketie, and he’s going to be a really solid all-around player.

Andersen is another great fit for Atlanta, which needs playmakers in the front seven. He is super talented — he played running back and quarterback early in his college career — and tested extremely well at the combine (4.42-second 40-yard dash at 243 pounds). These two could be foundational defenders.

And Ridder and Malone too? What a day for the Falcons. Ridder is inconsistent with his accuracy at times, but he has all the physical tools to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. This is great value, and he could seriously compete with Marcus Mariota for the starting job in training camp. Malone flashed as a pass-rusher; he will be a good situational player early in his career.

The picks: David Ojabo, OLB, Michigan (No. 45) and Travis Jones, DT, UConn (No. 76)

Ojabo might have been a top-10 pick if he hadn’t torn his Achilles in his left leg in March. Even if he has to redshirt this season, the Ravens got a great edge rusher for 2023 and beyond. Ojabo was a strip-sack machine for the Wolverines last season, and he dominated at times on the other side of Aidan Hutchinson.

Ojabo now gets to play for his college coordinator (Mike Macdonald) and play with his high school teammate (Odafe Oweh). By the way, this is the third straight year that coach John Harbaugh has drafted a prospect who played for his brother, Jim, at Michigan.

Jones is an awesome value pick; I thought he would go about 30 picks higher. At 6-foot-4, 325 pounds, he will eat up blockers and allow linebackers to roam freely. Baltimore is having a great draft.

The pick: Christian Watson, WR, North Dakota State (No. 34)

This was a fit I had in my final mock draft. But why did the Vikings trade with the Packers to allow a division rival to get Watson? OK, so Minnesota got picks Nos. 53 and 59, while Green Bay got No. 34. But Watson is a great deep threat, a receiver who will help Aaron Rodgers early and often. Watson averaged more than 20 yards per catch in college. Rodgers is going to love him.

I’m fascinated by this NFC North trade. Yes, the Vikings got an extra pick, but they allowed the Packers to get a dangerous target. Green Bay also added versatile lineman Sean Rhyan late in Round 3 (92). That was right around where I had him ranked. He could compete to start at guard or tackle.

The picks: Alec Pierce, WR, Cincinnati (No. 53); Jelani Woods, TE, Virginia (No. 73); Bernhard Raimann, OT, Central Michigan (No. 77); Nick Cross, S, Maryland (No. 96)

This is a tremendous Day 2 haul for the Colts, who didn’t have a first-round pick. Pierce can be a dynamic No. 2 wide receiver who takes deep balls for scores. The 6-foot-7 Woods has physical traits that make scouts drool, though he produced for only one season in college. He had eight touchdowns last season.

I thought Indy might take Raimann in Round 2, so to get him in the middle of Round 3 puts this class over the top. He could be the Colts’ long-term starter at left tackle. The only downside is that he’s still raw and turns 25 in the middle of the season. Cross is a talented, do-it-all defender who ranked No. 61 on my Big Board, so this one qualifies as a steal, too.

The pick: Malik Willis, QB, Liberty (No. 86).

You know I had to include Willis here. It’s stunning that he didn’t go in Round 1 or 2. And this is a good landing spot, where he can sit behind Ryan Tannehill, because he does need time to develop. He didn’t play with much talent around him in college, but the bottom line is that you can’t teach talent. Willis has a rocket arm and incredible running ability; there aren’t many dual-threat quarterbacks who have his overall upside.

In Tennessee, he’s not going to be pressured to play, though it would be fun to get him a few plays a game in a different kind of package. Tannehill’s contract doesn’t necessarily mean he’s going to be there for several years to come, so Willis could be the signal-caller of the future.

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Field Yates explains why the Titans made a shrewd move by choosing Malik Willis with the 86th pick.

More picks I liked in Rounds 2 and 3

• Nakobe Dean‘s medical reports were flagged by teams, which is why he dropped all the way to No. 83. But when he gets healthy, he’s going to be a steal for the Eagles. He should have gone in Round 1. Yes, he’s a little undersized, but he will make this defense better. And he gets to play behind his Georgia teammate Jordan Davis.

• Are the Cardinals going to play more with two tight ends? They added Trey McBride — by far the best pass-catching tight end in this class — to play with Zach Ertz. Kliff Kingsbury’s offense will need to change with the additions of McBride and speedy wideout Marquise Brown.

• Guard Dylan Parham made my list of favorite prospects by position, and the Raiders got him a full round later than where I thought he’d go (No. 90). That was Vegas’ first pick in the draft. I wouldn’t be surprised if he started as a rookie.

• I love the landing spot for wide receiver Skyy Moore. Moore will catch passes from Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City (No. 54). I actually thought the Chiefs might take him in Round 1, but they added a speedy, versatile playmaker late in Round 2.

• I also like Dallas taking wideout Jalen Tolbert in Round 3 (No. 89). He’s not a ready-made replacement for Amari Cooper, but he was extremely productive at South Alabama. He has excellent hands and isn’t afraid of going over the middle for tough catches.

• The Jets traded a fifth-round pick to move up two spots (from No. 38 to 36) to get running back Breece Hall, and they have now taken my top-ranked cornerback (Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner), wide receiver (Garrett Wilson) and running back in this class. Really nice job so far.

• Speaking of running backs, James Cook is going to be a great accent piece for the Bills. He can be a threat in the passing game and take some pressure off Josh Allen. Buffalo got him late in Round 2 at No. 63.

• The Vikings went secondary with each of their top two picks, taking safety Lewis Cine (No. 32) and cornerback Andrew Booth Jr. (No. 42). Booth could be an early starter.

• The 49ers got an intriguing edge rusher with their first pick in Drake Jackson (No. 61). He didn’t always get home to the quarterback at USC, but he created pressures. That’s a good fit in San Francisco.

• For Miami’s first pick in the draft (No. 102), it got a sideline-to-sideline linebacker in Channing Tindall, who I thought might go 50 picks before then. He never actually started a game at Georgia — the Bulldogs were loaded — but he flashed every time he played.

Questionable picks from Rounds 2 and 3

The picks: Boye Mafe, OLB, Minnesota (No. 40) and Kenneth Walker II, RB, Michigan State (No. 41)

With Malik Willis still on the board at No. 40, the Seahawks passed twice on taking my top-ranked quarterback in this class. Do they really expect Drew Lock and Geno Smith to play anywhere close to above-average football this season? I don’t get it.

Mafe has been a little overrated — he’s No. 53 on my Big Board — because he doesn’t have many pass-rush moves and needs to get better against the run. Walker is a good running back, but did Seattle really need one this high? I loved the Charles Cross pick on Day 1, but these are head-scratchers.

In Round 3, the Seahawks added a right tackle in Abraham Lucas, and they might just have their new bookend tackles. Still, who’s playing quarterback behind them?

The picks: Kyler Gordon, CB, Washington (39) and Jaquan Brisker, S, Penn State (No. 48)

I said before Round 2 began that the Bears were in for a big night, because they had two early picks to fill clear needs. Those needs? Cornerback, wide receiver and offensive line. What did Chicago do? Fill the hole at corner … and then take a safety.

I like Gordon and Brisker. I do. But Justin Fields needs some help if he’s going to succeed. He doesn’t have many playmakers around him on offense, and the line in front of him is not good enough. He was sacked on a league-high 10.3% of his dropbacks last season.

Among the receivers still on the board at No. 48: Alec Pierce, Skyy Moore, George Pickens. And Abraham Lucas or Nicholas Petit-Frere could have helped along the O-line.

General manager Ryan Poles did add a receiver in Round 3 with Velus Jones Jr. (No. 71), but that was still ahead of a few other players I liked, including Calvin Austin III. Jones is going to be a 25-year-old rookie, so has he already hit his ceiling?

The pick: Tyquan Thornton, WR, Baylor (No. 50)

There were several better receivers available when the Patriots reached for Thornton. He went two rounds early based on my rankings. He can fly — he ran a 4.28-second 40-yard dash at the combine — but he has a slender 6-foot-2 frame and needs to work on his route running. Alec Pierce is more ready to contribute as a rookie.

We know Bill Belichick and the Patriots do their own thing in the draft, but they reached on their first two picks. I do like their third pick, cornerback/return man Marcus Jones, who is only 5-foot-8 but has really solid technique and is a dynamo on special teams.

• Sam Williams was a productive edge rusher at Ole Miss, but I would have taken him in the fourth round, not the second, as Dallas did (No. 56). That feels like a reach for a hole rather than going with the best available prospect.

• Buffalo picked undersized linebacker Terrel Bernard really high based on my rankings. He is No. 219 on my Big Board, and he was picked at No. 89. I think he’s more likely to be a special-teams guy, rather than a starting NFL linebacker.

• I had an early Round 3 grade on cornerback Roger McCreary, and the Titans took him early in Round 2 (No. 35). That’s a little high based on value. He’s going to fill a need — and he can play in the slot — but Andrew Booth Jr. and Kyler Gordon were still available when they picked.

• Wan’Dale Robinson is a 5-foot-8 speedster who probably will play only out of the slot, and the Giants took him a full round early (No. 43). He is my 13th-ranked receiver. I had better wideouts on the board, including John Metchie III, who is a better slot playmaker. Does this mean New York is going to move on from Kadarius Toney?

• Alontae Taylor is my 11th-ranked safety and New Orleans took him at No. 49, ahead of other defensive backs such as Nick Cross, JT Woods and Verone McKinley III .

• I see defensive tackle Zachary Carter as a backup, not a starter, so the Bengals taking him at No. 95 is a reach. I know they have a need there, but I don’t love reaching.