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Arkansas is all but guaranteed to have extend its streak of players taken in the NFL Draft, but exactly who hears their name called and when are still up in the air with the annual even just one week away.
While wide receiver Treylon Burks is a virtual lock to be selected and is widely projected to become the Razorbacks’ latest first-round pick, the fate of John Ridgeway, Montaric Brown and others remain unknown.
Every mock draft examined by HawgBeat included Burks going in the first round. Although a couple had him as high as No. 17 to the Chargers and No. 18 to the Eagles, most had him going in the 22-25 range.
In fact, multiple different projections had him going to Green Bay (No. 22 overall), Arizona (No. 23) and Buffalo (No. 25). That is also generally where Burks has been ranked on various prospect lists, with most listing him as the fifth-best wide receiver behind some order of Ohio State’s Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave, Alabama’s Jameson Williams and USC’s Drake London.
ESPN’s Matt Miller ranks Burks the 22nd-best overall player in the 2022 NFL Draft, while The Athletic’s Dane Brugler has him one spot higher at No. 21.
“Burks is underdeveloped as an outside route runner, but he is a dynamic weapon with the ball in his hands and boasts the unique blend of size, athleticism and ball skills to grow into an NFL team’s No. 1 receiver,” Brugler wrote. “He compares to a linebacker-sized Deebo Samuel in a similar scheme.”
Burks could potentially become the highest-drafted wide receiver from Arkansas since the AFL-NFL merger in 1966. Matt Jones currently holds that distinction, as the quarterback-turned-wide receiver went No. 21 overall to Jacksonville in 2006.
Outside of Jones, the Razorbacks haven’t had any other wide receiver taken in the top three rounds during the modern era. The next-highest was Derek Russell, who went No. 89 overall early in the fourth round of the 1991 NFL Draft.
The only other Arkansas player widely projected to hear his name called during the seven rounds is defensive tackle John Ridgeway, but experts’ opinions of the former FCS transfer vary quite a bit.
In their seven-round mock drafts, Brugler has Ridgway slotted 99th overall to Cleveland and The Sporting News’ Vinnie Iyer has him going to the Bengals with pick No. 95, but most prospect rankings found by HawgBeat have him in the 140-182 range.
Ridgeway and Burks are the only two Razorbacks pretty much unanimously expected to get drafted, but there’s a chance cornerback Montaric Brown, offensive tackle Myron Cunningham and/or defensive end Tre Williams get picked, as well.
That trio consistently appears in rankings and each of them could sneak into the back end of the draft, but they seem to be more likely to get their opportunity as free agents. Brugler actually ranks them among the top-five priority free agents at their respective positions.
Some familiar names could get called later in the draft as well, with Southeastern Louisiana quarterback Cole Kelley and Oklahoma wide receiver Mike Woods popping up on some lists. Both players began their careers at Arkansas before transferring out.
A couple of Arkansas natives not recruited by the Razorbacks also have an opportunity to be among the 262 players drafted.
Pierre Strong Jr. was a standout running back first at Little Rock McClellan and then South Dakota State, where he’s evolved into a legit NFL prospect. On ESPN, Miller has him at No. 100 overall and the sixth-best available running back.
Josh Johnson was a three-star recruit who signed with Iowa State out of Central Arkansas Christian in North Little Rock before becoming a breakout performer at Tulsa. Most outlets have him ranked higher than Woods and he could sneak into seventh round.
The 2022 NFL Draft begins next Thursday, April 28, with the first round scheduled to start at 7 p.m. CT. The second and third rounds are Friday, starting at 6 p.m. CT, with Rounds 4-7 set for Saturday starting at 11 a.m. CT. It will be televised by ABC, ESPN and NFL Network, with multiple streaming options available, as well.
