A Comprehensive Injury Guide for the 2022 NFL Draft
With the 2022 NFL Draft just days away, here is a comprehensive yet quick look at injuries teams will take into consideration prior to compiling their draft boards and turning in their picks. Injuries are unfortunately part of the game of football. Most injuries aren’t deal-breakers, but NFL teams making an investment weigh the risks of each one. This list is organized alphabetically by position. As always, keep in mind that behind each one of these brief profiles is a person who has worked his way to the top of the top. These injuries do not define them.
Quarterback
Zerrick Cooper (Jacksonville State) - Zerrick suffered a season-ending ankle injury in 2020, but went on to start all games in 2021.
Matt Corral (Ole Miss) - Matt opted to play in the 2021 Sugar Bowl and sustained a high ankle sprain, x-rays were negative at the time. He was not able to participate in the Combine but did position drills at his Pro Day in late March. This injury should not affect his draft position.
D’eriq King (Miami) - D’eriq has dealt with injuries during his college career that kept him off the field at the end of 3 out. of his 4 last seasons. In 2021 he missed the last 9 games with a throwing shoulder injury. In 2018, he suffered a meniscus tear. He also missed a few games in 2016/17 with injuries.
Carson Strong (Nevada) - Carson was diagnosed with an osteochondritis dessicans (OCD) in his knee when he was in high school. This is an injury to the cartilage in the knee that can lead to early arthritis. Carson has undergone multiple surgeries since, including an osteochondral allograft in February of 2021 as reported by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. This procedure involves replacing the portion of the joint surface where the OCD lesion was with a piece of similar bone/cartilage from a cadaver. Pelissero wrote “A recent MRI showed the cartilage surface looks good, according to the person with knowledge of the procedure, and Strong's short-term prognosis is good.” Unfortunately, the long-term prognosis of an injury and procedure like this, especially in a football athlete, is difficult to predict. Teams will undoubtedly be concerned about this injury.
Running Back
Abram Smith (Baylor) - Abram has suffered 2 ACL tears in his right knee. The first was as a high school sophomore, the second was in 2018. With an athlete who has had 2 ACL tears in one knee, doctors examine the joint to confirm that it is stable and review MRI imaging to see how much damage has been done to the cartilage. This unfortunately is the type of injury that can shorten careers, so no doubt NFL team medical staffs have taken a close look before rendering a recommendation.
Master Teague II (Ohio) - Master ruptured his achilles tendon in the Spring of 2020. In 2021, he had 67 carries and missed 6 games due to an undisclosed injury.
CJ Verdell (Oregon) - CJ suffered a left ankle fracture-dislocation when the Ducks played Stanford back in October 2021. He was cleared to participate at the Combine. CJ also missed the finall 2 games of 2020 with a thumb injury.
Zamir White (Georgia) - Zamir has suffered 2 ACL tears. The first was his senior year of high school. He was forced to redshirt in 2018 when he tore the opposite ACL. This is an injury history to take note of and may affect him a bit at the draft, but unless there is a major red flag seen on MRI imaging it should not be a game changer.
Wide Receiver
Drake London (USC) - Drake sustained an ankle fracture-dislocation in October. Had surgery and said that he felt about 95% at his pro day on 4/15. One thing NFL team docs will want to know is how the cartilage inside the joint looks - sometimes an injury to the articular cartilage can complicate recovery/long-term prognosis a bit. This is generally the type of injury that players recover from - Jaylen Waddle sustained a similar injury and seems to be doing alright. I do not expect this type of injury to affect Drake’s draft stock, he should be ready to go for any team that picks him.
John Metchie III (Alabama) - John suffered a left ACL tear during the SEC Championship game in December 2021. His surgeon reported a straight-forward ACL reconstruction, says Metchie is ahead of schedule as far as rehab, and expects a return at 5-6 months, which would be around June. While this is a common timeframe in the NCAA, NFL teams will likely take a more conservative approach with gradual return to play. I do not expect this injury to impact Metchie’s value on draft day.
George Pickens (Georgia) - George tore his ACL in the spring of 2020 and was able to return to the field to play the final 4 games of 2021. He did miss a large chunk of time on the field last season. Teams may consider this in their scouting profiles, but medically, as long as there are no surprises on his exam or MRI, the ACL tear itself should not affect him in the Draft.
Reggie Roberson Jr (SMU) - Reggie missed the final 4 games of 2019 with a foot injury. Because of this, Reggie opted to bypass the Draft, returning to SMU for his senior year. In October of 2020 he sustained a non-contact ACL tear. In 2021 he returned to the field and had 51 receptions for 625 yards.
Justyn Ross (Clemson) - In 2020 Justyn took a hit that caused tingling/stinger-type symptoms in his arm(s). A neck MRI revealed that he had a congenital (he was born with it) fusion of the vertebrae (bones) in his neck that was causing his symptoms. Klippel-Feil syndrome is the name of the condition and it can affect patients to varying degrees - in some cases it’s just a small area on two vertebrae that are fused together, and in others it is large areas of many vertebrae. No athlete with known Klippel-Feil syndrome has ever been cleared to play at the NFL level. The reason is the risk of catastrophic injury to the spinal cord - because the flexibility and shape of the spine is altered, even a minor neck trauma could cause pressure on the spinal cord. Justyn took his case to neurosurgeon Dr. David Okonkwo, a surgeon who took care of Ryan Shazier, and underwent surgery to remove a disc in his neck and stabilize the joint. It is unclear at this time if he will be cleared to play NFL football.
Jameson Williams (Alabama) - Tore his left ACL in the National Championship game 1/10/22. His surgeon says that his surgery was a straight-forward ACL reconstruction, he’s ahead in his rehab, and he should be fully cleared at the 5-6 month mark (sound familiar?). Objectively, this guy is a game-changer - his injury is not. Teams will not lose sleep over this injury.
Tight End
Grant Calcaterra (SMU) - Grant retired from football at Oklahoma in November of 2019, posting a video on social media that it was due to multiple concussions. The night before he was to embark on a new career path and start a job as an EMT, he decided to return to football, this time at SMU. He started all 12 games in his senior year at SMU.
James Mitchell (V. Tech) - James suffered a season-ending knee injury in September 2021. At his pro day in March, James participated in only bench press. He reports that he’s starting to cut and run routes in a smaller radius. Without knowing the details of this injury, it’s hard to know exactly how much it will affect him at the draft.
Offensive Tackle
Brodarious Hamm (Auburn) - Brodarious fought Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2016 and has been cancer-free since 2017.
Derek Kerstetter (Texas) - Derek suffered an ankle fracture-dislocation in 2020, returned for a fifth year and started all 12 games in 2021.
Greg Long (Purdue) - Greg’s first 4 college seasons at UTEP were plagued by injuries that kept him off the field. He transferred to Purdue in 2020 where he still dealt with injuries, but had more success staying on the field.
Evan Neal (Alabama) - Evan Neal hasn’t had any major injuries that have kept him out of games in his college career. It came as a surprise to hear reports from Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer that Neal had been downgraded by some teams with “moderate” injury concerns of wear and tear in his knee and hip. We obviously don’t have all of the details, but wear and tear on the cartilage in either joint is an injury that does not necessarily pose an immediate risk, but could affect an athlete’s longevity, particularly once they make the jump to the NFL. Mostly clubs grade athletes’ medicals on a scale of 1-5 or A-E. These grades fall naturally into a bell curve, where very few athletes are 1/A because they have no major injuries (ie kickers/punters, and very few athletes have major injuries with both short and long-term concerns 4-5/D-E (eg multiple ligament reconstructions in a joint, severe OA, significant spine issue). MOST athletes fall somewhere in the middle : 2-3/B-C. They’ve had a list of injuries, some could be an issue down the road, but for now they’re okay. These injuries can distinguish one athlete from another when a team has similar feelings for both. Evan Neal could fit into this category (as could linebacker Nakobe Dean as you’ll read in a minute).
Andrew Steuber (Michigan) - As a junior in 2019, Andrew was due to take on a bigger role at Michigan. Unfortunately that never happened because he sustained an ACL tear during training camp. This isn’t an injury that should make teams pause, but it was an opportunity for him to show strength of character in staying around the team during his recovery, helping the freshman acclimate to the team.
Offensive Guard
Ben Brown (Ole Miss) - Ben tore his left biceps and had surgery in 2021.
Kevin Jarvis (Michigan State) - Kevin has a history of knee injuries that have kept him off of the field at times in 2018 and 2019.
Justin Shafter (Georgia) - Justin missed the final 8 games of his senior 2018 season with a neck injury. No reported issues since, but something team docs will look at.
Center
Alex Mollette (Marshall) - Alex tore his ACL in 2018. Returned to the field 9 months later, no reported issues since.
Jack Wohlabaugh (Duke) - Jack eventually had ankle surgery in 2019 after dealing with an ankle injury for much of the season. Unfortunately, in a September 2020 practice, Jack suffered a second injury, tearing his right ACL.
Defensive Tackle
Keyshon Camp (UCF) - Keyshon has unfortunately dealt with multiple injuries during his college career. In 2017, he played in 10 games, missing 2 due to injury. In 2018, he played in 7 games, missing the rest due to a shoulder injury. In 2019, he suffered a season-ending knee injury in the opening game. In 2020 he played in 6 games. Finally, in 2021, he was able to play in 11 games. This injury history and lack of availability will catch the attention of teams. Medical grade will depend on the details of his injuries.
Kalia Davis (UCF) - Kalia tore his ACL in 2021 and missed the second half of the season.
Edge
Christopher Allen (Alabama) - In 2018, Chris was sidelined by an ACL and meniscus tear he suffered during the preseason. In 2021, he broke his foot in the first game and missed the remainder of the season.
Jeremiah Moon (Univ. of Florida) - Jeremiah wore braces on both legs to correct deformities that he had since birth. He recalls how much pain he was in as he grew to his current 6’5” frame. As a football athlete, Jeremiah has been hampered by problems with one of his feet. He has broken the same foot 3 times and missed significant time in 2016, 2019, and 2020.
David Ojabo (Michigan) - David ruptured his achilles tendon at his pro day in March. New surgical techniques involving an “internal brace” protects the repair and allows athletes to bear weight and start rehab much sooner than they used to. Much like Adrian Peterson’s quick recovery and post-ACL tear performance adjusted the lens of how we see ACL injuries, Cam Akers’ remarkable return just five and a half months after achilles surgery has changed our expectations after achilles tears. It’s important that Akers’ recovery was remarkable, NOT typical. Any team taking Ojabo should expect that his recent injury will affect the majority of his rookie season. In the NFL, the majority of linebackers who suffer achilles injuries do return to the game, but their performance is usually decreased the first season back. While Ojabo may fall a bit in the draft due to concerns about potentially losing some of his burst, I don’t expect him to fall too far.
Luiji Bilain (Wake Forest) - Luiji missed back-to-back seasons in 2017 and 2018 for “ligament” tears in both knees.
Defensive End
Matt Henningsen (Wisconsin) - Matt underwent surgery for a biceps tendon tear in 2020.
Tristen Nichols (Nevada) - In 2019, Tristen suffered a left knee injury, tearing his ACL, MCL, and meniscus. His recovery was complicated by a post-operative knee infection requiring a second surgery. When he returned to the football field, Tristen spoke about the mental component of recovery after knee ligament surgery: “It’s pretty much the same as the right one, I can run off of it and cut off of it and everything, but it’s the whole mental aspect of it. Just making myself feel that left one is just the same as my right one. That’s what everybody told me, too, that it was going to take over a year for me to feel back to my regular self.”
Josh Paschal (Kentucky) In August of 2018, Josh was treated for melanoma. He underwent treatment and was able to return to the football field in November of that same year.
Linebacker
Damone Clark (LSU) At the Combine, Damone was found to have a herniated disc in his spine that required surgery to remove the disc (discectomy) and fuse the bones (vertebrae) above and below the disc. Given the immediate move right to surgery, this sounds like a herniated disc in his cervical spine (neck). This is a significant issue that needs to be addressed, especially for a pro-level linebacker, because any trauma to the neck could lead to catastrophic spinal cord injury. A look at prior NFL injury data shows that linebackers with a cervical spine injury like this are less likely to be drafted. However, if they are drafted (perhaps less severe injury and/or deemed to show more NFL talent), athletes with this issue tend to start just as many games and perform at a similar level to guys at the same position/skills without a neck issue. Recovery from a discectomy and spinal fusion procedure will likely keep him away from the field his rookie season and this will undoubtedly affect how some teams evaluate him on their draft boards. I hope that a talented guy like this still hears his name called in late April.
Nakobe Dean (Georgia) Nakobe played through a right shoulder labrum injury in 2020 and underwent surgery in the post-season. He was ready play by the beginning of the 2021 season. In his MMQB column on 4/25/22, Albert Breer reported that there have been some other injury concerns: “Dean’s medical has come up with a few teams. “There’s nothing disqualifying in there (he’s had a shoulder labrum repair, he’s got tendonitis and tearing in his knee, plus there was a pec and groin issue before his pro day … and there’s a laundry list beyond just that), but there’s plenty to sort through. And it’s making some wonder how, as a smaller linebacker, he’ll hold up in the NFL.” This sounds like a list of more minor injuries that have not kept Dean off the field, but combined with his size will likely at least be considered by teams if they’re choosing between two athletes.
JoJo Domann (Nebraska) JoJo tore his ACL in April of 2017. He was cleared to return to football in November and a few days later re-tore the same ACL playing pickup basketball.
Isaiah Graham-Mobley (Boston College) Isaiah sustained an ankle injury in 2019 that ended his season early. In 2020, he missed all but 2 games with a high ankle sprain. In 2021 he missed 3 games with an upper body injury.
Jake Hansen (Illinois) During training camp in 2017, Jake suffered an ACL tear. He returned to football. In early 2021, Jake’s college career was cut short with a second ACL tear.
Aaron Hansford (Texas A&M) Aaron missed 2 consecutive seasons early in his college career due to injury. In 2017, Aaron was forced to redshirt the season due to a shoulder injury. Early in his sophomore year he sustained a season-ending knee injury that required surgery.
Cornerback
Josh Blackwell (Duke) Josh suffered a torn meniscus in early 2020 and missed all but the first 2 games of the season. Played all 12 games in 2021.
Andrew Booth Jr (Clemson) Andrew had core muscle surgery with Dr. Williams Meyers in March. As a result, he was unable to participate in the Combine or Clemson’s pro day. In a vacuum, core muscle surgery is a result of an overuse injury and not a major red flag. Booth does have a history of another overuse injury that required surgery. As a young teen he dealt with inflammation of a growth plate in his knee, a condition called Osgood-Schlatter disease. (If you ever had painful bumps on the front of your knees as a kid, you may have too. It’s very very common). Booth continued to have pain in his right knee and was reportedly found to have some tearing of the tendon in 2019 (sometimes a tiny piece of bone remains there, unfused, as well and needs to be removed). He had off-sesason surgery to address it in 2020. In spite of the injury, Booth did not miss time on the field. The combination of these injuries could make some teams think twice about his durability and it may affect his draft grade somewhat. That being said, if a team really wants him, I don’t see medical staffs advising against it.
Akayleb Evans (Missouri) Missed games in 2018 and 2019 (at Tulsa) with injuries, including a season-ending shoulder injury in 2019.
Damarri Mathis (Pitt) In 2020, Damarri redshirted the season due to a shoulder injury that was “not due to football.” No other details were released.
Derek Stingley Jr (LSU) Derek suffered an injury to the very important lisfranc joint of his foot in October. He underwent surgery to stabilize it. He was unable to partcipate in the Combine, but he was able to do drill at his pro day. This was huge. A lisfranc joint injury is a concern for a skilled player who relies on quick footwork, so team doctors definitely want to look at how his rehab is going and to assess how much residual widening/instability there is at his joint. If things look good, Stingley shouldn’t fall far.
Josh Thompson (Texas) Josh suffered a foot injury (likely a Jones fracture) in 2019 and had surgery to help it heal. His 2021 season was ended early by an ankle fracture that required surgery in November.
Jermaine Waller (V. Tech) Jermaine missed all but 2 games in 2020 with foot and arm injuries. He went on to have off-season foot surgery. In 2021, he appeared to injure his left foot and missed 2 games due to injury.
Safety
Bubba Bolden (Miami) In 2019, Bubba dislocated his right ankle celebrating an interception. In 2021, he tried to play through a labrum tear in his shoulder but it was affecting his ability to tackle, so he eventually underwent season-ending surgery.
Kyle Hamilton (Notre Dame) Kyle played just 7 games in 2021 due to right knee injury that looked like an MCL sprain on video.
Jaylon Jones (Ole Miss) Jaylon had 2 college seasons ended early by injury. In 2018, he tore his ACL in the season opener. In 2020 he sustained a season-ending “upper body” injury in the team’s 4th game.
Scott Nelson (Wisconsin) Scott suffered an ACL and meniscus tear in the 2019 season opener.
Daniel Wright (Alabama) Daniel suffered a shoulder injury in the preseason in 2018, underwent season-ending surgery.