Washington Football Team: Way-too-early 7-round 2022 mock draft
By Ian Cummings
Round 1, Pick 11 – Ole Miss QB Matt Corral
Between this 11th pick and last year’s 11th pick — Justin Fields — I’d much prefer Justin Fields. For my money, Fields was the closest quarterback to Trevor Lawrence in the 2021 NFL Draft. But Fields is with the Bears now, and the Washington Football Team remains without a long-term solution at quarterback. By this time next year, Matt Corral may be viewed as a viable option.
Unlike Fields, Corral isn’t entering the 2021 season as a bonafide first-round pick. But then again, neither were any of the other options available at this point. Carson Strong has the best chance, but he needs to keep proving himself. Desmond Ridder needs to boost his accuracy. And Kedon Slovis needs to show he can recover from a shoulder injury that hindered his ability in 2020.
Corral, meanwhile, needs to reduce the volatility in his game. As it stands, he’s one of the most talented QBs in the 2022 class. He’s athletic, he has a supremely elastic arm, and he’s very comfortable off-script. He’s also fearless in high-pressure situations — a trait that did good and bad things for him in 2020.
If Corral can mitigate the risks in his game and let his physical traits shine through, he no doubt has the makings of an early pick. Already, Corral is getting some Heisman hype because of his talent and his status in Lane Kiffin’s offense. But, in the words of Corral himself, he doesn’t even acknowledge that hype. He’s just focused on validating it.
Ideally, in this scenario, Ryan Fitzpatrick would stick around for another year, and allow Corral to ease his way into the NFL.