Coming into the 2022 NFL draft, one of the primary questions was whether the Jacksonville Jaguars were going to take the “sure thing” in Michigan edge-rusher Aidan Hutchinson, or the athletic projection in Georgia multi-gap defender Travon Walker. Those who are aware of general manager Trent Baalke’s history know that he’s more than fine betting on athletic projects, and in the end, that’s what happened. The Jags turned in their card, and Walker’s name was on it.
“The first time I saw him was early October,” Baalke said of Walker after the pick was made. “From that moment on, I felt he had a lot of talent. Obviously, you don’t make the decision in the middle of October or early October. It’s a process, but he checked the boxes as we went through the process.
“This is a guy who played very consistent football all year long. This isn’t a guy who just jumped on the screen because he ran 4.51 in the 40-yard dash at the combine. He played some very good football through the course of the year.”
“Playing end at the University of Georgia is very different,” Walker said at the scouting combine. “Because at University of Georgia, we play a lot of different defenses, and so therefore you can be scattered all out on the field from playing a five technique, a four I on the front, you play a three. So you’re really doing everything, to just expand your resume. And it’s really a good thing that you can do all of that, play defensive end at University of Georgia. If you can play defensive end at the University of Georgia, it means a lot.”
It was different, and for of all Georgia’s historically great defensive play, they didn’t really have one alpha pass-rusher — Georgia’s pass rush came from a combination of deployment and scheme more than the four-on-the-floor stuff that help to define edge defenders in more obvious ways. Michigan’s defense, run by current Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald, is that if…
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