Michigan product Aidan Hutchinson is the best prospect in the 2022 NFL draft, as the New York Jets would be extremely lucky to see him slide.
We end our look at the top prospects of the 2022 NFL draft (until they’re drafted) with somebody who’s long been suspected to go No. 1 overall, Aidan Hutchinson.
The Michigan product is a player widely considered to be gone before the New York Jets pick at No. 4, so a good chunk of the fanbase may have not yet sufficiently looked at his game.
Fortunately for those fans, Jets X-Factor has.
The full Aidan Hutchinson film breakdown can be seen at the bottom of this article (well over an hour in length).
What if the kid unexpectedly drops?
Or, even more realistically, instead of a fall all of the way to No. 4, what if he falls to No. 2 or 3? Would the Jets be willing to trade up for a player who is seemingly a slam-dunk at a position the Jets haven’t been able to fill with a stud in nearly two decades?
- Would Aidan Hutchinson be worth a trade-up?
- Is he being overhyped?
- How does he stand up to previous years’ top edge prospects?
- Does he have a limited ceiling?
All of these questions and many more are answered in the latest edition of Blewett’s Blitz. The full Aidan Hutchinson film breakdown can be seen at the bottom of this article (well over an hour in length).
YouTube clip and podcast episode
Strengths and weaknesses
Strengths
- Size
- Snap timing
- Effort
- Sets good edge in run game
- Strong hands
- Good leverage in run game
- Balance
- Core strength
- Overall technique
- First step
- Explosive
- Secondary explosion to close ground to the QB
- Pass rush move variety- Rips, swipes, double swipes, long arms, bulls, bull-jerks, bull-rips, club-arm overs
- Reads tackles sets very well
- Controls wrist/elbows of offensive lineman
- Wins inside and outside
- Anchor in run game
- Speed for size
- Plays run to pass well
- Explosive lateral movement
- Power
- Maintains speed up arch
- Very decisive
- Power through bend
- Coil in pre-snap stance (at times)
- Change of direction
- Starts contact exploding off outside inn-step
- Reads run blocking schemes well
- Stacks moves
- Hard to throw him off track
- Very active hands
Weaknesses
- Average bend at best
- Can lean to initiate his bull rush
- Fluidity in space
- Can get high after snap
- Some instances of him getting caught in chest
- Can guess with double swipes (not the worst thing)
- Needs to eliminate false step in get-off
- Arm length
