Tennessee Titans select Auburn cornerback Roger McCreary in 2022 NFL Draft

Roger McCreary was a big part of the Auburn defense the last two seasons. He’ll try to continue that success at the NFL level.

The Tennessee Titans drafted McCreary No. 35 overall in the 2022 NFL Draft. He’s coming off his fourth season with the Tigers and put up some big numbers in 2020 and 2021.

McCreary totaled 79 tackles, including 9.0 tackles for loss, and five interceptions for the Tigers as a junior and senior. He received first-team All-SEC honors from the coaches for his efforts and appeared at the Reese’s Senior Bowl.

Out of high school, McCreary was three-star recruit and the No. 34 recruit in the state of Alabama from the Class of 2018, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

What NFL Draft analysts are saying about Roger McCreary

McCreary wasn’t projected to go in the first round in the mock drafts leading up to the draft, but NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein argued he can still make an impact down the road. He might not necessarily be a CB1, but his play-making ability made him an attractive pick farther down the board.

“Press-man cornerback with physical limitations that could create occasional roller-coaster matchups on Sundays,” Zierlein wrote. “McCreary is aggressive, with the play strength to bully the release and alter route timing. He lacks fluidity in lateral transitions from off-man and lacks make-up burst to stay connected to cross-country routes. Tall receivers have advantages on jump balls and fades, but finding catch space will be a chore for opponents when he’s in phase on vertical routes.

“He has average starting talent as a CB2/3 but needs to operate in a scheme that allows him to play hugged-up coverage, limiting operating space for wideouts.”