Las Vegas releases early odds for No. 1 pick of 2022 NFL Draft

With no more NFL games to bet on, Las Vegas oddsmakers are crunching the numbers for this year’s NFL Draft. A Las Vegas sportsbook shared their favorites in the odds to go No. 1 overall in the 2022 NFL Draft this week.

The current odds leader with a couple of months to go before the draft is Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson. He tops the odds despite the fact that the Jacksonville Jaguars hold the No. 1 pick. They desperately need extra help on the offensive line for Trevor Lawrence, leading many to guess that the Jags will go with Alabama left tackle Evan Neal instead.

Hutchinson posted a record-high 14 sacks for the Wolverines this season. He also had 66 quarterback pressures. The Detroit Lions could take him with the second pick if the odds prove incorrect.

Here is the full list of players who could make history as the top draft pick this year.

Vegas odds for No. 1 overall pick in 2022

DE Aidan Hutchinson, Michigan +160

OT Evan Neal, Alabama +200

DE Kayvon Thibodeaux, Oregon +400

OT Ikem Ekwonu, N.C. State +800

OT Charles Cross, Mississippi State +4000

QB Malik Willis, Liberty +4000

QB Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh +5000

S Kyle Hamilton, Notre Dame +6000

QB Matt Corral, Ole Miss +8000

CB Derek Stingley Jr., LSU +8000

Todd McShay explains why Alabama tackle Evan Neal tops his 2022 NFL Draft board

Mock Draft season is in full force, and two prominent draft analysts already disagree about the No. 1 overall pick. Many predictions have Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson going atop the board, but ESPN analyst Todd McShay went another direction.

McShay predicted Alabama offensive lineman Evan Neal to go No. 1 to the Jacksonville Jaguars this year with Hutchinson going No. 2 to the Detroit Lions. That’s the opposite of what fellow ESPN analyst Mel Kiper predicted in his “Mock Draft 1.0,” and McShay explained his decision on Wednesday during his “Mock Draft 2.0” show.

He made a pretty convincing case, too.

“[Neal] can plug in at left tackle, he can play right tackle, he’s played guard before,” McShay told Kiper and Field Yates. “He only allowed one sack the entire season [and] it was in the national championship game. So you’re talking about 360-plus pounds who can move. You don’t see many guys like this in the world. In the run game, he’s absolutely dominant. He can get out on the second level, he can work in the zone. He does a little bit of everything, and the Jaguars obviously need to protect their investment of Trevor Lawrence.

“I thought about pass-rusher here with Aidan Hutchinson, the defensive end from Michigan, but ultimately I went with the guy in Neal that I think would make Doug Pederson, the new head coach, happy in terms of what they’re trying to do offensively. Run the football, protect their quarterback. Remember, when he won a Super Bowl with the Eagles, they had the best offensive line in the National Football League.”

On3’s Nick Shultz contributed to this report.