One of the most exciting parts about professional sports are the drafts. College athletes prove themselves to the big leagues as fans are eager to watch their careers grow. On April 28-30, the highly anticipated NFL draft occurred.

The team with the most successful first round was the New York Jets, who had a total of three picks in that round—most teams have only one and are extremely lucky if they nab a second pick. The Jets took Cincinnati cornerback Ahmad Gardner with the fourth pick, Ohio State wide receiver Garrett Wilson with the 10th pick and Florida State defensive end Jermaine Johnson II with the 26th pick.

The Jets also secured their later two picks thanks to a trade with the Seattle Seahawks for the tenth pick and the Tennessee Titans for the 26th pick.Of course, no NFL draft would be a genuine one without guest announcers.

One particular heartwarming announcer was Sam Prince, a Make-a-Wish kid who announced the New York Giants’ fifth overall pick of Oregon defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux. Another Make-a-Wish kid, Ben Lepper, helped announce the New England Patriots’ 15th over-all pick of Baylor wide receiver Tyquan Thornton.

Representatives from the American Cancer Society, the Special Olympics, the Wounded Warrior Project and three recipients of the Purple Heart Award all assisted in announcing picks.The biggest part of the NFL draft is who gets selected first overall. Some of the famous (and infamous) first overall picks have included OJ Simpson in 1969, Cam Newton in 2011 and Jared Goff in 2016.

The past five years have also seen huge names come out of the first overall pick, with Myles Garrett in 2017, Baker Mayfield in 2018, Kyler Murray in 2019, Joe Burrow in 2020 and Trevor Lawrence in 2021.

This year’s first overall pick, by the Jacksonville Jaguars, was Georgia defensive end Travon Walker.The Pittsburgh Steelers’ first-round pick, 20th overall, was University of Pittsburgh star quarterback, Kenny Pickett. Pickett seems to be in position to be former quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s heir.

The Washington Commanders first round pick, sixteenth overall, was Penn State wide receiver Jahan Dotson. This was followed by second round, 47th overall pick, Alabama defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis.

The third round, 98th overall pick was Alabama wide receiver Brian Robinson Jr., while the fourth round, 113th overall pick was Louisiana safety Percy Butler.

The Commanders continued with two picks each in the fifth and seventh rounds. In the fifth round, the 144th overall pick was UNC quarterback Sam Howell, while the 149th overall pick was Nevada tight end Cole Turner. Finally, in the seventh round, the 230th overall pick was Tulsa offensive lineman Chris Paul and the 240th overall pick was Oklahoma State cornerback Christian Holmes.

No matter what team you support in the NFL, it is undeniable that these rosters are stacked. We can not wait until Sept. 8, when the 2022 NFL season officially begins!