Maybe the best pure prospect in the 2022 NFL Draft, regardless of position, Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton has probably found the perfect home with the Baltimore Ravens. Selected 14th overall, in the first round of the draft last night, Hamilton goes to a franchise synonymous with defense. He’ll greatly help the Ravens Super Bowl chances, and you can bet on Baltimore with a 50 euro no deposit bonus with some long odds, but a potentially huge payoff.
The Ravens are typically backed, in the NFL futures market, with Super Bowl 57 prospects in the range of +2000 to +2200. The AFC North is a very tough division, but if the Ravens can somehow take the crown, then you got to think they have some solid chances of winning the conference.
Hamilton, who had probably the greatest interception of the entire college football season in the opener at Florida State, was the best defensive back in the college game this past season.
Glad #NotreDame DB Kyle Hamilton went to a city that existed in the Revolutionary Era (Baltimore @Ravens), but it would have been better if he went to New York, Philly or Boston (@patriots) #werk #NFLDraft #ndfb pic.twitter.com/uRHkY8MB4X
— Paul M. Banks (@PaulMBanks) April 29, 2022
If you were drafting regardless of position, on the basis of a whole package overall prospect, then he really should have gone first overall.
He now goes to a franchise synonymous with defense, having previously boasted all-time elite defenders like
“Kyle Hamilton is an eraser,” said Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly.
“It’s hard to get (All-American candidate at Tight End) Mike Mayer the football when we go against him because we’re bracketing the inside backer with Kyle Hamilton and Kyle’s got him over the top, then we got him inside-out, so when you have that kind of player, who can take a player like Mike Mayer away, imagine what he can do to others.”
BK then discussed the individual attributes of the Atlanta native (who was actually born in Greece) and Irish co-captain.
“He’s long, rangy, athletic, fit the run, you just don’t get many players of that caliber.
“He is so much more aware of where he is in the big picture now than he was last year, and what I mean by that specifically, is that this is a big year for him, and he knows that. His focus, his attention to detail, he is now locked into that.
“And we are the beneficiaries of that.”
70th first round selection from Notre Dame and the first since 2019.
Hamilton was a consensus All-America selection as a junior safety in 2021 despite being limited to seven games, because of a knee injury. Hamilton racked up 138 tackles and eight interceptions during his three years on the Fighting Irish roster.
Hamilton is the highest drafted Irish defensive back since DBs coach Todd Lyght went fifth overall in 1991.
He also is the highest drafted Notre Dame defensive player since defensive tackle Bryant Young was taken seventh overall in 1994.
The Hamilton selection means that ND now has 521 all-time NFL draft selections, surpassing USC for the most of any college football program.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.
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