The first round of the 2022 NFL Draft is in the books.

It made a good night even better if you tailed the TSN EDGE crew for your betting selections.

My picks for the first round went a combined 4-1.

Add in the remaining picks featured during our TSN EDGE NFL Draft preview show with Tekeyah Singh and Eric Cohen, and we went a combined 7-2 for the night.

Meanwhile, from an NFL team perspective, there were a couple of big winners from the first round that managed to really upgrade their rosters with home run selections.

Here’s the TSN EDGE Morning Coffee for Friday, April 29th, 2022.

NFL Draft First Round Recap

The Jacksonville Jaguars got the night started with the selection of Georgia EDGE Travon Walker with the first overall pick.

 

Walker, who could be found as high as +3000 to be the first overall pick at FanDuel Sportsbook in the lead up to the draft, closed at -900 to be the first overall pick.

Jacksonville’s decision to go with Walker meant that the Detroit Lions didn’t need much time at all with their selection, as they rushed to the stage to select Michigan EDGE Aidan Hutchinson.

 

Hutchinson closed as the favourite to go second overall at -250 at FanDuel Sportsbook.

The Houston Texans rounded out the top-three selections with LSU cornerback Derek Stingley Jr.

 

While I bet Walker to be the first overall pick early on Thursday when he was still listed at -200 to go No. 1, I couldn’t justify having it as one of my best bets at that price.

 

I did have Stingley’s draft position under 7.5 as a best bet.

Our guy Evan Render gave us Ahmad Gardner under 4.5 at +182 as his best bet for the NFL Draft.

 

The New York Jets were all over Gardner at No. 4, as the top two cornerbacks in the draft went back-to-back.

The New York Giants selected Oregon EDGE Kayvon Thibodeaux with the fifth overall pick.

 

If you bet Thibodeaux’s draft position under 5.5 like I did as one of my best bets, you were thrilled when Thibodeaux went with the No. 5 pick.

If you bet Thibodeaux’s draft position under 4.5, it was a tough break.

Meanwhile, the Carolina Panthers made the right decision going offensive line at No. 6 with the selection of NC State tackle Ikem Ekwonu.

Ekwonu was the betting favourite to be the first tackle off the board at -220.

Two picks later, the Atlanta Falcons made USC’s Drake London was the first wide receiver off the board.

 

London was the second choice to be the top wide receiver selected at +185 at FanDuel Sportsbook.

Two picks later, the Jets drafted Ohio State’s Garrett Wilson with their second pick of the first round.

Two picks after that, the Lions traded up to select Alabama’s Jameson Williams at 12th overall.

 

The move was a big relief for me, as I had placed a couple of bets on Williams betting on him as the best wide receiver in this class.

Williams to go in the top-10 at +200 didn’t cash, but the Lions saved the day for me by taking him at 12, making me a winner on Williams’ draft position to be under 12.5.

After selecting Hutchinson and Williams in the top-12, I asked the following question on Twitter: did the Lions end up with what will end up being the best players at their respective positions?

If I had to bet on it, I’d bet that they did.

 

Meanwhile, the Pittsburgh Steelers made Pittsburgh’s Kenny Pickett the first quarterback off the board with the 20th overall pick.

Pickett was the second choice to be the top quarterback off the board at FanDuel Sportsbook at +200.

Pickett opened as the favourite to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year at FanDuel.

 

Liberty’s Malik Willis, who was the favourite to be the first quarterback off the board, will have to wait a few more hours for his name to be called on day two.

 

Round 2 of the NFL Draft gets underway tonight at 7 PM ET on TSN.

While I’m sure there will be a few more surprises tonight, we’ll try to dig up some more best bets to build off a good first night of NFL Draft bets for TSN EDGE.

Eagles, Cardinals Shake Things Up With Trades

In addition to the picks, a couple of teams shook things up big time with a pair of monster trades on Thursday night.

The Arizona Cardinals acquired Hollywood Brown from the Baltimore Ravens.

 

 

A few minutes later, the news broke that the Philadelphia Eagles had acquired A.J. Brown from the Tennessee Titans.

 

Both teams had a clear need at the position, and it appears as though at least one of them attempted to trade up to get one of the top wide receiver prospects in the draft.

Once it became clear that they couldn’t climb high enough to get one of those top wide receiver prospects, they turned their attention to the trade market with a couple of notable splashes. 

76ers Beat Raptors, Advance To Second Round

Joel Embiid led the way with a game-high 33 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks as the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Toronto Raptors 132-97 in Game 6 last night to win their first round series 4-2.

 

 James Harden scored 22 points with 15 assists.

Tyrese Maxey went for 25 points and eight assists.

The 76ers outscored Toronto by 34 points in the second half.

 

Per ESPN Stats & Info, that is tied for the largest points differential in the second half of a series-clinching win in NBA playoff history.

Philadelphia is +490 to win the Eastern Conference and +1300 to win the NBA championship at FanDuel Sportsbook.

 

The 76ers will face the Miami Heat in the second round.

Meanwhile, Luka Doncic and Jalen Brunson scored 24 points each as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Utah Jazz 98-96 to win their first round series in six games.

 

The Mavericks will face the Phoenix Suns in the second round.

 

Dallas is +500 to win the Western Conference and +1600 to win the NBA championship at FanDuel Sportsbook.