2022 NFL Draft Order: End of regular season sets first 18 picks with Jaguars at top

The 2021 NFL regular season has come to a close, with the playoffs set to kickoff next weekend. While the playoffs and the run to the Super Bowl are the main focus now, the 2022 NFL Draft also comes a little more into focus with Sunday’s results. The first 18 picks of the Draft are now locked in order.

The draft order begins with the team with the worst record in the league, then continues up through all the non-playoff teams. Ties between teams with the same record are broken by strength of schedule.

The 14 teams that make the playoffs will have their draft order decided by how they finish in the post-season tournament. The six teams that lose in the Wildcard round will be slotted together, based on their regular-season record, then the teams that lose in the Divisional round, then the Conference Championship game losing teams, followed by the Super Bowl losing team, with the Super Bowl champion getting the 32nd pick.

With all of that, here is the current draft order, with the first 18 picks locked in:

1. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-14)
2. Detroit Lions (3-13-1)
3. Houston Texans (4-13, .498 Strength of schedule)
4. New York Jets (4-13, .512)
5. New York Giants (4-13, .536)
6. Carolina Panthers (5-12)
7. Chicago Bears (6-11) —> New York Giants
8. Atlanta Falcons (7-10, .472)
9. Denver Broncos (7-10, .484)
10. Seattle Seahawks (7-10, .519)—> New York Jets
11. Washington Football Team (7-10, .529)
12. Minnesota Vikings (8-9, .507)
13. Cleveland Browns (8-9, .514)
14. Baltimore Ravens (8-9, .531)
15. Miami Dolphins (9-8, .464)—> Philadelphia Eagles
16. Indianapolis Colts (9-8, .495)—> Philadelphia Eagles
17. Los Angeles Chargers (9-8, .510)
18. New Orleans Saints (9-8, .512)

The playoff teams projected standings (based on playoff standings and record) are:

Wildcards
19. Philadelphia Eagles (9-8)
20. Pittsburgh Steelers (9-7-1)
21. New England Patriots (10-7, .481)
22. San Francisco 49ers (10-7, .500)—> Miami Dolphins
23. Las Vegas Raiders (10-7. .510)
24. Arizona Cardinals (11-6)

Division Round
25. Cincinnati Bengals (10-7)
26. Buffalo Bills (11-6)
27. Los Angeles Rams (12-5, .483)—> Detroit Lions
28. Dallas Cowboys (12-5, .488)

Conference Championship
29. Kansas City Chiefs (12-5)
30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (13-4)

Super Bowl
31. Tennessee Titans (12-5)
32. Green Bay Packers (13-4)