I have seen a few vertical drops from faalele and it’s very evident how comfortable he is in his backpedal, his back doesn’t arch, his feet don’t stomp down, no jerky movement, he is smooth as butter in his vertical sets. It’s fucking astounding honestly. And yes he’s very poised and sound with his hands, he knows he’s got a massive physical advantage and plays like it, he knows he can stay centered on defenders because of his length and strength, he doesn’t pursue, chase, or reach, ever, he just… blocks, lol like that’s as simple as I can put his hand usage.
my 2 issues that I’ve seen with him are that he crosses his feet in the run game, and that he doesn’t have a low center of gravity. The feet crossing could be an issue but a coachable one at worst, the center of gravity I honestly don’t see being an issue at all, because even with that he isn’t getting bullrushed by goddamn anyone.
I worry that after the senior bowl and combine he will be out of reach on our 2nd. I want that dude in Baltimore though. As of now I’m entirely comfortable with him.
watch his Ohio state tape, there was an absolutely beautiful vertical pass set on an all out blitz that really jumped him up a notch in my book, it was such a deep drop and it was so fluid and relaxed for him it was shocking.