A talent that had absolutely no right being available and is only available to us because of his injury.
Utterly unreal start to this draft:
Utterly unreal start to this draft:
- 6’4 250lbs
- High-school team-mate of Odafe Oweh
- Explosive athlete, long, great bend and flexible – supremely smooth mover
- Raw – fairly new to the sport – certainly shown growth throughout his career and his discipline in the running game suggests he takes to coaching well
- Disciplined run defender – squeezes space and doesn’t overcommit early on the backside when unblocked – stacks well with his length and controls his gap and sheds effectively although could be a touch quicker – generally processing and action in the running game could be a little quicker
- Shows stout anchor when taking on pullers – technique taking on pullers is both good and bad – uses his length and attacks at the contact-point with good positioning but doesn’t always aggressively attack the puller to close the space
- His length is definitely his best asset in the run game
- Pass rush predicated on speed – mostly eurostepping and dipping around the corner – has a chop-spin that’s really accurate and devastatingly quick – sometimes fakes inside to shorten the corner - does try to link his hands to his pass rush especially with a rip move – legitimately an inside-outside threat - hand timing is inconsistent so doesn’t always connect with his moves
- But the promising side to that is that he’s a reactive and instinctive striker with his hands – has a plan but able to adapt mid-rush
- Has some alternative rush moves that he uses less frequently – saw him transition from a bull to dip and rip, use a straight up speed-to-power and even a cross chop
- Attempted rips that couldn’t always get him completely clear albeit normally was able to finish anyway – if he can hone that rip then he will be incredibly dangerous as a pass rusher
- Improved as the season wore on – also seemed to get better later in games too – suggests that he learns well with extra reps – his best pass rush rep of the season came against tough competition in the final game of the year against Georgia in the CFB semi-final
- False steps a fair amount out of his stance that delays him off the snap but his actual burst is extremely explosive
- But the combination of explosion, speed, length and bend is wild and already has an eye for the football with 5 forced fumbles in 2021
- Has advanced pass rush moves but raw in the run game – did not play much against Georgia because they were worried about his ability to hold up in the run game – has the tools and flashes but not trustworthy or consistent against the run right now
- Went down with an ankle injury – possibly an achilles tear – which puts his 2022 season in doubt
