Potential Outside Linebacker targets, post combine.
The Seahawks have a need at outside linebacker. Seattle has two of the best linebackers in the NFL in Bobby Wagner and KJ Wright, but I think they missed Bruce Irvin the past 2 seasons. Irvin was a very solid cover guy and offered the ability to rush the passer.
With Michael Wilhoitte manning that spot this past season and Mike Morgan the year before, we were missing that skill set. Beyond that, it is time to start cultivating that next wave of linebackers. These are usually your top special teams guys and having quality depth is a must.
With an outside linebacker, you are looking at their ability to run sideline to sideline. It is extremely important to be able to run, but their ability to diagnose a play, put their foot in the ground and get to the ball is even more important. As Todd McShay of ESPN.com explains ,
"Being an NFL defender is all about reaction: How quickly can you diagnose a play, come to a stop and explode toward the ball. And the 20-yard shuttle showcases a player’s body control as he is changing directions."
The 40 yard dash (Great – 4.65 seconds, Average – 4.72 seconds) and 20 yard shuttle (Great – 4.02 seconds, Average – 4.33 seconds) are important numbers to watch.
Seattle Seahawks
Outside Linebacker
Jerome Baker – 6’1″ – 229 lbs. – 4.53 sec. 40 – DNP 20 yard – Ohio State
Baker is a bit of an enigma, many scouts are very high on him, but he lacks physicality. He is a gifted athlete, similar to Deion Jones of the Falcons. The difference is Jones is fast and physical. I don’t see that with Baker. He opens his hips smoothly, and tracked the ball really well. You see a player where the skills are clearly there. Athletically gifted. But he isn’t thick, wonder if he can fight off blocks. He looks like a big safety. How much bigger can he get?
Keishawn Bierria – 6’1″ – 230 lbs. – 4.80 sec. 40 – DNP 20 yard – Washington
Bierria is an effort guy. He wasn’t overly athletic and had tight hips, but you can see he is a good football player. He competed hard and looked pretty good in each drill despite his limitations. This is a special teams captain in the making, with the ability to at least be a capable backup. I don’t think he is a great linebacker in the NFL, but I don’t think he will hurt you either.
Oren Burks – 6’3″ – 233 lbs. – 4.60 sec. 40 – 4.15 sec. 20 yard – Vanderbilt
Oren Burks is a student of the game. Vanderbilt played him everywhere on the football field. He was a safety, then inside and outside linebacker. Charles Davis and Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network were raving about how good a kid Burks is. Very smart and motivated. Evidence of his football IQ; Burks made all the linebacker calls one year and safety calls the other. Beyond the smarts, he opened his hips well, and looked really good in every drill. This is a guy I would want on my football team. Good football player, versatile athletic and smart. Underrated.
Lorenzo Carter – 6’5″ – 250 lbs. – 4.46 sec. 40 – DNP 20 yard – Georgia
Still very raw. Pulled up at the end of his second 40. Didn’t do any other drills. What I see with this guy is a physical freak who finally started to reach some of his potential this season. He can be a linebacker, but he might be better suited to be an end. I like him either way.
Rashaan Evans – 6’3″ – 232 lbs. – DNP 40 – 4.36 sec. 20 yard – Alabama
I am honestly very surprised by his 20 yard. I thought it would be faster. This guy is a really nice athlete. He opens his hips well, transitions well and sticks his foot in the ground to explode. I wanted to see him participate in the speed drills. Evans definitely has it. The Alabama standout looked very solid in every drill he participated in. Daniel Jeremiah said he won the linebacker on field portion on the day. This is a good football player. 10 year starter in the league playing inside or outside, he can even rush the passer.
Shaquem Griffin – 6’0″ – 227 lbs. – 4.38 sec. 40 – DNP 20 yard – UCF
Is there any way we could write a Seahawks post and not write about Shaquem Griffin? As I think the whole world has seen by now; Griffin posted the fastest time ever for a linebacker in the 40 yard dash. He is blazing fast. However, he still needs refinement. In the lateral movement drills he crossed his feet and clicked his heels, but showed a great back pedal. While sifting through the bags he showed solid movement, but got really high in his back pedal and transition. His hips opened well in the drop and turn drill. Unfortunately, He was cramping up throughout the drills. That made it hard to really judge his movement skills. One thing that was evident is that he isn’t long for a linebacker.
This guy is a try hard guy, inspirational in so many ways. One thing you noticed with him, his upbeat attitude had all the players gravitating to him. This will be a locker room star, among his other talents. There are definitely holes in his game, but he has so many positives as well. This isn’t a knock, but at the very least he is a special teams star.
Malik Jefferson – 6’3″ – 236 lbs. – 4.53 sec. 40 – DNP 20 yard – Texas
Nice movement through the bags, but really struggled to bend to shed. Put his head completely down and didn’t look up until he finished the drill. That is not good for someone who has to react to the ball. Jefferson seems to play high, he will get stuck on blocks in the NFL. He moves really well though, he seems like a guy who wants to run around blocks and use his athleticism to make plays. Jefferson is interesting, because he looks the part of an NFL linebacker. He also displayed the speed and strength you look for, but he doesn’t look like he wants to hit. Do you give him a chance?
Joel Iyiegbuniwe – 6’1″ – 229 lbs. – 4.62 sec. 40 – 4.28 sec. 20 yard – Western Kentucky
Every drill I watched, this guy stood out as better than most. He exhibited nice feet, slid well, feet didn’t cross over, transitioned well. The Western Kentucky player had really nice hips, continuously opened up well, and a great forward drive as well. Iyiegbuniwe might have had the best mirror drill of anyone. He had little movement, and was very fluid throughout the day. He is a nice football player.
Darius Leondard – 6’2″ – 234 lbs. – 4.70 sec. 40 – DNP 20 yard – South Carolina
Did not work out. I was excited to see this guy in the on field drills. He was a great football player at South Carolina. I am sure he will have a solid pro day.
Leighton Vander Esch – 6’4″ – 256 lbs. – 4.66 sec. 40 – 4.15 sec. 20 yard – Boise State
A one year wonder in college who looks like a top 5 pick based on traits alone. However, he looks very raw still. He was caught short stepping the lateral movement drill. During the change of direction and shed drill, he was smooth through the bags. Displayed great lateral movement over the bags and shed very well too. Cheated the mirror drill, but still looked good in his movement. He was thinking too much in every drill. You see the natural gifts, but also see the flaws. All the talent in the world, just has to let his football ability take over and he will be special.
Mike McCray – 6’4″ – 243 lbs. – 4.76 sec. 40 – 4.25 sec. 20 yard – Michigan
McCray looked smooth in his drills, just not overly fast or athletic. He looked kind of nonchalant. This guy feels like Robinson Cano to me. Highly capable football player, he just looks like he is too relaxed. Looks like he isn’t putting in any effort. I can’t decide if that is good or bad. It really works for Cano. Physically, he looks the part, and is athletically gifted. I would take him, but I struggled watching him in the drills.
Uchenna Nwosu – 6’3″ – 251 lbs. – 4.65 sec. 40 -DNP 20 yard – USC
This was a guy who rushed the passer in college, but he looked great going through the shuffle and shed portion of the drill. Nwosu is super thick and doesn’t look natural in the movement drills, but he is definitely capable. He will need to work on his back pedal to get more depth in his drop. He looks like he is just scratching the surface. This guy might end up a pro bowler when he figures it all out.
Dorian O’Daniel – 6’1″ – 223 lbs. – 4.62 sec. – 4.07 sec 20 yard – Clemson
O’Daniel can play. He looked really good in his drills. Moves like a safety. Every drill he looked fluid and fast. But his hands weren’t great, and he looks a little small. Not sure he can sift through traffic. With a free run, this guy is a good football player. With the move toward undersized linebackers, this guy could get over-drafted for his passing down skill set.
Matthew Thomas – 6’3″ – 232 lbs. – 4.58 sec. 40 – 4.28 sec. 20 yard – Florida State
This was a highly recruited 5 star prospect coming out of high school. He was expected to do more, but he did produce every year. Just not up to his expectations. Thomas looks very smooth moving laterally, but got too high in his back pedal. Tried to guess in the change of direction drill rather than react, made things look choppy. Feels a bit more like an athlete playing linebacker, than a linebacker who is an athlete. Thomas is such an easy mover, I found myself liking him in every drill throughout the day. He wasn’t perfect, but there was a lot of good things to watch. His off field stuff and injury history are a concern. Depends on where you can get him in the draft for me.
Fred Warner – 6’3″ – 236 lbs. – 4.64 sec. 40 – 4.28 sec. 20 yard – BYU
Warner showed excellent lateral movement. Feet were a little too close together in the back pedal, didn’t have his head over his toes. This can create balance issues. For a guy they said is better in coverage, he put his foot in the ground and came forward very well. Throughout the day it didn’t feel like his drills were overly impressive, but they were better than average. Pair that with his high football IQ and pass coverage skills and this is a player to watch. Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network said he covers like a corner, evidenced by his 7 career interceptions. This guy is just a good football player, and I would like to see him in a Seahawk uniform.
Edge Rushers
Kemoko Turay – 6’5″ – 253 lbs. – 4.66 sec. 40 – DNP 20 yard – Rutgers
Turay had his thigh wrapped, and he pulled up on the 40. He skipped all the drills until the mirror drill, and he shouldn’t have done that drill either. The Rutgers standout couldn’t back pedal and didn’t have the forward leg drive because of the injury. I give him credit for showing the heart and desire to get out there though. Need to wait for his pro day to judge him.
Ogbonnia Okoronkwo – 6’1″ – 253 lbs. – 4.77 sec. 40 – DNP 20 yard -Oklahoma
Okoronwo is super thick. He struggled a bit in the drill to transition back and forward around the bags. Not a natural linebacker; tight hipped. Showed better movement in the mirror drill than expected based on his earlier performances, but really flubbed the catch. Showed bad hands all day. He hasn’t had to try to catch the ball much in his career. This guy played going forward rushing the passer his entire career at Oklahoma. It will take him a bit, but there is something there to work with. He looks like a guy who stands up for 2 downs then moves to rush end on passing downs. If he were just a bit taller and longer, he would be a top-notch defensive end prospect.
Genard Avery – 6’0″ – 242 lbs. – 4.60 sec. 40 – 4.36 sec. 20 yard – Memphis
I don’t know what to make of this guy. He looks like a middle linebacker, but played a rush end at Memphis. In linebacker drills his track and react drill displayed tight hips. He is very strong and makes a lot of tackles, but he is a bit limited athletically. Definitely looked great coming forward, but struggles sifting through trash and getting to the sideline. Probably should be a 2 down middle linebacker only, rush end or maybe a fullback.
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Leon Jacobs – 6’3″- 246 lbs. – 4.49 sec. 40 – 4.44 sec. 20 yard – Wisconsin
Jacobs is super thick, but actually a nice athlete. He has tight hips, but not terrible. The Wisconsin product’s hands weren’t great, and he was stiff in his transitions in the mirror drill. He feels like he would be at his best coming forward. He can do more, but should he?