The Big Board
NOTE: This Board is best viewed on a desktop/tablet – if you’re on your phone, click the green plus sign to the left of the prospect’s name, you’ll reveal more information and a full profile. That plus sign will reveal their grade as well – keep in mind that their grade isn’t necessarily where they’ll be drafted, but where I believe their value lies.
| Ranking | Name | College | Height | Weight | Athletic Outlook | Core Traits | The Bonus Stuff | Biggest Concern | Summary | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Devin White | LSU | 6'0 | 240 | Very good movement skills and straight-line speed | Appears reasonably mentally disciplined and is an ok tackler, but does struggle to shed blocks at times | Offers more than most as a pass rusher but ball skills don't stand out | Can he be good enough as a run defender to allow his elite coverage potential to shine? | Has the core skills to be an elite coverage linebacker, but needs to solidify his run defense. | High 2nd Round Grade |
| 2 | Cole Holcomb | North Carolina | 6'1 | 233 | Good movement skills and decent straight-line speed. | Gets off blocks reasonably well, good tackler, but does occasionally break gap discipline. | Doesn't add a huge amount as a pass rusher, and ball skills don't appear to be great. | Can he be as effective against the run against bigger and better NFL linesmen? | Good run defender with enough coverage potential to match. | Late 3rd Round |
| 3 | Jordan Jones | Kentucky | 6'1 | 218 | Decent straight line speed and ok movement skills. | Good gap discipline and tackler with solid ability to get off blocks. | Doesn't add much as a pass rusher and no real evidence of ball skills. | Is he going to be able to hold up in coverage against NFL receivers? | Good run defender with a chance of being good enough in coverage to see the field. | High 4th Round |
| 4 | Vosean Joseph | Florida | 6'0 | 226 | Good straight line speed and promising movement skills. | Decent at getting off blocks but does miss some tackles and gap discipline and general awareness are concerns. | Good pass rusher but ball skills are unremarkable. | Can his mental game match his athletic potential. | Good athlete with great potential, but borders on being a liability at times. | Mid 4th Round |
| 5 | Sione Takitaki | BYU | 6'1 | 237 | Decent movement skills and speed. | Good tackler and flashes some ability to get off blocks but gap discipline is concerning. | Doesn't add much as a pass rusher and ball skills are questionable. | Can his run development improve enough to make his coverage potential desirable? | Doesn't have any huge flaws, but needs to improve to get game time. | Late 4th Round |
| 6 | Chase Hansen | Utah | 6'2 | 230 | Decent movement skills and speed. | Ok tackler, but struggles to get off blocks and gap discipline is inconsistent. | Flashes as a pass rusher with good ball skills. | Can he improve enough as a run defender to not be a liability in this regard? | Good coverage player with significant concerns as a run defender. | Late 4th Round |
| 7 | Drue Tranquill | Notre Dame | 6'2 | 228 | Moves reasonably well in space with decent speed. | Isn't great at getting off blocks and is inconsistent as a tackler, but gap discipline is good. | Doesn't add value as a pass rusher and ball skills are unremarkable. | Can he get better as a run defender to prevent him from being a liability in this regard? | Decent coverage potential but run defense is concerning. | High 5th Round Pick |
| 8 | Dre Greenlaw | Arkansas | 6'0 | 230 | Good movement skills and decent speed. | Ok tackler and solid at getting off blocks, but gap discipline is concerning. | Doesn't add value as a pass rusher but has at least some ball skills. | Can he eliminate the mental lapses that allow for big plays? | Potential to be a solid player but mental lapses are a concern. | High 5th Round |
| 9 | Ulysees Gilbert | Akron | 6'0 | 228 | Good movement skills and ok speed. | Good tackler but is slow to react to changes in gap and gets caught on blocks a lot. | Largely inexperienced as a pass rusher but flashes of ball skills. | Is his run defense going to improve? | Has some potential in coverage but run defense needs work. | Late 5th Round |
| 10 | BJ Blunt | McNeese State | 6'0 | 203 | Decent speed but movement skills are a concern | Decent at taking on blockers and solid tackler but does lose gap control at times. | Decent pass rusher but ball skills are questionable. | Is his athleticism good enough to hold up in coverage? | Does some nice things, but whether he has the athleticism to play in the NFL isn't clear. | Mid 6th Round |
| 11 | Dante Booker | Ohio State | 6'2 | 235 | Decent speed but movement skills are fairly unremarkable. | Ok tackler but gap control is a concern and didn't show enough to be confident in his ability to get off blocks. | Doesn't do much as a pass rusher and ball skills are unremarkable. | Can his technique develop to match his decent athleticism? | Solid athlete, but technically quite poor. | Late 6th Round |
| 12 | Terrill Hanks | New Mexico State | 6'2 | 235 | Unremarkable speed and struggles in space. | Solid tackler but struggles to get off blocks and gap discipline is a concern as well. | Unremarkable pass rusher but good ball skills. | Is his athleticism good enough to play in the NFL? | Makes plays on the ball in coverage, but athleticism and technique are concerns. | Late 7th Round. |
| 13 | Sterling Sheffield | Maine | 6'1 | 240 | Limited speed and questionable movement skills. | Solid tackler but struggles to get off blocks and has issues with gap discipline. | Decent pass rusher with solid ball skills. | Is his athleticism going to be limiting? | Limited athlete and technician but does some nice things. | Undrafted |
| 14 | Gary Johnson | Texas | 6'0 | 230 | Moves quite well but struggles for speed. | Solid tackler but struggles to get off blocks and gap discipline is a concern. | Doesn't do anything as a pass rusher and ball skills are questionable. | Does he have talents he is yet to show? | Does some ok things, but athleticism and technique are concerning. | Undrafted |
| 15 | Ben Humphreys | Duke | 6'2 | 225 | Decent speed but struggles in space. | Misses too many tackles, struggles to get off blocks and gap control is a concern. | Doesn't do anything as a pass rusher but ball skills are ok. | Can he find a way to contribute on special teams? | Limited athleticism and technique are limiting. | Undrafted |
Devin White isn’t perfect, but he is a prototype for what the modern NFL is looking for in a linebacker. He has the speed and movement skills to cover tight ends and running backs in space with relative ease, although his run defense does give some cause for hesitation, however – while he uses his speed well to create tackles for a loss, he needs to be better at working off blocks in to allow him to make the most of his athletic potential.
Holcomb and Jones are both similar in that they are unlikely to ever be stars at the NFL level, with neither of them showing the elite athleticism needed to be plus coverage players, but both are solid enough in this regard that their abilities as run defenders should give them a chance to get on the field somewhere.
Vosean Joseph is the other player besides White who has a realistic chance of being a plus player down the line, as his athleticism in space is alluring, but he needs to be far more disciplined as a run defender to prevent him being a liability in this regard.
Beyond these guys, there are a handful of players who have a chance to offer depth for an NFL team – or who have the potential to develop into starters, but in all honesty, this doesn’t appear to be a hugely deep class at 4-3 OLB, and while the Panthers might be interested in adding some young depth in the later rounds, this isn’t a position group where there is a huge amount of talent beyond the top few guys and if none of those are left on the board come the final day of the draft the Panthers would likely be best advised to stay away.
From a league-wide perspective, Devin White is the star of this class, and while I don’t think he is quite well-rounded enough to award him a first round grade, it would be surprising to see him fall past the end of the first round when the draft rolls around in April.
