FanPost

Cardinals' Post-Combine Prospects:  OLB's

Next up, let's take a look at some of the pass-rushing linebacker prospects who stood out at the Combine.

As the roster stands today...

Our outside pass-rush has been lacking for what feels like decades. Groves is an unrestricted free agent (who Horton will probably want in Cleveland) and our other back-up was undrafted last year. Of the starters, Acho is a great all-purpose linebacker but not a dreamy sackmaster, while Schofield has had a very up-and-down career and may be better-suited to being a situational pass-rusher.

We know under Horton our OLB's were only rushing the passer 30-40% of the time. That's a significant amount of snaps, but it was obvious that their other responsibilities (containing the run and dropping into coverage) were roughly as important as pass-rushing. With a new defensive coordinator and a new emphasis on rushing the passer, will we see those ratios swing more heavily towards blitzing? Will we go away from the A-gap, ILB blitzes somewhat this year? I'd say that depends on the guys we have outside.



Stock Up:

Damontre Moore, Texas A&M
6'4" 250lbs. 34 1/4" arms
1st
A poor 40 and bench may hurt him but he showed burst in the jumping tests and possesses the length needed to succeed as an outside rusher.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Damontre Moore 4.92 14 35.5 122.0 N/A N/A N/A


Ezekiel Ansah, BYU

6'5" 271lbs. 35 1/8" arms
1st
With his uncommon size and athleticism, Ansah could play just about any position (which he did at BYU).

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Ezekiel Ansah 4.63 21 34.5 118.0 7.11 4.26 N/A


Dion Jordan, Oregon

6'6" 248lbs. 33 7/8" arms
1st
Measured in at 248lbs. -- which was important as reports said he couldn't keep on weight and often played as low as 220 at Oregon -- and flew through his drills. Excellent movement skills.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Dion Jordan 4.60 N/A 32.5 122.0 7.02 4.35 N/A


Barkevious Mingo

6'4" 241lbs. 33 3/4" arms
1st
I almost didn't include Mingo because everyone expected him to perform as well as he did, but he deserves mention for proving to be very nearly the ideal prospect for a rush linebacker, at least athletically.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Barkevious Mingo 4.58 N/A 37.0 128.0 6.84 4.39 N/A


Jamie Collins, Southern Miss

6'3" 250lbs. 33 3/4" arms
2-3
Collins' stock took a huge jump this week. His 41.5" vertical leap was almost a record-breaker (see what I did there?), and he excelled in all other areas to boot.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Jamie Collins 4.64 19 41.5 139.0 7.10 4.32 11.55


Trevardo Williams, Connecticut

6'1" 241lbs. 32 1/4" arms
2-3
No longer an underrated speed rusher, Williams showcased top-of-the-class speed and burst. He is a bit undersized, however, which could make him a better choice for 4-3 defenses looking to bolster their pass-rush from the linebacker spot.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Trevardo Williams 4.57 30 38.0 124.0 N/A N/A N/A


Devin Taylor, South Carolina

6'7" 266lbs. 36" arms
3-4
Incredible size and finishing in the top 5 of most tests get a man noticed. Taylor's career at SCar may not have been everything some expected it to be, but this is an extremely talented athlete.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Devin Taylor 4.72 14 35.0 128.0 6.89 4.30 N/A


Cornelius Washington, Georgia

6'4" 265lbs. 34" arms
5
Dominant at both the Senior Bowl and Combine, let me know when you figure out why Washington only came up with a half-sack his Senior year...

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Cornelius Washington 4.55 36 39.0 128.0 N/A N/A N/A


Ty Powell, Harding

6'2" 249lbs. 32 1/2" arms
6
Good results for a 3-4 OLB and a strong Senior Bowl week as a pass-rusher, Powell is another undersized prospect. Luckily, you don't need to know what state Harding is in to call his name on draft weekend.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Ty Powell 4.64 28 37.0 122.0 6.98 4.40 N/A


David Bass, Missouri Western

6'4" 262lbs. 33 1/2" arms
6
Everyone's favorite pass-rusher at the East-West Shrine Game, Bass has nice size and length with decent athleticism. Could fit in either scheme with the caveat that he played DT at Missouri Western.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

David Bass 4.84 20 30.5 111.0 7.07 4.33 N/A



Stock Down:

Sean Porter, Texas A&M
6'1" 229lbs. 32 1/4" arms
3
Came in lighter and shorter than expected, and had fairly average results despite being one of the lightest prospects in the group. Porter will not be well-suited to playing on the line of scrimmage in the NFL, which may limit him to 4-3 LB.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Sean Porter 4.75 22 35.0 119.0 N/A N/A N/A


Chase Thomas, Stanford

6'3" 244lbs. 32 1/4" arms
4
Always a better player than athlete, Thomas just didn't measure well in any area. Still, he has plenty of good tape as a 3-4 OLB in Stanford's defense so he won't drop far.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Chase Thomas 4.91 18 32.0 113.0 7.17 4.31 N/A



Avoid:

Bjoern Werner, Florida St.
6'3" 266lbs. 33 1/4" arms
1
Just not agile enough to project well in a 3-4. You could give him a try (think Whitney Mercilus, Nick Perry) but he'll have more value to 4-3 teams.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Bjoern Werner 4.83 25 31.0 111.0 7.30 4.40 N/A


Sam Montgomery, LSU

6'3" 262lbs. 33 7/8" arms
1
Like Werner, better-suited to playing in a 4-3.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Sam Montgomery 4.81 N/A 34.5 114.0 7.18 4.51 N/A


Armonty Bryant, East Central (OK)

6'4" 263lbs. 35 3/4" arms
FA
A sleeper pass rusher with good size, Bryant lacks the agility and change of direction to play in space.

Prospect

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Armonty Bryant 4.86 N/A 31.5 118.0 7.32 5.00 N/A


Prospect

Prj Rd

40Y

BP

Vrt

Brd

3Cn

20S

60S

Peer Average N/A 4.67 25 36.0 120.0 7.00 4.30 N/A
Damontre Moore 1 4.92 14 35.5 122.0 N/A N/A N/A
Ezekiel Ansah 1 4.63 21 34.5 118.0 7.11 4.26 N/A
Dion Jordan 1 4.60 N/A 32.5 122.0 7.02 4.35 N/A
Barkevious Mingo 1 4.58 N/A 37.0 128.0 6.84 4.39 N/A
Bjoern Werner 1 4.83 25 31.0 111.0 7.30 4.40 N/A
Sam Montgomery 1 4.81 N/A 34.5 114.0 7.18 4.51 N/A
Jamie Collins 2-3 4.64 19 41.5 139.0 7.10 4.32 11.55
Trevardo Williams 2-3 4.57 30 38.0 124.0 N/A N/A N/A
Sean Porter 3 4.75 22 35.0 119.0 N/A N/A N/A
Devin Taylor 3-4 4.72 14 35.0 128.0 6.89 4.30 N/A
Cornelius Washington 5 4.55 36 39.0 128.0 N/A N/A N/A
Ty Powell 6 4.64 28 37.0 122.0 6.98 4.40 N/A
David Bass 6 4.84 20 30.5 111.0 7.07 4.33 N/A
Armonty Bryant FA 4.86 N/A 31.5 118.0 7.32 5.00 N/A

Measurables from NFL.com, draft projections from NFLDraftScout.com.

Note that the "Peer Average" is from a post I did last year profiling some well-known 3-4 OLB's and compiling the average of all their measurables. In theory, a prospect wants to record times similar to this "Peer Average" standard.

<em>This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Revenge of the Birds' (ROTB) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of ROTB's editors.</em>