Jordan Davis, DT, Georgia, 6-6, 340, 5.10, SR … Fourth-year senior is a massive interior defender who anchored Georgia’s defense on their run to the 2021 national championship. In fact, he was a consensus All-American who was awarded both the Bednarik (best defensive player) and Outland (best lineman) Trophies for his efforts this fall. He’s a superior run defender with rare athletic ability for somebody that big. Indeed, in addition to being really, really big, Davis has long arms and outstanding football strength. He’s also exceptionally quick, flexible and agile for a guy that size. He really pops out of his stance and explodes into opposing linemen with power and purpose; he also has the lateral agility to make plays tackle-to-tackle and is effective on stunts and other games; he’s also strong taking on double teams. He probably could do a better job locating the ball, but simply engulfs ball-carriers when he finds them. The big question for Davis and his ultimate draft grade, though, is whether he will be able to contribute to the pass rush after posting just 7 career sacks in 4 years including 2 in 2021. No question he’ll absorb plenty of blockers and collapse the pocket, but he doesn’t have much in the way of closing speed; he also has a limited array of pass rush moves. There are also some questions about his overall conditioning and stamina as he never played much more than 50% of the Dawgs’ defensive snaps. Bottom line: Dominating run defender with the athletic skills to be better pass rusher has the potential to be the first DT off the board this coming April, depending on how teams actually view that pass rush potential.
Devonte Wyatt, DT, Georgia, 6-3, 310, 4.95, SR+ … Experienced fifth-year super senior combined with Jordan Davis to give the Dawgs’ the top interior defensive line in college football last year. Actually spent a year at a junior college before moving on to UGA where he put in four solid seasons. Not overly tall or long, but is very quick, flexible and agile with a terrific motor; he also plays with good leverage with the ability to burst into gaps and get upfield. Also sees the field and has good lateral range along the line of scrimmage. However, while he’s very difficult to block-one-on-one, he does struggle at times to anchor against double teams. He has also never been that productive as a pass rusher with just 5 career sacks, although 2.5 came in 2021. Doesn’t use his hands all that well to disengage and just doesn’t have much in the way of a polished pass-rush arsenal. NFL teams will also note that he is a little older that most rookies these days as he will turn 24 before the draft. Bottom line: Jordan Davis’ ‘little brother’ on the UGA defensive front is an ultra-quick high energy prospect with late-first round potential who would conceivably go even higher if he wasn’t quite so limited as a pass rusher.
Perrion Winfrey, DT, Oklahoma, 6-3.5, 305, 4.95, SR … Disruptive fourth-year senior was the top-rated junior college recruit in the country in 2020 and followed that up with two solid seasons with the Sooners who moved him all over the defensive front depending on the situation. He was also one of the outstanding players at this year’s Senior Bowl where he was unblockable at times. He’s a taller interior defensive lineman with excellent length including long 35.5-inch arms, although he could do a better job using that length to get off blocks especially when rushing the passer. He’s also a very athletic defensive lineman with an explosive first step, unusual flexibility and agility for a player that size; and an excellent motor who specializes in getting into gaps and blowing up the backfield. Indeed, almost half his tackles in 2021, including 5 sacks, were behind the line of scrimmage. However, because he has somewhat of a high base, he will struggle to hold the point of attack when double-teamed. And while he did have those 5 sacks, he really needs to develop a more polished array of pass-rush moves to evolve into a true 3-down lineman. Bottom line: Physically gifted interior defensive lineman with late first round potential who has the skill set to develop into a disruptive DT in the vein of Aaron Donald and Chris Jones in the right system.
Travis Jones, DT UConn, 6-4.5, 326, 5.05, JR … Emerging 4th-year junior had a breakout week at this year’s Senior Bowl after playing in relative anonymity at UConn where in fact he did not play at all in 2020 as the Huskies opted to shut their program down that season because of Covid. Was actually originally recruited as an OG, but switched to defense very early in his UConn career. Jones is a big guy with intriguing length as he has 34-inch arms. Still more a run-stuffing two-down interior defensive lineman as he isn’t all that quick or explosive off the snap. However, he has excellent strength and a punishing punch that gets the OL in front of him off-balance and is very difficult to move off his spot even when against double-teamed. He’s also a very good tackler who sees the field well and has a very good motor. And despite the fact he had a respectable 4.5 sacks this past season, he doesn’t appear to have the tools or polished moves to be much of a factor rushing the passer at the next level, although he certainly will likely be able to do some damage in that regard collapsing the pocket and absorbing blockers. Bottom-line: Prototype big-bodied space-eating, run-stuffing interior defensive lineman who possesses surprising athleticism and speed for a big man, but may not be much more than a two-down guy because of limitations against the pass.
