With the NFL Draft a few weeks away, our College Football expert Thor Nystrom shares his official EDGE and defensive tackle rankings. Read on for Thor’s player comps and analysis on the next crop of pro football defensive linemen.
Thor Nystrom’s 2024 NFL Draft EDGE & DL Rankings
EDGE
Tier 1: Top-20
1. Jared Verse (Florida State)
6037/254 | RAS: 9.6
Player comparison: Kayvon Thibodeaux
2. Laiatu Latu (UCLA)
6046/259 | RAS: 9.37
Player comparison: Jaelan Phillips
3. Dallas Turner (Alabama)
6026/247 | RAS: 8.85
Player comparison: Nolan Smith
Notes: Jared Verse has been so good for so long that he’s started to get nitpicked in this draft process. Don’t overthink this one. He’s a speed-to-power freight train with electric hands. Verse is hyper-explosive off the line. He gets tackles back on their heels and then throws countless hand combinations and counter moves at them once engaged.
I’m a huge fan of Laiatu Latu’s game. If his body doesn’t betray him, he will be a star. That is, of course, a big if. Latu was forced to briefly medically retire in 2021 as a member of the Washington Huskies due to a neck injury. But he played over 1,000 snaps the past two seasons and was a pass-rushing terror. Latu had 17 sacks in only 623 pass-rushes over that time. My ranking of Latu is under the assumption that my “medical staff” has assured me they’re comfortable with what they’ve seen.
Dallas Turner is fast, explosive, and bendy. But he’s not a finished product yet. His play strength has improved, but it absolutely needs to keep getting better. I saw too much of Turner trying to run around OTs because he didn’t want to scrap with them in close quarters. That strategy is more viable in college than it is in the pros.
Tier 2: Late-Round 1
4. Chop Robinson (Penn State)
6027/254 | RAS: 9.72
Player comparison: Boye Mafe
Notes: Chop Robinson stands alone in Tier 2. There’s a clear drop after the top three players. There will be another qualitative jump after Robinson is picked, either in late Round 1 or immediately in Round 2. Robinson is a superb athlete who flies off the ball. He absolutely has the speed, quickness and bend to steal the outside shoulder. Still, he also has an effective bull rush for those who compensate too far to try to account for his speed. He is not a finished product as a pass-rusher but already has a bag of pass-rushing moves.
While Robinson has serious pop when coming downhill, his lack of girth hurts when his opponent is the one bearing downhill on him in the run game. He is also extremely inconsistent at setting the edge. The lack of sand in his pants can also get his engine stalled, even when he’s winning a rep if he takes a hard punch. While Robinson’s pressure rates were elite in college, he had trouble converting his myriad pressures into sacks. He also misses too many tackles. For a player with short arms – the shortest of my top-six EDGE prospects – these issues will likely be enough to drop him into the 25-40 range on draft weekend.
Tier 3: Top-60
5. Darius Robinson (Missouri)
6051/285 | RAS: 7.79
Player comparison: Arik Armstead
6. Chris Braswell (Alabama)
6033/259 | RAS: 8.72
Player comparison: Sam Williams
7. Bralen Trice (Washington)
6034/259 | RAS: 7.46
Player comparison: Uchenna Nwosu
8. Marshawn Kneeland (Western Michigan)
6030/267 | RAS: 9.08
Player comparison: Joe Tryon
Notes: Darius Robinson’s length and strength made him a problem in the SEC. He’s slow off the line and lacks lateral quickness, but his ferocious power and rugged playstyle should make him a strong starting 3-4 DE. He also offers the versatility of kicking inside on passing downs.
Marshawn Kneeland gets slept on because he’s coming from the MAC, and his pass-rushing plan needs work. Still, he’s probably the best run-defending EDGE in this entire class. Kneeland is a speed-to-power load with a relentless, hair-on-fire style. He’s a little stiff, but I think he could become a more effective pass-rusher if he can develop some changeup-pitcher counter moves to the heater that is his power.
Tier 4: Round 3
9. Austin Booker (Kansas)
6044/240 | RAS: 7.04
Player comparison: Arden Key
10. Adisa Isaac (Penn State)
6041/247 | RAS: 8.99
Player comparison: Carl Granderson
11. Brennan Jackson (Washington State)
6037/266 | RAS: 8.42
Player comparison: Cameron Thomas
12. Jonah Elliss (Utah)
6021/248 | RAS: N/A
Player comparison: Malcolm Koonce
13. Jalyx Hunt (Houston Christian)
6036/252 | RAS: 9.22
Player comparison: Derick Hall
Notes: Austin Booker and Adisa Isaac have similar frames and are blessed with good arm length. Isaac was productive for two years, while Booker is a one-year wonder. Still, they’re different kinds of players, and I slightly prefer Booker’s translation to the NFL.
Booker is a natural pass-rusher with a veteran’s feel for counter moves. Early on the development curve, Booker has plenty of potential left to unlock. Still, he needs to keep improving in run defense, or he’ll be pigeonholed as a specialist.
Isaac is a tricky projection in that he’s a forward-attacking defender who is better against the run than he has any business being at his size. He has a real knack for shedding and pursuing. However, he needs to improve his pass-rushing plan. His hard-charging style can push him into non-viable, road-to-nowhere angles upfield quickly when he tries to attack the outside, and his bull rush will get swatted away by NFL tackles.
Jalyx Hunt is a small-school sleeper. He’s a former defensive back who has retained the athleticism as he’s gotten bigger. He has all the physical ability and desire you’d want, but is still learning the position. He’s a fascinating ball of clay.
Tier 5: Day 3
14. Javon Solomon (Troy)
6007/246 | RAS: 7.29
Player comparison: BJ Ojulari
15. Gabriel Murphy (UCLA)
6023/247 | RAS: 9.28
Player comparison: Leo Chenal
16. Cedric Johnson (Ole Miss)
6030/260 | RAS: 9.28
Player comparison: YaYa Diaby
17. Mohamed Kamara (Colorado State)
6013/248 | RAS: 7.99
Player comparison: Jose Ramirez
18. Xavier Thomas (Clemson)
6022/253 | RAS: 8.17
Player comparison: Oshane Ximines
Notes: Each prospect in this tier profiles as a situational player as a rookie.
I’m higher on Javon Solomon than most. He went ballistic for 16 sacks last year in the Sun Belt. Solomon has an unorthodox frame, a hair under 6-foot-1, but has 3378 arms. That’s longer than Verse, Latu and Robinson, plus the same length as the 6-foot-4 duo of Booker and Isaac in the tier above. And, for whatever it’s worth, Solomon also has huge hands. His 1068 hands are the largest in the EDGE class and bigger than seven of my top-10 OTs in this class.
Solomon has the length, bend and lateral agility to overcome his sawed-off frame. The high school wrestler also has experience at both DE and OLB.
DEFENSIVE TACKLE
Tier 1: Round 1
1. Byron Murphy II (Texas)
6004/297 | RAS: 9.23
Player comparison: Ed Oliver
2. Jer’Zhan Newton (Illinois)
6015/304 | RAS: N/A
Player comparison: Javon Hargrave
Notes: In part because of the tier drop after them, I expect Byron Murphy and Jer’Zhan Newton to both go inside the top 25 and perhaps even the top 20. Interior pressure is king, and both consistently generate it. What I appreciate about both of them is that they’re strong run defenders, in addition to their obvious pass-rushing utility. They go about that phase in opposite ways. Murphy, through leverage and gap integrity, and Newton, by shedding and hunting. Neither will cheat you on effort.
Tier 2: Round 2
3. Braden Fiske (Florida State)
6035/292 | RAS: 9.89
Player comparison: Devonte Wyatt
4. T’Vondre Sweat (Texas)
6044/366 | RAS: 4.27
Player comparison: Terrence Cody
5. Ruke Orhorhoro (Clemson)
6040/294 | RAS: 9.92
Player comparison: DeMarvin Leal
6. Kris Jenkins (Michigan)
6026/299 | RAS: 9.0
Player comparison: Larry Ogunjobi
Notes: Braden Fiske probably punched a ticket into the top 40 with his testing.
T’Vondre Sweat is facing new questions after getting arrested for DWI on April 7. The 360-pounder, who won the Outland Trophy in 2023, profiles as an elite run-stuffer. But will the fresh off-field questions and lack of elite pass-rushing profile push him to Round 3?
Ruke Orhorhoro has every physical tool you’d want – he’s long, strong and athletic – but the light never turned all the way on at Clemson. If it does in the NFL, he will be a steal. One key thing to keep in mind with Orhorhoro: He didn’t start playing football until his junior year in high school. He’s still learning.
Tier 3: Round 3
7. Maason Smith (LSU)
6051/306 | RAS: 8.47
Player comparison: Javon Kinlaw
8. Brandon Dorlus (Oregon)
6030/286 | RAS: 8.66
Player comparison: Levi Onwuzurike
9. Michael Hall Jr. (Ohio State)
6026/299 | RAS: 9.57
Player comparison: Neville Gallimore
10. DeWayne Carter (Duke)
6023/304 | RAS: 7.67
Player comparison: BJ Hill
Notes: Maason Smith is the true boom-or-bust player in this DT class. A former top-20 overall recruit, Smith is rangy with very long arms (3500) and posted elite agility scores at over 300 pounds. Still, he started only 17 games in college, missing some of 2021 with a shoulder injury, almost all of 2022 with a knee injury and the 2023 opener while suspended. For the record, the suspension was for ridiculous reasons; Smith got paid for autographs right before the NIL rules went into effect that made such things above-board and commonplace. After declaring following his third year, Smith is extremely raw, but the ceiling is very high.
Brandon Dorlus, Michael Hall Jr. and DeWayne Carter are higher-floor, lower-ceiling prospects; a true trio of gap-shooting three-techniques at the next level.
Tier 4: Day 3
11. Fabien Lovett (Florida State)
6037/314 | RAS: 6.95
Player comparison: Vernon Butler
12. Mekhi Wingo (LSU)
6002/286 | RAS: 8.79
Player comparison: Maurice Hurst
13. McKinnley Jackson (Texas A&M)
6014/326 | RAS: 3.07
Player comparison: Terrance Knighton
14. Leonard Taylor III (Miami)
6034/303 | RAS: 7.34
Player comparison: Jerel Worthy
15. Gabe Hall (Baylor)
6060/291 | RAS: 9.25
Player comparison: Perrion Winfrey
16. Khristian Boyd (Northern Iowa)
6023/329 | RAS: N/A
Player comparison: Khalen Saunders
Notes: Leonard Taylor III was forwarded as a likely second-rounder earlier in the process, but I think he’s headed for Day 3. A former top-10 overall recruit, Taylor III was extremely inconsistent at Miami. That’s because his game hasn’t advanced beyond north-south bully tactics. He could overpower most ACC interior linemen, but the high pad level he played with at Miami with the same lack of refinement will send him into the wood-chipper at the next level if he doesn’t develop ancillary attack plans.
2024 NFL Mock Drafts
Here are a few predictions for the 2024 NFL Draft. We’ll continue to add our 2024 NFL Mock Drafts leading up to the start of Round 1.
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