My Preseason Top Five Defensive Prospects, Plus Other Names to Know

Two-year starter who has played in every game and 1,000-plus snaps in each of his two seasons. 

In 2023, Downs became the first Alabama freshman to lead the team in tackles (107) in program history, and also tallied 3.5 TFL, two INTs, five PBU, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. 

He transferred to OSU in 2024 and finished third on the team with 82 tackles, including 7.5 TFL with six PBU and two INTs (one vs. Michigan and one vs. Texas in CFP semis). Also averaged 16.3 yards with a TD on six punt returns.

Football character, work ethic, and commitment to the game are in the top 1 percent of college players. 

Plays all along the line of scrimmage. 3-techinque, 1-tech, SU EDGE, etc. Had 8.5 tackles for loss and three sacks across 11 games in 2024.

Shouldn’t move as well and suddenly as he does at his size.

Lightning-quick hands.

Damn good body lean as a rusher. Then swipes and rips to work through.

Feet are as quick as his hands.

Plays his ass off.

At times loses gap discipline. Peeks in the backfield and leaves the front vulnerable.

Sixth on the team with 57 tackles in 2024. Registered 19.5 tackles for loss and 11 sacks. 

POWER! LOVE HIS TRAITS. POWER TRANSLATES TO NFL PASS RUSH!!!

He’s got speed-to-power. SAW DOMINATING FLASHES OF POWER against UGA and FSU. 

Good striking power. 

Appears (on tape) to have long arms to stand offensive linemen up and the striking power to get them on their heels.

Really like his push-pull when he uses it. Very effective because his power strikes fear in the OL (so he can use leverage against them).

Lacks ideal twitch but is a relatively smooth athlete with plus closing burst. 

Is gap-responsible. Handles assignments. Sets a hard edge and does an active job locating. Disengages pretty quickly.

Tall, long, and carries his weight beautifully.

Runs well and shows impressive athleticism for his size.  

Impressive initial quickness off the snap for his size. Very effective on slants and when firing through gaps in a one-gap role.  

Has snap in hands and some upper-body snap and shows good flexibility for his frame.  

Highly effective locking out, locating, and disengaging to pursue. When working one-on-one, he frequently jars and stands up OL with initial engagement. Really impressive ability to generate power from ground up.

Not a space-eater, but he’s country strong at the point of attack. Works through engagement and is too strong to get stalemated when he has leverage.  

Plus instincts to locate the ball. Still can be a quarter-count late at times, but definitely shows awareness and doesn’t get stuck on blocks too long once he’s located the ball.  

Against double-teams, pads can rise and he can get pushed off the line. He doesn’t waive the white flag and turn his back to the LOS, but he will give up too much initial ground in those situations.

True edge defender who is equally adept in a 3-4 stand-up launch point and 4-3 hand-in-dirt launch point.  

Power-based pass rusher with good snap in hands, core power, and bend to work through contact.  

Short-area closing burst to the ballcarrier stands out on tape. However, he lacks some suddenness and leaves some tackles/sacks on the field with his less-than-ideal redirect quickness. 

Good job crossing the face of OTs and also has the power to prevent OL from sustaining blocks. Really does a nice job of working through blocks and advancing pass rush after initial engagement.

Shows off effective rip/slap moves and solid bend around the edge while engaged as a pass rusher. Also flashes ability to convert speed-to-power to drive OTs back into QB.   

As a run defender, he shows good core strength and a powerful upper body (to set the edge and disengage once located). Strong upper body to lock out while locating and disengage. Really manhandles OL at times with strong hands and upper-body strength.  

Fast eyes and fast disengage as a run stopper.

Elite combination of height, bulk, and speed for an off-ball linebacker prospect.

Highly instinctive and productive with a nose for the football. Fast eyes, reads keys, and locates the ball quickly. Not a lot of false steps. Snuffs out screens and misdirections in a hurry.  

Really effective in the pass game. Very good range in coverage and instincts to get in position. Tipped ball to himself with confidence on his one INT in 2024. 

Has value as a pass rusher despite an undersized frame. Excellent speed combined with bend and impressive dip move working off the edge—and closes on the QB in a flash. Like his blitzing instincts, too!

Solid redirect skills. Really impressive motor to chase from behind.  

Take-on skills are average at best and he gets washed and thrown off course too easily when reached on second level. But I do like how he takes a snapshot before contact, has a plan and some snap in his hands, and is able at times to slap/swipe/punch blockers off his body.  

He’s a low-impact tackler, but that can improve. 

Average height with very good bulk and average top-end speed.  

Plays all along the D-line—edge, 3T, 5T, and more.

Versus the run, does a good job standing up OL, locating the ball, and working quickly to disengage. Need to see more consistency from him in the run game.  Gap discipline is erratic and he’s kind of a freelancer at times.  

As a pass rusher, he flashes the ability to convert speed to power when coming off the edge as a stand-up wide-9. Also crosses the face of OTs quickly. When working inside, he shows good initial pop to stand up the OG, and then adequate ability to swim and rip to work through engagement. 

Good core strength. Does a really good job of working OL back to the QB and can generate power from the ground up.

Not the most sudden pass rusher and he has some CLEAR REDIRECT TIGHTNESS that leads to him leaving too many sacks/tackles on the field.  

But he has plus takeoff burst, which he uses to help generate momentum for speed-to-power moves. And he also shows good closing burst to the QB when he has a clear path. Plus, I REALLY LIKE HIS MOTOR/TOUGHNESS.  

Efficient with his hands as a pass rusher—ties feet and hands together nicely.

Occasionally spot drops into coverage on zone blitzes but his redirect slowness really shows up in space.

Good height and is tightly packed with plus bulk. Has excellent speed for the position. Durability has been an issue during both seasons as a starter, so staying healthy in 2025 is especially important for Lawson’s draft stock.  

Instinctive and when he commits, he flat-out goes. Great range in run support. Flies around the field and makes a lot of second-effort plays.

Take-on skills are a work in progress. Not as good as Anthony Hill Jr. (Texas) at taking the “snapshot” pre-contact and preventing blockers from getting into his pads.  

Conversely, he does get himself into trouble by shooting gaps prematurely or losing gap discipline due to his aggressive approach in run support. 

He’s a legitimate asset in the pass game. I like his instincts, athleticism, and speed in coverage. Covers a lot of ground and continues to show a greater understanding of route concepts in zone. 

Underrated pass rusher.  

Has outstanding leadership—is a “gold star” or “green dot” type of guy.