Saturday, February 18, 2017

2017 Draft Profile - Solomon Thomas - DE/DT - Stanford

Solomon Thomas - DE/DT - Stanford

-- 6-3, 275 - 2016 first-team All-Pac-12
-- Stats from the past two seasons: 27 games; 11.5 sacks, 25.5 TFLs = 37 explosives
The best defensive tackle prospect in the draft.
POSITIVES: When I think war-daddy types, I think Fletcher Cox and Aaron Donald -- players from past drafts who were taken in years when the Cowboys needed help at defensive tackle and were unable to match up with the leaders from that season. This is that type of player. Absurd athleticism. Now, it is important to note that Thomas was a redshirt sophomore, so he has only played two years of college football, and thus his stats are not quite as mind-boggling as some of the others we look at, but from a tape standpoint of the jaw-dropping destruction of college guards in his path, he is off the charts. His power and short-area quickness are gifts that seem wasted at defensive end, but when he is lined up inside -- which I assume will be his home in the NFL -- he can absolutely humiliate big men in front of him. He can do whatever you want in short spaces, from beating a man at the snap to slicing through a double-team. His final college game, a bowl win vs. North Carolina, was a three-hour clinic on why this Coppell product appears he could be an NFL star for years to come. A tremendous motor and will to fight all day long make him a very enticing talent.
CONCERNS: While he can handle things on the outside, I think a big part of the NFL process is finding where a player can be special. I just believe that is to use his skill set like Cox and Donald do -- to probe his way to space inside. He is so good as a 3-technique candidate. You may be concerned about his numbers, but the way Stanford rotates guys and balances roles suggest that shouldn't slow you down. Otherwise, I see no real issues or concerns.
-- I assume we will see him taken in the top half of the first round.

No comments: