- Joined
- Jun 20, 2010
- Messages
- 35,576
- Name
- The Dude
ATHLETIC ABILITY / FLEXIBILITY / AGILITY / EXPLOSIVENESS / BODY TYPE SECTION GRADE: 8.0
Brockers is a very athletic defensive linemen who moves with shocking quickness for such a big man. He has consistently shown good 1st step initial quickness at the snap to get on top of OL before they are set to block. For such a tall defensive tackle he showed a remarkable ability to sink hips and then explode up into OL, which helped him to jolt and drive OL backwards easily. While his 40 time is not impressive, on film he shows good playing speed chasing down ball carriers in pursuit between the hash-marks. Additionally, when he gets close to the QB he has an explosive burst to the QB to get there fast and deliver a hard blow to QB. He has good agility and balance, which = helps him move thru traffic well without losing feet.
INITIAL QUICKNESS / 1ST STEP EXPLOSIVENESS / SPEED RUSH ABILITY SECTION GRADE: 6.5
Brockers does not have the rare initial quickness to shoot into the gap and get into the backfield in a heartbeat. However, he is very quick off the ball at the snap and combined with his strength and aggressive hand use he is consistently able to jolt OL with punch before man can get set to block. He is never going to be viewed as a speed rusher and would not get pressure off the corner as a speed rusher if lined up outside.
PASS RUSH ABILITY / VARIETY OF PASS RUSH MOVES / HAND-USE SECTION GRADE: 8.0
He has consistently shown the ability to pressure the QB despite not having rare gap shooting initial quickness. When he bull rushes he makes it look easy exploding off the ball, jolts OL and drives him right back into the pocket. He is able to disengage and closes on the QB fast to get sack or force throw away. For such a big man it is impressive to see him beat OL with such quick hands. He uses hands well to beat OL with different pass rush moves and his arms are so long that combined with his strength he can be a dominant pass rusher when he rushes the QB aggressively.
RUN / PASS RECOGNITION - INSTINCTS / AWARENESS SECTION GRADE: 8.0
Brockers did not get fooled by any trick or miss-direction plays in the games evaluated. His instincts combine with his snap anticipation and foot quickness so that he can consistently get off the ball quickly at the snap. He does a good job of identifying the play and has the speed and long arms to get to the ball carrier consistently on plays within the tackle box.
AGAINST THE RUN / VS RUN AT HIM / VS RUN AWAY / SHED BLOCKER SECTION GRADE: 9.0
This is where Brockers is a dominant force. I have seen very few defensive linemen that can so easily jolt OL run blockers upright and backwards, toss them aside and make tackles behind the LOS. He is quick to get hands on run blocker, locks out and can press OL backwards until the ball carrier is about to make move and then can free up to make tackle. While he is never going to track down a running back in pursuit outside along the sideline, he has better than expected speed and has shown ability to chase down ball carriers in pursuit with ease on runs away with the hash-marks. The only time he struggles to shed blocks is when he gets upright and high at the POA, but he does not do that more than a few times each game.
PURSUIT / TACKLING / HITTING ABILITY / CLOSING BURST SECTION GRADE: 6.5
Brockers does not have the elite speed to chase plays down outside along the sideline, but with the tackle box he has surprising speed and a good closing burst to finish plays. When he gets near a play he consistently gets man down by using a combination of strength and his long arms. He flashes the ability to make very violent hits on the QB and can also make hard hits on ball carriers when he tackles them.
SCHEME VERSATILITY / COMPETES / DURABILITY SECTION GRADE: 8.0
Brockers definitely has versatility as he can be productive playing a lot of spots. I feel his best position is as a DE in a 34, but I also feel that if a team was willing to play a 6’5 guy at NT that Brockers has the size, strength and long arms to be effective there. In addition, he would be highly productive playing as a 2-Gap DT in a 43 scheme. He is a very competitive player who goes hard on every snap, which is impressive for such a big man as big DL often do not compete as a high level all the time. Durability is a major question mark because Brockers only started 14 games in his college career and 13 of them were in 2011, so he has not proven his durability over the long term.
SUMMARY
Brockers is one of the most unique players in this year’s draft and his combination of excellent size, long arms, athleticism and rare playing strength are going to get him drafted in the top 20 picks. He has the ability to physically dominate offensive linemen both rushing the passer and as a run defender. His tools give the ability to be an elite defensive end in a 34 scheme or two gap defensive tackle in a 43 scheme. In addition, he is so powerful that we believe he could be a top nose tackle inspite of his being so tall, which is usually a killer for nose tackles. I think that if there is not an elite offensive tackle still available that the Chiefs might draft Brockers. His skill set reminds us of former Patriots and current Raiders defensive linemen Richard Seymour and the Chiefs could desperately use a dominant defensive end in their defense. The rumors point to the Cowboys wanting to draft Dontari Poe, but if Brockers is still on the board we think they might go with him as he fits their defense better. Every though the Chargers drafted a defensive end in the first round a year ago, I have a feeling that they would take Brockers if he fell to their pick. Playing Brockers at one defensive end position across from last year’s first rounder, Corey Liuget, would give the Chargers two elite defensive ends to anchor their 34 defense for the foreseeable future.
-- Russ Lande, The Sporting News
Brockers is a very athletic defensive linemen who moves with shocking quickness for such a big man. He has consistently shown good 1st step initial quickness at the snap to get on top of OL before they are set to block. For such a tall defensive tackle he showed a remarkable ability to sink hips and then explode up into OL, which helped him to jolt and drive OL backwards easily. While his 40 time is not impressive, on film he shows good playing speed chasing down ball carriers in pursuit between the hash-marks. Additionally, when he gets close to the QB he has an explosive burst to the QB to get there fast and deliver a hard blow to QB. He has good agility and balance, which = helps him move thru traffic well without losing feet.
INITIAL QUICKNESS / 1ST STEP EXPLOSIVENESS / SPEED RUSH ABILITY SECTION GRADE: 6.5
Brockers does not have the rare initial quickness to shoot into the gap and get into the backfield in a heartbeat. However, he is very quick off the ball at the snap and combined with his strength and aggressive hand use he is consistently able to jolt OL with punch before man can get set to block. He is never going to be viewed as a speed rusher and would not get pressure off the corner as a speed rusher if lined up outside.
PASS RUSH ABILITY / VARIETY OF PASS RUSH MOVES / HAND-USE SECTION GRADE: 8.0
He has consistently shown the ability to pressure the QB despite not having rare gap shooting initial quickness. When he bull rushes he makes it look easy exploding off the ball, jolts OL and drives him right back into the pocket. He is able to disengage and closes on the QB fast to get sack or force throw away. For such a big man it is impressive to see him beat OL with such quick hands. He uses hands well to beat OL with different pass rush moves and his arms are so long that combined with his strength he can be a dominant pass rusher when he rushes the QB aggressively.
RUN / PASS RECOGNITION - INSTINCTS / AWARENESS SECTION GRADE: 8.0
Brockers did not get fooled by any trick or miss-direction plays in the games evaluated. His instincts combine with his snap anticipation and foot quickness so that he can consistently get off the ball quickly at the snap. He does a good job of identifying the play and has the speed and long arms to get to the ball carrier consistently on plays within the tackle box.
AGAINST THE RUN / VS RUN AT HIM / VS RUN AWAY / SHED BLOCKER SECTION GRADE: 9.0
This is where Brockers is a dominant force. I have seen very few defensive linemen that can so easily jolt OL run blockers upright and backwards, toss them aside and make tackles behind the LOS. He is quick to get hands on run blocker, locks out and can press OL backwards until the ball carrier is about to make move and then can free up to make tackle. While he is never going to track down a running back in pursuit outside along the sideline, he has better than expected speed and has shown ability to chase down ball carriers in pursuit with ease on runs away with the hash-marks. The only time he struggles to shed blocks is when he gets upright and high at the POA, but he does not do that more than a few times each game.
PURSUIT / TACKLING / HITTING ABILITY / CLOSING BURST SECTION GRADE: 6.5
Brockers does not have the elite speed to chase plays down outside along the sideline, but with the tackle box he has surprising speed and a good closing burst to finish plays. When he gets near a play he consistently gets man down by using a combination of strength and his long arms. He flashes the ability to make very violent hits on the QB and can also make hard hits on ball carriers when he tackles them.
SCHEME VERSATILITY / COMPETES / DURABILITY SECTION GRADE: 8.0
Brockers definitely has versatility as he can be productive playing a lot of spots. I feel his best position is as a DE in a 34, but I also feel that if a team was willing to play a 6’5 guy at NT that Brockers has the size, strength and long arms to be effective there. In addition, he would be highly productive playing as a 2-Gap DT in a 43 scheme. He is a very competitive player who goes hard on every snap, which is impressive for such a big man as big DL often do not compete as a high level all the time. Durability is a major question mark because Brockers only started 14 games in his college career and 13 of them were in 2011, so he has not proven his durability over the long term.
SUMMARY
Brockers is one of the most unique players in this year’s draft and his combination of excellent size, long arms, athleticism and rare playing strength are going to get him drafted in the top 20 picks. He has the ability to physically dominate offensive linemen both rushing the passer and as a run defender. His tools give the ability to be an elite defensive end in a 34 scheme or two gap defensive tackle in a 43 scheme. In addition, he is so powerful that we believe he could be a top nose tackle inspite of his being so tall, which is usually a killer for nose tackles. I think that if there is not an elite offensive tackle still available that the Chiefs might draft Brockers. His skill set reminds us of former Patriots and current Raiders defensive linemen Richard Seymour and the Chiefs could desperately use a dominant defensive end in their defense. The rumors point to the Cowboys wanting to draft Dontari Poe, but if Brockers is still on the board we think they might go with him as he fits their defense better. Every though the Chargers drafted a defensive end in the first round a year ago, I have a feeling that they would take Brockers if he fell to their pick. Playing Brockers at one defensive end position across from last year’s first rounder, Corey Liuget, would give the Chargers two elite defensive ends to anchor their 34 defense for the foreseeable future.
-- Russ Lande, The Sporting News
