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Todd McShay

Find the most comprehensive analysis on [Player Name], featuring Todd McShay’s evaluations. Official measurables, advanced analytics, and a scout’s eye provide the most in-depth breakdown of a prospect’s strengths and weaknesses, NFL draft projection, and potential at the next level.

Edge

Zion Young

Grade89 /100
Pos Rank8
OVR Rank27
School
MIZ

Experience

Played46
Started37

POSITION STATS LAST SEASON

Sacks
6.5
TFL
15.5
Tackles
42
FF
2
PBU
2
Todd McShay

Position-Specific Grades

COMBINE RESULTS

Height
6' 6"
Weight
262lbs
Todd McShay
ARM
33"
Todd McShay
HAND
9 1/2"

The Takeaway

The Player  

Young lacks ideal athleticism, but he’s a long, powerful edge with elite snap anticipation and solid takeoff burst. He’s an emotionally charged leader who plays with impressive  effort and possesses really good forward lean and leverage while working through contact. He’s good at tempoing and Euro-stepping around offensive tackles before launching speed-to-power moves, and he redirects quickly to get back into the play.

He needs to improve his hands. He seems uncoordinated at times and has too much length and power not to be more effective with hand combat. He does a nice job with stab-and-rip moves but needs more variety and more effective counterpunches at the top of his rush. He leaves too many sacks on the field and falls off too many tackles. 

Young is an elite run defender who sets a damn hard edge and has no trouble stonewalling bigger opponents. I love how efficiently he stands up offensive tackles, gets his eyes in the backfield, and disengages in pursuit. His run win rate (9.3 percent) is best among the edge prospects in this class. And while he ranks only eighth in pass rush win rate (17.5 percent), that number is around the average for Round 1 edge prospects dating back to 2015. 

The Draft

Young lacks the athleticism and pass rush skills to stack up with top-tier rushers in this class. But he belongs in the discussion with the next tier. A December DWI arrest will be investigated by NFL teams and could affect his draft stock.

The Projection

Young is one of the most underrated and overshadowed prospects in this class. He’s a plug-and-play starter at edge, and Za’Darius Smith is a worthy comp. They have similar athletic limitations but also similar frames, power, physicality, relentlessness, and scheme versatility. They also had similar production in college: Smith had 11 sacks in 24 games at Kentucky; Young had nine in 26 games at Missouri. In the NFL, Smith has had 70.5 sacks in 10-plus seasons, with five seasons of 8.5 sacks or more.