Derrick Morgan NFL Draft scouting report
Derrick Morgan
6'4, 275 pounds | Defensive end | Georgia Tech
Pass Rush/Closing Ability/Moves and Counter Moves: Top notch edge rusher that can win the battles time after time with the explosion that gives him the free outside shoulder. Has tremendous short area quickness, as fast as it gets in a five yard window. Uses a healthy balance of moves. Struggles to stay low when using the spin move, but does a nice job of keeping the blocker mentally off balanced.
Pursuit/Lateral Movement and Agility: Relentless in pursuit of the ball carrier. Locates the action well and gives full effort play in and play out. Does not have the elite speed in space when chasing. Can make himself small and keep his explosion, but the hips well get tight at times and he will fall to the ground as his feet don’t move as quickly as his body.
Quickness/Explosion: Fires out of his stance with top tier explosion. Can jump the snap well and be a step by the blocker before the blocker is set up. Outstanding short area quickness that is always on display within the tackle box.
Run Defend/Recognition: Does a nice job of extending the arms on to the blocker and reading the action. Will control the blocker and get himself in position to open up a shoulder and close in on the ball carrier. 27 tackles for loss over the past two years.
Size/Length/Hand Size: Very strong base, big rear and thick thighs. Has very long arms that are used very well.
Strength/Ability to Shed Blocks: Tremendous strength that shoots up through his legs and in to the blocker. Holds his ground against double teams. Can toss away a blocker when his technique is lined up. Struggled to get off the blocks from his best competition which is a red flag. Spends a lot of time on the ground because he loses his balance when trying to shed a block.
Tackling: Gets in on a lot of tackles for a defensive end, over 100 in 2008-2009 combined. Uses his long arms to wrap up and secure the ball carrier. High effort tackler.
Technique/Hand Use/Leverage: Morgan’s consistently effort and ability to play lower than the blocker across from him is what makes him such a lethal threat. He plays with top notch pad level, keeping his butt down and arms up, maximizing his use of strength. NFL ready technique that can be used inside and out. Always has his hands inside.
Versatility: Was moved around throughout every game. Played end on both sides, even saw time inside the guard. The quickness off the snap and consistent technique allows him to excel at any spot along the defensive line. Even as the explosion to play standing up in a 3-4 scheme.
Final Word: Morgan is by far the most versatile defensive end in this draft class, but the talent is right there to match it. He has the ideal frame, measurables, technique, and attitude for life in the trenches. The thing that needs to be looked in to the most however is the issue he has with balance. He spends way too much time on the ground, as he gets too reckless and loses his sense of footwork. He also struggled against some of his toughest competition while beating up on lineman that just might have a shot at the NFL. With that said, it is rare to come by such a talented prospect that understands the importance of technique and work ethic. If he is put in to a system that allows him to move around and exploit matchup problems, Morgan can turn in to an All-Pro very soon.
1 recs |
7 comments
| Add comment
|
Comments
If the Panthers Trade Pep.
I’d love to get him put him in a rotation with E. Brown and Charles Johnson and we have a great young DE corp.:)
One of South Africa's only Carolina Panthers and fans.
by chinchillas sword on Feb 3, 2010 9:12 AM EST reply actions
how can they trade Peppers?
He’s a UFA?
You've got to be very careful if you don't know where you are going, because you might not get there
they might be able to tag him again
though the salary would be ridiculous.
Luck is probability taken personally, clutch is probability attributed to individuals.
by shake n bake on Feb 3, 2010 10:42 AM EST up reply actions
Peppers
If they tag him there’s no way their trading him.
nearly impossible to move franchise tagged player
It would cost any team 2 first round picks to sign Peppers if he were tagged traded. That IS negotiable, but the total compensation to Peppers and the Panthers would exceed anyone’s cost-benefit…
The lack of a CBA changes things a bit, though… but not sure how different it would be for that scenario.
Basically, if it were that easy, every team would do this to their top UFA, every year.
i think the Orange Bowl hurt his stock.
Buluga shut him down, and I think he went down some boards. He will need a good combine to get his stock back up.
if he had been 1 on 1 with Bulaga all the time it wouldn't be so bad
but he had issues against a freshman at RT (Riley Reiff, Iowa slid Kyle Calloway inside to guard for the game) and got blocked out of a lot of run plays by a TE (Tony Moeaki).
Luck is probability taken personally, clutch is probability attributed to individuals.
Something to say? Choose one of these options to log in.
On Facebook? Use Connect to join SB Nation. Share insights with fans and friends.- » Create a new SB Nation account
- » Already registered with SB Nation? Log in!

by 





















