2021 Draft Board: Defensive Tackles

Go check out my 2021 Quarterback Draft Board article if you want to get more background information on how this all works.

A little over a month ago I wrote an article about the prospects they missed when putting together who they would have invited to this year’s Combine (link). I listed Dion Novil, who I firmly believe would have still been on my list, but I found out while looking over North Texas’ pro day results that he decided to go back to school. They better make sure he gets a Combine invite next year.

TOP FIVE

1) Daviyon Nixon (Iowa)

Analysis: This kid is a beast. I know he ended up with a 2nd-3rd round range on him, but I’d be eyeing him in the first if I was a team that needed help on the interior of my D-Line. In eight games last year Nixon managed 13.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. If you average that out over a 13 game season (that’s how many they would have played sans-covid) he would have posted around 22 tackles for loss and 9 sacks. Not to mention he ran a 4.9 forty at 313 pounds.

2) Tommy Togiai (Ohio State)

Analysis: I’m almost certainly higher on Togiai than most, but he was an important center piece for the Buckeyes defense this past season. Also, his 40 reps on the bench press should limit any concerns one might have about his size (6’1”, 296 pounds), and that 7.21 3-cone drill he ran is crazy good.

3) Ta’Quon Graham (Texas)

Analysis: His college production wasn’t as good as one might have hoped for, but it wasn’t bad enough to remove him. Then he went and ran a 4.89 forty, coupled with 32 reps on the bench and a 7.31 3-cone drill, showing off speed, agility and strength. A good coach will be able to help Graham utilize his athletic ability to its fullest.

4) Christian Barmore (Alabama)

Analysis: Low PSR gave him a 5th-7th round grade, but that’s due in large part to the fact he didn’t really do any of his tests at his pro day. Watching him play you can see the great size/athleticism combo he has going for him, so it’s difficult to believe that had he done all of his tests he wouldn’t have helped himself out. That’s why he’s one of those players who received a low grade through this process that I would have higher on my board if I was an actual GM.

5) Bobby Brown III (Texas A&M)

Analysis: Brown is a behemoth (6’4”, 321 pounds) with good sack production for his size and an athletic profile you kind of want to drool over (specifically his 33” vertical, 113” broad jump and 4.58 short shuttle). Out of the 21 DTs that I’m tracking who did the Vertical at their pro day Brown is at the top of the list. Pretty impressive considering 14 of those 21 weighed in under 320 pounds.

Sleeper: Mustafa Johnson (Colorado)

Analysis: The only player at his position to receive a first round grade from me, but the size keeps me from placing him in my top five (6’, 280 pounds). The 280 pounds is the bare minimum mark, no successful DT from 2009-2018 weighed under 280 and that’s why all of those guys are moved to Edge Rusher on my boards. On top of that, there’s only been two 6’ players, both successful, but they also both weighed over 290. Still, his college production makes him an intriguing player, as does that 7.19 he ran his 3-cone in.

SURPRISINGLY LEFT OFF

Levi Onwuzurike is the most talked about D-Tackle who didn’t make my top five. It was pretty close though, he had a very good 4.88 forty time, but none of his stats or test results were over the top good, so he wasn’t able to move past the five I did rank.

DRAFT BOARD

Note: Since the Defensive Tackles are split into two categories (those that weigh 320 pounds or more and those that weigh under 320) you will notice a significant difference in PSR between players, such as Bobby Brown II who has a 29.4 with a 3rd-5th round grade, and Daviyon Nixon who has a 16.7 with a 2nd-3rd round grade.

My Draft Board

REMOVED FROM DRAFT BOARD

For each position there are players who either had a red flag in their college production or athletic testing (or both) that led to them being removed from my draft board. These are referred to as negative factors and can lead to one of two labels: Depleted or Empty. In order for a player to receive a Depleted label, they had to have a negative factor that significantly decreased the chances of success in players who had that same factor from 2009-2018. In order for a player to receive an Empty label, they had to have a negative factor that led to zero successful players who had that same factor from 2009-2018. There were three Defensive Tackles removed from my board.

Marquiss Spencer (Mississippi State) - Empty

Naquan Jones (Michigan State) - Empty

Jaylen Twyman (Pittsburgh) - Empty