Draft Preview 2020: 4 – 3 Outside Linebackers

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March 3, 2020

by Steve Thomas

It’s no secret to suggest that the list of Washington Redskins roster needs is as long as Shaquille O’Neal is tall.  Fortunately, the draft is rapidly approaching, so between that and free agency, hopefully the team can start to fill a good number of its vacancies.  To that end, The Hog Sty is ready and willing to provide you, our dear readers, with all of the information you need to follow the draft effectively.  We previously covered the following:

This week, we’ll preview the outside linebacker class.  The Redskins linebacker corps obviously remains in the same circumstance as last week when we previewed the middle linebacker class.  The outside linebacker group has current starters Reuben Foster, who is recovering from a devastating knee injury and has what I’ll optimistically call an “uncertain timeline”, and well-liked and promising second year player Cole Holcomb.  The backups are Alabama product Ryan Anderson (who may end up at defensive end), the little used Josh Harvey-Clemons, and newcomer Jared Norris.  Therefore, Washington could certainly use an upgrade at the position.  The Redskins are transitioning from the 3 – 4 to the 4 – 3, so next year’s outside linebackers will be SAM (strongside) and WILL (weakside) backers as opposed to essentially edge rushers who were required by a certain former head coach to drop back in coverage too much.  We’ll cover the available 4 – 3 edge rushers, including Chase Young, in a separate column.  Understand?  Good.  Then let’s take a look at the outside linebackers available in this year’s draft.

1) Isaiah Simmons, 6’4” / 238, Clemson: Simmons is the unanimous top linebacker in the class and a consensus top 5 overall selection.  He played 44 games in for years for the Tigers, making a total of 238 tackles, including 148 solo and 28.5 tackles for loss, 11 sacks, and 4 interceptions, including 1 returned for a touchdown.  In 2019, he played all 15 games, making 104 tackles, including 67 solo, 8 sacks, and 3 interceptions, and was a unanimous First Team All-American.  He also won the 2019 Butkus Award given to the top linebacker in the country.  Simmons is an uber-talented, elite athlete who wowed the entire football world by running the 40 in 4.39 seconds and jumping 39 inches in the vertical leap test at the Combine this past weekend.  The most important thing his film shows is his incredible versatility.  Clemson lined him up all over the defense – at inside linebacker, on both edges, as an outside linebacker, as a safety, and even in an outside defensive back position.  Simmons is an elite-level playmaker with good coverage skills, and is able to consistently use his athleticism to his advantage.  I also ranked him as the #1 overall middle linebacker, because he’s that good, but his long frame makes him look a bit lanky by inside linebacker standards, and he may better suited to an outside linebacker position in the NFL where he can best use his athleticism to pursue and make plays.  Regardless, he can play every linebacker position and would automatically become the Redskins’ best linebacker at a position of critical need.  Dare I say it?  This guy reminds me a little bit of the late Sean Taylor in terms of his body type, athleticism, and versatility.

2) Patrick Queen, 6’0” / 229, LSU: Queen spent 3 years at LSU, playing in 29 games, with 131 tackles, including 59 solo, 4 sacks, and 1 interception. Queen has a good combination of athleticism, football intelligence, and instincts.  At the NFL Combine, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.50 seconds at the Combine, which isn’t at Simmons’ level but still an absurd time for a linebacker, did 18 reps at 225 pounds at the bench press, and jumped 35 inches in the vertical leap.  His downside is that he’s slightly undersized for a 4 – 3 middle linebacker, but he’s known as a player who is quick to diagnose plays in the interior of an offense.  He has good coverage skills and the potential to be a quality three-down starter as a rookie, and some analysts see him being a better fit at the weakside in the 4 – 3 than in the middle.  Most place Queen as a mid – to low 1st round pick.

3) Akeem Davis-Gaither, 6’1” / 224, Appalachian St.: Davis-Gaither spent three seasons at Appalachian St., playing in a total of 27 games, with 201 tackles, including 94 solo tackles and 24 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, and 1 interception. In 2019, he had 101 tackles, including 49 solo and 14.5 for loss, 5 sacks, and 1 interception.  He was the 2019 Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year.  He spent time at various positions in college, including both as a stand-up edge rusher in a 3 – 4 base and as a weakside linebacker akin to a 4 – 3 WILL position.  He is a playmaker with solid tackling technique, intelligence, and an ability to shed blocks despite his size.  Davis-Gatiher is probably too small to be a middle linebacker in the NFL, but could be an ideal nickel backer, or either a weakside linebacker in a 4 – 3 system or a situational edge rusher in a 3 – 4.  He did not do the athletic testing portion of the Combine.

4) Troy Dye, 6’3” / 231, Oregon: Dye spent 4 seasons with the Ducks, playing 38 games and making 391 tackles, including 234 solo and 41.5 tackles for loss, 13 sacks, and 5 interceptions.  In 2019, Dye made 84 tackles, with 52 solo tackles and 2.5 sacks, and 2 interceptions.  Dye was a 3x Second Team All Pac 12 selection.  Dye is known as being a tough, physical player, with good athleticism and range, but not great in traffic, and is occasionally inconsistent.  Most view him as a high football IQ player.  If he’s drafted into a 4 – 3 system, he may be better suited for the weakside rather than the middle as a result of his physical characteristics.  Dye didn’t participate in testing at the Combine.

5) Josh Uche, 6’1” / 245, Michigan: Uche played a total of 38 games in for years for the Wolverines, making 52 tackles, including 38 solo and 19.5 tackles for loss, and 15.5 sacks.  In 2019, he made 33 tackles, with 21 solo tackles and 10.5 for loss, and 7.5 sacks, and earned Second Team All-Big Ten Honors.  He didn’t run the 40 yard dash at the Combine, but did 18 bench press reps at 225 pounds.  Uche has an injury history, with a torn meniscus in 2016 and a stress fracture in 2017, and then chose to forego his senior year in favor of the draft, so he lacks experience.  He is known to be quick and has a good first step, with the ability to effectively shoot gaps in pass rushing situations, but isn’t viewed as having plus-strength by NFL linebacker standards.  He was primarily known as an edge rusher, but doesn’t have the size of a prototypical 4 – 3 defensive end, and is versatile enough to possibly serve as a weakside linebacker.  His lack of collegiate playing experience means that he will likely need to be given time to develop. He’s probably a day 2 draft pick.

6) Logan Wilson, 6’2” / 241, Wyoming: Wilson spent a full five years at Wyoming and was a four year starter, playing in a total of 50 games, making 421 tackles, with 249 solo and 34.5 tackles for loss, 7 sacks, and 10 interceptions. In 2019, he 102 total tackles, with 62 solo and 8.5 tackles for loss, with 1 sack and 4 interceptions.  He was a three year team captain and First Team All-Mountain West selection and an AP Third Team All-American in 2019. Wilson is viewed by most as a potential three-down linebacker in the NFL at either the 4 – 3 SAM position or as a MIKE backer, with quality fundamentals and tackling ability.  Wilson has average athletic ability by NFL standards; at the Combine, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.63 seconds, jumped 32 inches in the vertical leap, 21 bench press reps, and jumped 10’1” in the standing broad jump.  His skillset suggests that he had a shot ar succeeding in the NFL. Opinions on Wilson do vary somewhat, but he’s probably a day 2 selection.

7) David Woodward, 6’2” / 235, Utah St.: Woodward played in just 26 collegiate games in 3 years.  In that time, he posted a total of 252 tackles, including 116 solo and 20.5 tackles for loss, 8 sacks, and 2 interceptions.  This is a high-risk, high-reward type of selection.  His 2019 season was cut short in October due to serious injury, a vertebrae fracture and multiple concussions, so he only played 7 games, making 93 tackles, including 53 solo, and 2 sacks.  That injury history is compounded by another fractured vertebrae suffered in high school as well.  At the Combine, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.79 seconds, did 16 reps at 225 pounds in the bench press, and jumped 33.5 inches in the vertical leap.  Woodward obviously isn’t overly athletic by NFL linebacker standards, but he can play and is known as a smart, instinctual player and is an aggressive tackler.  His medical history is a huge concern and will probably get him redlined by many teams, but his intelligence and effort may make him worth a late day 3 pick.

8) Markus Bailey, 6’0” / 235, Purdue: Bailey used his entire eligibility with the Boilermakers, redshirting his freshman year after he tore his ACL in game 3.  He hurt his knee again in 2019, causing him to miss all but four games.  In total, Bailey played 42 games, with 324 tackles, including 228 solo and 28 tackles for loss, 14.5 sacks, and 6 interceptions.  He was only able to do the bench press at the Combine, and put up 15 reps at 225 pounds.  Bailey is known as a very smart player, with a tough demeanor and play style.  He is thought of as average at best athletically, but was very productive when not dealing with injuries.

9) Evan Weaver, 6’3” / 235, Cal: Weaver played 46 games in 4 years at Cal.  During that time, he made a total of 407 tackles, including 230 solo and 23.5 tackles for loss, with 8.5 sacks and 2 interceptions.  In 2019, Weaver made 181 tackles, with 103 solo, and 2.5 sacks, and was named as a unanimous First Team All-American and was selected as the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year.  He’s an average athlete by NFL linebacker standards and isn’t explosive: at the Combine, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.76 seconds, jumped 32 inches in the vertical leap, bench pressed 225 pounds 15 times, and jump 9’9” inches in the standing broad jump.  He’s a hard hitter and quality run defender in the box, and was highly productive in college.  He lacks coverage skills.  Most analysts view him as an NFL 2-down starter and either a late day-2 or early day 3 selection.

10) Michael Divinity, Jr., 6’2” / 241, LSU:  Divinity stayed at LSU for four years, but played in just 29 games during that time, mostly due to suspensions for multiple failed drug tests.  He has a total of 105 tackles, including 49 solo and 17 tackles for loss, 8 sacks, and 1 interception.  In 2019, he played in just 5 games due to suspension.  At the Combine, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.85 seconds, did 14 bench press reps, jumped 31 inches in the vertical leap, and jumped 9’7” in the standing broad jump.  Divinity has experience in the middle but is more of an outside linebacker in the NFL.  His upside is that he is a versatile linebacker who can fulfill multiple roles, and thus can become a useful piece on an NFL defense.  He will need NFL coaching on his technique.  His character issues will no doubt cause teams to redline him, and he thus might be available as a late day 3 pick for those teams willing to take a chance on him.