The Professor’s Buccaneers’ 3-Round Mock Draft 2.0

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Pros:

– Super smart academically – who is a natural leader both on the field and in the locker room
– Finishes and doesn’t quit; competitor with a positive attitude and leadership traits that coaches admire.
– Fires off the snap quickly, and Johnson shows the flexibility to get out and seal on reach blocks. He’s at his best, however, in the phone booth.
– Johnson flashes power and nastiness in the run game, able to win at the point of attack and athletic enough to get out as a pulling blocker before landing blocks on the move at the second level.
– Plays with appropriate wide base and intelligence, instincts, and agility to seal the edge. Aggressive extending with power to punch and looks comfortable in space.
– Has a strong, flexible core, and the ability to absorb and anchor against the bull rush as a pass protector.
– Improved footwork and hand placement significantly during college career showing ability to be coached
– Has an impressive understanding of stunts and delayed blitzs
– Five-star recruit with elite athleticism and movement skills – has the foot speed to stay with the best edge rushers
– Power to move opponents in the run game
– Reliable and consistent grip and core strength
– Outstanding lateral agility and athleticism to mirror defenders

Cons:

– Sometimes looks a bit underpowered in the run game when it comes to generating movement at the point of attack, and we’ve seen him struggle to recalibrate at the second level against moving bodies.
– Height can be a detriment in short-yardage, the defender can get under his pads to hold the line.
– All too often Johnson simply gets too impatient to sit back in his set, reaching and lunging and generally playing with poor balance.
– Lets pass rushers get into his body, catching them rather than using his considerable length to deliver a punch. Johnson is going to have some difficulty if he’s asked to block on an island early on.
– Lacks experience as a tackle having played just a single year there
– Lunges into blocks and often looks unbalanced – needs to improve his weight distribution
– Ducks his head, effectively going in blind
– Needs to improve the angles, too often allows rushers to beat him inside
– Currently he’s a much better run blocker than pass protector – needs development

Summary:

As a sophomore in 2021 he won the starting job and played in 13 games, conceding 13 QB hurries, a QB hit, and didn’t give up a sack while playing right guard.

In 2022 as a junior Johnson Jr. switched to left tackle where he saw action in 12 games and totaled 757 snaps. He gave up 9 QB hurries, no QB hits, and two sacks while playing at left tackle.

Round 2 (50th)

Daiyan Henley, LB, Wash St.

HT: 6’1
WT: 225 lbs

Accolades:

• 2022 named to All-America Second Team by College Football News
• All-Pac-12 Conference First Team as a linebacker and All-Pac-12 Second Team as an all-purpose/special teams player 2022
• 2022 named Butkus Award Finalist (top college linebacker), first Butkus finalist in program history
• 2021 Named to All-Mountain West Conference Second Team

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Pros:

• The talent is there as a sideline-to-sideline playmaker who can run with pretty much any back
• Looks the part with a solid, muscular build, and surprisingly long arms for his height. Good overall athleticism and straight-line speed.
• He’s very good in coverage when looking into the backfield in zone coverage – can even handle WRs on intermediate routes
• An elite tackler who rarely fails to wrap up
• As a pass rusher – he’s got better each year and now presents as a serious option as a situational pass rusher
• Has some nice versatility – probably best as a weakside LB, but could easily handle the strong side and match up well against tight ends
• Adds an extra dimension as an elite special teamer
• A much better athlete than originally billed – surprised a lot at the combine with 4.54 forty along with an elite broad jump – showing real explosion
• A real ball hawk – always manages to seem to be in the right place at the right time. He’s an interception machine
• A bit stiff but makes the clean open-field tackle. Good effort in pursuit.
• Handles misdirection well with quick change-of-direction ability. Comes downhill quickly against the run when Henley has an open lane.
• He’s at his best in coverage. He’s a fluid mover capable of turning and running with tight ends or mirroring backs coming out of the backfield.

Cons:

• He seems to have been in college forever and while it’s helped develop him as a prospect – he’ll be 24 as a rookie
• Has been a full LB for just three years and doesn’t display the kind of instincts you expect to see from a player who has played the position since high school
• Sometimes a little late reacting to a play that he doesn’t expect and needs to improve his basic play recognition. You hope this will come with time
• Henley is very much on the small side (at 6-0 and 225lbs) and struggles to slip blocks; he’ll need to be covered up in order to make plays
• He’ll need to be covered up to be effective as a short-area run defender. He’s not the kind of guy you can line up in the pass rush and have him bend the edge; he’s limited to shooting through gaps

Summary:

Daiyan Henley is a quality pro linebacker prospect, who possesses outstanding overall agility and speed, an equally impressive ability as a consistent tackler, and also displays some nice potential as a pass rusher. Despite this, he’ll unlikely be viewed as a full-time starter due to his limited size and could become a liability defending the power run game.

Henley offers some versatility as a special teamer while he grows into the position, still, it’s unlikely he gets picked any higher than the third round in the 2023 NFL draft due to his obvious size limitations.

Round 3 (82nd)

Keeanu Benton, DT. Wisconsin

HT: 6’4
WT: 309 lbs

Accolades:

• 36 career starts
• 2022 Honors: Third-Team All-Big 10
• 2021 Honors: Second-Team All-Big 10
• Honorable mention All-Big 10
• 2020 Honors: Academic All-Big 10

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Pros:

• Plays with leverage at the point of attack whether inside or outside. Keeps eyes in the backfield when inside; moves linemen to either side with strong hands.
• Benton has pure power, which is emphasized by a good pad level. Benton can stand up at the point of attack and handle double teams, and Benton also has the ability to drive blockers back into the pocket with a bull rush.
• Delivers a strong punch and uses his hands to shed blocks to make plays in the hole or outside the box. Uses lower-body strength to anchor inside.
• Delivers a strong punch and uses his hands to shed blocks to make plays in the hole or outside the box. Uses lower-body strength to anchor inside.
• Provides some secondary interior pass rush, getting most penetration when playing three technique.
• He’s long but has a powerful lower body and plays with impressive leverage considering his tall frame.

Cons:

• Benton doesn’t have a lot of suddenness to his game, and Benton won’t wreck plays on a regular basis.
• He’s squat and short, and he will have a tough time warding off blockers as a pass rusher.
• Plays too high at times, and gets carried downfield or put to the ground by better lineman when losing the leverage battle.

Summary:

Benton boosted his stock at the Senior Bowl. Despite being a stocky player he’s shown surprising quickness and previously unseen pass-rush moves. He’s moving up some team’s boards.

Information in this article first appeared on NFL Draft Buzz and is used with permission. Find the latest coverage, analysis, and player rankings for the 2023 NFL Draft at nfldraftbuzz.com

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