In part five of the ‘Perfect Packers’ series, detailing which prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft are athletic fits for Green Bay, it’s time to check in on the pass rushers.
During his tenure as GM, Brian Gutekunst has drafted four EDGE players: Rashan Gary, Kingsley Enagbare, Jonathan Garvin, and Kendall Donnerson.
In pre-draft testing, they all managed at least following measurements (note: Jonathan Garvin did not complete the agility drills and there is no hand size measurement recorded for Kendall Donnerson):
- Height: 6’3”
- Weight: 250lbs
- Arm length: 33”
- Hand size: 9.625”
- 40 time: 4.87s
- 10-yard split: 1.67s
- Vertical jump: 36”
- Broad jump: 9’9”
- Shuttle: 4.54
- 3-cone: 7.51
If the vertical jump measurement of 36 inches truly is a threshold for the Packers, it’s an extremely high one. A 36-inch vert grades in the 89th percentile among previously drafted defensive ends.
Enagbare is perhaps the biggest indicator of this measurement’s importance to Green Bay. His Relative Athletic Score (RAS) was 6.25 out of 10, above average, but hardly spectacular.
The only athletic test in which Enagbare excelled? The vert, where he hit 36.5 inches, ranking in the 91stpercentile.
Perfect Packers
Unfortunately, many of the top prospects in this year’s Draft have incomplete athletic testing, and proven ‘Perfect Packers’ are hard to find as a result.
In fact, the only perfect match for Green Bay is Harvard’s Truman Jones, who registered an 8.37 RAS and would be a day three pick at best.
Probable Packers
Two of the consensus top prospects at the position, Will Anderson of Alabama and Tyree Wilson of Texas Tech, did not complete enough testing, but both players have no shortage of athleticism when you turn on the tape and meet Green Bay’s size thresholds.
Neither of them is likely to be available when the Packers are on the clock at 15 overall, but if one of them somehow is, expect them to be on Green Bay’s board.
Some players who are more realistically going to be available to the Packers on day two, and are close to hitting all the athletic marks set by Green Bay’s previously drafted edge rushers are:
Derick Hall – Auburn
Hall tested extremely well at the NFL Scouting Combine, earning a 9.40 RAS with an ‘elite’ speed grade and a ‘great’ explosion and agility grade.
He is 0.4 inches shorter than the shortest EDGE Gutekunst has drafted and was under the 36” vertical jump mark.
His lack of height could be offset by his long arms, which measured in at 34.5”, and his excellent broad jump which ranked in the 96th percentile among previously drafted EDGE players still gives him an impressive overall explosion grade.
Felix Anudike-Uzomah – Kansas State
Anudike-Uzomah also fell short on the vert, but his 93rd percentile broad still gives him a ‘great’ explosion score.
He didn’t run the 40, but from looking at his other testing and watching him on tape, there’s little doubt he would’ve run well.
His incomplete RAS is 8.73, and Anudike-Uzomah had a pre-draft visit with Green Bay.
Isaiah Foskey – Notre Dame
Foskey is another player who falls short on the vert but still has a ‘great’ overall explosion grade.
His athletic testing was superb all around, culminating in a 9.60 RAS.
Isaiah McGuire – Missouri
McGuire passed every athletic test he took – even hitting the elusive 36” vert – but did not complete the shuttle drill.
It’s up for debate how much this matters, but he has very small hands for the position at 8.625 inches, a full inch smaller than any EDGE Gutekunst has drafted. McGuire has an incomplete RAS of 9.53.
Will McDonald IV – Iowa State
McDonald IV is considerably lighter than the Packers have traditionally preferred their edge rushers to be at just 239lbs, but he absolutely crushed every athletic test and was brought in for a pre-draft visit.
His 9.66 RAS includes ‘elite’ grades for explosion and agility, and a ‘great’ speed grade. He also has 34.875-inch arms. His hands are a miniscule amount smaller than any EDGE Gutekunst has selected at 9.5”.
Keion White – Georgia Tech
Another player who has been on a pre-draft visit to Green Bay, White is an interesting evaluation as he is more of a defensive lineman in terms of build at 6’4.7” and 285lbs.
He did not hit the 36” mark on the vert, was 0.02 seconds slow on his 10-yard split and did not do the agility testing, but if he were to be drafted by the Packers, he would probably be asked to play at a lower weight, which could have improved some of those testing numbers.
Some day three options for the Packers could be:
Habakkuk Baldonado – Pittsburgh
Baldonado was an inch below the 36” vert threshold but is a Perfect Packer other than that. He has an 8.13 RAS.
YaYa Diaby – Louisville
Diaby is big enough and athletic enough to be a Packer based on his testing, but he didn’t complete the agility drills. His incomplete RAS is 9.87.
Jalen Harris – Arizona
Harris was just half an inch under 36” on the vert and has an RAS of 8.66.
Perfect Packers series:
