DT Daylon Mack, Texas A&M

6’1” – 336 lbs. – 5.10
Has been an important contributor for the Aggies since his freshman season, in which he posted 32-9.5-0.0. Followed that up with two relatively less productive seasons of 25-2.5-1.5 and 19-5.0-1.0, then enjoyed a highly productive senior year of 32-10.0-5.5. Possibly the most thickly-built nose tackle in this year’s class; height and length, however, leave something to be desired. Not just a stout space-eater at the nose tackle position; has impressive reaction times to the ball being snapped and was often the team’s first lineman to get out of their stance. So low to the ground and with so much lower-body strength that he’s able to dig in at the line of scrimmage and hold the point of attack, freeing up teammates to make stops. Capable of lowering his shoulder and barreling into the backfield to disrupt rushing attempts. Uses his hands well to shed blocks and create lanes to the ballcarrier. However, can sometimes struggle to locate the ballcarrier, and even when he anticipates the play direction and flows toward the ball, came come up empty-handed because of his lack of length. Consequently, may be more likely to create opportunities for others than to make stops himself. A pretty explosive mover for his size, which allowed him to stay on the field for some passing downs; reacts quickly to the ball being snapped, fires out low, gets what extension he can, and keeps his legs churning to walk back opposing interior linemen and collapse the pocket as a rusher. Has some suddenness at the line to keep opponents off-balance, although he’s not a major threat to shoot gaps. Flashes a rip move that looks promising. Managed 5.5 sacks this past year but doesn’t really have the type of closing burst teams look for in a pass-rusher, nor does he have the speed in pursuit to chase down quarterbacks who flee the pocket. Gives effort to get to the sidelines and defend the screens; solid motor. Offers an interesting combination of bulk, lower-body strength, and first-step quickness, with surprising athletic ability for his size. However, his lack of length can impair his ability to make stops in the run game, while he isn’t quite athletic enough to generate consistent pressure in the passing game, either. Might end up coming off the board in the mid-rounds as a rotational lineman and interesting project.