Carl Nassib comes out of Penn State and into the 2016 NFL Draft with extremely good numbers in terms of on field production as well as physical measurables. At 6’7’’, 277, he is a pure pass rusher coming off the edge, with long arms to make the first move on opposing offensive lineman. If he were to put on some weight in training camp, his body type would be the epitome of a 3-4 defensive end. All these great measurables, along with the fact that he had an outstanding year for the Nittany Lions with 16.5 sacks and 6 forced fumbles, could make drafting Carl Nassib an easy call for some teams.
Nassib’s production ratio coming out of the draft is an outstanding 3.5, where the average of all defensive linemen sits at 1.34. This number isn’t skewed data either, as Nassib compiled 16.5 sacks and 19.5 tackles for loss in 10 games playing for a legit power five program. According to this numbers, he should be a surefire 1st round pick. However, the questions about his athleticism hurt his draft stock.
His combine numbers are below average, especially in those explosive categories imperative for defensive linemen and linebackers: bench press, vertical jump, and standing broad jump. Nassib’s underperformance in these categories will add to reasons as to why he shouldn’t be a first-round pick, but his on-field production cannot be denied and it promotes an extremely instinctual player, who is somebody the New England Patriots would love. Bill Belichick salivates at players with high football IQ, something Nassib obviously has to make up for his lack of overall explosiveness.
Add a little poundage to the frame and Nassib is a great fit for Belichick’s 3-4 defensive sets. New England does not have a 1st round pick, which means Nassib very well may be available to them with their first pick (in the second round). Also, the four-headed expiring contract monster that is Jamie Collins, Donte Hightower, Malcolm Butler, and Chandler Jones is a big elephant in the room, and with talented free agents along with Nassib potentially available at the position, a Chandler Jones trade seems all the more likely.
With Mario Williams out of the picture by signing a deal with the Miami Dolphins, Chris Long is a viable option to sign. He is similar to Williams in that he is a talented player coming off a down year. The fact that he is over 30 and seemingly losing his ability to win one-on-one matchups makes a team friendly contract very likely. Line him up opposite Jabaal Sheard and New England has a respectable pass rush coming off the edge. Signing Long and drafting Nassib would open a door for trading Jones and getting some high end draft picks along with a possible wide receiver. A potential buyer would be the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as they could use Jones to rush off the edge while Gerald McCoy terrorizes quarterbacks from the inside. Getting the Buccaneers to throw in a couple draft picks along with the high risk/high reward/high contract of Vincent Jackson would be a fair trade.
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