Overview
Position: Inside linebacker
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 240 pounds
School: Virginia Cavaliers
Combine Performance Data
40-yard dash: 4.66 seconds
Vertical jump: 35.5 inches
Broad jump: 10 feet, 1 inch
Three-cone drill: 7.05 seconds
20-yard shuttle: 4.24 seconds (fifth among linebackers)
Micah Kiser 2018 NFL Draft Profile
A relentless pursuer of the ball with innate playmaking ability, Micah Kiser received quite a few Power Five scholarship offers out of Gilman School in the Baltimore area. It included some perennial powers including Florida, Oklahoma, Penn State and Stanford. But Kiser decided to stay close to home and did so fairly early in the process. He was the seventh commit in then Virginia head coach Mike London‘s 2013 class, giving his pledge to the Cavaliers in May of the previous year.
Kiser redshirted and then saw time primarily on special teams the following year even though he did play in all 12 games. But 2015 was the beginning of an epic three-year run that saw Kiser make a name for himself both within the ACC and nationally. That year, he and safety Quin Blanding finished as their conference’s two leading tacklers, the only teammates in all of FBS to achieve that feat. Kiser also ranked in the top 15 among ACC players in both tackles for loss and sacks.
It didn’t end there. Kiser’s tackle numbers increased in both of the next two years. As a junior, his 134 tackles not only was best among players in the Power Five conferences. It tied Wali Rainer for the fourth most in Virginia history. He went a step further during his final season in Charlottesville. Kiser finished the 2017 season with 145 tackles, the second highest single-season total in the history of the program behind Angelo Crowell (2002). Kiser earned AP All-American and first-team All-ACC honors in both years.
Strengths
- solid, muscular build able to grind through a game;
- never shies away from contact;
- read and react instincts almost always keep him near the ball;
- gap sound player who flares into his run fits quickly to make play;
- seamlessly disengages blockers to make tackles laterally;
- tackle numbers suggest above average playmaking ability;
- has value as a weakside linebacker in a 4-3;
- possesses football I.Q. to be useful in a variety of exotic blitz schemes.
Weaknesses
- acceleration to full speed is below average;
- over-pursues to the sideline which enables cutback opportunities for runners;
- frame is a bit top heavy which inhibits his ability to change direction;
- a bit deleveraged when wrapping up players, sacrificing yards after contact;
- big, physical maulers can bottle up his speed rush at the line of scrimmage;
- not particularly effective as a coverage linebacker, especially in man;
- possesses tackling volume of a Luke Kuechly type player but not the sideline to sideline range;
NFL Comparison: Anthony Hitchens
Teams With Need at Position: Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Rams, New England Patriots, Oakland Raiders, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers, Washington Redskins
Projection: Late day two to early day three selection
Bottom Line
Kiser’s tackle numbers over his three years as a starter are without question an impressive feat. They underscore his plus instincts and his acumen as a defensive playmaker. However, he’s not the most naturally athletic middle linebacker prospect in this year’s draft class. And his lack of range is a major concern among teams who worry he might be a liability when run plays drift towards the sidelines. That combined with his less than stellar coverage ability may limit his every-down value. But he’s got enough there from a skill set standpoint to establish a spot on the depth chart over the course of training camp and preseason.
