Yasir Abdullah NFL Draft Overview
Position: Linebacker
Height: 6′-1″
Weight: 237 pounds
School: Louisville
2023 NFL Draft: Yasir Abdullah Scouting Report
After spending the past five years at Louisville, Yasir Abdullah has officially declared for the 2023 NFL Draft. Abdullah enters the league following what was perhaps his best season to date. Appearing in 13 games, the linebacker finished the season with 63 tackles, 14.5 tackles-for-loss, 9.5 sacks, and two interceptions.
Originally from Florida, Yais Abdullah began his college football journey in 2018 but spent the entirety of his true freshman year in a reserve role. He earned a starting job in 2019, but didn’t truly break out on a national scale until 2021. During that campaign, the linebacker recorded 60 tackles, 16.5 tackles-for-loss, and 10 sacks in 13 games.
Strengths
- Impressive reaction off the snap with quick speed to get past tackles;
- Footwork king – no wasted motions in his rushes or when pursuing the ball carrier;
- Fast break on stunts makes it hard for defenses to account for him;
- Above-average change of direction lets his chase down plays;
- Sound hand technique that helps mitigate his short arms.
Weaknesses
- Dramatically undersized – small height, weight, and arms for the position;
- Spent his college years playing the edge, but is too small to do that in the pros;
- Lacks the strength for bull rushes – needs to win with speed;
- Can get bulldozed in run support;
- Can’t hold contain on running plays.
NFL Comparison: Jermaine Cunningham
Teams With Need at Position: Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns, Denver Broncos, Las Vegas Raiders, Los Angeles Chargers, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots
Projection: Rounds 4-5
Bottom Line on Yasir Abdullah
Yasir Abdullah can be a good football player if utilized in a small role, but his general build will likely stop him from ever being anything more than a helpful situational player. Abdullah excels at getting after the quarterback and, in today’s pass-happy NFL, that’s one of the most valuable skills you can have. The Louisville product is insanely fast off the line, blessed with impressive reaction time and the ability to reach his top speed in the blink of an eye. He should blow past slower tackles and get after the quarterback on a consistent basis in passing situations. His speed isn’t just contained to when he moves in a straight line, either, as he changes direction well and excels at chasing down plays.
The biggest red flag with Yasir Abdullah is his size which, unfortunately, is going to be hard for him to ever change. Abdullah is remarkably undersized for the position and will need to move to an off-ball linebacker role if he ever wants to start in the NFL. Unfortunately, he never handled those responsibilities in college, so he basically has to learn a whole new position on the fly.
While this NFL Draft profile compared Yasir Abdullah to Jermaine Cunningham, the better comparison is really a poor mans Nolan Smith. Smith, widely projected to be a first-round pick, possesses similar size concerns, but he’s able to make up for it with elite athleticism and a disproportionate amount of strength. Abdullah is a good athlete, but he’s not on Smith’s level.
Much like with Smith, anyone betting on Yasir Abdullah is doing so hoping that he can be an outlier based on his build. While he will most likely never become anything more than a situational pass rusher, a player like that can still have plenty of value and justify a mid-round pick.
