2011 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Bruce Carter, UNC

by 2011 NFL Draft

Bruce Carter-OLB- North Carolina

6-3 225lbs Senior

Stats:

2007- 25 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 forced fumble

2008- 68 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 5 sacks, 1 INT

2009- 65 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 1 INT

Pros:

Bruce Carter is yet another top defensive prospect from the University of North Carolina.  He is an explosive athlete that uses a disciplined approach to the game of football.  He has decent size but good speed.  He uses his speed and athleticism to create pressure in the offensive backfield.  He covers a ton of ground and is threat to make a play form anywhere on the field, which is evident by the 6 blocked kicks he last season.  He would fit nicely as an outside linebacker in the 3-4 defensive scheme because he has the ability to get to the quarterback on a blitz but also is sound when dropping back into coverage.  Carter is a hard working individual and gains praise from his teammates about being a tremendous leader.

Cons:

At 225lbs there are some concerns about Carter’s ability to play the run in the NFL.  While he has good strength he can sometimes find himself overpowered by bigger offensive linemen.  We mentioned that he is disciplined but he can also be a little slow to diagnose plays and react.  He can get away with this on the college level but will be out position in the pros.

Thoughts:

Carter ranks #16 on our 2011 NFL Big Board.  He has a ton of physical ability that will allow him to overcome some size concerns.  He is going to be the target of a 3-4 defensive team looking for a linebacker that could both rush the quarterback but also drop back into coverage.

Projected Round:

Carter should be selected somewhere in the middle of the 1st round.

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Comments

2 Comments on 2011 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Bruce Carter, UNC

  1. cogan says:

    I wonder if he could be converted to a SS, or even a FS, with his 4.4 speed & his excellent coverage ability. Does anyone know much about him?

    • That’s a good question. I think he might have the speed to do so and his size would be nice, but one of Bruce Carter’s weaknesses might be his instincts, and if you want guys in the back who have good instinct so they don’t give up a lot of big plays.

      I like Carter a lot as a linebacker, but would personally be worried about him at safety, plus few teams have a linebacker that his that big and can run that fast, so why would you want to give up a commodity like that at linebacker?

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