Louisville DE/LB Lorenzo Mauldin NFL Draft Scouting Report
When looking at the top pass rushers for the 2015 NFL Draft, Lorenzo Mauldin’s story stands out as one of the most fascinating. Brought up in 16 different foster homes growing up, Mauldin came to Louisville and became an extremely productive pass rusher and has established himself as one of the top 100 players in the class of 2015.
Mauldin only had 6.5 sacks this past season, but he added 11 hurries on the quarterback and 13.5 tackles for loss. He is a fiery competitor who has the skills to be a solid rotational rusher in the NFL. Let’s take a closer look…
Measurables
Strengths
Mauldin is a very fiery competitor who is active in all phases of the game. On a talented Louisville defense, he has stood out as one of the most talented players with his ability to get to the quarterback and make plays behind the line of scrimmage.
He shows good quickness for his size, but his speed is not at the level you would expect a player with his skill set to be. He doesn’t bend the edge, but he plays with quickness and suddenness. He is violent when he gets a chance to hit a quarterback or running back, and he plays with fantastic intensity.
Does a really good job of getting his hands in passing lanes when his rush stalls out. Overall a sound player who can do a lot of things pretty well. He has a nice initial punch with his hands. Another thing you notice about Mauldin is that he reacts really well to plays and is instinctive.
High football character and intelligence. He can play all over the field on the defensive front and has experience at both defensive end and linebacker.
Weaknesses
Mauldin has average size for a DE/LB, and is not overly fast. He will play too upright at times and slow-play his pass rush moves rather than just attacking the offensive lineman.
One thing I also noticed about Mauldin is that he doesn’t get great leverage in the running game and doesn’t always set the edge well as a defensive end.
I thought on tape study he was phased out of the game too much, slow played his pass rush too much, and didn’t make as many plays behind the line as he otherwise could have.
NFL Scheme Fit
3-4 OLB
4-3 RDE
Round Projection
I think Mauldin will be a top 100 pick based on what I saw him do on tape, and what he’s capable of moving forward. He’s an incredible story but in a class full of pass rushers, it wouldn’t surprise me if he lasted into the fourth round. His skills athletically aren’t spectacular, which means some teams could decide that athletically he isn’t worth taking that high.