NFL Mocks Scouting Report: Ezekiel Ansah, DE, BYU

BYU’s Ezekiel “Ziggy” Ansah may be the hottest prospect in the NFL Draft. He is fast, tall, and athletic, yet he is a risk that teams are going to have to decide if its worth it.

Ansah is freak of an athlete. He is 6’5″, and 274 pounds with an arm length of 34 and five-eighths, and a hand length of 10 inches. Ansah even runs like a track athlete, as in 2010, he walked-on to the BYU track team and ran 21.9 seconds in the 200-meter dash. He was also cut twice from the BYU basketball team.

Ansah is a projected first-round draft pick.

NFL scout and executive Phil Savage says, “I’m thinking that maybe even the top five with the way teams are so desperate to adjust to what they’re doing for all these read-option quarterbacks. You are going to need guys on the defensive line who can chase those guys down.”

CBS Sports NFL Draft expert Rob Rang says, “Ansah compares to Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, New York Giants. Ansah is not the same terror-off-the-edge pass-rusher that Pierre-Paul was coming out of South Florida, but he’s similarly gifted and plays with greater commitment to the run. Like there was with Pierre-Paul, there is some risk factor with Ansah, but his upside is through the roof.”

Ansah finished 2012 with 62 total tackles, 13 tackles for a loss, 4.5 sacks, one interception, and nine pass defenses.

In the Senior Bowl, Ansah shined, recording seven tackles, including three and a half for loss (one and a half for sacks), and a forced fumble off Syracuse quarterback Ryan Nassib.

Ansah has played several positions while at BYU, a stand-up rush linebacker, a defensive end, and nose guard. Ansah is a type of player that can create mismatches and has flexibility.

Perhaps, the biggest questions surrounding Ansah, is his experience. Coming into 2012, he had just zero career starts and 10 total tackles.