2019 NFL Draft: Maxx Crosby will be a mid-round steal

In a defensive line-driven 2019 NFL draft, it may be difficult for somebody like Maxx Crosby to get noticed. Is he worth the attention?

Position: DE

School: Eastern Michigan

Year: Junior

Height: 6’5

Weight: 255 lbs

STRENGTHS:

• Has the size teams look for from an edge defense. Tall with good length. Also looks like his training regimen could be improved, which means he’s not in optimal shape yet.
• Violent hands. Does not allow blockers into his body and constantly swipes and fights them off as he’s getting up the field.
• Motor run non-stop. Always going on every single snap even when the ball isn’t going in his direction. He chases it down until the whistle.
• Shows an ability to shed blocks when he’s initially stopped. Keeps the legs moving and has enough strength to fight out of it.

While rushing the passer may be his specialty, Crosby shows what else he can do here. For somebody as big as him, he is still able to navigate between two blockers with a simple dipping of his shoulder and good quickness and makes the tackle for a loss. This showcases both his natural instinct for beating blocks and awareness for the football.

• First step is solid. Is rarely the last one off the snap and shows explosiveness getting up the field, making it tough on tackles to keep up.
• Has a good head on his shoulders. Shows the awareness of where the ball is and can navigate the traffic to get to it without lowering his vision.
• Found ways to affect the play even with offensive lines devoting multiple blockers to him. A clear sign of respect for his ability to cause problems.
• Has a degree of nastiness to him. Not afraid to mix it up in piles. Able to toe that line between competitive without becoming “dirty.”

WEAKNESSES:

• Though he has good size, he’s surprisingly understrength. Doesn’t seem to have a good bull rush move and lacks consistent ability to set the edge against the run.
• Lateral agility is average. Can seem a bit awkward when trying to shuffle his feet or change direction in order to give chase.
• Had a bad tendency to leave his gap responsibilities in order to try for a mad dash up the field, leaving wide open backdoors on runs or room for QB scrambles.
• Nobody will ever call him fast. Despite his quickness, if he tries to race somebody to the corner or chase down a mobile QB he isn’t going to win.
• Shows a tendency to prefer going outside. Rarely shows a counter move to go back inside, demonstrating his lagging arsenal of pass rush moves.

Pro Comparison: T.J. Watt

Watt is a little bit more athletic than Crosby is, but the dimension and temperament are similar. He was known for his good length mixed with quickness and a tremendous motor. People thought he’d end up going later in the draft. The Steelers thought otherwise, believing he could fix their big need at edge rusher. He has 20 sacks through his first two seasons. Sometimes teams have a bad tendency to focus on what a player can’t do rather than what he can.

Projection: 3rd Round

Most projections have him going on Day 3. That may end up happening, but Crosby looks like the type of player who will outperform his eventual draft position. His mixture of good size, quickness, violent hands, and natural pass rush instinct are a good enough foundation to have success for a long time in the NFL. The key with him will be two-fold. He has to add more strength to his frame and he has to end up in a system that will use him properly.