2020 NFL Draft: Top 30 interior defensive line rankings and analysis
In a very interesting 2020 NFL Draft interior defensive line class, Derrick Brown and Javon Kinlaw are clearly at the top, but there are some sleepers.
This is a very top-heavy interior defensive line class for the 2020 NFL Draft. I see only the top two prospects as having real franchise-changing potential, and only a few more with even true game-changing ability at this point.
It’s pretty clear that Auburn’s Derrick Brown and South Carolina’s Javon Kinlaw are the top two defensive tackle prospects in the 2020 NFL Draft. I do like a couple of other guys, including Texas A&M’s Justin Madubuike and Ross Blacklock of TCU, but this class really lacks high-end players.
Whereas the Big Ten led the way with top EDGE talent, the SEC dominates on the inside, with six of my top 10 interior defensive linemen. But what did impress me about this class, is that although the top-tier talent is few and far between, a very large chunk of the rest of the list are players that I really like.
It took me quite a while going through and watching a film on players before I found anyone in this position group that I really wouldn’t want on my football team. There may only be a handful of sure-fire, every-down starters that can really make a large and consistent impact, but there are well over a dozen more prospects that bring something to the table that I really like in this 2020 NFL Draft.
When evaluating interior defensive linemen, it’s super important to actually dive into the film. Sure, you want any player on your team to put up impressive stats, but the box score does not tell the story of what defensive linemen bring to the table.
I spent hours watching film on the top 30 prospects in this position group for the 2020 NFL Draft, and will rank them and give a brief report about each one of them. I won’t be separating the prospects into specific positions along the defensive line, as many are versatile and can play line up in multiple different spots. But I do outline the player’s best fit in their report if you are wondering how a certain 2020 NFL Draft prospect fits into your team’s defensive scheme.