NFL Draft Prospect Breakdown: Josh Allen

Josh Allen, EDGE, Kentucky

Strengths:

Josh Allen is a raw pass rusher with an extremely high ceiling. He is an ideal 3-4 outside linebacker given his ability to rush the passer and drop into coverage. Allen has a natural feel for rushing the pass and a nose for the quarterback. He is very fast off the edge with a quick first step and the speed to run around the edge of tackles. Allen can bend well and has quick feet to cut around blockers. He’s been linked to rumors about some teams wanting him to play off-ball linebacker and he had the athleticism and speed to make that transition. He also is versatile enough to put his hand in the ground, stand up over the tackle, or blitz up the middle.

In pass coverage, Allen shows the ability to function in space with his athleticism and speed. He has good but raw instincts when covering in the flat. Allen has the size and length to cover tight ends all over the field including on vertical routes.

Against the run, Allen has good instincts, reads his keys well, and consistently is around the ball. He has the speed to chase down backs and flows quickly to the ball. He is fast to the perimeter and is a good tackler in space.

Weaknesses:

Allen struggles at taking on blocks from offensive linemen and needs to use his strength and hands better. He can get covered up and pushed back on runs coming straight downhill at him. He is still a raw pass rushing prospect and needs to develop a bigger variety of moves. His instincts when rushing the passer and in coverage need to improve

Draft projection:

Top 10 Pick

Allen is a raw pass rushing prospect with a really high ceiling. He has great athleticism, speed, and length that can be molded into an elite pass rusher. He needs to get tougher and stronger at the point of blocks, but his bend and flexibility allows him to get around blockers. Allen is a little bit of a project, but it will be hard to pass up on a pass rusher with the abilities he already has plus his really high ceiling.