Jalon Walker’s lack of a place is a function, not a bug within the 2025 NFL Draft

If there’s any participant within the 2025 NFL Draft consensus huge board that I completely love, it’s Georgia’s Jalon Walker. An EDGE/LB hybrid, Walker turned his one yr beginning at Georgia right into a season worthy of the Butkus award, notching 6.5 sacks and being the fulcrum of a Georgia protection that would stem fronts and alter the image quite a bit. Now, Walker enters the NFL as one of the coveted prospects within the class. In my post-Mix huge board he was the seventh ranked participant, and can greater than possible end as a top-10 participant on this whole draft class.

Coming into the draft, It’s not a query of how gifted Walker is, however the place you play him. Versatility might be such factor within the NFL, however in the event you don’t have a longtime place, the trail to being a participant like Isaiah Simmons is fast. Walker is much less of a positionless participant, and extra of a participant who has a longtime place, however can line up in several alignments.

Let’s go forward and say this up entrance: Jalon Walker is an EDGE. He’s an EDGE as a result of in the event you watch him play and the place he’s at his finest, he’s aligned out over a deal with or a guard, and working ahead as an alternative of dropping into protection. Georgia didn’t ask him to do many various issues dropping again, usually leaving that to LBs Smael Mondon Jr and CJ Allen, on account of a few of Walker’s discomfort and stiffness in protection. Walker solely had 183 protection snaps this season, which is over 100 lower than a lot of the different prime linebackers on this class. On prime of that, Walker didn’t actually have a lot obligations in protection, dropping to the weak flat or hook space the place much less move targets have been. I feel deploying him as a stack linebacker could be a poor use of his instruments, and restrict the creativity that he brings to the desk.

He’s a extremely solidly constructed participant at 6’1 and 243 kilos, however considered one of his drawbacks is his 32-inch arms. In accordance with Mockdraftable, he could be beneath the 33.5 inch mark of the typical EDGE that attended the Mix. Nonetheless, I feel he makes use of his lack of size slightly nicely in comparison with different undersized EDGE defenders. In opposition to the run, he can get a little bit nosey on the sting, peeking his head inside when he’s speculated to set the sting, however when he’s on the road of scrimmage he doesn’t keep blocked. You possibly can’t block him with tight ends, as a result of he’ll simply dodge round them on break up circulation blocks and make performs within the backfield.

He’s an instinctual run defender, which can result in him typically guessing fallacious on the sting however when he’s proper he causes havoc within the backfield. When used as a stack linebacker, Walker is a hammer coming ahead within the run recreation, and his relentless nature provides him a number of splash as a run defender.

As a move rusher, he’s distinctive … however in a great way! He’s received shorter arms, however his palms are within the ninetieth percentile and heavy as SHIT. When he’s capable of get his palms right into a linemen’s chest, he can win a number of reps, which is shocking for a man that’s an undersized move rusher. His go-to exterior move rush is one the place he places his inside hand within the linemen’s chest, however makes use of his exterior hand to seize the wrist of the offensive lineman, clearing up his path to the skin. His highly effective and robust palms mixed with an amazing get off give him a lot extra of a pathway to win, and it exhibits on tape and within the superior metrics. It is a good instance of it in opposition to Notre Dame. The correct deal with places his exterior hand out, however Walker grabs it and creates his personal lane by sheer pressure and can, and will get a strain that forces an incompletion.

He does it in opposition to Texas as nicely, however that is the place his counters begin to are available. He grabs the skin hand of the appropriate deal with, however as an alternative of forcing his option to the sting, he dips again inside and forces the QB to maneuver off his spot.

Staying out on the sting, Walker can also use an inside rip counter that basically exhibits off his explosion and urgency on the skin. It’s not at all times constant, however Walker has proven the move rush potential on the inside and outside to actually be impactful as a full time move rusher.

Let’s discuss concerning the phrase “versatility” together with Jalon Walker. Like I stated up prime, for each Zack Baun, you get an Isaiah Simmons, guys with out established positions who find yourself floating round looking for a sticking level. For achievement tales like Baun this previous yr, it occurred due to giving him a solidified position at linebacker, whereas with the ability to transfer him alongside the sting to vary the fronts and create totally different appears.

For Walker, he has a longtime position as an EDGE defender–and one at that. Nonetheless, he turns into extra helpful when you’ve got the choice to make use of him as a spinner to unlock favorable matchups for him or create alternatives for others on protection. On the planet that we reside in defensively, simulated pressures and having guys who can line up in several alignments without having to sacrifice our bodies to defend the move is an efficient factor, and Walker might be the engine of a move protection in that type. As a blitzer, you possibly can line him up over guards and he can create havoc that approach, as he does with this fast inside transfer that forces the QB to step right into a sack:

Or he might be the spy on cellular QBs, as he did in opposition to a lot of Georgia’s opponents:

If he’s going ahead, Walker is usually a monster defender for a artistic defensive coordinator.

General, if we’re asking the query of what to do with Jalon Walker, I feel Walker answered it himself:

Walker is a rattling good soccer participant, however as an EDGE defender he might be every little thing {that a} trendy protection desires to be.