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Adetomiwa Adebawore – Defensive lineman – 22 years old – Senior – Northwestern
Height: 1m88
Weight: 127kg
Estimated position in the draft: end of 1st-2nd round
2022 stats: 12 matches, 38 tackles including 9 for losses, 5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles
NFL comparison: Grady Jarrett (Falcons)
From a relatively anonymous player, he was propelled to the front of the stage thanks to a stratospheric performance that highlighted his extraordinary physical qualities. To the point of making people forget their shortcomings on the pitch?
Strong points
– Physical
– First step
– Versatility
Strong, powerful and fast. These are three qualities that Adetomiwa Adebawore possesses. A former shot putter in high school, where he won the Missouri championship, he is undeniably an outstanding athlete, and he proved it in the combine. His time of 4.49 at 40 yards is the event record for a player weighing 125 kg or more. Add to that the second-best long jump from a standing start, and the third-best jump, and you have an athletic monster.
On the field, Adebawore knows how to use his physical qualities perfectly to beat the opposing offensive line. Most often lined up between the guard and the tackle, he uses his devastating first step to penetrate the gap with disconcerting ease. For an offensive lineman, effectively stopping such a heavy and lively player from the snap is extremely complicated.
When he arrived at Northwestern, Adetomiwa Adebawore was almost exclusively lined up on the outside, as a pure edge rusher. But the more the years passed, the more he gained muscle and he finally, little by little, found himself playing more and more inside, like a DT 4-3. He obviously doesn’t have the physique needed to play as a nose tackle, but this versatility could allow him to play in a 4-3 as in a 3-4 at almost any position on the line.
Weak points
– Between two stations
– Lack of technique
– Missed tackles
Unfortunately for Adebawore, when you’re good everywhere, you usually excel nowhere. Its versatility, if it can be seen as a great quality, is also a defect. Impossible today to know what will be his best position in the NFL. He wandered around the Wildcats defensive line so much that he didn’t settle on a position.
Incredible physically, Adetomiwa Adebawore still lacks technique, especially in the pass rush. When he fails to win at the beginning of the game thanks to his power and his first step, he is no longer dangerous. He’s having trouble getting rid of the blocker, because he just doesn’t have enough moves in his palette. A tackle with good hands, of which there are many in the NFL, can easily control Adebawore.
If missed tackles are often seen as a problem that mainly concerns defensive backs, it becomes more worrying when it is a fault of the defensive lineman. Adetomiwa Adebawore misses far too many tackles. In his senior season, he missed 13 tackles, or 25% of missed tackles. A catastrophic number.
Possible destinations
New Orleans Saints, Philadelphia Eagles, Cincinnati Bengals
Athlete out of the ordinary, Adetomiwa Adebawore is one of the huge question marks of this draft. Understated at Northwestern, his recent stunt performance has shed some light on him, so much so that some teams are likely questioning the possibility of using a first-round pick on him, something highly unlikely until recently. three months ago. The team that will select Adebawore will have to be patient, because he looks much more like a long-term project than a player ready to start from the first week of the 2023 season.