Positional ranking: #7

Big Board ranking: #58

 

Overview

Position: EDGE

College: Florida

Class: Junior

Age: 21

 

Measurables

Height: 6’2 5/8”

Weight: 258 lbs.

Arm length: 32 5/8”

Hand size: 9 3/4″

 

Athletic testing

40-yard dash: 4.84 sec.

Vertical jump: 32.0”

Broad jump: DNP

Bench press: DNP

3-cone drill: DNP

Short shuttle: DNP

 

Strengths

Extremely slippery edge defender. Twitchy and bendy. Knows the subtleties of the position. Great first step with an excellent speed rush. Quick feet. Dips to defeat length. Uses an inside counter to compliment his speed. Has a violent spin move in his arsenal. Hands have some surprising power. Plays longer than his length suggests. Can line up on either side of the formation. Good closing burst/range. Strikes the quarterback in the desired target area. Shows flashes setting the edge against the run. Attacks the ball when he gets to the quarterback. Big-time production as a junior with 19.5 tackles for loss and 11.0 sacks.

 

Weaknesses

Basically a pure finesse player. Could struggle against NFL size/power. Needs to show more consistent effort as a backside defender. Sub-par athletic testing and concerning interview process. Only one season as an impact player.

 

NFL comparison

Melvin Ingram – Despite a lack of length and athleticism, Ingram has turned into a star edge defender for the Chargers, and I think Jachai Polite will need to match his relentless play at the next level to reach his full potential.

 

Conclusion

Overall, Jachai Polite has some big-time flaws based on the pre-draft process, but his ability as a pure pass rusher makes his upside worth gambling on in the middle of Day 2. I think Polite will be at his best bringing juice off the edge as a 3-4 outside linebacker.