Draft Prospect #3

Continuing my series on the Packers most likely draft picks w/ the 32nd pick in the draft...  This is a player who has been on the radar since he declared for the draft as a true Jr.  He fits a need of the team and is generally rated in the Top 20-35 players.  Sound familiar?  LOL

Akeem Ayers is a 6'3, 254 lb OLB from UCLA.  He is a player who consistently showed up on tape and is known as a playmaker.  He shows excellent athletic ability and agility for the position, but may lack elite speed.  That is really the big question with Ayers...  Does he really have the speed to be a top shelf OLB and pass rusher?  It seems from watching film he does, but it isn't shown on the stopwatch.  So you are left wondering what Ayers true potential at the next level will be.

Ayers is a true SAM LB in either the 34 or 43 defense and offers tremendous scheme versatility, as he can easily play outside or inside in both schemes.  He is adept in coverage, using his unusual quickness and fluidity to stay w/ RB and TE alike.  He has very good ball skills and is also a playmaker in coverage, which is shown by his 6 INT's and 2 TD's scored.  If Ayers didn't become the dominant OLB that your looking for, his versatility and ability to easily slide to ILB would still make him a very good player and starter for most teams.  He also has the ability to breakdown is space and make the tackle.

In run defense, Ayers has the size, strength and willingness to maintain gap discipline and make plays.  Ayers can use his long arms to effectively disengage from blockers and the ability to work thru traffic to make plays down the LOS.  He can get a little high in tackling, but it is more of a technical issue that should go away w/ good coaching on technique.  He at times overruns plays to the outside, but uses his length to still make the tackle.  So while it may be a weakness, he does make the play!  To be more effective at the next level Ayers would do well to increase his lower body strength, which may also improve his explosiveness as a pass rusher.

As a pass rusher, Ayers uses a good burst of the ball and quicknesss to cross the OT's face and has the flexibility to dip his shoulder, flatten out around the corner and close on the QB.  Ayers, while a good pass rusher, at the moment isn't an elite one, either in production or potential.  In college, he used almost exclusively his speed and quickness to beat the OT and is very raw from a technical standpoint.  This will be a limiting factor in the NFL, as he lacks the elite explosiveness most pass rushers have.  However, with work on the technical aspects of pass rushing and increased explosiveness by improving his leg strength he could become a very good, if not elite pass rusher!

Ayers is a very well rounded overall OLB prospect with some potential to improve on his only real weakness, his pass rushing productivity.  The question your left with is...  Do you trust what you see on tape or do you downgrade him significantly for his average speed?  He ran only a 4.8 40 at the combine and 4.7 at his pro day.  He does have a good bust, as his 1.66 10 split shows, tho it isn't as explosive as you would like.  If you believe he can improve his pass rush technique, which he should, and his explosiveness Ayers can become one of the better overall OLB in the NFL.  He may not ever be a 12 -15 sack player, but could easily become a 10 sack player.

It would be very interesting to see which way Thompson and Capers would go at OLB if both Houston and Ayers were available at 32!  Would they go with the scheme versatility and potential of Ayers or the pass rush of Justin Houston?  What do you think?