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Jason Pierre-Paul - DE - South Florida
Height: 6'6
Weight: 270
40 Time: 4.72
Projected: 1st-2nd

Positives:

- Extremely athletic
- Prototypical size with very long arms
- Very quick first step
- Fast
- Good strength
- Uses his hands well
- Does a good job of disengaging blocks
- Uses his long arms to get his hands on a lot of throws
- Can play DE or 3-4 OLB
- Has some experience dropping back in college
- A lot of potential

Negatives:

- Very inexperienced, only 1 year at USF
- Inconsistent
- Only 6.5 sacks
- Doesn't have a lot of pass-rush moves
- Needs to be coached up on technique
- Needs to play lower
- Doesn't always use his quick speed
- Struggles vs. double teams
- Could be better against the run
- Takes himself out on run plays at times
- Poor tackler
- Plays out of control
- Boom or bust pick

Overview:

There is no doubt Jason Pierre-Paul has the potential of becoming one of the best pass-rushers in the NFL. His combination of size, athleticism and strength is very intriguing. However, he is very inexperienced having only played football since his senior year in high school. He played 2 years of JUCO before coming to USF as a junior. On top of that he only has 6.5 sacks to show for, not very productive for a guy with his capability. On film it is clear he is very raw and needs a lot of coaching at the next level before he makes any type of impact. He needs to work on some of the fundamentals and then go on to expanding his pass-rush moves. He is definitely a boom or bust pick and I think he is a 1st-2nd round pick because of that. I think if a team takes him in the Top 15 and expects him to contribute right away, they will be very sorry.

SKILLS
1-poor, 2-weak, 3-above average, 4-very good, 5-elite

STRENGTH: 3.5
QUICKNESS: 4.5
PASS RUSH: 4.0
POINT OF ATTACK: 3.0
RECOGNITION: 2.5
MOTOR: 3.5

JASON PIERRE-PAUL
6-6/265
South Florida Junior

PROS: Has a quick first step with the speed and burst to turn the corner. Can make the stop in the backfield. Flashes potential as a bull rusher. Wows you with his body control, athleticism, long arms, and tall frame. Good leaping ability to bat down passes and potentially block field goals. Does a good job on the backside pursuit. Has a good motor and does a nice job finishing plays.
CONS: Lacks technique and raw. Relies on his superior athleticism to beat blockers. Lacks technique, and doesn't use his hands well to disengage from blocker. Not as explosive upfield when he plays with his hand off the ground. Can get engulfed by blockers at the point of attack and has trouble getting off blocks. Needs to be a better wrap-up tackler in space. Will miss sacks and stops in the backfield because he doesn't break down well there.
OVERVIEW: Has the athleticism and frame that reminds you of a young Jevon Kearse and has the potential to be a dominant pass rusher. Often used across USF line, playing mostly left end, but also getting some work inside at tackle on passing downs and playing as a rush linebacker. Only played one year at USF where he had 16.5 TFLs and 6.5 sacks. Played at two different junior colleges, where he combined for 25 sacks in two years. Has had issues with academics in the past and only began to play football as a junior in high school.
NFL FORECAST: He's raw, and I'm not sure a team can expect him to come in and impact right away. He just doesn't have a natural feel or instincts for football. But teh sky is the limit with his potential. He doesn't have the technique to think he'll be more than a situational guy as a rookie. But he could be productive in that role, although I don't think he'll have 14.5 sacks as a rookie like Kearse did. With coaching he can develop into a more well-rounded player, but he's raw. And if he doesn't develop, it wouldn't be surprising. He's a boom/bust prospect that could be an elite pass rusher or wash out of the league in four years. He could also play linebacker in a 3-4 scheme, but I'm not sure his potential there is nearly as high as it is at defensive end. He's going to have to fill out, improve his technique, and be coached up. But I believe he should be a capable pro, but not sure he'll ever develop into the elite pass rusher that he can be.
ATL FORECAST: He can contribute right away as a situational pass rusher in Atlanta. But I'm not sure the Falcons would be a team that he could maximize his production in that role. He really needs a year to fill out before he can be expected to make significant contributions to the lineup. But even still, it wouldn't surprise me if he doesn't have more than a handful of sacks in his first two or so years in Atlanta. He's a guy that I think needs to probably add 10-15 more pounds and get up to around 275 to really reach his potentail. He'll never be a great run stopper, but can make plays in pursuit much like Abraham does. He could succeed in Atlanta because he won't be asked to do too much vs. the run early in his career, maximizing his pass rush potential as he develops more technique. But he's unlikely to reach his full potential until 2012 or 2013.
VALUE: He has Top 10 ability as a far as his athletic potential goes, but I think would be a reach before pick No. 25 in the draft because of how raw he is.

SKILLS
1-poor, 2-weak, 3-above average, 4-very good, 5-elite

STRENGTH: 4.0
QUICKNESS: 4.5
PASS RUSH: 4.0
POINT OF ATTACK: 2.5
RECOGNITION: 2.5
MOTOR: 3.5

Pros: Great size, quickness, speed, athleticism, frame and arm length. He is an amazing athlete. He has great edge speed, flies off the ball and flashes the ability to use his vines for arms to keep blockers at bay. He is an effective speed rusher and can get the edge well. I’m not sure he is a quick-twitch pass rusher, but he flashes some flexibility to bend and get under the tackle’s blocks. Seems to understand pad level and packs a bit of a punch as a hitter. Flashes good counter moves and pass rushing moves such as a spin and swim move, but needs to develop these further. Seems to have a good motor.

Cons: He is extremely raw and has only one year of starting experience playing Division I football. He struggles to disengage from blocks once the offensive lineman gets his hands on him, and really needs to improve his hand usage as well as just get stronger. He struggles at the point of attack against the run at times because he is so tall it is easier for lineman to get their hands into his pads and drive him back. He needs to get his pads down and keep his feet moving, but he doesn’t do that well. He also struggles to break down in space to make the tackle, and will be left looking at air because he didn’t attempt a tackle with sound fundamentals. I’m not sure he always plays smart, as sometimes he seems slow to read and react to run plays.

Overall: Pierre-Paul has sky-high potential. He is an amazing athlete and has shown flashes of what he can do as a pass rusher, he just needs to develop further, improve his fundamentals and fill out his frame. This is easier said than done, but if he is drafted by a patient organization with a good coaching staff he will have every opportunity to succeed. He can’t be rushed into playing time before he is ready, though he seemed to improve a bit as the season went on as far as his fundamentals and pass rush moves were concerned. He needs to be developed patiently, but if he learns to keep his feet moving he will develop as a bull rusher, and if he improves his hand usage as well as his strength he will start to shed blocks more effectively. This would make him more effective at the point of attack versus the run and it would increase his effectiveness as a pass rusher. But until he develops and becomes more fundamentally sound he will just be a great athlete, not a great football player.

Projection: Top 15-20: He has a boatload of potential but he is very raw. Personally I wouldn’t draft him until the earlier portion of round 2, but his athleticism and potential will push him into the top 15 at the end of the day in my opinion.

SKILLS
1-poor, 2-weak, 3-above average, 4-very good, 5-elite

STRENGTH: 3.0
QUICKNESS: 4.5
PASS RUSH: 4.0
POINT OF ATTACK: 2.5
RECOGNITION: 2.5
MOTOR: 3.5