2013 NFL Draft: Kwame Geathers Prospect Profile

September 29, 2012; Athens, GA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs defensive lineman Kwame Geathers (99) tackles Tennessee Volunteers running back Rajion Neal (20) in the second half at Sanford Stadium. The Bulldogs won 51-44. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

Kwame Geathers, Defensive Tackle, for the University of Georgia Bulldogs declared himself ready to take the next step in his career as a football player. If the name Geathers seem familiar to you, it should, because Kwame Geathers come from a family of defensive linemen. His father and uncle, one of his brother, Robert Geathers, all played for the Georgia Bulldogs, as well as his other brother, Clifton Geathers, who played for the Gamecocks. Kwame is a mountain of a man, and plays mainly at the nose tackle position who lines up across the center or left guard. He was part of a talented group at the University of Georgia, and contributed as a junior to their SEC champion title run (though they came up short). His best statistical year was also in his junior year that included 40 tackles, where five were for losses. He will hope to be the third Geathers to make an impact in the NFL level.

Measurables:
6’5″ 342 lbs.

Strengths:
Kwame Geathers is a heavy player who can eat up a lot of space in the center of the line. When he has an advantage over his blocker, Geathers can power his way through him and cause mayhem in the backfield. He plays well against pass blockers, and when he gets into the backfield, he raises his hand to force the quaterback to throw quicker or higher. His skill to stuff the line has people praising him for being a solid run blocker. Geathers shows off some surprising speed when he needs to chase down the runner, and has some nimbleness to him. He has the ability to get off blocks, but needs to show it more consistently and shed quicker.

Weaknesses:
There are a multitude of areas where Geathers needs to work on to even be considered a contributor for any professional teams. The most important factors for an effective defensive tackle is utilizing his pad level, get leverage over the blocker, and to generate explosion from his hips (thank you for the tips on defensive linemen scouting @Zacklopedia). Geathers showed none of these in the first game I watched him against Georgia Tech. Right off the snap, Geathers has a tendency to stand upright and get hit low. He was often beaten by a blocker, who looks almost half his size and weight of Geathers. He also doesn’t generate any explosion off the ground, and he does not appear to utilize his hands to push the blocker backwards. His reaction also looked slow on tape and consistently gets up late, where his opponent can immediately take advantage of his tardiness.

Projection:
Kwame Geathers is somewhat perplexing to evaluate. He shows underaverage skills against lesser opponents, but did everything well during the SEC Championship game. I saw his ability to stand on par, and even on several occasions, beat Alabama’s Barrett Jones. He may be a player that shows up only in big games, and that is concerning for any teams. His pedigree may earn him some positive looks, but it is how he performs on game day that will keep him employed. Geathers’s size fits well for a 4-3 Defensive Tackle position, but his lack of functional strength would disqualify him for the 3-4 Nose Tackle. He is at best a rotational player, who will be called on to give the starter some rest. Expect his name to be called, if he is drafted, around the last two rounds of the NFL Draft.

Grade: 5.5/10