With The First Pick
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2016 NFL Draft: early look at Baylor’s Andrew Billings

By Jon Dove

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Baylor’s Andrew Billings is a thick and surprisingly quick defensive tackle prospect who needs more development. However, he has the natural skills and physical build evaluators look for at the next level. Billings needs to improve in a few specific areas to solidify a strong draft position.

The biggest issue facing Billings right now is his lack of consistency. He flashes the ability to make impact plays but also has too many situations where he’s ineffective. Most of his issues come from the fact he doesn’t routinely fire off the ball and keep his pads down.

This clip shows Billings raising his pad level and driven several yards off the line of scrimmage:

His pad level issues might be a result of questionable awareness and football instincts. Billings struggles to get a good read on the snap which hurts his ability to get off the ball. He compounds the problem by raising his pads which results in him getting driving off the line and keeps him from generating a push on the pocket.

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The awareness issues are limited to snap awareness as there are too many situations where Billings fails to locate the ball carrier. He has a tendency to choose a side of the line to attack rather than reading his keys. This leads to many scenarios where Billings in no position to make a play on the ball.

Billings must commit himself to watching the football, firing out of his stance, keeping his pads down and gaining inside hands. When he does stick to this formula he’s able to disrupt the timing of the offense.

His performance against Oklahoma was a perfect example of how he can dominate the line of scrimmage when he plays smart football. Billings needs to show he can impact games on a week-to-week basis if he hopes to avoid being labeled a flash player.

Current Draft Position: 2nd Round

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