2021 NFL Draft: 3 fits for Gregory Rousseau after opting out
By Surae Poole
Gregory Rousseau is on his way to the 2021 NFL Draft after opting out
Top edge rusher in the 2021 NFL Draft Gregory Rousseau, has opted out of the 2020 college football season and plans to begin preparation for the NFL Draft. Without a doubt, he’s the most talented edge rusher in this year’s class. Almost everyone has given Rousseau a preseason first-round grade.
Coming off a season in which he totaled 54 tackles, 19.5 tackles for loss, and 15.5 sacks, every team in the NFL with a need for a talented pass rusher has their eyes on this young man. Rousseau is a raw prospect with a great deal of upside that teams are going to fall in love with. He’s more of an athlete than a refined technician in terms of rushing the passer but his film speaks for itself.
Scott Gorman of Pro Football Network has high praise for Rousseau, tabbing him as his top edge rusher entering the 2020 season:
"“Even for such a young player, he plays the run and pass efficiently, but excels in getting after the passer. He made a living in the backfield during the 2019 season, racking up an ACC-best 19.5 tackles for a loss. More than half of his tackles on the season came behind the line of scrimmage, as offensive lines and slower offensive tackles struggled to come up with an answer to stop the explosive freshman edge rusher.”"
His ceiling is very high, and teams will bank on that. You can assume that there are going to be concerned about the experience since he’s only played one full season of college football. Playing this upcoming season would have done some good for him but it’s hard to argue with his decision.
With the play that he put on tape in 2019, it’s hard seeing a talented kid at a premium position fall out of the top 15 right now. With that being said, let’s look at the top three fits for Gregory Rousseau.