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#7 2021 NFL Draft Prospect: Gregory Rousseau (Miami)
6 ’7”, 265 pounds; RS SO
Originally just a three-star recruit, Gregory Rosseau injured his ankle two games into his true freshman season and redshirted the year.
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He started his second season as a backup, but quickly entered the starting lineup and was one of the most productive players in the country, leading the Hurricanes with 15.5 sacks, 19.5 tackles for loss and a couple of fumbles forced in 2019, earning him first-team All-ACC honors, before opting out last season. Originally projected to be a top-ten pick in the early mock drafts, he has become one of the most polarizing names out there.
What stands out about Rosseau the second you put on the tape is what kind of freakish athlete he is, which starts with those lanky limbs and the way he can run like a track athlete seemingly, which at his measurements is really scary. Yet, he also has the quick-twitch athleticism to play both options at the mesh point on zone reads and other things.
When he is unblocked, he either reacts by flattening down the line, either to crash into pulling linemen or blow up ball-carriers before they can cross the line of scrimmage on those short-yardage runs right up the gut. Just check out his fourth-down stop versus Virginia.
When he does approach pulling linemen or H-backs on sift/kickout blocks, he shows no regard for his own body. With his length and strength, I could see him transition to a base D-end in a 3-4, where he is asked to double-team at times. Rosseau has some experience rushing from a two-point stance, dropping into the flats every once in a while or stay in the middle as basically a spy.
However, you are drafting this guy to be a true difference-making pass-rusher and he flashes all the physical traits for it – he has the ability to win with speed around the edge, go through the chest of tackles or shove them out of the way at some point.
His suddenness and length make him an absolute nightmare on stutter swims maneuvers, plus he hits a very impressive chop-rip move at times. And with his ankle flexibility, he can get those late wins, where he is engaged head-on with a blocker and then all of a sudden step around them and get a hit on the quarterback.
That quickness and burst also allow him to trip quarterbacks up from behind on many occasions, as they try to take off. Rosseau has plenty of experience with sliding inside, as a three-technique on plenty of base downs, but especially in passing situations, where he even lines up straight over the center, and the Hurricanes had him stunt into B-gaps or loop all the way outside quite a bit from that spot. Opposing teams started doubling the talented D-lineman for Miami at a high rate as games went along, with tight-ends staying in protection or backs setting to the outside.
At this point, Rosseau is a raw player. He engages way too straight up and kind of just plays, without a real approach. As a run defender, he needs to attack one half of the man, lock out and see through the blocker, rather than allowing guys to get into his chest and try looking around them.
As a pass-rusher, he seems to have no plan yet either, not using any pro-active moves to stress around the arc and then converting to power, timing up his swipes or reading the pass-sets of his opponents. While he will toss them to the side at some point, you can get away with putting a tight-end or back on him in the quick game, because he doesn’t know to exploit those matchups yet.
Even though he has done limited stand-up work, I project him to be a pure hand-in-the-dirt player, where he already has plenty to work on already, as he transitions to the pros. Seven of his 15.5 sacks came in back-to-back games against Florida State, who rotating two guards, who were way too slow-footed for him, and then Pittsburgh, where he could chase down a pretty limited athlete in Kenny Pickens, trying to extend plays and not getting rid of the ball.
If a prospect produces despite lacking technique, you can see that as a positive of course, but Rosseau just doesn’t win around the edge consistently and stumbles into those clean-up sacks on tape.
Rosseau is far from a refined player at this point, which is understandable since we only have one year of film on him (546 career snaps), when he was only 19 years old.
However, I think he definitely presents a risk, since so much of his production was due to being a way superior athlete, who got banged around and somehow ended up taking down the quarterback. I don’t mind investing in a player like that at some point on day two, if my D-line coach thinks he can mold him into a great player. But I think Rosseau’s numbers combined with that athletic profile will get him drafted too high for my liking. Envisioning him adding a little more weight and playing over the tackle and inside actually seems more exciting to me.
