NFL Draft Prospects 2019: Edge Rusher - Nick Bosa, Ohio State

The Bosa family bloodline is well known with father John being a former first-round pick by the Dolphins in 1986 and brother Joey a former third overall pick, who was the Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2016 and is viewed as a perennial Pro Bowler going forward. However, it is Nick who might be the most talented of the bunch and he has been the number one overall prospect on many people’s boards throughout this draft prospect.

The Fort Lauderdale native was a top-five national recruit and was part of Ohio State’s ridiculously deep rotation as a freshman. He exploded in 2017 with 16 tackles for loss and eight sacks despite actually starting just four games and was named Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year as well as in the all-conference first-team. He saw his junior season cut short by a core muscle injury and decided to focus on his preparation for the draft.

This kid has prototype size at around 6’4”, 265 pounds with the second-best quads I’ve seen at the combine behind Saquon Barkley. Nick Bosa is a very powerful and disciplined run defender. He comes out of his stance with excellent pad-level, has great core strength and plays with perfect extension.

Bosa gets quick penetration on a bunch of plays, while being able to stack and squeeze gaps as good as pretty much anybody in the run game. When he is unblocked, his eyes go up to see a potential keep of the ball by the quarterback and instantly progress to any pulling linemen.

For as much as everybody talks about Bosa as a pass-rusher, he was equally as impressive as a run defender in his full sophomore campaign, earning an elite grade by Pro Football Focus in that area as well. He plays with a burning-hot motor at all times. In last year’s season-opener versus Oregon he got a couple of sacks and recovered two fumbles.

Bosa has an excellent get-off and he combines that speed around the edge with well-placed variations of hand combats and the ability to flatten towards the quarterback. He doesn’t quite string his arms and lower body together as well as his brother, but he is getting there. Double-hand swipes, club-rip, speed to power and push-pull moves are all part of the menu. Bosa shortens the edge with power and technique over pure bend. He has a feel for when offensive tackles shift their weight outside and he can win with inside moves or when he bull-rushes and he can throw them out of the way.

The D-end has that natural grip strength to work push-pull moves and just yank guys to the side by their pads to open up a path to the QB for himself. He absolutely crushed USC’s left tackle in the 2018 Cotton Bowl, but he can also overpower his opponents, for example when Oklahoma tried to block him with a pulling guard in protection and Bosa just threw that guy into Baker Mayfield and finished the play.

He doesn’t care for a chip by the RB and treats them like little kids when he’s past the tackle. All that earned the second-highest pass-rushing grade in the country in 2017 and he was right there with his brother’s number according to PFF. He has some experience standing up and sliding inside on third downs as well.

On a few occasions, Bosa gets confused by running schemes and gets caught ball-watching. He has below-average arm length at 33 inches and doesn’t have an elite get-off, displayed by not having very explosive leaping numbers at the combine. Bosa was held under control for the most part by Michigan’s Mason Cole back in 2017, who is a well-rounded and -coached player. He also doesn’t have the most range as a tackler and never really piled on big total numbers in that department.

You don’t want to take the easy comparison to his brother Joey, but Nick is so much like the Chargers' defensive end. He is technically sound, powerful and shows all-out effort. Purely based on talent this Bosa might be even more talented than his brother Joey, even if he isn’t quite as technically sound as the NFL-proven edge rusher.

If you are looking for a sure thing with one of those top three picks, I don’t think you can go wrong with this guy. He’s all ball, all the time and he will give you a consistently dominant presence on the edge for more than a decade, whether that is setting a hard edge or getting home as a pass rusher in a variety of ways due to his feel for pass-set and the depth of the pocket.

Grade: Top five