Sheldon Rankins: Prospect Breakdown (with GIFs)

Next up in Just Blog Baby’s coverage of the 2016 NFL Draft is a breakdown of Louisville defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins.

With the 14th overall selection, Sheldon Rankins might not fill the biggest need for the Oakland Raiders, but he could be the best player on the board.

Also, you can never have too many players who can get after the quarterback.

Let’s jump into the film.

Rankins shows his power at the point of attack in this clip, driving his matchup about six yards and collapsing the pocket. He forces the QB into a bad throw, which ends up being an interception.

Excellent play recognition and impressive display of athleticism on this play. Rankins immediately recognizes the screen and shuts it down.

Rankins can hold up in run support, too. In this example, he does a great job of disengaging the block at the right moment, and then gets the stop.

Rankins needs to develop more counter moves to beat his matchup. Too often, his first attempt won’t win and he’ll get stuck.

Rankins shows off some elusiveness here, dodging the block attempt, sliding off to the side and then getting the run stop.

Next: Sheldon Rankins Film: Part 2