Here’s the skinny on Zion; here’s a 2 star kid that worked his way to becoming a low 3 star. We were the first P5 to show him love, & that’s b/c our OL recruiting that yr was really trashed.
Zion was thrown to the wolves his first yr, & he quite frankly wasn’t physically able to handle the collegiate level of football. He struggled mightily.
Credit to him to put in the work, & had a 180 Sophomore yr. It was his sophomore yr that he started to get 1st round buzz.
Unfortunately, his Jr yr, while still light yrs better than his Freshman yr, took a step back. He gave up one fewer sack than his sophomore more yr, while playing in more games (Sophomore yr was the Covid season), but he gave up a slew of QB hurries & graded poorly as a run blocking tackle.
That led to most draft reports, pre season, lending him to a 3rd - to early 4th round pick. Now, w/ very limited film this season, I’m wondering where he falls in line, now. His measurable are good, but they r not eye popping like Greg was. Greg had three things working for him that Zion doesn’t have if lending a lasting memory:
1. Age: GR15 was an incredibly young draft prospect, & age plays a role w/ GMs
2. GR15 had an absolutely freakish measurable. U won’t find too many DEs w/ his length & size that could bend, bull rush, & play all along the DL (pause)
3. He had an outstanding one & done yr. Crazy stats that rivaled Chase Young from OSU, the consensus top DE in the nation.
Even w that being said, GR15 was out of sight out of mind, w/ JP15 going above him, b/c it was a what gave you done for me lately. GR15 almost didn’t make the 1st round, regardless he was looked at as a sure fire 1st rounder in 2019.
With Zion, not only did his draft grade dip from 2020 to 2021, now it’s out of sight, out of mind, too. Imo, this doesn’t bode well for him in the upcoming draft. I think he’ll go maybe the 5th at this point, if he doesn’t come back.
