2018 NFL Mock Draft: Complete first round post NFL Combine
Pick Analysis. Linebacker. Boise State. 28. Scouting Report. Leighton Vander Esch. player. 55
Needs: ILB, QB, S
Leighton Vander Esch is an inside linebacker in a 3-4 defense at the next level. He’s a big body at 6-foot-4 and 256 pounds who can run and jump per the NFL Combine. Vander Esch ran a 4.65 in the 40 which isn’t fantastic for a 4-3 inside linebacker but is less important in a 3-4. He is extremely explosive having jumped 39. inches in the vertical and 124 inches in the broad jump.
Vander Esch also posted a 4.15 20 yard shuttle which shows a quickness and change of direction of a running back which is rare for a defender his size.
The Steelers need a linebacker to replace Ryan Shazier after his injury. Eventually Mike Tomlin will have to replace Ben Roethlisberger, but it won’t be in the first round of the 2018 draft. Instead, the Steelers will bolster their defensive unit and try to find Big Ben’s replacement either in the later rounds or in the 2019 draft. Mason Rudolph, the former Oklahoma State quarterback, actually would make a lot of sense for the Steelers in the second round.