2019 NFL Draft: Quinnen Williams could be draft’s best player
Former Alabama Football defensive tackle Quinnen Williams is a Top-5 lock, and might end up being the best overall player to come out of the 2019 NFL Draft.
Quinnen Williams was an under-the-radar prospect entering his redshirt sophomore season at Alabama. He had filled in nicely as a reserve defensive lineman behind Da’Ron Payne in 2017, but there was little indication that he would breakthrough the way he did as a first-year starter.
Williams not only completely alleviated the concerns in the middle, he surprisingly elevated the play at defensive tackle even while replacing a first-round pick. Williams wasted little time showing his dominance, registering 6 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss in his first career start in Alabama’s season opening dismantling of Louisville.
Williams showed that wasn’t just a flash in the pan against an overmatched opponent; he continued his reign of destruction throughout the season, finishing with a team-high 19.5 tackles-for-loss, and 8 sacks. He was unblockable all season long, and helped masked some defensive deficiencies that emerged late in the season.
Williams was a unanimous All-American selection and won the Outland Award as the nation’s top interior lineman. He was arguably college football’s best overall player, grading out higher than any other player according to pro football focus’s evaluations.
Williams even received some Heisman votes, with his season being as dominant as any interior defensive lineman since Ndamukong Suh’s havoc wreaking 2009 campaign at Nebraska. Williams was that good, and with only a year of starting experience under his belt, his ceiling as a player is astronomically high.
Strengths
Williams is a terrific athlete for his size, and he produced some eye-popping combine numbers that backed up what was evident on tape. At 303 pounds, Williams ran a blistering 4.87 40-yard-dash, a number that put him in the same ballpark as athletic marvels like Aaron Donald, who is the best defensive player in the NFL.
Williams’ quick first step allows him to gain an early advantage against interior blockers, and then he does a great job of leveraging his power to shed the blocker and make a play in the backfield. His snap-timing is impeccable, firing off from the line-of-scrimmage like he was shot out of a cannon.
Williams’ motor always runs hot; he’s very fluid with his movement and he has powerful hands. He’s not easily moved off of his spot. Williams is an excellent run-stopper, and is an ideal fit as a 3-technique defensive tackle in a 4-3 scheme.
He also has an array of pass rushing moves, showing excellent counters and swim-moves to get free of blockers. He does a great job of fighting through double teams, something he often had to do last season at Alabama.
He has the potential to be a real difference maker as a pass rusher from the middle; interior disruptors like him are invaluable in today’s NFL.
Weaknesses
*crickets*
I guess the only potential criticism is that Williams doesn’t have a ton of starting experience, and some teams could be concerned about him being a one-hit wonder. That would be foolish, though, considering his combine performance more than backed up what everyone can plainly see on tape.
He’s a three-down player, but he might not be as scheme versatile as some other players. His ideal fit is as a 3-technique in a 4-3; he might struggle to slide over to 1-technique in a 3-4, but I wouldn’t put it past him being strong enough to make it work.
Draft Expectations
At the top of the draft board, it’s 1A and 1B between Williams and Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa. That doesn’t mean that one of these players is going No. 1 and the other No. 2 though; it rarely works out that the two best players in a draft class are actually the top two picks.
It looks like Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray is going to be the No. 1 pick to the Cardinals, leaving the 49ers to choose between Bosa and Williams at No. 2. I think it’s 50-50 on which route they go, but if they go Bosa, it wouldn’t shock me to see him slip past the Jets at No. 3 with their need for an edge rusher probably outweighing their need for a defensive tackle. The Raiders would be in a similar conundrum at No. 4.
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While it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Williams slide a little with teams reaching for need, it’s hard to see him falling past No. 5 with Tampa Bay. He’s too talented, and is liable to be the best player available on draft boards as soon as the Cardinals are on the clock.