NFL Draft 2019: Kentucky’s Josh Allen is draft’s top pass rusher
By Shelbie Warr
After choosing to stick around for his senior year, Kentucky edge rusher Josh Allen has turned himself into a can’t miss first round NFL Draft prospect.
Kentucky’s defense was a huge part of their success this season and right in the center of it was edge rusher Josh Allen. The former two-star recruit is now a lock to be a first round pick. However, before we talk about his NFL possibilities, let’s talk about his career at Kentucky.
His freshman season, 2015, he played as a reserve. He had four tackles, including 1.5 for loss. As a sophomore though, he really turned it on. He started nine of 12 games in 2016, finishing with 62 tackles, 8.5 for loss, a team-leading seven sacks and an SEC-leading four forced fumbles. His junior year was the one that everyone was sure would be his last. He started all 13 games, owning top Wildcats numbers with 9.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks. Overall, he had 65 tackles, three pass breakups and two forced fumbles.
He could have left after that and done relatively well in the NFL Draft. However, he chose to stick around and finish out his college career and man was that the right choice. The award list is stacked, Bednarik Award, Nagurski Trophy, First-team AP All-American, and First-team All-SEC, and the numbers were even better. He finished with 88 tackles in 13 games, tied for sixth nationally with 21.5 tackles for loss and second in both sacks (17) and forced fumbles (five).
Strengths
Josh Allen has elite size and speed that leads to his explosiveness. The best part though is that he has the frame to grow and get even stronger than he is right now. He also has the talent to physically challenge NFL tackles and that is a big deal when you are looking to make the break into the next level. He is great at targeting the football and as a result, can strip the ball easily. He’s great at corralling running backs in space and marking tight ends downfield in man coverage.
Weaknesses
His hand usage needs help across the board, though there have been moments that are strong in that category for Allen. He also tends to get covered up and pushed out of position on those runs coming straight at him, which is something that is going to have to be fixed in an NFL camp in the coming months.
QBs surging in latest Mock Draft. dark. Next
Draft Expectations
Josh Allen is one of, if not the best pass rushers in this year’s draft. The hybrid linebacker has potential through the roof across the board and will be making an NFL team very lucky after the quarterback hype train passes by led by Kyler Murray and Dwayne Haskins.