I have a bit of a unique spin on Aaron Donald. (not a pitt panther fan either)
Aaron Donald, DE/DT/OLB Pittsburgh
Aaron Donald has been a hot topic as of late drawing comparisons to Geno Atkins as an undersized DT that shows a very unique pass rushing ability from the interior. He is a disruptive player that shows an excellent motor and perfect, absolutely perfect use of hands.
In my opinion he has absolutely no business as a DE in a 34, would be a completely useless waste of his best talent. At 6-0 and ~285 pounds hes short and stocky, when you want DEs to be long and be able to stack up blockers. I have watched a lot of him over the last week and I would like to say that moving him to OLB would not be a waste, he would be a highly unique player at the position, but the outcome of moving him there makes me see an unblockable rusher. His use of hands and explosion would be a nightmare for tackles to deal with, he does have the ability to bend around the corner and with him being short (Like james harrison) he is tough to really land a hand on, mostly because he can get under tall OTs and out leverage them. And while harrison was a freakishly strong 240, Donald would encompass all of his best skill sets while being a bit bigger and showing relentless pursuit. Really I think he'll end up finding a home in a 43 as a UT, he may be an all pro but his floor is a situational interior pass rusher.
I think switching him to OLB, maybe having him shave off 10-15 pounds would be a terror of an edge rusher. I would think of guys like adalius thomas who found a home on the outside even though by standard size he was a behemoth OLB.
Based on his frame I dont think he'd be the same player if he put on 20 pounds to be a dlinemen in the NFL, but I do think he would be an even better one if he dropped a few and moved to the outside.
Outland Trophy (Outstanding Interior Linman)
Vince Lombardi Award (Outstanding Lineman/Linebacker)
Chuck Bednarik Award (Defensive Player of the Year)
Bronco Nagurski Trophy (Defensive Player of the Year)
Highlight arent the best way to evaluate a player, but watch the use of his hands and how he positions his body, its borderline brilliant
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45O_bC8SKtE[/url]
Career 64 tackles for loss and 31.5 sacks.
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