NFL Draft 2019 Scouting Report: ILB Devin White, LSU

*Our LB grades can and will change as more information comes in from Pro Day workouts, leaked Wonderlic test results, etc. We will update ratings as new info becomes available.

Devin White might be our top ILB prospect in the 2019 NFL Draft. It’s not a given, a see a few contenders for that top grade including a linebacker who wasn’t invited to the NFL Combine…but White will definitely be up near the top of the grades/ranks among linebackers. However, I’m not as excited about what I see with White as the national analysts are… I don’t believe he’s a top 10 draft pick type talent – but I understand the case for it. It’s not crazy that he goes highly in the 2019 NFL Draft, but I’m not on-board.

White has everything going for him right now… He went to a respected SEC school for defensive players. He had fantastic numbers at the NFL Combine. He was the #1 ILB prospect for everyone going into this process and hasn’t done anything to alter that.

White has legit reason to be the #1 ILB prospect – the wonderful Combine numbers…a 4.42 runner at 237 pounds is a ‘wow’. His pure speed is faster than all the 200+ pound RB prospects in this draft (and most NFL 200+ pound backs). He’s won awards for his play. Everyone has been on-board for years. He had a nice career in the SEC. So why am I a little reticent?

Two reasons…the tape and the numbers.

1) The numbers…

Absolutely, White’s size and speed are something to work with and cherish. He just looks like a top NFL linebacker. However, it nags me that he had such a ‘meh’ career at LSU. I mean that from the ‘wow’ perspective. We’re told that White is the greatest thing, so I expect him to be racking up tackles all over the place. Yet, I look and see that most of his games he gets just 3-5 solo tackles a game.

The past two seasons, 26 games, White has had five or fewer solo tackles in a game 21 times. Three or fewer solo tackles 12 times; nearly half his games as ‘the man’.

And for a guy who does a fair amount of run and pass blitzes, he doesn’t have ‘wow’ TFL or sacks tallies. In four of his last 6 games, he didn’t register a TFL…this from a 4.42 running monster who blitzes a bunch.

White’s performance numbers show ‘good’ not great.

2) The tape…

The tape backs up the weaker/sluggish tackle totals. White just isn’t a force of nature at middle linebacker. He’s good. He’s fast to get to some stuff, but usually I saw White blitzing past the play, guessing wrong, or just late to the action. I can see his raw athleticism on tape, but I don’t see this ‘wow’ linebacker we’ve all been sold on.

White, to me, is a ‘grabby’ tackler versus form tackler. He chases and grabs, usually a lot of chasing and not as much getting to the play.

There are times when he’s unblocked and blasts off after a tackle, usually on a short pass catch and he makes a nice, strong hit. That might happen 1-2x a game. Mostly, I see White floating around not in the action all that much. I expected to see much more here.

Despite the ‘meh’ output and tape, I do believe he’s a top NFL prospect because of his size-speed alone. He might refine or change/improve his game in the NFL and be very good. He’ll get a lot of chances to show it and has the raw tools no other ILB prospect has. I’m just not totally sold on White’s greatness as of this moment.

Additionally, you have White’s high school past that isn’t spoken of much/at all. Several police run-ins, and not just for pranks – sex with a minor (he and another teammate) and he also has ‘fleeing from the police’ on record as well. He was dismissed from playing in the Under Armour All-American game because of all the issues. Now, he’s seemingly turned that around. He was a captain for LSU and a noted hard worker. It looks like he’s turned his life around, BUT he’s about to get millions shoved in his pocket – what’s going to happen now? It’s a question teams will be debating before making him a high draft pick.

White comes off a bit too arrogant and cocky for me in interviews. He wavers from consciously ‘saying the right thing’ to slipping back into his natural state…which is a bit arrogant/better than everyone at football. It’s a fine line between real confident and fake confident. I’m not sure which side of that line White falls on.

If I was advising an NFL team on White, I’d say his measurables say he’s a ‘B+/A-’ prospect, at minimum. But seeing his tape, questioning his number output/performance, and not being overly impressed with his background check – I’d advise them to ‘pass’. He’s not THAT special of a talent overall, today…though he could be groomed into something better…if he can be groomed.

Devin White, Through the Lens of Our ILB Scouting Algorithm:

Checkout these stat lines from 2017 and 2018…

2017 v. Syracuse…1 solo tackle, 12 assisted tackles

2017 v. Ole Miss…0 solo tackles, 3 assisted

2017 v. Alabama…1 solo, 8 assisted

2017 v. Arkansas…1 solo, 13 assisted

2017 v. Tennessee…2 solo, 9 assisted.

In 2017, White had a four-game stretch vs. top SEC teams in which he registered 4 solo tackles and 37 assisted. Just ruminate on that for a moment and wonder - how is that even possible?

2018 v. Georgia 1 tackle, 12 assisted

2018 v. Ole Miss…0 tackles, 6 assisted

I think White is the beneficiary of favorable scoring that allots him a lot of assisted tackles, which pumps up the statements like “White had 13 tackles against Georgia!” No, he had 1 solo tackle and bunch of pattycake assisted ones.

For his career…114 solo tackles, 172 assisted

Against Georgia, Alabama 2x, Ole Miss, Florida 2x, Auburn 2x in his career: 26 solo tackles, 57 assisted…3.3 solo tackles per game, double+ that in assisted tackles.

White’s last two seasons seem to follow a pattern – a bunch of low output/no solo tackle efforts vs. SEC/D1 opponents until the last two games of the year, and in bowl games he starts to crank it up a bit. Which makes me worry he’s not going to focus once he gets paid. On the other hand, it also tempts me because it seems like he can turn it up/has another gear/has more to offer.

2019 NFL Combine Measurables…

6’0.0”/237, 9.8” hands, 32.1” arms

4.42 40-time, 2.58 20-yard, 1.56 10-yard

4.17 shuttle, 7.07 three-cone

22 bench press, 39.5” vertical, 9’10” broad jump

The Historical ILB Prospects to Whom Devin White Most Compares Within Our System:

Hasson Reddick proved if you’re super-fast/athletic…it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re automatically a great inside linebacker. 

Didn’t love Tremaine Edmunds as an ILB but loved him as an OLB profile. White might grade better as an OLB too. 

*A score of 8.00+ is where we see a stronger correlation of LBs going on to become NFL good/great/elite. A score of 10.00+ is more rarefied air in our system, and indicates a greater probability of becoming an NFL elite LB.

All of the LB ratings are based on a 0–10 scale, but a player can score negative, or above a 10.0 in certain instances.

Tackle-Strength Metrics = A combination of several physical and performance measurements. An attempt to classify the LB prospect's ability to stop the run, as well as to gauge how physical the player is, and the likelihood of higher tackle counts in the NFL. All based on profiles of LBs historically.

Speed-Agility Metrics = A combination of several speed, agility, and size measurements...as well as game performance data to profile a LB for speed/agility based on LBs historically. A unique measuring system to look for LBs that profile for quickness, pass-coverage ability, and general ability to cover more ground.

2019 NFL Draft Outlook:

He’s going top 15 because all the momentum and that Combine performance will push him there.

If I were an NFL GM, I’m not buying White for 1st-round money. He’s a good player, kinda…and has great talent to work with, but if I’m paying 1st-round money I want a ready-made star with no red flags off the field. I can’t pay for Devin White based on what I see. If I’m wrong, so be it.

NFL Outlook:   

Will get shoved into a starting lineup right away because of the draft status. He’ll play a lot and thus he’ll have some numbers/perform OK…he’s not terrible. He might have some growing pains and then really hit in a 2-3 years or he might flash as a rookie and then slowly fade away…his tendency is to crank it up some when it matters and then fades when no one seems to be looking. 

4/4/2019