Zacch Pickens NFL Draft 2023: Scouting Report for South Carolina DL

HEIGHT: 6'4"

WEIGHT: 291

HAND: 10 3/8"

ARM: 34 3/8"

WINGSPAN: 81 7/8"

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40-YARD DASH: 4.89

3-CONE: 7.45

SHUTTLE: 4.62

VERTICAL: 30.5"

BROAD: 9'8"

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POSITIVES

– Has good block recognition to put himself in a position to take on opponents.

– Gets his hands up quickly and has the strength to get separation from the offensive lineman.

– Wide and strong base against the run and can be hard to move one-on-one early in games.

– Versus scoop blocks on outside zones, he is solid at holding up offensive linemen to help free the linebackers.

– Decent at using an arm-over to escape as a run defender.

– Gets his hands up to bat passes at the line of scrimmage when he doesn't hit home as a pass-rusher.

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NEGATIVES

– Late reaction to the snap and lacks speed off the ball.

– Stands up out of his stance and is more of a waist bender than a knee bender, allowing offensive linemen with good leverage to get underneath him on running plays and diminishing his effectiveness when bull-rushing.

– His pad level gets worse as the game goes on and he gets tired, impacting his ability to hold up at the point of attack.

– Also has wide hands and poor leg drive to win consistently with a bull rush.

– Not limber or quick enough to execute finesse moves as a pass-rusher.

– His poor get-off is going to be an issue against reach blocks from quicker interior linemen at the next level because he lacks the agility to recover; block recognition will take him only so far.

– Lacks core or rotational strength to fight back when offensive linemen try to turn his shoulders.

– Looks like he has shorter arms, limiting the amount of extension he can get, which, along with not being violent, impacts his ability to shed blocks.

– Struggles with his balance when penetrating.

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2022 STATISTICS

— 12 GM, 42 TOT, 4 TFL, 2.5 SK, 3 PBU

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NOTES

– DOB: March 6, 2000

– A 5-star recruit in the 2019 class, No. 8 overall, No. 1 DT, per 247Sports composite rankings

– 32 career starts

– 2021 honors: SEC Fall Academic Honor Roll, Harold White GPA Award (Defense)

– 2020 honors: SEC Fall Academic Honor Roll

– 2019 honors: SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll, SEC All-Freshman team, honorable mention Freshman All-American (PFF)

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OVERALL

Zacch Pickens is a strong defensive tackle who has the potential to be a rock as a run defender. He can sniff out the offense's blocking scheme to put himself in position to take on blocks and has the strength to lock out offensive linemen and hold his ground one-on-one.

However, it looks like he might have short arms. That limits the amount of extension he can get and makes it more difficult to shed blocks. Also, he's not violent when shedding and seems content to let blockers hang on to him while trying to make the tackle.

Pickens' biggest issue is that you can't expect much from him as a pass-rusher. He's not athletic and nimble enough to execute finesse moves, and his bull rush is held back by a slow get-off and subpar pad level. The only way he'll impact the passing game in the NFL is by getting his hands up to bat passes at the line of scrimmage.

Schematically, he would be best as a two-gapping defensive tackle or 0- to 2i-technique in a gap-control system. That would allow him to sit and be a space-eater against the run without relying on him too much as a pass-rusher. He might need to put on a few pounds, as he's a little light for that role.

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GRADE: 6.9 (Potential Role Player/Round 4)

OVERALL RANK: 93

POSITION RANK: DL12

PRO COMPARISON: Johnathan Hankins

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Written by B/R NFL Draft Scout Matt Holder