NFL Draft Profile: DE Shemar Stewart

Breaking down Texas A&M defensive end Shemar Stewart.

One of the most polarizing prospects in this draft class is Texas A&M defensive end Shemar Stewart. Some analysts have him as one of their top 15 players in this draft class while others don’t see him as a first rounder at all. Stewart is so divisive because he’s one of the classic traits vs production type players while also falling into the workout warrior vs football player debate too. When you start looking into Stewart, it’s easy to see why he causes so much debate.

If you look at his combine measurements - 6-foot-5, 267 pounds, 34-inch arms - he looks like what you would build on Madden as a prototype for a defensive end. Then you look at his performance in athletic testing drills at the combine, it gets even more enticing. Stewart ran a 4.59 40-yard dash, fourth among defensive ends this year and the three that were ahead of him all weighed 10-20 pounds less than him. His 10-yard split was 1.58, which ranked third among defensive ends. James Pearce Jr. was the fastest and he ran a 1.56 10-yard split with 20 pounds less weight on his frame. He also ranked second among defensive ends with a 40-inch vertical jump and was the top performer in the broad jump, which are drills to test explosiveness.

On paper and in the gym, Stewart has everything NFL teams are looking for from a defensive end in terms of physical profile. However, If you then look at his production from college, you get a completely different story. Stewart had 4.5 sacks total across three seasons at Texas A&M. That’s an average of just 1.5 sacks per season. Now sacks aren’t the most effective way of measuring the production and effectiveness of a pass rusher, but you would still expect a player of his athletic profile to have accumulated far more sacks than that in three years.

Already then, it’s clear to see why Stewart is such a debated prospect. But we’ve only looked at athletic testing numbers and box scores so far. The most important part of any evaluation is the film. So what does the tape say about Stewart’s athletic profile vs his production? Well, it’s mixed. I think a lot of people will see what they want to see when studying Stewart’s play from college. There certainly are reps where he looks fantastic and dominates a play, but there’s also reps where he looks like a player nowhere near ready to be a first round pick.

Here is a play that shows the raw potential of Stewart. He works against the Notre Dame left tackle on this play and displays a lot of the traits you’re looking for in an NFL pass rusher. Stewart comes off the snap with good burst, accelerating up the field before throwing a euro-step at the left tackle. That jab step inside forces the tackle to stop his momentum and shift his weight to his inside foot to prepare for the threat of an inside rush.

With the tackle working inside, Stewart suddenly bursts to the edge, dipping low under the outside hand of the tackle and bending around the edge. The left tackle grabs on and frankly tackles him but somehow doesn’t get called for a holding penalty. Stewart can’t quite get to the quarterback as a result, but the pressure was absolutely felt and forced the quarterback to get rid of the ball in a hurry.

It’s not just a one-time thing either. Stewart does consistently demonstrate his quickness and ability to bend. He doesn’t have an elite bend, but it’s pretty good for a guy of his size.

This time, Stewart works inside as part of a stunt with the linebacker lined up inside of him. The linebacker rushes straight up the field to the outside shoulder of the left guard, trying to occupy him and create an opportunity for Stewart to loop around him and get inside. Stewart takes two very quick steps up the field off the snap, getting very close to the left tackle to sell the fake rush up the field. He then suddenly changes direction and works inside, looping around his teammate.

The move happens so fast the left tackle and guard have very little time to react. The tackle can’t take over the block on the linebacker, so the guard can’t peel off and pick up Stewart. Stewart shows off his bend as he gets low and turns tightly around the guard as he penetrates into the backfield. Unfortunately the quarterback was alert to the pressure and started to scramble away as Stewart arrived. Stewart couldn’t quite redirect after the stunt and failed to finish the play, but again the pressure and traits involved in creating that pressure were there.

Stewart isn’t all about speed and bend though, he also has a raw power to his game.