Bob Sturm's Cowboys player profile: Dallas has promising 311-pound force in DT Maliek Collins

[waving monkey]

his is part of my series to study film of each of the Cowboys' 2016 draft picks who were not covered before the draft. Today is the third-round pick, Maliek Collins. We will follow the template from the 50 profiles done before the draft in the early spring.
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I have never been a scout or a NFL general manager, but I am willing to watch a ton of football. By watching about 200 snaps of each prospect, we can really get a feel for a player and then know what we are talking about a bit better. It is no exact science, but the NFL hasn't quite figured out drafting either, so we are going to do the best we can. To read more about the 2016 NFL Draft Project, click here
Maliek Collins, DT, Nebraska - 6-foot-2, 311 pounds - junior - No. 7

The Cowboys entered the draft determined to get better on the defensive line and while they did not spend any of their currency in the 1st or 2nd rounds, they decided in the end to keep the 3rd and 4th round picks for this purpose. The historical record will show that in potential trades up for Paxton Lynch they flirted with trading a 3rd and then a 4th which might have cost them the QB of the future, but in the debates to not "overpay," they would discuss how the defense will suffer if they were to go RB and QB and then not pick again until Day 3.
http://sportsday.***BANNED-URL***/d...s?hootPostID=36cea5b2f9447ef854d4efe50626a562

 

[speedkilz88]

Odd that he expects 3T production when he was forced to play 2 gap NT his Junior year.


3T

2014 (Sophomore)Collins started every game and led the Huskers in tackles for loss with 14, while ranking second on the team with 4.5 sacks and 13 quarterback hurries. Collins totaled 45 tackles, including 17 solo stops. Collins made 12 of his 14 TFL in Big Ten play or the bowl game and posted five or more tackles four times in the final six games.

Collins had a season-high seven tackles against both Rutgers and Iowa. He also had three quarterback hurries each in back-to-back weeks against Rutgers and Purdue and closed the year with five tackles, a sack and two tackles for loss against USC in the Holiday Bowl.

Collins had four tackles, two tackles for loss and two hurries against Miami to close non-conference play. After his seven-tackle effort against Rutgers, Collins had five tackles, a nine-yard sack and three hurries against Purdue. He had a sack and two tackles for loss in the regular-season finale at Iowa.

NT

2015 (Junior)Collins played in every game in 2015 and made 12 starts as the anchor of a strong defensive line. Despite facing two or more blockers much of the time, Collins made 29 tackles, including seven tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. He also had six quarterback hurries on the year.

Collins had three or more tackles four times during the season. His best game came in the Big Ten opener at Illinois when Collins had a career-high nine tackles, including three tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. He had four solo stops at Miami, with three tackles each against Wisconsin and Purdue. Collins had a 10-yard sack at Rutgers and closed the year with two quarterback hurries in the Foster Farms Bowl victory over UCLA.

http://www.huskers.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=206288967

 

[YosemiteSam]

You can't "expect" in the past tense. You have to have expected.

That said, his Anthony Spencer traits (the inability to close the deal) I believe are more about his positioning. Especially when it comes to QB sacks. He needs to stay in a more neutral position until he reaches the point where he can't be deked. That is about vision and quick calculated thought. If he can master those, he will be a force. If he can't. He will be another athletic freak who can't break through on a consistent basis. All his wins will be about offensive breakdowns rather than his ability to exploit his matchup.

 

[speedkilz88]

The #3 pick in the draft is going to have closing issues. But Leon Lett's best sack years was 4 sacks. Anyone who saw him in the super bowl years know that he was a dominant force.

 

[Idgit]

The #3 pick in the draft is going to have closing issues. But Leon Lett's best sack years was 4 sacks. Anyone who saw him in the super bowl years know that he was a dominant force.

When you're pressure is coming from the middle, 'almost' is more valuable than it is coming off the edge. If all he does coming in as the backup 3-tech is get the QB to flush, I'm ok with that. Assuming, of course, that's what he's able to do.

 

[YosemiteSam]

If he collapses the pocket, that's a plus. Unless you have a running QB. Then that only becomes a plus once you CRUSH the rushing QB.

 

[darthseinfeld]

When you're pressure is coming from the middle, 'almost' is more valuable than it is coming off the edge. If all he does coming in as the backup 3-tech is get the QB to flush, I'm ok with that. Assuming, of course, that's what he's able to do.

Exactly. Thats why its not nearly as common to get 10+ sacks from an intirior player. An intirior rush you want winning off the snap, durressing that QB immediately and shortening his clock as well as denying him the ability to step into the pocket

 

[darthseinfeld]

At MLB

 

[chicago JK]

Generating pressure form inside is vital. Especially a Marinelli defense who wants to get pressure with your four lineman. Interior pressure can blow up a play. It also leads to poor decisions by Quarterbacks. In theory in Marinelli's defense which rushes four a lot, that should give the rest of the defenders a few opportunities to make a play on a bad decision by the QB or a poor throw.

His defense, like most defenses, can be picked apart if you are not consistently making that QB uncomfortable.

 

[dfense]

The #3 pick in the draft is going to have closing issues. But Leon Lett's best sack years was 4 sacks. Anyone who saw him in the super bowl years know that he was a dominant force.

I loved Leon. Went to the Thanksgiving Miami game when he boneheaded it. All I remember was he blocked two kicks, smashed the Qb a few times and basically threw guards all over the place. He was a beast of a man.

 

[BAT]

You can't "expect" in the past tense. You have to have expected.

That said, his Anthony Spencer traits (the inability to close the deal) I believe are more about his positioning. Especially when it comes to QB sacks. He needs to stay in a more neutral position until he reaches the point where he can't be deked. That is about vision and quick calculated thought. If he can master those, he will be a force. If he can't. He will be another athletic freak who can't break through on a consistent basis. All his wins will be about offensive breakdowns rather than his ability to exploit his matchup.

Agree with above plus hand strength. He needs to strengthen his grip, because he sometimes overruns a play or a QB rush and the momentum of his sheer mass is greater than his ability to hold on with one hand.

 

[Scandri100]

monster.

 

[Bullflop]

Rod Marinelli and Leon Lett will be charged with the responsibility of developing Maliek Collins into a somewhat more consistent force when it comes down to his pass rush and ultimately his sack production. Collins has proven to be capable of producing in that area but like most DTs, has pass rush skills that could stand at least some measure of refinement. I don't think it's out of the question to expect some improvement to result from a DC that has established a renowned reputation for gleaning the most out of his charges. Hopefully, we'll all come to appreciate that even more.

 

[ThreeandOut]

At MLB

This is a good example of why his production fell off last year.