How Malachi Lawrence Used 5 Different Pass Rush Moves in His Career Game vs Baylor

[youngjerryjones]

Made a film breakdown on the Lawrence pick and what I think the thought process is behind this. Specifically this game tape discussed here:

The Baylor tape is what got him drafted — career-high 3 TFL, 2 sacks, forced fumble, 3 PBUs.

What stood out watching the tape: he uses 5 different pass rush moves in ONE game. Long arm, hesitation/ghost, bend, rip, and chop-club. Most college edge rushers have 1-2 moves. He has 5 and doesn't repeat his hand sequence. Pretty weird and active hands...nice to see...productive

A few angles I cover:

- The exact rep Stephen Jones AND Will McClay both cited on draft night (the hesitation move on Sidney Fugar)
- The Cowboys 3-headed pass rush math — Gary + Ezeiruaku + Lawrence projected at 18-23 sacks combined. Cowboys edge group only had like 12 last year.
- The Demeitre Brim insider angle that gave Dallas inside info on Lawrence at UCF
- A bad clip vs Max Iheanachor (ASU, projected day 1-2 OT) where Lawrence gets stalled — to keep expectations honest
- OK so MAX did stop Bailey too, when you look at that you'll see he can be stopped it's not just Malachi Lawrence glaze central. Kid needs work but I think he has a lot in his bag RN.



Commenting your thoughts or liking helps a lot, not required. I'll do Barham next which I think is a better pick the way CP will use him than Malachi. Not better in terms of talent just in regards to how we could maximize him in the scheme. Expectations are 12-15 snaps working towards 25 in year 2 so not someone who will be out there for 50 snaps a game AT ALL - you need to take that into consideration.

 

[youngjerryjones]

Bumping this up as I want to push a discussion on Malachi. He got torn up by Max Ih.

He is good but not as good as we want right away. If he goes up against Mailata you will see what happens towards the end of this tape.

 

[aikemirv]

I would be concerned if ONE game got him drafted. I am also concerned if combine stats got him drafted. Not saying I believe those two statements but it would be concerning if that were the case. I hope it is because his previous coach is on our staff and truly believes in his ability and character and effort!

 

[youngjerryjones]

I would be concerned if ONE game got him drafted. I am also concerned if combine stats got him drafted.

It’s a big risk for sure. Dane was asked straight up why he was taken as he was the 36th ranked prospect and the discussion is they did not want an all-around DE and a pure passrusher.

Makes me think they have that in EZE and it’s insurance in a hip injury which may continue to risk pass rush production from him in yr 2.

 

[beware_d-ware]

I'd love to to watch the full film of Lawrence vs Ihenachor.

One bad rep doesn't bother me. Pass rushing is just like the saying about baseball... if you win on 4 out of 10 pass rushes, you're in the Hall of Fame. Myles Garrett only wins 3 out of 10 rushes. However, if Lawrence got big-dawged by a future NFL tackle, playing a ton of reps and losing the majority of them, that volume would make it way more concerning.

 

[CWR]

Made a film breakdown on the Lawrence pick and what I think the thought process is behind this. Specifically this game tape discussed here:

The Baylor tape is what got him drafted — career-high 3 TFL, 2 sacks, forced fumble, 3 PBUs.

What stood out watching the tape: he uses 5 different pass rush moves in ONE game. Long arm, hesitation/ghost, bend, rip, and chop-club. Most college edge rushers have 1-2 moves. He has 5 and doesn't repeat his hand sequence. Pretty weird and active hands...nice to see...productive

A few angles I cover:

- The exact rep Stephen Jones AND Will McClay both cited on draft night (the hesitation move on Sidney Fugar)
- The Cowboys 3-headed pass rush math — Gary + Ezeiruaku + Lawrence projected at 18-23 sacks combined. Cowboys edge group only had like 12 last year.
- The Demeitre Brim insider angle that gave Dallas inside info on Lawrence at UCF
- A bad clip vs Max Iheanachor (ASU, projected day 1-2 OT) where Lawrence gets stalled — to keep expectations honest
- OK so MAX did stop Bailey too, when you look at that you'll see he can be stopped it's not just Malachi Lawrence glaze central. Kid needs work but I think he has a lot in his bag RN.



Commenting your thoughts or liking helps a lot, not required. I'll do Barham next which I think is a better pick the way CP will use him than Malachi. Not better in terms of talent just in regards to how we could maximize him in the scheme. Expectations are 12-15 snaps working towards 25 in year 2 so not someone who will be out there for 50 snaps a game AT ALL - you need to take that into consideration.

Thank you. Im excited to see Barham. I like his play style. Should be fun to watch.

 

[stilltheguru]

Made a film breakdown on the Lawrence pick and what I think the thought process is behind this. Specifically this game tape discussed here:

The Baylor tape is what got him drafted — career-high 3 TFL, 2 sacks, forced fumble, 3 PBUs.

What stood out watching the tape: he uses 5 different pass rush moves in ONE game. Long arm, hesitation/ghost, bend, rip, and chop-club. Most college edge rushers have 1-2 moves. He has 5 and doesn't repeat his hand sequence. Pretty weird and active hands...nice to see...productive

A few angles I cover:

- The exact rep Stephen Jones AND Will McClay both cited on draft night (the hesitation move on Sidney Fugar)
- The Cowboys 3-headed pass rush math — Gary + Ezeiruaku + Lawrence projected at 18-23 sacks combined. Cowboys edge group only had like 12 last year.
- The Demeitre Brim insider angle that gave Dallas inside info on Lawrence at UCF
- A bad clip vs Max Iheanachor (ASU, projected day 1-2 OT) where Lawrence gets stalled — to keep expectations honest
- OK so MAX did stop Bailey too, when you look at that you'll see he can be stopped it's not just Malachi Lawrence glaze central. Kid needs work but I think he has a lot in his bag RN.



Commenting your thoughts or liking helps a lot, not required. I'll do Barham next which I think is a better pick the way CP will use him than Malachi. Not better in terms of talent just in regards to how we could maximize him in the scheme. Expectations are 12-15 snaps working towards 25 in year 2 so not someone who will be out there for 50 snaps a game AT ALL - you need to take that into consideration.

You'll be doing videos with cowboys content creators in no time. Good stuff.


I don't care if people agree or disagree about Lawrence but atleast be able to articulate why instead of running to kiper/brugler etc. Thank you for giving your own opinion.

 

[youngjerryjones]

I'd love to to watch the full film of Lawrence vs Ihenachor.

One bad rep doesn't bother me. Pass rushing is just like the saying about baseball... if you win on 4 out of 10 pass rushes, you're in the Hall of Fame. Myles Garrett only wins 3 out of 10 rushes. However, if Lawrence got big-dawged by a future NFL tackle, playing a ton of reps and losing the majority of them, that volume would make it way more concerning.

It’s there towards the end of the video there’s at least 10 reps he’s getting stone-walled each time which isn’t as promising as you’d think. This same kid stone-walled Bailey a bit too so take that into consideration.

 

[BobSacamano]

It’s there towards the end of the video there’s at least 10 reps he’s getting stone-walled each time which isn’t as promising as you’d think. This same kid stone-walled Bailey a bit too so take that into consideration.

I really admire all of your effort but most all your objectivity.

 

[cristglo]

Made a film breakdown on the Lawrence pick and what I think the thought process is behind this. Specifically this game tape discussed here:

The Baylor tape is what got him drafted — career-high 3 TFL, 2 sacks, forced fumble, 3 PBUs.

What stood out watching the tape: he uses 5 different pass rush moves in ONE game. Long arm, hesitation/ghost, bend, rip, and chop-club. Most college edge rushers have 1-2 moves. He has 5 and doesn't repeat his hand sequence. Pretty weird and active hands...nice to see...productive

A few angles I cover:

- The exact rep Stephen Jones AND Will McClay both cited on draft night (the hesitation move on Sidney Fugar)
- The Cowboys 3-headed pass rush math — Gary + Ezeiruaku + Lawrence projected at 18-23 sacks combined. Cowboys edge group only had like 12 last year.
- The Demeitre Brim insider angle that gave Dallas inside info on Lawrence at UCF
- A bad clip vs Max Iheanachor (ASU, projected day 1-2 OT) where Lawrence gets stalled — to keep expectations honest
- OK so MAX did stop Bailey too, when you look at that you'll see he can be stopped it's not just Malachi Lawrence glaze central. Kid needs work but I think he has a lot in his bag RN.



Commenting your thoughts or liking helps a lot, not required. I'll do Barham next which I think is a better pick the way CP will use him than Malachi. Not better in terms of talent just in regards to how we could maximize him in the scheme. Expectations are 12-15 snaps working towards 25 in year 2 so not someone who will be out there for 50 snaps a game AT ALL - you need to take that into consideration.

He has all the tangibles he just needs the reps in the NFL If you break him down in the EXOs system he is in the 98% So I can see why they would want him
the Cowboys are betting that EXOS data + Combine confirmation = real NFL production. The concern? Surgeries on both shoulders and the fact that his college competition level in the Big 12 wasn't elite. But when a guy's athletic profile is in the 99th percentile historically and EXOS data says his strength and explosiveness metrics are off the charts compared to active NFL players — that's a compelling bet at #23.

You're picking up on something most fans miss in those press conferences. The EXOS numbers are becoming the draft's version of Moneyball — and teams that know how to read that data have an edge.

 

[RustyBourneHorse]

I would be concerned if ONE game got him drafted. I am also concerned if combine stats got him drafted. Not saying I believe those two statements but it would be concerning if that were the case. I hope it is because his previous coach is on our staff and truly believes in his ability and character and effort!

I learned on the below video yesterday that one of our coaches was a coach at UCF. So he had direct hands on access to Malachi.

 

[Diehardblues]

I watched that game in real time as I’m a Baylor fan but I didn’t walk away thinking I’d take him in 1st round as Cowboys edge rusher.

As a matter of fact when I saw him on our mocks heading into draft I was trying to recall if he stood out cause I watch a lot of Big 12 football.

Not to mention Baylor wasn’t a good team last year.

Hopefully he works out but difficult to get real excited about.

 

[John813]

In my opinion even though he was a first rounder, I'm not expecting year 1 instant results. Felt like impact wise linebacker(CJ Allen or J-Rod) would have a better shot at more playing time/instant ROI, but feel like Lawrence may need at least a year to continue developing.
Not to say I think he rides the bench year round, but more situational to start. He may need some time just in general getting up to speed for the NFL.
Feel like the ingredients are there to be a NFL passrusher, just needs to cook.

Per the video, the pass rush abilities are there, but working and knowing when to use which move and facing NFL tackles will take some time

 

[atlantacowboy]

Anyone familiar enough with Baylor's OL to comment?

 

[CATCH17]

Malachi is all about projecting what he could be.

Not what he is now.

These are the types you swing on.

If you miss on a pick like this at least you missed swinging for the fence.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

Malachi is all about projecting what he could be.

Not what he is now.

These are the types you swing on.

If you miss on a pick like this at least you missed swinging for the fence.

I wish more people would get this.

When the player has elite or near-elite explosion metrics with prototype size, plays hard, and by all indications is serious-minded and has good character, you bet on that. Don't really care that he beat some bad OT at Baylor.

Surely people understand that it's not as simple as picking the players who put up the best numbers in college. There is still some projection at the next level. Michael Sam was SEC DPOY and couldn't play at all in the NFL.

 

[reddyuta]

He has all the tangibles he just needs the reps in the NFL If you break him down in the EXOs system he is in the 98% So I can see why they would want him
the Cowboys are betting that EXOS data + Combine confirmation = real NFL production. The concern? Surgeries on both shoulders and the fact that his college competition level in the Big 12 wasn't elite. But when a guy's athletic profile is in the 99th percentile historically and EXOS data says his strength and explosiveness metrics are off the charts compared to active NFL players — that's a compelling bet at #23.

You're picking up on something most fans miss in those press conferences. The EXOS numbers are becoming the draft's version of Moneyball — and teams that know how to read that data have an edge.

this is the first time i am reading about his surgeries.how come our draft experts never mentioned it during RD 1 coverage.

 

[youngjerryjones]

I watched that game in real time as I’m a Baylor fan but I didn’t walk away thinking I’d take him in 1st round as Cowboys edge rusher.

As a matter of fact when I saw him on our mocks heading into draft I was trying to recall if he stood out cause I watch a lot of Big 12 football.

Not to mention Baylor wasn’t a good team last year.

Hopefully he works out but difficult to get real excited about.

Wouldn't even know this breaking down tape so understand where you are coming from. I think like @cristglo mentioned this is a big upside pick on numbers and data. Fault or not of Will McClay but we're going to have to see if it shapes out.

Also the way Broaddus was putting it, they just weren't comfortable getting an EDGE from a tier down, so they stuck and picked. BPA.

 

[youngjerryjones]

Malachi is all about projecting what he could be.

Not what he is now.

These are the types you swing on.

If you miss on a pick like this at least you missed swinging for the fence.

Facts.

 

[youngjerryjones]

Anyone familiar enough with Baylor's OL to comment?

Baylor OL is trash, the person he's going against the RT was picked up by the Cowboys as a UDFA. Should tell you what you need to know right there, he's going against a scrub lol.