Tamba Hali DE Penn St
Strengths
Tamba is a very strong player with a very good burst off the line of scrimmage. He is a dominating player; he takes on a double team and blows it up very easily. He has good pass rushing moves and understands how to set up the RT so that he can get a sack at an impact time of the game. Tamba uses his hands very well and never seems to let a block into his body or at his feet.
He reminds me a lot of Charles Haley (DE - 49ers, Cowboys).
Needs to Improve
I could nitpick and say I wish he were taller or his arms were a little longer or I didn’t have to work for a living -- but what’s the use? All of that means nothing. The kid is a hell of a football player and I’m going to have to keep on working for a living!
Bottom Line
Back in the 80’s, there was a player that played for the 49ers. He was one nasty SOB. If he made a great play and one of his own teammates hit him on the back and said, "Great play, Old Charlie!", he'd tell his own teammate to shut the hell up and get back on the ball. He was strong, never off balance, had a great burst and would tackle a train if it tried to come around his end.
I've never seen a DE handle a double team better than Charles Haley until maybe now. Tamba has the same natural hand strength and body strength that Charles had. Now I’m not saying that Tamba is a nasty player, but I am saying that on the field, he dominates and overpowers his man and makes the players around him better. Charles was a hard player for some coaches to handle, but Tamba looks to be an excellent teammate and you can just sense the respect the coaches have for this kid on the field. Tamba is going to be an excellent strong side DE for the team that drafts him. He is quick off the line, has excellent overall natural body strength, has very strong hands, is smart and has only played DE in college for one year. As soon as he learns a few more tricks, this kid is going to be a fan favorite and a core player for his team. In my opinion, he is a top ten player in this draft. Some of the juniors will come out and force him back into a top 15 player, but I can’t see him dropping further than that. He's a player that you should be able to plug into your line up right away.
- Drew Boylhart (thehuddlereport.com)