Austin Booker, Edge Kansas: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Booker was a three-star recruit from Center Grove High School in Greenwood, Ind. in the class of 2021

Kansas edge rusher Austin Booker is a one-year starter who drew a lot of eyes at the Senior Bowl. The young pass rusher is still in his developmental stage, but his upside could warrant a top 50 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

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Austin Booker, Edge Kansas: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Redshirt sophomore defensive end from Greenwood, Ind.

Background: Booker was a three-star recruit from Center Grove High School in Greenwood, Ind. in the class of 2021. He was the No. 600 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 666 for On3.com. Booker was an unranked three-star recruit for Rivals and an unranked three-star recruit for ESPN with a 78 grade out of 100. He transferred from Minnesota to Kansas for the 2023 season. According to MaxPreps, Booker totaled 36 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery as a high school senior. He wrapped up his junior year with 67 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, eight sacks, and two forced fumbles. Booker led Center Grove to the 2020 Class 6A Indiana State Title. He also played basketball in high school. Booker’s father, Duaine, played college football at Liberty University and Taylor University, and his mother, Katie, played college basketball at Taylor University.

Injuries & Off-Field: Ejected for targeting vs. Illinois in 2023

Awards: 2023 First Team All-Big 12, 2023 Big 12 Defensive Newcomer of the Year

Pros: Age, arm length, flashes of explosive steps off the line, some reps with incredible explosiveness off the line, mixes pass rush tempo, punishes tackles who overset, redirects into B-gap after pushing vertically, nice stutter-step and shake to set up B-gap rush, throws feints to draw out the blocker’s hands, inside swim move, club move, two-handed downward swipe, rip move, spin move, two-armed bull rush, push-pull move, developing a long-arm move, coverts speed to power, explosive and violent hands pack pop, capable of putting linemen on skates to collapse the pocket, high motor leads to effort sacks and tackles in pursuit, great effort in pursuit with good angles, swim move to penetrate vs. the run

Cons: Limited special teams experience, one-year starter, penalized four times in 2023, lean lower half, a little high-hipped, frame still needs to fill out, strange stride length and pacing, doesn’t possess high-end bend, some hip tightness, limited hand counters when engaged with blockers, vulnerable to snatch traps because of lack of mass, easily displaced by double teams, struggles to play through the frames of offensive linemen in the run game, inconsistent stacking and shedding against the run, ducks head into blocks vs. the run too often, inconsistent pad level, missed tackles as a result of diving low and sliding off ball carriers, not an effective or natural coverage defender in space

Overview: Booker is a young prospect with only one year of experience as a regular contributor in college. He primarily aligned at 5-tech in two and three-point stances for the Jayhawks this past season. Booker is a viable and possibly exceptional NFL prospect because of his physical traits. He has long, 34-inch arms and an 81.5-inch wingspan. Booker’s frame is very lean, but he has plenty of room to add mass when he hits a team’s weight room. The redshirt sophomore’s first step off the line is inconsistent, but he has flashes of incredible explosiveness that lead to quick wins. Despite his strange stride, Booker mixes his pass rush tempo well to lull offensive linemen or set up moves into the B-gap. He punishes tackles who overset by redirecting inside and has a nice stutter-step and shake that opens the B-gap. Booker’s hand usage is still developing, but he occasionally throws feints to draw out the blocker’s hands. His pass rush plan includes swim, club, rip, spin, and push-pull moves, although many of those techniques are still rough around the edges. Booker is also working on a long-arm move. He uses a two-handed downward swipe and two-armed bull rush. The former three-star recruit packs a lot of power in his hands. Sometimes they generate explosive pop and stun the offensive tackle. When Booker’s hands hit with their maximum power, he either knocks the lineman down or puts them on skates and drives them back into the pocket. The redshirt sophomore’s hot motor leads to effort sacks and tackles in pursuit. He takes good angles in pursuit to the football. Booker doesn’t have the size to handle double teams and struggles to play through the frames of offensive linemen in the run game, so he relies on a swim move and effort to defeat run blockers. He hasn’t developed a consistent technique to stack and shed blocks with yet. Booker ducks his head into blocks in the run game, which leads to him losing track of the ball carrier. His pad level becomes very inconsistent when facing the run. Booker is an inconsistent tackler because he often resorts to diving low for tackle attempts. He is not an experienced or natural coverage defender in space. Booker is a little high-hipped, which contributes to some hip tightness that limits his bend. This is also a reason why he attacks the B-gap so often instead of relying on his explosiveness to win upfield. Booker has limited hand counters to revive his rush or disengage from blockers when he becomes stuck. He is vulnerable to snatch traps because he lacks the mass to combat significantly larger linemen.

Overall, Booker is more flash than substance after just one college season as a regular contributor, but he has the physical tools and exciting reps to entice NFL teams on day two of the draft. Booker is a multi-year project who needs to refine his hand usage and counters while filling out his frame. An NFL team should hope for a few splash plays from him during his rookie year as he hits the weight room.

Role & Scheme Fit: Developmental 3-4 outside linebacker; Multi-year project

Round Projection: Second Round

Size: 6044, 240 lbs. (Senior Bowl)

Submitted: 02-13-24