Gervon Dexter Sr., IDL Florida: 2023 NFL Draft Profile

Dexter was a five-star recruit from Lake Wales High School in Lake Wales, Fla. in the class of 2020

Florida defensive lineman Gervon Dexter Sr. entered the 2022 season with high expectations. His year was a mixed bag and could cause him to drop out of the top 100 selections in the 2023 NFL Draft.

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Gervon Dexter Sr., IDL Florida: 2023 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Junior defensive tackle from Lake Wales, Fla.

Background: Dexter was a five-star recruit from Lake Wales High School in Lake Wales, Fla. in the class of 2020. He was the No. 12 recruit according to 247Sports, No. 23 for Rivals, and No. 7 for On3.com. ESPN ranked him 17th in the nation with a 90 grade out of 100. Dexter earned a spot at the 2020 Under Armour All-America Game. He amassed 103 tackles, including 35 for loss with 18 sacks, and seven forced fumbles as a high school senior. As a junior, he tallied 18 tackles for loss, nine sacks, and seven forced fumbles. Dexter also played varsity basketball and qualified for the 2019 FHSAA Class 2A State Track & Field Championship in discus.

Injuries & Off-Field: N/A

Awards: N/A

Pros: Age, good open field speed, swim move, pulls blockers forward and off balance, some violence in his hands when he goes to disengage from a blocker, heavy hands when he gets into the opponent’s pads, drives legs through contact, flows down the line to the football, stacks blocks and surveys the backfield, stacks and sheds one-on-one blocks, rallies to the ball for gang tackles, able to win one-on-one against blockers on inside zone runs, flexible upper body to absorb and slip contact, occasionally slips the blocks of climbing linemen

Cons: Arm length, late off the line, slow get-off, pad level elevates quickly, high pad level, rarely gets his hand on passes, no clear pass rush plan, wins too gradually with power as a pass rusher, very limited pass rush toolbox, frequently looped to face the center, hand usage is mediocre, no answer for double teams, easily sealed inside by larger linemen, frequently displayed vertically in the run game, lacks the power in his lower body to generate push against the run, doesn’t have the anchor to hold the point of attack consistently, Utah (2022) blew him off the line, most of his wins came against centers, appeared to take plays off, far too many passive reps

Overview: Dexter took official measurements at the NFL Combine. He’s 6056 and weighs 310 lbs. He has 9 4/8-inch hands, 32 2/8-inch arms, and an 80 7/8-inch wingspan. Florida played Dexter everywhere from 0-tech to 5-tech over the past two years, but he’s best suited as a 2 or 3-tech. Dexter is a young prospect, which is good because he still needs significant development to reach his ceiling. The former five-star uses a swim move to win as a pass rusher and sometimes pulls his blocker forward to draw them off balance. From there, Dexter has the straight line speed to pressure the quarterback. Unfortunately, his pass rush arsenal is almost nonexistent, and he shows very few signs of assembling pass rush plans. Dexter is currently a two-down player who shouldn’t be counted on to provide pass rush upside. The junior defensive lineman flashes violence in his hands when he disengages from blockers. Dexter’s hands are heavy and impactful when he works them into the opponent’s pads as part of a bull rush, but his short arms and underdeveloped hand usage prevent him from maximizing this trait. The Florida native consistently stacks and sheds one-on-one blocks in the run game. He’s effective working off blocks on inside runs. Dexter has a flexible upper body to absorb and slip contact from climbing linemen. He is usually late off the line and is slow getting out of his stance. Dexter’s pad level elevates quickly, surrendering leverage. He offers nothing against double teams and is frequently sealed on run plays or displaced downfield. The defensive tackle lacks the power in his lower body to generate push against the run and has to wait for the running back to come to him. Utah (2022) excelled at driving Dexter off the line and neutralizing his potential impact. Most of his notable wins came when Florida schemed opportunities for him against centers. Dexter appeared to take plays off and had many reps where he was a passive observer.

Overall, Dexter is an imposing run defender when faced with one-on-one blocks, but he lacks the strength to handle double teams and isn’t a viable pass rusher. An NFL team might take a chance on Dexter in the top 100 selections because of his traits, but his current play style doesn’t justify a high-round pick. 

Role & Scheme Fit: Two-down DT in a 4-3 scheme or DE in a 3-4 scheme

Round Projection: Fourth Round

Player Comparison: N/A

Submitted: 04-01-23