Isaiah Land, EDGE/LB Florida A&M: Offseason 2023 NFL Draft Profile

Land was a recruit from Grayson High School in Loganville, Ga. in the class of 2018

Isaiah Land led the nation at both the FBS and FCS levels with 19 sacks in 2021. He entered the transfer portal briefly before deciding to remain at Florida A&M. As a redshirt senior, this year represents Land’s final chance to make a positive impression on scouts before the 2023 NFL Draft.

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Isaiah Land, EDGE/LB Florida A&M: 2023 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Redshirt senior outside linebacker from Buffalo, N.Y.

Background: Land was a recruit from Grayson High School in Loganville, Ga. in the class of 2018. He didn’t receive a star ranking or national ranking from any of the major recruiting outlets cited in this guide. Land took a break from playing competitive football from age 11 until his junior season in high school, according to the Tallahassee Democrat. MaxPreps credits him with 22 tackles and seven sacks in seven games during his senior high school season. Land briefly entered the transfer portal after the 2021 season, receiving offers from Auburn, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Memphis, Texas, and UCF, but he decided to return to Florida A&M.

2021 Production: 12 games, 43 tackles, 25.5 tackles for loss, 55 pressures, 19 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 3 passes defensed

2020 Production: COVID-19 Canceled Season

2019 Production: 9 games, 23 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 1 interception, 1 pass defensed

2018 Production: 1 game (Redshirt Year)

Injuries & Off-Field: Missed 2022 spring drills recovering from a hip injury

Awards: 2021 First-Team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference, 2021 FCS First-Team All-American (Associated Press), 2021 Southwestern Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year, 2021 Buck Buchanan Award Winner

Pros: Speed to make plays as a weakside run defender in pursuit, excellent lateral agility to quickly react and redirect to the football, motor runs hot, relentlessly pursues the quarterback, patient and effective at reading quarterback and running back exchanges, strength to play through and walk back FCS offensive tackles, powerful two-hand punch creates separation from and displaces offensive tackles, speed and play strength allow him to win the tackle’s outside shoulder, some instances of setting the tackle up outside before jumping inside to win the inside shoulder, chases down screens from the opposite side of the formation, maintains his burst and closing speed working on stunts, will swipe at the tackle’s hands and then attack the inside or outside shoulder, he gets under the tackle’s outside shoulder and pulls himself through

Cons: Age, competition level, low weight for an NFL edge rusher, needs significantly more experience in coverage, doesn’t look much bigger than former teammate Markquese Bell (who played safety), some of the offensive tackles he beat were tough to watch, a bunch of his sacks were cleanup or came when opposing quarterbacks stepped into pressure, will not survive double teams, not many clear instances of true bend at the top of his rush, heavily reliant on winning with pure physical tools instead of savvy, will freelance at times causing him to lose contain, play strength and anchor appeared as an issue on multiple occasions

Overview: Land is unofficially listed at 6'4", 225 lbs. He worked to transform his body since joining the Rattlers, adding about 45 lbs. to his high school weight (185 lbs.). Land generated pressure on roughly 15.4% of his pass rushing snaps in 2021. According to head coach Willie Simmons, who Bruce Feldman cited when describing Land in his annual college football freaks list, the New York native ran a 4.6 40-yard dash this offseason and leapt 10'9" in the broad jump. Land also posted a 6.7 time in the three-cone, which would’ve been the fifth-fastest time among all players at the 2022 NFL Combine. The Florida A&M standout reportedly also bench presses 375 lbs. and squats 600 lbs. Land is a unit, and he needs to be considering he’s completely undersized for an edge role in the NFL. Even with his weight room heroics, play strength appeared as an issue for Land in several games during the 2021 season. There were some instances where it looked like he lined up as a 7-tech and had great success rushing from that wide angle because it generated a natural advantage. On the positive side, Land’s agility, speed, and relentless motor mean he makes hustle plays in pursuit and on extended quarterback drop backs. He’s shown instances of bending around the tackle’s outside shoulder, setting up linemen with his footwork for inside shoulder moves, and attacking the tackle’s hands to give himself a free runway.

Overall, Land poses one of the most difficult evaluations in the 2023 edge class. Some of the competition he’s faced has been truly awful, and there are clear play strength concerns attached to his profile even at the FCS level. Land will need to add more go-to moves and counters to stand a chance as a pass rusher in the NFL, but he has the agility, speed, and muscular frame to potentially be a developmental chess piece.

Role & Scheme Fit: Hybrid outside linebacker and off-ball linebacker in a 3-4 scheme

Round Projection: Mid Sixth to Mid Seventh

Player Comparison: N/A

Submitted: 08-22-22