Landon Jackson, Edge Arkansas: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Jackson was a four-star recruit from Pleasant Grove High School in Texarkana, Texas in the class of 2021

Arkansas pass rusher Landon Jackson had a breakout game against Alabama. The junior has been inconsistent, but if he replicates his performance from the game against the Crimson Tide, he could be a top 100 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

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Landon Jackson, Edge Arkansas: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Junior defensive end and outside linebacker from Texarkana, Texas

Background: Jackson was a four-star recruit from Pleasant Grove High School in Texarkana, Texas in the class of 2021. He was the No. 125 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 177 for On3.com. Jackson was an unranked four-star recruit for Rivals. ESPN ranked him 78th in the nation with an 85 grade out of 100. Jackson transferred from LSU to Arkansas for the 2022 season. He amassed 45.5 sacks in his high school career. As a senior, he totaled 35 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, eight sacks, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, and three receiving touchdowns. During his dominant junior campaign, he recorded 110 tackles, 29 tackles for loss, 17 sacks, seven forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries, and eight passes defensed on his way to being the Texas Sports Writers Association 4A Defensive Player of the Year, a MaxPreps First-Team All-American, and leading Pleasant Grove to a Texas 4A D-II State Championship. Jackson earned unanimous First Team All-District honors as a sophomore when he totaled 56 tackles and nine sacks. He was the Texas District 7-4A-II Defensive Newcomer of the Year when he tallied 98 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, 11.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, six passes defensed, and an interception as Pleasant Grove captured a state championship. Jackson was born on Jan. 2, 2003.

Injuries & Off-Field: Missed 2021 spring practices with torn ACL from high school

Awards: 2023 Team Captain

Pros: Special teams experience on the kick return, kick coverage, punt return, punt coverage, field goal block, and field goal units, room to add mass to his frame, carries weight exceptionally well, good understanding of angles and flattening rush to the quarterback, good contact balance at the top of the arc, gets low and bends under the tackle’s hands, cross-chop is already NFL-caliber (it tortured Alabama in 2023), used a cross-chop-club against Alabama (2023), super man cross-chop, swats and two-handed swipes, rip move, push-pull move, long-arm move, good at catching or trapping the tackle’s hands, good closing burst with the quarterback in his sight, fits hands into the tackle’s chest to help win the leverage battle at the point of attack, occasionally able to dig in with his long legs and stack blocks, targets and breaks the lineman’s clamp, high effort in pursuit, physical tackler

Cons: Build might be a tweener between 4-3 defensive end and 3-4 outside linebacker, lean frame because of his size, arm length is good but might not be great, strides are surprisingly short, height can work against him, hips appear strained by bend and sometimes lock up, low pass rush pressure percentage, pass rush lacks a power element, struggles to play through the bodies of pass blockers, tight ends stunt his rush plan, needs to dispose of blocking tight ends and running backs quicker, doesn’t counter inside often, bull rush stalls due to lack of lower body power, pass rush plan is inconsistent week-to-week, doesn’t build momentum and power on stunts, not reliable at the point of attack, doesn’t shed blocks at a high level, sealed to create open running lanes, no upside dropping into coverage

Overview: Jackson has special teams experience on every unit: kick return, kick coverage, punt return, punt coverage, field goal block, and field goal. Along the defensive line, Arkansas lines him up as a 5-tech and 4-tech in a three point-stance and a 5-tech in a two-point stance. Jackson even plays some 3-tech in a two-point stance, but he won’t fill that role in the NFL. The junior carries his weight well and still has room to add mass to his frame. He’ll need to fill out in his lower half because he's still a lean defender, considering his height. Right now, his build is somewhere between a 4-3 defensive end and 3-4 outside linebacker. Jackson’s arm length is good but might not be great. He has a good understanding of angles and flattening his rush to the quarterback. The LSU transfer displays good contact balance at the top of the arc and enough bend to flatten his rush. He gets low and bends under the tackle’s hands, but his height causes some issues. Jackson’s hips appear strained by bend and sometimes lock up on him. His pass rush plan relies heavily on the lethal cross-chop he used against Alabama (2023). He also uses the cross-chop-club and super man cross-chop variations of the move. Jackson’s arsenal also includes swats and two-handed swipes, rip, push-pulls, and long-arms. He’s good at catching or trapping the tackle’s hands. However, his strides are surprisingly short and limit his ability to get upfield quickly. The Texas native has a low pass rush pressure percentage because his pass rush plan is inconsistent week-to-week. He doesn’t have much of a power element to his rush and struggles to play through the frames of pass blockers, including tight ends. Jackson fits his hands into the lineman’s chest well to help establish leverage. He has longer arms than some linemen and often lands first contact, giving him the ingredients for a good bull rush or long-arm move. However, that initial push frequently dies long before it reaches the quarterback because he lacks the lower leg drive to keep his momentum going and challenge the anchors of linemen. Jackson would benefit from building out a spin move and inside swim, plus additional inside counters. He sometimes digs in with his long legs to stack blocks in the run game, but he generally isn’t reliable at the point of attack. The former four-star recruit doesn’t shed blocks at a high level and is frequently sealed to create rushing lanes. He targets and breaks the lineman’s clamp to separate from blocks with precise hand placement. Jackson is a physical tackler and high-effort pursuit player.

Overall, Jackson has the foundation of a strong pass rush plan and intriguing athleticism for a larger pass rusher, but he would benefit from another year of technical and physical development in college. Jackson’s 2023 game against Alabama showcased his pass rush potential. Now, he needs to perform at that level consistently.

Role & Scheme Fit: Designated pass rusher (DPR) in a 3-4 scheme

Round Projection: Fifth Round

Size: 6'7", 281 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 10-16-23