Nick Herbig, EDGE Wisconsin: 2023 NFL Draft Profile

Herbig was a four-star recruit from St. Louis High School in Honolulu, Hawaii in the class of 2020

Wisconsin pass rusher Nick Herbig is undersized and might transition into an off-ball role in the NFL. However, Herbig deserves his shot as an outside linebacker. He projects as a borderline top-100 selection in the 2023 NFL Draft.

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Nick Herbig, EDGE Wisconsin: 2023 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Junior outside linebacker from Kauai, Hawaii

Background: Herbig was a four-star recruit from St. Louis High School in Honolulu, Hawaii in the class of 2020. He was the No. 143 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 139 for On3.com. Herbig was an unranked four-star recruit for Rivals. ESPN ranked him 144th in the nation with an 83 grade out of 100. As a senior in high school, Herbig was the 2019 All-Hawaii Open Division Defensive Player of the Year. He earned an invitation to the 2020 Polynesian Bowl after leading St. Louis High School to four consecutive Open Division state championships. Herbig also played basketball in high school. He has two brothers, Jake and Nate. Nate played football at Stanford and is currently on the Pittsburgh Steelers after spending time at guard with the New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles.

Injuries & Off-Field: Missed time in spring of 2022 with a left arm injury, missed 2022 Purdue game with a knee injury

Awards: 2021 Honorable Mention All-Big Ten, 2021 Academic All-Big Ten, 2022 First-Team All-Big Ten, 2022 Third-Team All-American

Pros: Special teams experience on the punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block units, age, high football IQ, produced pressure rates over 17.5% in 2021 and 2022, speed to threaten tackles vertically, enough bend to flatten his rush to the quarterback, prevents tackles from getting into his pads with active hands, works the tackle vertically before redirecting inside, chops, swipes, and swims, chop is well-timed and accurate, rip move, spin move, double-handed swipe, attacks inside rush lanes, inside swim, transitions a long-arm into a rip when bending around the edge, adept at getting his hands into the tackle’s chest despite limited arm length, agility to dodge cut blocks and maintain momentum, enough speed to cross the face of blocking tight ends, quick to redirect to the football, closing burst, attacks the football for forced fumbles, attempts to get his hands into passing lanes, very experienced with shallow zone coverages, good backpedal and movement skills for zone coverage, reroutes tight ends in coverage

Cons: Committed three penalties in 2022, arm length, lean throughout frame, seems unlikely he’ll be able to reach 250 lbs., inconsistent first step, speed is good but not great, lacks elite bend and lower body flexibility, leg drive is insufficient to generate consistent displacement, benefited from wide alignments, lacks the power to play through offensive linemen in the run game, removed from plays by pulling guards on gap concepts, sealed in the run game by tight ends, caught up in the wash of the run game, overruns ball carriers, occasionally dives low with his shoulder for tackles instead of wrapping up, doesn’t have the play strength to drive through tackle attempts consistently, doesn’t make open-field tackles against skill position players, lacks ball skills in coverage

Overview: Herbig took official measurements at the NFL Combine. He’s 6021 and weighs 240 lbs. He has 9 2/8-inch hands, 31 2/8-inch arms, and a 76-inch wingspan. Herbig is an undersized pass rusher with a lean frame who primarily deployed in a two-point stance from wide alignments for Wisconsin. He won’t turn 22 until November. Herbig has special teams experience on the punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block units. He took advantage of wide alignments and his high football IQ to produce pressure rates over 17.5% in 2021 and 2022. Herbig’s speed threatens tackles vertically. His bend is good enough to flatten his rush to the quarterback, but he lacks elite bend and lower body flexibility. The Hawaii native has short arms but prevents tackles from getting into his pads with active hands. He uses a combination of chops, swipes, and swims as primary rush moves and counters. His chop is well-timed and one of the most accurate in the 2023 draft class. Herbig’s arsenal also includes rip and spin moves and a double-handed swipe. He attacks inside rush lanes, often by working vertically before redirecting inside. Herbig also uses an effective inside swim move. He transitions a long-arm move into a rip when bending around the edge. The former four-star recruit is adept at getting his hands into the tackle’s chest despite his limited arm length. Herbig’s speed and agility allow him to dodge cut blocks while maintaining momentum, cross the face of blocking tight ends, and redirect to the football quickly. The junior has impressive closing burst. He attacks the football for forced fumbles and attempts to get his hands into passing lanes. Herbig picked up a lot of experience in shallow zone coverages at Wisconsin. He has the movement skills to play zone but lacks the awareness to provide high volume snaps in that role. Herbig played in the 220s and 230s at Wisconsin, making it unlikely he’ll ever reach 250 lbs. He is an undersized rusher with short arms, an inconsistent first step, and a lot of good but not great physical traits. His leg drive is insufficient to generate consistent displacement, which limits his power rush plan. Herbig could struggle to defend the run in the NFL because he lacks the power to play through offensive linemen and is frequently taken out of plays by blocking tight ends. Herbig overruns ball carriers and occasionally dives low with his shoulder for tackles instead of wrapping up. He struggles to mirror loose skill position players in the open field.

Overall, Herbig might be forced to transition into an off-ball role because of his lack of size, but his technically refined hands, football IQ, and blend of traits suggest he deserves the opportunity to play 3-4 outside linebacker at the next level. His projection becomes muddied if he’s evaluated for an off-ball role, but he’s worth a top 140 selection as a pass rusher.

Role & Scheme Fit: DPR from wide alignments in a 3-4 scheme

Round Projection: Fourth Round

Player Comparison: N/A

Submitted: 04-12-23