Tyreem Powell, LB Rutgers: 2024 NFL Draft Profile
Powell was a three-star athlete recruit from Vineland South High School in Vineland, N.J. in the class of 2020
Rutgers linebacker Tyreem Powell has impressive size and above-average athletic traits, but he still needs to show significant development diagnosing plays and fitting against the run. Powell is a traits-based prospect in the 2024 NFL Draft.
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Tyreem Powell, LB Rutgers: 2024 NFL Draft Profile
Classification: Redshirt junior MIKE linebacker from Vineland, N.J.
Background: Powell was a three-star athlete recruit from Vineland South High School in Vineland, N.J. in the class of 2020. He was the No. 777 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 864 for On3.com. Powell was an unranked three-star recruit for Rivals and an unranked three-star recruit for ESPN with a 78 grade out of 100. He played quarterback in high school, passing for 868 yards and eight touchdowns while rushing for 454 yards and five touchdowns. Powell contributed 60 tackles and two interceptions on defense. He earned All-South Jersey honors from the Philadelphia Inquirer twice and was selected to the 2019 Jersey Sports Zone All-Zone Team as a linebacker. Powell was a First Team All-South Jersey selection for the Brooks-Irvine Memorial Football Club. The Press of Atlantic City granted him First Team All-Star honors on defense. He originally committed to Virginia Tech before flipping to Rutgers.
Injuries & Off-Field: Required two surgeries for a neck injury in high school
Awards: 2021 Academic All-Big Ten
Pros: Special teams experience on the kick return, kick coverage, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block units, appears to have above-average arm length, possesses near sideline-to-sideline range, long strides help him close quickly, shows effort in pursuit, gains good depth in zone drops, coverage upside to carry running backs vertically, enough speed and size to cover most tight ends up the seam, attempts to get his hands into passing lanes
Cons: Lean throughout frame, upper body strength isn’t impressive, lacks high-end speed, takes steep and tight pursuit angles, lacks recovery speed to make up for missteps, over pursues opening cutback lanes, whiffs on diving tackle attempts, can’t combat linemen in his lap, displaced by tight ends and fullbacks, too easily displaced by blockers of all sizes, stacking and shedding against the run is a work in progress, needs to separate from blockers sooner, caught up in the wash, still learning to locate the ball and defend at the catch point on deep seam shots, too eager to step downhill which opens holes behind him, lackluster natural feel and awareness in zone coverage, poor awareness of what’s going on behind him in coverage, hips sometimes lock up
Overview: Powell has special teams experience on the kick return, kick coverage, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block units. He appears to have above-average arm length to pair with his impressive height. Powell possesses near sideline-to-sideline range and an extended tackle radius thanks to his build. The redshirt junior’s long strides help him close quickly. He shows effort in pursuit but lacks the speed and burst to make plays as a pursuit-style defender consistently. Powell gains good depth in zone drops and generates a large area of influence with his size. In man coverage, he’s able to carry running backs out of the backfield and has the speed and size to cover most tight ends up the seam. Powell attempts to get his hands into passing lanes when blitzing or dropping into coverage. Despite his size and listed weight, Powell is lean throughout his frame with limited upper body strength. His inexperience is evident in his run fits and attempts to take on and deconstruct blocks. The New Jersey native is displaced by blockers of all sizes. Tight ends and fullbacks present problems, and linemen easily wipe him out of plays. Powell possesses limited to no ability to stack and shed blocks going into 2023. He takes too long to separate from blocks and gets tangled in the wash of bodies on run plays. Powell takes steep and tight pursuit angles and lacks the recovery speed to make up for these missteps. He over pursues, opening cutback lanes for the ball carrier. Powell sometimes resorts to diving tackle attempts that come up short because he fears he won’t catch the ball carrier in a foot race. The former three-star recruit is still learning to locate the ball and defend downfield passes at the catch point. He is too eager to step downhill, which opens holes behind him. Powell displays a lackluster feel and awareness of what’s going on behind him in zone coverage. His hips are mostly fluid, but they sometimes lock up in man coverage, preventing clean transitions and pattern matching.
Overall, Powell has intriguing size to mix with above-average athletic traits, but he enters 2023 lacking the instincts and play diagnosis skills to warrant a top 100 selection. More experience will go a long way for Powell as he enters his second season as a full-time starter, but more reps don’t always lead to players realizing their potential.
Role & Scheme Fit: MIKE or weakside linebacker in a 4-3 scheme
Round Projection: Fifth Round
Size: 6'5", 240 lbs. (Unofficial)
Submitted: 05-04-23