Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
All upside, athletic Tennessee EDGE Byron Young needs the right position coach to blossom in the NFL
The NFL has an insatiable hunger for pass rushers. Teams know that they not only need multiple pass rushers to combat modern offenses, but they need to be athletic freaks. So what if I told you that there is an edge defender in the 2023 NFL Draft that is so athletic at 6’2, 250 pounds, that he ranks in the 98th percentile among cornerbacks?
Tennessee EDGE Byron Young put on an absolute show at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine. He’s also coming off of a breakout season in which he totaled 7 sacks and 12 tackles for a loss. Despite those impressive numbers, he only ranks 95th on the Consensus Big Board.
If you’re looking for a player who’s flying under the radar but could make GMs look silly for passing on him, Young might just be that guy.
The good things about EDGE Byron Young
Straight to the point: Byron Young is an athletic freak. At 6’2, 250 pounds, Young ran a blazing 4.43-second 40-yard dash (1.54-second 10-yard split), had a 38-inch vertical leap, and an 11-foot broad jump. For comparison, 6’1, 238-pound pass rusher Haason Reddick had a 4.52-second 40 (1.59-second 10-yard split) and 37.5-inch vert. Pass rusher Micah Parsons had a 1.59 10-yard, 36-inch vertical, and 10’6 broad jump.
That’s a lot of numbers, but the main takeaway is that Young is bigger and more explosive than two of the most dangerous pass rushers in the NFL right now.
Young isn’t just a linear athlete, he can corner as well. He has a very fluid lower body, letting him get bend and carry that speed around the edge while also playing with leverage. That ability to bend the edge is what sets the good pass rushers apart from the pack and makes them a headache for offensive tackles. He’s even able to stand up and drop into coverage, and look natural while doing so.
Put simply, Young was good for at least one “WOW” play every game.
His main strengths are speed, explosiveness, fluidity, play strength, and competitive toughness.
The negatives about EDGE Byron Young
Most of Young’s downside comes from his age. He’s had a long road to the NFL, working as a manager at Dollar General before walking on to the football team at Georgia Military College in 2019. He didn’t play in 2020 due to COVID-19 lockdowns, but a video of his practice highlights went viral and he was offered a scholarship by Tennessee in 2021.
Young is 25, yet only has two years of major college experience. His inexperience shows up in his game, as he is clearly still learning how to use his impressive tools.
He still needs to develop an array of pass rush moves to maximize his athletic traits and neutralize blockers’ hands. From there, he’ll need to learn how to rush with a plan over the course of a game. Likewise, Young can lose track of the ball in the backfield, slowing his play speed while he processes and gets in pursuit of the ball carrier.
Byron Young’s evaluation built on upside
The good news is that while Young is “raw” and “old” as a prospect, he has solid a foundation upon which he can build. His athletic upside is self-evident, he has a wide-open motor, and seems to process information quickly. He wasn’t heavily recruited out of high school, had to walk on at the JuCo level, and had to sell himself to get a major college scholarship. It’s a safe bet that he’ll put in the work to maximize his NFL opportunity.
His issues are solely with technique, and he could absolutely blossom under the tutelage of a good position coach. NFL teams bet on upside all the time, and Byron Young is absolutely dripping with it.
What they’re saying
Lance Zierlein of NFL.com wrote of Young,
An explosive edge defender with disruptive play qualities, Young is still in the process of learning how to play his position. His rush hands lack skill and he’s missing go-to counters, but that could be coachable for him. He creates chaos when using his twitchy first step to slant and twist but still needs to tune up the stack-and-shed technique and build out a cohesive rush approach. He will be a 25-year-old rookie with a lack of polish for his age, which could be a deterrent for some teams, but a fully fueled motor and strong desire to make plays on the other side of the line of scrimmage give him a shot to become a capable pro.
Meanwhile, an AFC regional scout said,
“He really appreciates every second he’s on the field and our coaches would love that. He probably ends up standing, but I think he’ll be better with a hand in the ground.”
Byron Young might not be a first-round pick, though his athletic upside usually demands that kind of consideration. His technical issues, and particularly his age, will hold him back in the eyes of teams. However, I have him rated as a high second-round prospect in my full scouting report and his upside deserves to be drafted before the close of the second round.
