Alim McNeill has quite possibly the highest ceiling of any of the interior D-lineman in this draft class. The 6’2 320 lb. NC State product started all three years, being a key piece to their defense. He played a true 0-tech during his time there.

Stats

2018: 24 Tackles, 5.5 TFLs, 3.5 sacks, 1 FF

2019: 28 Tackles, 7.5 TFLs, 5.5 sacks

2020: 25 Tackles, 4.5 TFLs, 1 sack, 1 INT, 1 FF, 1 TD

Strengths

Alim McNeill is your prototypical nose tackle. He’s great at stopping the run and has a really good feel for offensive line blocking schemes. His first step is astonishing for someone his size and he uses that advantage to reset the LOS. He gets great leverage, extending his arms and really having his way with O-lineman. He has to be double-teamed because he doesn’t get moved with just one blocker. Even still, he is good at fighting with those double teams to maintain position. He’s great at keeping his body parallel to the LOS, not allowing running lanes to open up. His lateral quickness and athleticism shouldn’t be possible for a 320 lb freight train like him.

Weaknesses

His one glaring weakness is that he didn’t have the same sack production that he did a year ago. He needs to get consistency with his pass rush. He’s still a little raw in terms of his technique, but he’s got all the skills there to be a future All-Pro.

Scheme Fit: 3-4 Nose or 4-3 1 Tech

Personally, I think he’s better in a straight 0 in a 3-4 as that’s what he played in college. If needed, though, he can definitely slide over a little and play a 1 tech. He’s a great asset for a team that needs to shore up their interior run defense.

Player Comparison: Vince Wilfork

Vince Wilfork and McNeill are eerily similar in their body size. Wilfork is 6’2 325 compared to McNeill’s 6’2 320. Wilfork was a key run-stuffer in the Patriots dynasty from 2004-2014. He just ate double teams and made running on the Pats so hard. The difference is, McNeill has the ability to develop into a much better pass rusher than Wilfork was.

Draft Prediction: Detroit Lions (2/9)

I could see McNeill Potentially falling. Interior D-line is not the biggest need on a lot of teams, which means a fall. For the Lions, though, they luck into one of the highest ceilings in this draft. Detroit ranked 28th against the run, and McNeill is someone that can help with that need. There is a good chance he gets taken in the first because of his freak athleticism at his size, but will he be a bigger need than some of the other positions available is the question.

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