It is officially mock draft season! The 2022 NFL Draft is quickly approaching, with the first round kicking off on Thursday, April 28th. Of course, draft analysis, projections and rumors will be dominating the headlines until then. Among the players expected to hear his name called on the first day is linebacker Nakobe Dean out of Georgia.
The following is a complete Nakobe Dean NFL Draft profile, including stats, highlights and a mock projection.
Nakobe Dean NFL Draft Profile, Stats, Highlights and Projection
Nakobe Dean
Position: Linebacker
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 225 lbs
Age: 21
College: Georgia Bulldogs
Nakobe Dean Stats 2021 | Georgia
G | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD | FF |
15 | 72 | 10.5 | 6.0 | 2 | 5 | 2 |
Nakobe Dean Draft Profile
Strengths
When one watches film of Nakobe Dean, the first thing that stands out is his explosiveness. His athleticism is top-notch when it comes to the linebacker position in the 2022 NFL Draft class. Dean combines his high-end burst and acceleration with all-around agility and quickness. He has no issues moving laterally or vertically. Where these traits really show up is in pass coverage. Dean has the goods to stay with opposing running backs who leak out of the backfield. As a pass-rusher, Dean got home plenty throughout his time at Georgia thanks to his burst, power and leverage technique.
Weaknesses
Probably the greatest knock against Dean leading up to the draft is his atypical size relative to the position he plays. Dean lacks the ideal size and length for an NFL-caliber linebacker. These physical limitations probably hurt his open-field tackling more than anything. Dean is also purely average when it comes to diagnosing plays. Sometimes, he jumps the gun on a partial but false read which leaves him susceptible to fakes by a savvy opposing quarterback.
Nakobe Dean Highlights
Nakobe Dean Draft Projection
All 2022 NFL Draft Projections are taken from the latest Sporting News NFL Mock Draft by Vinnie Iyer.
Nakobe Dean is currently projected to be drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles at No. 18 overall.
For more 2022 NFL Draft coverage and player profiles, check out our NFL Draft page.