Scouting Report: Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, South Florida

Ht: 6'5 Wt: 270 40: 4.64

Strengths: Terrific size and speed. Has room to get bigger. Long arms. He has a very quick first step and often times snaps perfectly. Much more explosive in the three point stance. Has great agility and acceleration. Tremendously athletic. Has great vertical and plays with good balance. Very good pass rusher; a straight finesse player. Although he does use different moves to get to the quarterback, he mainly beats linemen by using his agility and speed, but he is inconsistent in this area. Shows decent closing speed when pursuing the quarterback. I love his hustle to get to the quarterback or ball carrier. Average against the run. Does a good job of keeping his outside shoulder free. I think his strength is a little underrated, but there is still room for improvement. He has the ability to deliver big hits but does not do this consistently. Decent tackler; has room for improvement. Needs to consistently wrap up. Has good versatility, can play DE in the 4-3 and some even see him as a rush OLB in the 3-4. Has a lot of potential if he can improve in certain areas.

Weaknesses: Very raw prospect with little experience against elite competition. Struggles verse double teams. Could improve his technique in pass rushing moves; he will struggle against OT's in the NFL. Does not use his hands effectively; he will need to learn this in order to be an effective pass rusher in the NFL. Needs to be more consistent overall. Struggles to disengage from blockers, needs to get lower when engaged. Will dance around linemen often instead of using moves or techniques. Cannot break down quickly and often over-pursues the ball carrier and the quarterback. Only looks average in coverage. Does not have great awareness.

Summary: Jason Pierre-Paul could be the most athletic player in the draft. He has elite size and speed. His agility and quickness are his main weapons he uses to assaults quarterbacks. He is a very good finesse player who has all the potential in the world. His main con is the fact that he needs improvement in critical areas. He will need to learn to use his hands effectively. This is vital for any pass rusher in the NFL. It will allow him to disengage from linemen and get at the quarterback quicker. Also, when he is rushing the QB he needs to break down so he is not juked out. Despite these weaknesses, Pierre-Paul has a ton of potential. His skill set is amazing and if he can improve in these areas, he could be an elite NFL pass rusher. I like Pierre-Paul the best when his hand is in the dirt and that's where I think he has the best chance of being an exceptional athlete at a professional level. He will most likely be picked in the top 20 this April.

Draft Projection: Top 20