Dallas Cowboys 2021 NFL draft positional series: Pass rushers

Miami defensive end Gregory Rousseau has had quite an NFL draft journey. Rousseau entered the 2021 NFL draft as a possible top ten player but underwhelmed during the entire draft process.

Rousseau led the all-hype train during the 2019 season which vaulted him into top prospect consideration but opted out this past season due to the pandemic. The 2019 tape is the only thing to go off of and it was underwhelming to say the least.

Rousseau does have great size standing six-foot-six and a half and weighed in at 266 pounds with an 83-inch wingspan which are all great measurables. His 4.68 forty-yard dash was pedestrian and was likely the final straw that brought the Rousseau house down.

Instead of seeing a player in the mold of former first overall picks like Mario Williams and Jadeveon Clowney, scouts and front office personnel saw what is likely a third-round player.

Rousseau is still very raw and there will likely be an NFL defensive line coach that says he can get the most out of him which could lead to a team taking Rousseau earlier and it would be a huge mistake in my opinion.

Rousseau the player just needs more reps and could be a late riser in the NFL. His 2019 campaign, which started all of this hype, ended with 15.5 sacks which were only second to 2020 first-round pick Chase Young.

Great production but I am still concerned because Rousseau started that season as a rotational piece on the defensive line. Rousseau wasn’t even a full-time starter on his college team yet could be a first-round pick?

I am trying hard to not make this sound like a witch hunt by putting out facts but it is hard to sway away from reality. I cannot envision a team convincing themselves to draft him in the first round.

If he falls out of the first two rounds and the Dallas Cowboys take him, he would be a project but one that does have an NFL future. Rousseau the player is someone who I think could develop in time to have a nice career but he isn’t the edge monster the media is portraying him to be.

A lot of his sacks came from playing the nose tackle or zero technique at Miami. Rousseau on the edge has a ways to go but the thing that stands out is he is not a quick-twitch player. He does however look very comfortable rushing the passer from the inside which suggests to me like his outside game can be fixed with coaching and confidence.

Rousseau should have stayed in school and developed a bit more. If the people around him used the hype to convince him to declare for the draft it could be a fatal mistake in terms of career advice.

I have this player fifth overall in the defensive end category but he has a third-round grade overall.