Carter's Classroom draft profile: Carl Lawson, edge rusher taken at Highmark Stadium (Steelers)

Carl Lawson. - AP

The Steelers' need for an edge rusher leans more toward wanting an outside linebacker of the stronger variety which could set the edge and overpower offensive tackles opposite of the faster and leaner Bud Dupree.

Adding that style of player creates diversity in their types of edge rushers and allows them to place the stronger player on the edge of the strong side of the offense so that Dupree can attack the weak side with his faster burst attacking the quarterback's blindside on passing downs.

When it comes to strength, there's no candidate who is stronger in this NFL draft class than Auburn's edge rusher: Carl Lawson.



Lawson was plagued by injuries during his career at Auburn. He had to redshirt what was going to be his sophomore season in 2014 with a torn ACL and then missed half of 2015 with another knee injury. He did complete his junior season in 2016 without any injury issues, but he decided to forego his senior season after he recorded 9.5 sacks and 14 tackles for loss.

His combine showed why he was known as a tone setter with big hits at Auburn, as he set the highest amount of repetitions at the bench press with 35. That wasn't just the highest among edge rushers, that was the best performance among all participating athletes. That means that he put in better numbers than every offensive linemen in this draft class, which should turn heads for teams that need someone that can combat offensive tackles and set the edge.

Lawson also had the best 20-yard shuttle time among defensive ends with a 4.19-second and was the fourth best when you ranked him among linebackers. His physical strengths allow for him to be a quick player off the ball that can overpower tackles with his upper body strength as well as his leg drive.

His 4.67-second time in the 40-yard dash wasn't amazing, but it did place him as the eighth fastest of defensive ends in this draft class. That time is good enough for a player that displayed the strength which Lawson did to make him a good prospect to consider.

QUICK OFF THE LINE

What every edge rusher has to possess to be considered as a prospect to be drafted in the earlier rounds is a good first step. Lawson has one of the best of his class and he used it to put pressure on the outside shoulder of offensive tackles. If his opponent was a little slow to getting out of their stance Lawson could capitalize like this:



That's important in the NFL as this is the base athleticism needed to be a good outside linebacker that puts pressure on quarterbacks. But as we've made clear in our series of draft profiles on edge rushers, it takes a lot more than just being able to fire off the ball and occasionally beat offensive tackles to get after the quarterback to be effective in the NFL.

SPEED TO POWER

What Lawson adds to his speed rush is the upper body strength we talked about earlier. When Lawson is continuously firing off the ball against offensive tackles, their immediate reaction on passing downs will be to take deeper drops and try to establish deeper anchor steps to counter his quickness off the line.

Lawson has a good counter of that, and its using his top-of-the-line upper body strength. His tape shows plenty of examples in which he overpowers opponents as they try to compensate for his ability to breeze past them.

Watch how he deals with the tackle from Georgia, as he forces him to drop five yards into the backfield, and then applies a solid punch that continues the momentum needed to get there so much that it topples the tackle and clears the path for Lawson:



Athleticism comes in many forms, as many people consider it purely speed and agility, but power needs to be considered as well. Lawson is the one of the best examples you'll see in this year's draft of how raw power can used to win off the edge.

His combination of strength in his upper body and his legs is his greatest asset. While he still has work to do to improve the techniques he employs to win edge battles, the skills he does possess suggest he could have a high ceiling in the NFL.

NEEDS TO REFINE PASS RUSH MOVES

Many of Lawson's sacks come from quick moves off the edge or physically beating offensive tackles one way or another. That's great, but he often did not include clean moves like that of Derek Barnett or Tim Williams.

The best NFL edge rushers usually employ a good rip move, spin move, or some mix of solid hand techniques that can be used to manipulate and rip off offensive linemen.

Lawson does not really have one of those specific moves that he can say is his own. Many of his sacks are like the one below, in which he gets a good jump off the line and is able to overpower the hands of the tackle to gain leverage:



Notice it's not really any specific move that wins the battle for Lawson here. While it gets the job done in this instance, the NFL is a league in which better use of his hands is going to be needed for him to win more one-on-one battles on the edge.

Watch how that lack of moves leads to him being shut down in this passing play against Alabama:



Lawson tries his normal pass rush move but its stopped, and he has no effective counter. When coming off the edge like that, a rip or a swim move are solid techniques to challenge the offensive lineman's outside shoulder.

Even if that fails, Lawson could try to setup to come back to the inside by using his inside hand to keep the lineman at bay while he sets up to chop at the hands of his opponent and cut back to the inside and cross his face.

Lawson's lack of effective pass rush moves are a big part of why he isn't considered to be a first-round prospect. That on top of his injury history, lack of lateral movement and his frame of 6-foot-2, 267 pounds is shorter than others he has to compete with in this class.

GREAT AGAINST RUN

One thing I enjoyed watching on Lawson's film was how he dealt with the run. His strength was best used in countering the strong side of the offense at key points.

To best illustrate these points, we included three plays of him against the run when Auburn faced the NCAA's most consistently productive rushing program, Alabama.

Watch how he deals with being trapped on the strong side of a run play. Lawson chips the tight end to prevent a clean release, an important detail in case of a pass play to the tight end. He then recognizes that the tight end is leaving him alone and moves to take on the pulling center:



Lawson stops the center's entire momentum and controls him at the point of attack. His stopping of the center prevents Jalen Hurts from ever finding a seam inside of the cornerback.

Lawson's strength allows him to more easily engage and disengage with blockers. It also allows him better opportunities to control and leverage his position on the edge against the run.

Watch how he sets the edge on this run play. While he does not make the play in this instance, he does a solid job jumping to the outside and doing his job to make sure the run cannot get outside of him:



Lawson's strength allows him to win battles like these. They may seem unimportant when he's not making the play, but it's fitting roles like this that can make for a good outside linebacker. If he wins these battles when he's not at the point of attack, it could lead to his success when he is at the crux of where the offense is looking to win.

Watch when he did just that on the edge on a third and inches situation against Alabama:



Lawson gets his hands to the chest of the tight end that tries to block him, winning the hand battle. He finds a way to maintain leverage on the edge and shed through to tackle the running back and lead the charge that makes this a tackle for loss.

That strength on the edge makes him an asset. His combine performance is backed up with a tape that shows that strength coming into play in college.

STEELERS STOCK

But is Lawson's strength what the Steelers need for their scheme?

That question has to measure multiple factors that go into what the Steelers specifically need from their outside linebackers. Strength and run stopping is important, but their problems on defense stem from issues with not creating enough pressure on the quarterback.

James Harrison made his career from overpowering opponents, and Lawson would most likely need to do the same. But Lawson would have to develop the many refined pass rush moves that Harrison has used in his career to learn how to better leverage that strength.

Lawson could be a tone-setter with the way he seeks to win physically dominate opponents as he certainly has the physical capability to do so. But the question of whether he can develop the skills that Kevin Colbert would want in a better pass rusher would be the one that would be asked every week during his rookie contract should he be in Pittsburgh.

The good thing about Lawson is that despite his strength, he does not have a high stock in this class. Lawson is predicted to go as low as the third and even fourth rounds in some mocks. Rankings among defensive ends and outside linebacker have him farther back, so could be a prospect the Steelers consider for their second or even one of their third-round picks.

That would allow them to go after an inside linebacker in the first round and consider other needs in the second round, like finding a playmaking safety to sit behind Sean Davis and Mike Mitchell and learn while they start. The Steelers could also consider one of the earlier quarterback prospects on the board.

However, the Steelers need someone who is adept at winning battles on the edge to get after the quarterback. Each year when the draft season comes, the vast number of prospects and the great athleticism at various positions can fade the focus from this point, but it's an absolute must to bring the defense of the future which Colbert and Mike Tomlin have been building.

Dupree has the potential to become a double-digit sack producer, but the Steelers need someone that can also bring that same kind of potential from the opposite edge. Lawson could end up being the guy the Steelers try to fill the position with if they don't deem any of the pass rushers available at the 30th pick to be the best player available.

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