2025 NFL Combine: What the Tape Says About Edge Defender Workout Warriors

What He Did: At 6-foot-5 and 267 pounds, Stewart put up numbers you'd expect from an edge defender three inches shorter and 20 pounds lighter. His 4.59-second 40-yard dash was fourth-highest among all edge guys, his 1.58-second 10-yard split ranked third, his 40-inch vertical leap ranked second, and his 10-foot, 11-inch broad jump ranked first. 

Stewart's 1.58-second 10-yard split, tied for the second-fastest mark by any defender over 265 pounds over the last 15 seasons. The only 260+ edge rusher with a faster time? Nick Bosa in 2019 (1.55 seconds).

Now, when you see this athletic profile comparison below, keep in mind that Myles Garrett was much more productive as a pass-rusher for the Aggies from 2014-2016 (certainly from a sack perspective), so we're not doing like-as-like with a guy who was the first overall pick in the 2017 draft, and has lived up to all of it since. But there's more to Stewart's game than people may think if they're just box-score scouting. 

What It Means: Stewart, who played at about 280, amassed six sacks, 12 quarterback hits, 61 quarterback hurries, 38 solo tackles, and 28 stops over three seasons with the Aggies. Last season, he totaled two sacks, 39 total pressures, 18 solo tackles, 17 stops, and three tackles for loss. And it really was a case in which the tape was quite a bit better than the stats a lot of the time. Once he upgrades his library of pass-rush moves at the NFL level (which most defensive linemen need to do), those numbers will start to bump up in line with his athletic abilities. 

Landon Jackson, Arkansas

What He Did: Shemar Stewart and Landon Jackson are the third and fourth defensive linemen at the scouting combine since 2003 to weigh 260 or more pounds, and have a vertical jump of 40 or more inches. joining former former first-overall picks Mario Williams and Myles Garrett. The 6-foot-6. 264-pound Jackson was top eight among edge defenders in the 40-yard dash (4.68 seconds), led all edge defenders in the vertical at 40.50 inches, and only Stewart had a longer broad jump than Jackson's 10 feet, nine inches. 

What It Means: Production has not been a problem for Jackson over three seasons with the Razorbacks. He's amassed 18 sacks and 76 total pressures in that time. In 2024, he totaled seven sacks, 35 total pressures, 35 solo tackles, 33 stops, and three tackles for loss. In Jackson's case, the agility and strength indicated by his testing numbers show up in his demonic speed to the pocket, and in his upper-body power. He'll use that to long-arm good offensive tackles right into the pocket, and that includes Texas left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr., who might be a top-10 pick in this draft. 

Moreover, Jackson did a lot of that work in three-man fronts without the help of extra defenders a lot of edge defenders have. He will need to get a bit stronger in his lower body and avoid rushing from too upright a base, but there's a lot to like here. 

Donovan Ezeiruaku, Boston College

What He Did: The 6-foot-2 1/2, 248-pound Ezeiruaku didn't run a 40-yard dash at the combine, but he did well in the vertical leap (35.5 inches) and the broad jump (9 feet, 11 inches). Where he really stood out was in the three-cone drill (6.94 seconds) and the 20-yard shuttle (4.19 seconds). Both of those numbers lapped the field of edge defenders by a fairly wide margin. 

What It Means: Ezeiruaku saw his snap count increase in each of his four seasons with the Eagles, and 2024 was his best season to date. He had 14 sacks, 60 total pressures, 41 solo tackles, 42 stops, six tackles for loss, and three forced fumbles. Based on his tape, I wish he would have run a 40-yard dash already just to see the 10-yard split, because Ezeiruaku comes off the snap like a scalded dog, and it's sometimes tough for tackles to get their hands up before he's halfway by them to the pocket. 

Ezeiruaku also measured in with 34-inch arms, and that's a great number for his physical profile. Regarding the short-area agility required to put up the totals he did in the three-cone and the shuttle, that's definitely all over his tape in how he's able to slip by tackles to the quarterback. Ezeiruaku is more likely to run around blockers than through them, but there is some nascent speed-to-power stuff there. At the NFL level, he might be a stronger version of Philadelphia Eagles speedster Nolan Smith. 

Collin Oliver, Oklahoma State

What He Did: Oliver played in just two games for the Cowboys last season before a foot injury shut him down. Clearly, he had fully recovered from that by combine time. He finished behind only Tennessee's James Pearce Jr. in the 40-yard dash among edge defenders (4.56 seconds), behind only Pearce in the 10-yard split (1.57 seconds), behind only Landon Jackson and Shemar Stewart in the vertical jump (39 inches), and behind only Stewart and Jackson in the broad jump (10 feet, six inches). Plus, he looked as smooth as an off-ball linebacker in the drills, which should come as no surprise, as he has off-ball experience, as well. 

What It Means: In those two 2024 games, Oliver put up two sacks and 14 total pressures on just 46 pass-rushing snaps. It was pretty clear that he was on his way to a very big year before the injury happened. And this isn't a two-game wonder — over four Oklahoma State seasons, the 6-foot-2, 24-pound Oliver put up 23 sacks, 134 total pressures, 93 solo tackles, 90 stops, and six forced fumbles. 

Oliver's speed to the pocket is clear, and it matches up with his testing numbers. But where things get interesting for a guy his size is how well he's able to take on blockers 80 pounds heavier, and push through power situations. The speed-to-power potential is evident, and because of the overall pass-rush package, I don't think that Oliver will dry up and blow away when the NFL gets its first crack at him.