Editor's Note: This was originally published as a draft profile. We have updated it accordingly.
Quincy Roche is a former three-star prospect out of Owings Mills, Maryland, who played the majority of his college football career at Temple before transferring to Miami for the 2020 season. Roche went to New Town High School in Maryland and put together impressive stats while playing at Temple from 2017-2019.
Had 137 tackles, 39.5 for a loss, 26 sacks, 6 passes defensed, and six forced fumbles at Temple and then put together 45 tackles, 14.5 for a loss, 4.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles while playing for Miami. Roche received an invite to the 2021 Reese’s Senior Bowl.
Traits
He has solid height and weight with adequate overall length and good athletic ability highlighted by an explosive first step, short-area quickness, quick feet, and exceptional lateral quickness. He has very good flexibility in his lower half and does a solid job changing direction in space.
Roche is a very good pass-rushing threat with an equipped arsenal. He flies up the pass-rushing arc with speed and does an excellent job reducing the surface area of his chest.
He dips his inside shoulder well, bends through contact, and corners into the pocket with very good flexibility. He is really quick and has an explosive first few steps that allow him to force tackles into disadvantaged positions.
LockedOn Steelers host Christopher Carter breaks down what the Giants are getting in OLB Quincy Roche at around the 19:20 mark in the above video.
Active hands--he uses club and double swipe move combined with speed up the arc. He possesses solid stop/start ability and a good inside jab fake. Uses an effective strong outside chop/inside shoulder dip to win when tackles over-extend. Closing burst, combined with cornering ability, allows Roche to finish plays well.
He does a good job slanting inside--he stays low with his chest unattainable and uses his quickness/bend to breakaway from taller lineman.
He does a good job disengaging from tight ends in the run game with violent hands; however, Roche can become engulfed by offensive tackles in the run. Tackles tend to make first contact against Roche because his arms aren’t overly long.
He can set the edge but generally gets pushed a little too far up the edge by the tackles inside hand. Play strength is solid, but he may lose more than not, initially, at the point of attack in the NFL. He plays with good mental processing and competitive toughness while being a very good backside pursuit defender with good tackling mechanics.
He’s not a complete liability as a run defender...but he needs to get more consistent in this area to maximize his potential. Roche has shown the ability to drop into coverage, and he has the requisite athletic ability to be a 3-4 OLB who can cover flat zone. Processing and football intelligence suggests that he wouldn’t be lost in coverage since it was common at Miami.
Overall, Roche is an adept pass rusher (although he’s not super long) who could stand to get a bit better against the run. He has several pass-rushing moves, a plan of attack, and has enough athletic traits to make an impact as a pass rusher in the NFL. Roche has a high floor as an NFL player who, at worst, will be a solid rotational pass rusher.
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