Ever since he fell past his projected draft capital, eventually to be scooped up by the Indianapolis Colts in the fourth round, defensive tackle Adetomiwa Adebawore has been dubbed one of the biggest values of the 2023 NFL draft.
That continued in the eyes of Pro Football Focus, who labeled one prospect as the biggest steal in each round of the draft. For Round 4, it was none other than the elite athlete with royal bloodlines.
Pick: 110
PFF Big Board: 56Adebawore was always going to have an interesting landing spot. Due to his unique build as a trench player, his range was anywhere from the late first to the early part of Day 3. It ended up being the latter, but to us, that makes him a draft steal.
The versatile Northwestern defensive lineman was 56th on PFF’s final big board. He has an interesting build for a trench player, measuring in at 6-foot-1 5/8 and 282 pounds. He’s small in height compared to NFL edge rushers, and he’s undersized compared to NFL interior defenders. His unique 33 7/8-inch wingspan at that height makes it tempting to still let him rush from the edge — which might be his best spot. But his height and length combination also presents an opportunity for him to find leverage on the interior.
What’s not a question is his athleticism. With a 97th percentile 40-yard dash, 88th percentile vertical and 90th percentile broad (and that’s compared to edge rushers — he ranked in the 99th percentile across the board versus interior defenders) — Adebawore is an explosive player on the line of scrimmage. It will take some creativity to make him a high-impact player, but the mold is there.
The most likely explanation for Adebawore’s fall is due to the fact that he’s a bit of a tweener between an edge rusher and an interior defensive lineman. However, the Colts have made it clear he will be working mostly from the three-technique defensive tackle position behind DeForest Buckner and alongside Taven Bryan.
Adebawore is still plenty raw as a pass rusher when it comes to developing counters and an overall plan when getting after the quarterback. But his elite athleticism should allow him to carve out some type of role in Gus Bradley’s attacking front.
Adebawore was projected to go somewhere between the second and third rounds of the draft so there’s a good chance he winds up becoming one of the biggest values of the entire class for the Colts.
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