Drop in Sacks Highlight Football Resume of Dallas Turner

I spent nine hours studying seven games of Alabama EDGE Dallas Turner and frankly, I like the ability he flashes.

However, as much as I like him, I can’t get past his stat line. Let’s call it the “elephant in the room,” which is ironic given the elephant noise that sounds in Alabama’s Bryant-Denny Stadium.

37 tackles and 4 sacks in 12 games played last season.

We need to stay here for a good minute and stare at this stat line.

Here’s the other glaring concern. In 2021, he logged 30 tackles, but 8.5 sacks in 10 games played.

Turner’s sack production was cut in half in 2022.

NFL Draft Community

That hasn’t stopped the rest of the NFL Draft Community from doubling down on Turner, who is showing above-average signs of being a bust.

Get this – – over 97% of other draft platforms have stamped Turner with a first-round grade!

Is anyone out there watching the game film besides me?

Turner is more of a pressure pass rusher and a defender who ends up around the run pile after the fact.

Nobody in America can watch these seven games and look me in the eyes and tell me this guy is a first-round prospect.

Does he have potential?

That’s debatable.

If he’s not doing it at the college level, who’s to say he’s going to go up to a higher level of competition and do it in the NFL after he gets paid?

Still – – Walter Football, Pro Football Network, Draftwire, 247Sports, CBS, Fox Sports, NBC Sports Chicago, The Athletic, Barstool Sports, 33rd Team, Bleacher Report, Sporting News, USA Today and Pro Football Focus have all put the first round stamp on Turner.

What did he look like on game film?

Here’s the problem – – Turner lacks the pass rush moves and pure speed it takes to win the edge (even at the college level).

His pass rush is vanilla as ice cream 🍦

I mean c’mon – – three spin moves in seven games and not one other pass rush move shown?

He does the same damn bull rush snap after snap after snap. Sure, he gets some movement (sometimes serious movement), but that’s not a first-round premium.

He also noticeably lacks bend.

And you know what? I think Alabama coaches are starting to realize it. They basically moved him to inside linebacker in the Mississippi State game to put him in more space. However, he wasn’t any more effective there either.

Listen, I’m in love with the pass rush he flashed in the Ole Miss and Texas A&M games. That’s the art of an evaluation – – to state the good and the bad – – and no that’s not hating. It’s writing down what he put on film.

16 solo tackles against the run last season.

What does that tell us?

He’s got the traits to be a pro-day superstar, but these traits are not exactly translating on game film or the sack stat line.

I have a hard time imagining how he’ll be able to beat NFL offensive tackles.

#15 Dallas Turner 6-foot-4, 242 pounds

Daniel Kelly’s Summer 2023 Grade: Third-Round (I would select him)

Projected by 97.9% of the NFL Draft Community to be a first-round pick as of August 8, 2023 (nflmockdraftdatabase.com)

2022 game film reviewed: LSU, Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Texas A&M (click to view games watched to form this evaluation)

2022 stats: 37 tackles (16 solo), 21 assists, 81 pressures, 55 hurries, and 4 sacks

2024 NFL Draft Scouting Report

A long-armed lanky framed athletic prospect who has difficulties defeating blocks. Raw. Fluctuating effort level. Flip flops from left to right side. Can stand up or put his hand down in the dirt. Uses hands well when engaging, but he’s a one-trick bullrush pony with brute power who too often stalls out. A predictable match-up for tackles. Rarely flat-out won the edge due to his average initial speed off the snap. Best when unblocked or has inside leverage into the pocket. Excellent close if he can ever get freed up. Noticeable tightness changing direction in space. Can’t make quick sharp pocket adjustments. Runs all over the place. Drops into short zones. Has average man coverage skills. Showed fight, but was more of an assist guy than a run-defending playmaker.

What to watch for during the 2023 college football season

1. Sack production?

2. Quick change of direction in the pocket?

3. Showing more pass-rush moves?

4. Does he stay at EDGE?

Daniel Kelly is a former NFL Scout with the New York Jets. He was hired on the regime which featured Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick, Scott Pioli, Mike Tannenbaum, and Dick Haley. He is currently the Editor-in-Chief for First Round Mock, contributes at Yardbarker, and has written for Sports Illustrated Lions, Jets, and 49ers, as well as a featured guest on ESPN Radio and Fox Sports Radio. For more information about him visit his website at whateverittakesbook.com. He can be followed on Twitter @firstroundmock.