Pros: He's coachable, but not a real film rat. Before this season, Michael Johnson was a pure pass rusher, but he's shown he's able to play both the run and the pass well. He's huge with long arms and big hands. He's a good athlete overall. He's got great initial burst. He's strong enough to push his blocker backwards. He has shown an adeptness of pass defense after being dropped back into pass coverage. He does a great job in pursuit and does well containing the quarterback. He's too fast for a quarterback to escape. He comes off his block fairly well.
Cons: He isn't known as a leader. He doesn't look real comfortable in his body. Kind of like when a kid grows up really fast, they're a bit awkward doing sports. Has had issues with cramping and fatigue. He's still extremely raw in diagnosing plays, doesn't recognize plays very well at all. He'll get stuck in traffic if the plays is on his side. In run defense, he's a bit too explosive off the ball and will take him out of plays. Doesn't display a great tackling form, just tends to fall on a player.
Overall: Overall, Michael is like playdoh. He's got loads of potential, but also some big holes that could lead to him being a bust. He could become one of the elite defensive ends in the league one day, but coaching will be critical to him. He'd likely be best served by sitting for a year getting even stronger and working on techinique. However, most teams are unwilling to wait a year, so he'll be thrust into action. Because of his impressive physical abilities, he'll be drafted high with the hope that he can become an elite defensive end.
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