2015 NFL Draft: A Scout's Eye View, Jake Ryan LB Michigan

Jake Ryan LB Michigan 6'2 240 31" arms 9 3/8" hands

Comine Results: 4.65 40 yard dash, 20 bench reps, 34.5" vertical jump, 120" broad jump, 7.11 3 cone drill, 4.20 20 yard shuttle, 11.65 60 yard shuttle

Scouting Notes: Fifth year player and a two time team captain at Michigan...Considered an unselfish blue collar worker who'll do anything to help his team win as evidenced by his multiple position changes throughout his career, moving from defensive end to outside linebacker to inside linebacker, and was solid in everything he was asked to do, very much a team first guy, cares little about individual accolades...Hard nosed high motor competitor, relentless in pursuit....Intriguing to see how he will perform when he's able to settle in to one position...Displayed better than expected natural athletic ability at the combine, tested better than most expected...Very physical, has good size and take-on strength, shows the ability to shoot his hands take on the blocker and hold his ground in his assigned gap, stack and shed... Doesn't try to run around blockers and rarely gets driven backward...Fights through blocks well to get to the football...High football IQ, has been knocked by some for slow reactions but he has good eyes, good natural football instincts and good reaction skills given his multiple position changes, he does need to improve in these areas at the next level, but he should only get better as he settles into one role...Very assignment sure, doesn't freelance, always where he's supposed to be in coverage or in terms of gap responsibility against the run...Rarely takes false steps, consistently flows to the football ....Better in coverage than expected, has good speed, light feet and pretty loose hips for a linebacker, has good vision and good awareness in space, equally adept in man to man and zone coverage...Effective blitzer both up the middle in the A and B gaps and off the edge, shoots gaps with authority, gets good inside hand positioning when he has to take on a blocker and shows the ability to use leverage to his advantage, has better skills as a pass rusher than most inside linebackers thanks to his time playing defensive end, has an advanced feel for pass rush techniques for the position...Pretty good flexibility, shows the ability to dip under blockers off the edge when called upon, flatten down the line and get to the football behind the line...Has impressive range sideline to sideline and good straight line speed...Lacks twitch and short area burst, below average change of direction skills...A hard hitter who drives through his man and a good sound wrap up tackler...Has had knee issues in the past, tore his ACL in 2013, so he'll be two years recovered as a rookie and should show added speed, burst and confidence...Ryan is a versatile defensive performer with a wide range of skills, could be a valuable game day active player capable of backing up multiple positions and fill multiple roles if that's what he's asked to do....A mid to late round sleeper who was never able to settle into one position at Michigan but possesses starting caliber potential in the right role, most likely fits best as a 3-4 ILB but has the schemematic versatility to perform in a 4-3 scheme as well, has the potential to be a three down guy, maybe sooner than expected.