What pre-draft scouting reviews mentioned about Giants LB Darius Muasau

From Lance Zierlein:

Linebacker with muscular construct and an unrelenting need to chase after the soccer. Muasau performs with an exceptional motor and has the instincts and recognition to get the soar on blocking schemes. He performs with good preliminary quickness however lacks prolonged pursuit pace in house. He’ll take pictures downhill to spoil the motion, however groups should reside with missed tackles and inconsistent leverage in his pursuit. Muasau can deal with some primary short-zone protection however might get in hassle if the protection expands into bigger areas. He has the potential to make the again finish of a roster as a late-round decide or precedence free-agent addition.

From Dane Brugler:

A two-year starter at UCLA, Muasau performed Mike linebacker in former defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn’s 4-2-5 base scheme. After three productive seasons at Hawaii, he led the Bruins in tackles in each of his seasons in Westwood and has a powerful collegiate resume — he performed in each recreation the final 5 years and compiled 440 tackles and 40.0 tackles for loss. A fast-reacting defender, Muasau has the imaginative and prescient that offers him a head begin on the play, which expands his lateral vary and helps him make stops close to the road of scrimmage. He’s conscious in short-zone protection, though he lacks the motion abilities to remain related to backs or tight ends in man protection. Total, Muasau won’t be elite in anyone space, however he’s a well-rounded linebacker with the play recognition and tackling abilities that can translate to any stage. Comparable in methods to Sione Takitaki, he initiatives as an NFL backup who can maintain his personal when he sees the sector.

From Jared Maslin:

Darius Muasau initiatives as a backup Mike linebacker who has some scheme versatility however matches finest in a 4-3 scheme. He’s undersized however has a well-built body with muscle all through. His instincts and play recognition are inconsistent as he tends to react shortly, typically blowing up performs on the LOS, however different instances misreading the play and getting taken out of place. He assaults the road with vigor and pursues the ball all around the subject. Muasau struggles persistently wrapping up and has sticky hips that hinder his COD in opposition to faster gamers. He lacks the traits to be dependable in man protection, and his zone protection capacity in a brief space is sound, however he struggles in a much bigger space. On third downs, he could also be a blitzer as he has proven a capability to get to the QB, and he ought to be a contributing particular groups participant.

From PFF:

Muasau performs a method of linebacker each defensive coach will love, however he wants so as to add extra power and should anticipate with extra regularity to make up for outlier measurables to be greater than a particular teamer.

From Bleacher Report:

Darius Muasau is an instinctual linebacker whose play pace is best than his testing numbers recommend. That’s how he makes performs as a run defender and in protection, as he’s in the suitable spot as a rule. He’s additionally a bodily participant and was a productive pass-rusher for an off-ball linebacker with 16.5 profession sacks in faculty.

Nonetheless, it’s unclear how effectively Muasau’s recreation will translate to the NFL since he’s on the smaller facet and posted underwhelming numbers on the mix. His lack of pace does present up in opposition to outdoors runs, and it may be a problem in man protection in opposition to sooner tight ends and operating backs.

The UCLA product is well worth the gamble within the later rounds, although. He’ll probably must make a reputation for himself on particular groups to earn a roster spot, which he did some however not quite a bit in faculty.