Positional ranking: #2

Big Board ranking: #60

 

Overview

Position: DL

College: Iowa

Class: Sophomore (RS)

Age: 22

 

Measurables

Height: 6’3”

Weight: 313 lbs.

Arm length: N/A

Hand size: N/A

 

Athletic testing

40-yard dash: 4.90 sec.

Vertical jump: 28.5″

Broad jump: 106.0″

Bench press: N/A

3-cone drill: 7.68 sec.

Short shuttle: 4.70 sec.

 

Strengths

Strong and bowling ball-like build. Excellent feet for a big man. Great natural athleticism. Good power for his size. Tremendous first-step quickness. Fast and disruptive shooting gaps. Knows how to get skinny between blockers. Uses swim move while getting upfield. Able to side step to beat a block. Very effective hands and upper body. Broad shoulders. Elite club move. Exceptional overall awareness. Outstanding play recognition and reaction time when engaged. Plus acceleration and speed. Aggressive as a tackler with the ball in range. Can anchor down and create leverage at the point of attack. Good ability to read the quarterback and tries to jump to deflect passes. Often commanded double teams as a rusher. Ideal physicality and demeanor. Impressive skillset on display whenever he gets his hands on the ball.

 

Weaknesses

Gets a bit out of control or stalls out when stopped early as a rusher. Needs to avoid getting too upright. Would like him to have more of a second gear to counter. Didn’t see enough consistent disruption.

 

NFL comparison

Tommie Harris

 

Conclusion

Overall, Nixon is a disruptive defensive lineman with both strength and finesse to be a three-down option in any scheme that allows him to consistently shoot gaps. He should be a very solid selection on Day 2 for a team like Las Vegas or Philadelphia.