Player Bio
Lewis had some bad luck with injuries during his career at Alabama but finished strong. He was a second-team All-SEC selection in 2019 after racking up 31 tackles, 11.5 for loss, six sacks and two pass breakups in 11 games (three starts). The former five-star recruit and Washington D.C. Gatorade Player of the Year at St. John’s High School played in 11 games as a true freshman (11 tackles, one sack). Going into the 2017 season, he changed his last name from Hall to Lewis for undisclosed reasons. That fall, he played in four games with one start (16 tackles, two for loss, one sack) because he missed 10 contests with an upper arm injury. Lewis’ bad luck continued as he underwent surgery for a torn right ACL in the summer of 2018, resulting in a lost redshirt season.
AnalysisDraft Projection
Rounds 5-6
NFL Comparison
Andre Branch
Overview
The evaluation requires both projection and a small leap of faith due to durability concerns after he missed most of two full seasons. He needs to fill out his long, athletic build with more girth and muscle to help set stronger edges and hold his ground against downhill rushing attacks. He’s played in just 26 games, so he’s less technically sound than most Alabama defenders at this stage, but he was still productive and showed growth as a player in-season. With more coaching and development as a rusher, he should be able to pair traits with skill to become a future NFL starter, provided his health issues are in the past.
Strengths
- Long-limbed, athletic frame that should keep filling out
- Exciting physical and athletic traits to work with
- Keeps eyes on the football through the block
- Plays with above-average football awareness
- Ability to stab a blocker’s frame with length whenever he wants
- Strides eat up ground quickly on the way to the football
- Flashed considerable upside potential
- Slaps and clears the blocker’s post on effective inside moves
- Spin move went from basic to dangerous by Tennessee game
- Ability to build momentum as downhill rusher
Weaknesses
- Major injuries wiped out most of 2017 and all of 2018
- High-cut frame (long legs, shorter torso)
- Lacks anchor to set and hold a strong edge at the point of attack
- Upper-body strength needs work
- Average explosiveness up to the rush arc
- Not a natural bender to play under redirects at the top of the rush
- Opponent’s power stalls pass-rush intentions
- Activation of rush counters not yet instinctive
- Needs to improve and empower his hands
- Balance and technique are below par as tackler
(Lance Zierlin – NFL.COM)