Seems most draft pundits are critical of our usage of Will McDonald last year:

[Cyinthenorth]

Teams doubled or tripled him and some plays we dropped him in coverage and they had 2 or 3 OL standing around. Might not have showcased him, but put the team at an advantage as evidenced by our great team defense.

It is a testament to Will's character that he stuck it out at ISU, especially if he was getting feedback from scouts that he wasn't getting used to his advantage and Iowa State wasn't allowing him to showcase. I hope he is rewarded for his loyalty and goes on to have a remarkable NFL career.

 

[clonedude]

He seems like a classic Za’Darius Smith type role in the NFL.

Smith is 6'4" and 272 lbs. Not 235 lbs.

 

[AuH2O]

They tried this early in his career, didn't they? Seems like he couldn't adjust to the position well enough, as he clearly didn't end up playing that position.

They gave him an opportunity to play OLB in spring and or fall camp. It didn’t work out and he got to break sack records in a great defense.

NFL teams want guys that can get after the QB. He was able to show he could do that while playing a position in this defense that has high levels of responsibility in lane integrity.

How dare our staff allow him to break a record in the most sought after skill for defensive players when they could’ve had him fail as a LB.

Here’s the deal. He’s a DE. He’s a pass rusher. That’s what he is. If an NFL team can turn him in to something more, great. The fact that he’s the size of a LB doesn’t make him a LB. He’s a great pass rusher that is undersized.

 

[isucy86]

They tried this early in his career, didn't they? Seems like he couldn't adjust to the position well enough, as he clearly didn't end up playing that position.

It all comes down to % of time in coverage vs rushing passer. Heacock likes to drop 8 and only rush 3- so in ISU's 3-3-5 standing up wasn't a great fit.

But if Heacock rushed 4 guys most of the time, it wouldn't have been a stretch for McDonald to be a OLB. In the NFL the 3-4 defenses bring a LB on almost every passing down. Will has a chance to be an elite pass rushing OLB in the NFL. Just like Von Miller.

There will be a few questions by NFL folks if McDonald can add 15-20lbs of muscle to compete at a high level against grown men. If not he might just be a pass rush specialist, like Randy Gregory was early in his career with Dallas.

 

[Cyinthenorth]

They gave him an opportunity to play OLB in spring and or fall camp. It didn’t work out and he got to break sack records in a great defense.

NFL teams want guys that can get after the QB. He was able to show he could do that while playing a position in this defense that has high levels of responsibility in lane integrity.

How dare our staff allow him to break a record in the most sought after skill for defensive players when they could’ve had him fail as a LB.

Here’s the deal. He’s a DE. He’s a pass rusher. That’s what he is. If an NFL team can turn him in to something more, great. The fact that he’s the size of a LB doesn’t make him a LB. He’s a great pass rusher that is undersized.

So most likely the team that drafts him will be looking for a pass rush specialist and operates a 4-down lineman scheme...in my mind at least. He won't play every down at the next level, but will come in on 3rd downs and possibly play on special teams.

 

[Cyinthenorth]

It all comes down to % of time in coverage vs rushing passer. Heacock likes to drop 8 and only rush 3- so in ISU's 3-3-5 standing up wasn't a great fit.

But if Heacock rushed 4 guys most of the time, it wouldn't have been a stretch for McDonald to be a OLB. In the NFL the 3-4 defenses bring a LB on almost every passing down. Will has a chance to be an elite pass rushing OLB in the NFL. Just like Von Miller.

There will be a few questions by NFL folks if McDonald can add 15-20lbs of muscle to compete at a high level against grown men. If not he might just be a pass rush specialist, like Randy Gregory was early in his career with Dallas.

I hope he can add weight, and the important thing will be to add it while maintaining his burst and speed. If he can get up to 245-250 and not drop off somewhere else, he will have some serious staying power in the NFL I would think.

 

[JohnnyFive]

OLB in a 3-4 defense, but that is not how our defense works.

This

 

[AuH2O]

So most likely the team that drafts him will be looking for a pass rush specialist and operates a 4-down lineman scheme...in my mind at least. He won't play every down at the next level, but will come in on 3rd downs and possibly play on special teams.

I agree, and I think he’ll get a nice opportunity. I get the idea that Will would ideally be an OLB based on his size, but I just dont think it’s in the cards for him.

Being great at rushing the QB while being undersized is still going to him opportunities.

But I think it’s important to note that in ISUs defense the DE is way more than a pass rusher. He will be limited by his size a bit, but there’s a role for him in the league for sure.

 

[cyfan92]

He seems like a classic Za’Darius Smith type role in the NFL.

More of the Von Miller and TJ Watt body type. Will can win with speed and length. He could become elite with better hand fighting

 

[BWRhasnoAC]

He will be fine in the league. ISU defense isn't super aggressive. He played the role he was asked to play. Proved he's pretty decent against the run too.

 

[Clonefan94]

Teams doubled or tripled him and some plays we dropped him in coverage and they had 2 or 3 OL standing around. Might not have showcased him, but put the team at an advantage as evidenced by our great team defense.

I commented on this a couple of times during the season. Especially to my dad who said, "Where has McDonald been all year?" I felt bad for Will and his personal stats, but so many teams were focused on stopping him, it helped our overall defense immensely. Will had a huge impact.

 

[AuH2O]

I commented on this a couple of times during the season. Especially to my dad who said, "Where has McDonald been all year?" I felt bad for Will and his personal stats, but so many teams were focused on stopping him, it helped our overall defense immensely. Will had a huge impact.

But that’s why the scout analysis is dumb. It talks about him taking on Ts and double teams. That’s a function of dropping 7-8, not him being “stuck out of position.” If he’s a 3-4 OLB or 4-3 DE that doesn’t change. You are going to be taking on Ts. If you rush 3 it dowsnt matter what your formation or position, if the OL is competent you are going to take on Ts and G/T double teams.

When a college player puts up big sack numbers scouts usually have to sort out how much is scheme, and how much other responsibility does he have. There’s nothing to sort out with Will. He was in a challenging position where it is not easy to rush the QB and all he did was break Vons sack record. Given his length and skill set, at his weight he normally would be way down on boards. He is where he is because he’s proven to be elite in an important skill.

The bottom line his skill set and weight don’t fit in a typical NFL position. But a team will figure out how to use him. Whether he’s a 4-3 DE or 3-4 LB, he’s going to be a pass rusher, and probably a situational player. But he can be a great situational player that has a chance to work into an every down player.

 

[FeedBreece]

Smith is 6'4" and 272 lbs. Not 235 lbs.

I’ve said it 100 times for people when they want a good pro comp: Yannick Ngakoue

 

[flander1649]

This Hall of famer (Derrick Thomas) had very similar size to McDonald (Will is 6'3" 236lbs 4.6s 40). He ended up getting to the 250-260 range for his career. Not saying McDonald will have the same type of career but he will get bigger and probably end up having a good disruptive career. I would love to see him drafted by the Chiefs in the second and take Clark's spot.

 

[RustShack]

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This Hall of famer (Derrick Thomas) had very similar size to McDonald (Will is 6'3" 236lbs 4.6s 40). He ended up getting to the 250-260 range for his career. Not saying McDonald will have the same type of career but he will get bigger and probably end up having a good disruptive career. I would love to see him drafted by the Chiefs in the second and take Clark's spot.

A lot of players were smaller back then than they are now.

But I agree, he’ll be a stand up pass rusher like Thomas, Von Miller, and so on. Could be a third down DE in a 4-3 as well. I’m sure he will be able to add more weight in the NFL as well.

 

[1Nation]

Yeah, our top 10 defense really was a mess.

Having a top 10 defense does not mean that every player was used correctly or in the most beneficial manner to their individual playing style. They aren't mutually exclusive.

 

[ISUTex]

So you think that other teams weren’t concerned about scoring when they wanted to. They only tried when we would score, otherwise they just took naps? This might be the dumbest take I have ever seen

Well, maybe. ISU's defense did have a knack for not stopping teams when they really needed to. I think a lot of that had to do with a lack of pass rush. That being said, ISU's defense was not the reason the season went the way it did.

 

[ZRF]

I think the implication from the writer is he’d done better as a traditional 4-3 edge rusher.

This times a thousand.

We also didn't have the nose presence we've had or the playmaking ability (Rose) at linebacker to free up McDonald. He faced too many doubles and it seemed obvious, at times, that it got to him. I also didn't think he played his best football this year regardless of the situation around him. That's with Anderson having a very good year, IMO.

I'm going to be honest. I've never been a big fan of any 3 front defense as it makes it too easy for teams to win the line of scrimmage and that's half the battle in football. It usually means you need to have at least one adept pass rusher in your LB core and that unit needs to be able to fly to the ball and make plays. The LB corps was probably the 3rd weakeast unit on the team (Sts, OL, LB). It's scary to think how much better the defense could have been (and they were already good) if we had Rose and Enyi this year. The secondary did a fantastic job, especially given the drop in overall play from the dline and (especially) the abilities or our LB core.

 

[AuH2O]

Having a top 10 defense does not mean that every player was used correctly or in the most beneficial manner to their individual playing style. They aren't mutually exclusive.

Having a player breaking Von Millers conference sack record on a great defense means that he was used correctly. This defense played great for 10 games. So yes, that means he was used pretty much exactly as he should be for both the defense and for Will.

Will is not a first round pick because he’s a 235 lb pass rusher, whether that’s as a 4-3 DE or 3-4 OLB. There’s not a way that ISU was going to use him that made him 20 lbs bigger. They tried him as OLB a couple years ago and it didn’t work.

 

[WISCY1895]

College football isn’t about changing your entire defensive scheme to get one player drafted. These experts can go kick rocks.