Finesse edge defender with traits, athleticism and upside to have his sack production translate to the NFL. Umanmielen is a serious ground-gainer with burst, stride and bend to create shallow edges leading directly into the quarterback’s drop space. He’s not instinctive and takes predictable pathways to the pocket, but he’s simply hard to keep out of the pocket due to his attributes. He lacks play strength and aggression as a run defender. He will have trouble setting edges and might not be an early down option early in his career. Umanmielen is an ascending stand-up edge rusher who might be just scratching the surface of his already threatening rush talent.
Despite consecutive seasons of production in opponents’ backfields, Ivey’s strengths and weaknesses converge for a feast-or-famine playing style. His rush is segmented and leggy with average short-area closing burst for an edge rusher. He lacks anchor and contact balance to command the point. On the other hand, Ivey is surprisingly slippery, using his stride, length and upper-body swivel to shapeshift and circumvent blocks. He needs to play with a little more edge but has enough disruption potential to become a rotational 4-3 defensive end with sub-rush potential inside.
