Kamal Matin | Linebacker| Minnesota | 6'3" - 240 lbs.

 

Overview
Angular linebacker with decent straight-line twitch who takes too long to diagnose and flow, making him a viable block for climbing linemen. He plays upright and a little stiff in his scrapes and doesn't find his run fits as efficiently as he needs to. He can gather and wrap as a tackler, but will struggle to finish elusive backs in the open field and he's unimpressive as a passing-down participant. Martin's lack of early play recognition and elusive flow to ball might push him outside as a 4-3 SAM option.

Strengths
[list]

Good upper-body turn to slip blocks

Triggers for adequate close-out burst to tackle
Late punch and slide to play off blocks
Will fill and spill runners into teammates' grasp
Unflinching and wide-eyed in the hole
Accurate target points to finish as tackler
Provides punt/kick coverage potential[/list]

Weaknesses
[list]

Slow to diagnose and flow allowing blockers to climb up to him

Doesn't play with enough knee bend
Content from second level with sparse downhill production
Lateral movement and change of direction is a little tight
Lacks feel for blocking schemes and optimal entry point
Plays under the block, taking himself out of contention
Coverage movement in space is a little labored[/list]

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