Draft Profile: Larry English, DE/OLB Northern Illinois Huskies

Mongol Warlord (Bill Parcells): What is best in life, Larry?

Larry English: To crush your enemy. See them driven before you, and be drafted by the Miami Dolphins.

Cheering and carousing noises in background.

Mongol Warlord (Bill Parcells): That is good.

Here. Get to know some of the #51's handiwork first.



The play at 4:00 is my favorite. The QB has tons of space but English is THAT fast. The QB essentially freezes in terror.

At 6'2" and 254 lbs Larry English will warrant a lot of looks from very different defensive schemes. Though he has barely enough size to play defensive end in a 4-3 he has enough strength to do so. He also seems to possess the speed to play outside linebacker in a 3-4. That's where we're interested.

English performed decently at the NFL Combine, but failed do demonstrate a measurable time for the speed he displays on the field. This is exactly why the combine is often misleading and why a guy like him could slip as far as #44.

With so many new teams switching to a 3-4 alignment this season, the chance that English will slip that far is slim. I believe he'll be there for the Dolphins at #25 but unless he can show some raw ability to play in coverage at his pro day on 3/27.

English reminds me of Joey Porter a lot. Porter played end in college as well, and English seems to have that ability to beat offensive tackles with both speed and power. If you watch the film above, you'll notice English is adept in multiple pass-rushing techniques. The fact that he is not a one-trick pony who can only bull-rush or swim (etc, etc) is a huge boon to his playing OLB. The use of speed and power in alternating downs or even within a single play is what makes a great blitzing linebacker.

The other aspect to Larry Enlgish's game that I particularly like is the fact that he always seems to hit hard. His aren't tripping tackles, or grasping tugs. All the while (and this reminds me of Pittsburgh's James Harrison) he has a hand out to force the fumble. He hits hard and yet still has a mind for the turnover.

Intriguing prospect. He could step in and replace Matt Roth and eventually be groomed to play weakside as the blitzing backer.

His Pro Day will be very telling. He'll be put through a lot of linebacker drills.

Here's an interview with some more highlights.