Trenton Simpson 2023 NFL Draft profile: Scout report for the Clemson LB

Having been pretty much head-to-head with Oregon’s Justin Flowe and Noah Sewell for the title as the No. 1 linebacker recruit in 2020, Clemson's Trenton Simpson already flashed as a true freshman.

But he really impressed in Year Two, when he recorded 65 total tackles, 12.5 for loss, 6.5 sacks and two passes broken up in the STAR role, which guys like Dorian O’Daniel and Isaiah Simmons played before him under Brent Venables.

This season, he played between the tackles more regularly, and while his negative plays created went down (four TFLs and 2.5 sacks), he did reach a career-high 72 tackles, three PBUs and a couple of forced fumbles.

Trenton Simpson, Clemson

6’3”, 225 pounds; junior

His short-area explosiveness really pops off the screen, whether he can flat-out shoot through a lane before the blocker can get there or he actively backdoors zone blockers and still flattens down to the back (the 4.43 at the combine backed that up)
Does a nice job of moving laterally with blocks on the move and disengaging at the right moment, to get the wrap on the ballcarrier
With him at the tip of tight bunches, those receivers have no chance of actually keeping him from the action as blockers
When offenses use lead blockers on Simpson, he will blast into them and actually knock them backwards, even if they outweigh him by 30-plus pounds
If tight ends are asked to seal him on the backside, this guy will lift them off their feet momentarily or completely throw them to the side at times
Leaving him unblocked as an edge defender, when running the ball the other way, is a gamble, because he has that short-area burst to run people down before they get to the line of scrimmage, if they have top hesitate at all
So light on his feet when tracking ballcarriers out to the perimeter and keeping his shoulders square in order to not make it easy for the guy across from him to get around him (to either direction)
Pretty reliable tackler who shoots his arms and chops down ballcarriers on an angle when corralling them in open space (10.5% miss rate across the past two seasons)
This is an incredible loose athlete whose movement in space as a coverage asset will make him very intriguing to NFL teams
Has the speed to carry receivers down the seams or hashes and then can redirect to be in the vicinity for crossers, once he’s passed them on to his safeties, There are a couple of really impressive reps running with tight ends straight down the field and raking the ball out of their hands
You can’t really attack this guy with running backs sliding across his alignment or releasing late, because of how quickly he closes that distance to them in man-/match-coverage
Even if he does get sucked up by play-action, he can rapidly gain depth and take away easy opportunities on crossers over his head
Very light on his toes, to not get caught in the mud as tight-ends try to break away from him
Understands where his leverage is, how much gain to depth in his drops and peaks out to potential receivers breaking his way
Greets targets coming into his area as a hook defender by throwing a friendly shoulder into them regularly
Has the quick burst to chase down scrambling QBs effectively
If Simpson can time the snap properly and come in as a blitzer with a running start, he’s like a missile. And you regularly see him just run through the reach of backs in protection, while making good use of his active hands generally, to sidestep them
Particularly being lined up over the center initially and then shooting to then through B-gap makes him highly dangerous
His lateral agility and how quickly he closes that space to the QB, led to him regularly being deployed as a spy and/or add-on rusher, where he tpyically elevated to take away passing lanes
Was blitzed off the edge on multiple occasions, where he could win with speed or then counter inside as he gets tackles to flip their hips
Once again, with guys playing that overhang position for the Tigers in recent years, there’s no one legit spot they can plug him in right away (at least in terms on base packages)
Had very little experience reading the run in-between the tacklesbefore this season, where he seemed to be more reactionary and didn’t look very comfortable trying to take on blockers near the point of attack – more of a see-ball, get-ball type of player right now
Regularly takes the worse off contact with O-linemen in the run game and when he gets caught off balance, trying to shoot through a crease, he gets taken for a ready by some guys. And he needs to keep his outside arm free when tasked with contain responsibilities
While his coverage profile is highly intriguing purely from what he can do athletically, he was largely a spot-dropper in zone, and he doesn’t yet have that feel for find the right balance between reading the QB’s eyes and targets in space
For a guy with nearly 1,500 defensive snaps in his career and appealing because of the way he can play in space, no interceptions and five PBUs is underwhelming ball-production

In contrast to Iowa’s Jack Campbell, who is your prototype middle linebacker from days past, Simpson is very much in the mold of what the NFL has been transitioning to, in order to counter 11-personnel heavy offenses and how they’ve attacked slower bodies in coverage.

Simpson has legit sideline-to-sideline speed, and you love the way he can move in space – gaining depth, flipping his hips and quickly erasing distance. However, I was a bit discouraged by the fact that his instincts as a zone-defender, to see/feel receivers around him and still trigger as he sees the quarterback initiate his release.

That combined with being a lot more impactful as a run-and-chase type of player has me thinking he actually project for a more narrow role than some people would make you think – a WILL linebacker with heavy usage in man-coverage against backs and tight ends. On top of that, where he can still become a real asset is as a spy or add-on rusher against mobile quarterbacks in obvious passing situations.

Grade: Second round

You might like other 2023 NFL Draft Scouting Reports: Noah Sewell, LB, Oregon, Drew Sanders, LB, Arkansas, Daiyan Henley, LB, Washington State, Henry To'o To'o, LB, Alabama, DeMarvion Overshown, LB, Texas, Ivan Pace Jr., LB, Cincinnati, Dorian Williams, LB, Tulane, Jeremy Banks, LB, Tennessee.

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